When Annie’s son became ill, she took a week off from work to care for him. But when she returned, she was met with a shocking scene: a police officer waiting with handcuffs.
You might think that ten years of dedicated service would make you invaluable to a company, right? Well, that wasn’t my experience.
Let me tell you what happened.
I had been with the company for a decade, starting as a marketing intern fresh out of college and slowly climbing the corporate ladder, though my pay raises were modest.
One day, my five-year-old son, Kenny, fell seriously ill. His fever spiked, and he was continuously vomiting. Naturally, I was extremely worried.
There was no way I could leave him with a babysitter. I needed to be there for him, monitoring his condition and taking him to the doctor if necessary.
So, I decided to call my boss and explain the situation. I hadn’t used any of my leave for the year, so I thought it wouldn’t be an issue.
I left Kenny resting in bed and made the call.
“Hi, Mr. Williams,” I said as he picked up on the first ring. “My son is very sick, and I need to take a week off to care for him. I haven’t used any of my leave yet.”
There was a pause, and then he exploded.
“Are you serious, Annie?” he yelled. “We have our annual general meeting in two days, and you’re bailing on me? I need those marketing reports!”
“I’m sorry, Sir,” I responded. “But I can’t come in. The reports are already done—I emailed them to you yesterday morning.”
Without another word, he hung up.
I didn’t think much of it; Mr. Williams had a reputation for being impulsive and rude.
I spent the next week caring for Kenny. After a few days, he started to recover and was back at school.
When I returned to the office, I was met with a chilling sight. Mr. Williams was sitting in my chair, clapping his hands slowly with a sinister smile on his face.
“Welcome back, Annie,” he said. “I have a surprise for you.”
Before I could react, a uniformed police officer entered the room, handcuffs at the ready.
“Annie Mills,” the officer said sternly. “You have the right to remain silent…”
My heart raced, and my body went numb as he read me my rights.
“What’s happening?” I gasped, struggling to comprehend.
“Annie, it turns out you don’t have a son,” Mr. Williams declared. “You’re going to be punished for your deception. Well played, but you’ve been caught.”
My mind reeled. I had no idea what Mr. Williams was talking about. Of course, I had a son. I was a single mother because Kenny’s father had left when he learned I was pregnant.
As I was led out of the office in handcuffs, I wondered where everything had gone so horribly wrong.
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