Steve sighed and looked at the clock. He had just 5 min to figure out what to do. This was not the way to start a week. He had received the call from Jax, the head of IT and Security Saturday morning. When Jax refused to tell him the problem over the phone, he knew it was big. When he came to the office and watched the video, big turned into shocking.
Sally had always been a star for him. Yes, she was very attractive and a bit of a flirt, but Steve had always been careful to never think about her in any way but as his employee. He viewed himself in being a fair boss, a good leader, and a developer of talent. The reward was the most talented employees wanted to work for him. He had more than his fair share of top candidates that went out to lead other parts of the company. This made him both proud and powerful as his network of close colleagues spread throughout the organization.
Now there was Sally. She was one of the most talented individuals he had mentored. But her headstrong attitude always worried him. (Although, he had to admit he also greatly admired it.) When Jax showed him the video, he knew he had to do something.
"Good morning Steve!" Sally strode in through the door. Her smile vanished when she saw the look on his face. She sat down quietly as he got up to close and, to her surprise, lock the door.
"Sally, I have to be upfront. This has been a tough weekend. I got a call from Jax on Saturday..."
"So there was a video..."
"Damned straight there was a video! What were you thinking? "
"Short answer, I wasn't. I was so pissed, I just reacted. That prick had been riding us all week. He has no clue what it takes to really get the job done. And then he has the balls to pull that stunt."
Steve came around to the same side of the desk. Sitting next to Sally, his tension spilled over her like a wave. "Sally, the rules state that I have to report this to Corporate HR. What do you want me to do?"
Sally looked hard into his eyes. Her resolve was clear. "Steve, be the man I've grown to respect. I've got myself into this. I'll take the consequences"
Steve couldn't help smiling. At that moment he made a life-changing decision. He stood up, reached into his pocket, and tossed a flash drive over to her. "This is the only copy of the video. I personally ensured that it was deleted from the system. Jax has promised not to discuss this with anyone without my permission. You should know that if you had lied or threatened or begged, I was going to turn this in. I don't think that corporate idiot has the stones to discuss this, but if he does it is your word against his."