Another Step Up The Ladder.

A man goes to work and looks forward to getting promoted.

                                            Another Step Up The Ladder

Derek was ambitious.  He was driven and he knew what he wanted.  He had a nice sports car which gleamed in the sun.  He had lots of money which meant he lived a luxurious lifestyle.  The only thing he didn’t have, and this annoyed him more than anything else, was a woman to share it with.  He had been out on a few dates, but this came to nothing.  

Maybe he was being too fussy?

On Thursday morning he drove to work in a good mood.  

Today was a big day, when finally he would get promoted.  Out of all the staff he was the most reliable.  He’d been there the longest and had gained much experience, also he was the most eager to please.  His bosses noticed this and that is why his name had been chosen in the selected few.  Deep down he knew he had the position.  He didn’t want to brag about it, but he was the best in his field.

The top dog.

He parked the car in the usual spot.  He got out and adjusted his tie.  

A colleague approached him, and said, “Big day today.  Who do you think will get it?”

Derek replied in a confident manner, “Come on, old sport.  We all know who the main man is.”

“Who’s that then?” the man said, looking at Derek suspiciously.

“Just wait and see.  Should be fun,” answered Derek smugly.

The man whose name was Gordon, then said, “It’s good to be confident, but sometimes there is too confident.  If you know what I mean.”

Derek winked at Gordon before saying, “If you want to carry on doing the same boring job all of your life, that’s your problem.  Me, I’m going places.”

Gordon looked unimpressed with that last comment and made his way towards the entrance.

Derek followed.

Once in the building they got into the lift that would take them to floor 3.

Derek enjoyed making fun of Gordon.  But on this day he wanted to act more professional, and said nothing.

The lift doors opened and both proceeded down the corridor.

“See you, mate,” Derek said as he turned left to where his office was.

“Yeah, see you,” replied Gordon half-heartedly

On his desk sat a pile of papers.  He begrudgingly sat down.  

To his right was a window which overlooked a quiet park.  Sometimes while eating his lunch he would pull a chair up to the window and gaze out.  He found this calming.

A few minutes later a knock was heard.  Derek peered up to see Janet standing in the doorway.

“So, do you think you’ll get it?” she asked.

Derek placed his hands behind his head, and said with a big smile on his thirty something face, “Hey, who’s the man.”

She laughed and entered the room.

He moved his chair away from the desk and Janet sat on his lap.

“I’ve missed you, sweetheart,” he said softly into her ear.

“It’s been a while,” she answered.  “But I’m a busy girl, you know that.”

“Why won’t you take me seriously.  Just dump that idiot of a man who doesn’t appreciate you.”

She gave him a longing look.  Then she said, “How’s the date sites going?”

He sighed.  “Dreadful.  I just can’t seem to meet a suitable woman.”

She brushed a hand through his fine hair.

“She’s out there somewhere.  Waiting to be swept off her feet.  It’s nice talking to you, but I’ve got to go.  You know how it is, plenty to do.”

She got up and left the room.

………………………………...............................................................................................

Derek was growing impatient and tapped the pen he held on the desk.

“Come on, I haven’t got all day,” he moaned.

It was 11.36am when a man dressed in a very smart suit appeared at the door.

Derek didn’t find him familiar.  

Maybe he was one of the top dogs of the company?

It was about time, he thought.

“Could you come with me, please,” the man ordered.

“Yeah, sure,” was all he said.

He got up from the comfy chair and joined the tall man in the corridor.

“Follow me, and I will take you to Mr Richards’ office.  He would like a word with you,” said the man.

“Sounds good,” Derek answered.

This day was getting better and better.

He followed the man with a big grin on his face.  He passed Gordon’s office, but his colleague was nowhere to be seen.  

That was strange, he thought.

Both entered the lift which would take them to the highest floor of the building, where the top man’s office was.

While they stood in the lift the man peered over at Derek with a smirk on his face, and said quietly in his ear, “ Mr Richards been talking about you for days now.  He’s really looking forward to this meeting.”

“Hey, you have to be a king to appreciate a king.  Am I right or am I right,” said Derek confidently.

The man then stayed silent.  The smirk still on his face.

After some seconds the lift stopped and the doors opened to another corridor.  The colour of the walls were slightly different to the ones downstairs.

“Mr Richards is very eager to meet you,” the man said.  “It won’t be long now.  So if you’ll just follow me we will be there shortly.”

“No problems,” Derek replied.

Staying a metre behind the man they made their way down the corridor.

The man stopped suddenly at one of the doors, and said, “Mr Richards is waiting for you in this room.  I will stay out here.”

Derek answered, “Fine.”

His heart was beating out of excitement.  He opened the door and walked into the posh looking office.  On the right was a big window which overlooked the tall tower blocks of London.

There was no one else in the room so he waited by the man’s desk.  He wanted to come across as professional.

After 5 minutes he was starting to feel a little on edge.

Where was he?

Then a door slammed on the left of him.  He looked and saw five people, all dressed in expensive suits.  He wasn’t even aware that there was another door.

Four of the men looked in their forties, but the one in the middle seemed a lot older.

The older man with his white hair came forward.  Then he said in a cold tone, “We know what you have done.  And you know what the punishment for such a crime is.”

Derek’s heart started thumping faster.  “I thought I was here for a promotion, sir.  You must have me mixed up with someone else.”

His mouth was dry and he felt scared.

The man was a few inches away, and shouted, “There is evidence that you have been downloading secret files about this company and sharing them with other corporations.  You are a traitor, and it is time for your punishment.”

Derek didn’t know what he was talking about, and pleaded, “This is the first I’ve heard of this.  I’m not guilty of anything.”

“Take him downstairs, Lawrence.  You know what to do with him,” Mr Richards said in a serious manner.

“But I’m innocent, sir.  I swear to you, I would never do such a thing,” begged Derek, his hands together like he was praying.

The old man looked disgusted.  “I’m sick of the sight of him.  Get him out of here.”

The four men came nearer and one put handcuffs on Derek.  Then led him out of the room and down the corridor to the lift.

“Why me?” screamed Derek. 

Today was supposed to be the best day ever.

The tall man with his ugly smirk had joined them in the lift.  Then he said in Derek’s ear, “ Not so cocky now, are you.”

The lift doors opened and Derek still screaming his innocence was led out of the main entrance of the building.  He was pushed to his knees.  He gritted his teeth.  He was absolutely terrified.

The tall man pulled out a pistol and positioned it at the side of Derek’s head.

“Please, just listen to me.  I don’t know anything about this.  I haven’t done anything wrong,” bellowed Derek.

“Stop lying, and shut up,” shouted the man.

There was nothing he could do.  

He peered up at the huge building, and in one of the higher windows he saw Gordon.  Standing with Gordon was Mr Richards.  Both had smiles on their faces.

Then everything became apparently clear.

A few weeks back he remembered Gordon asking him if he could use his home computer, because his computer was being fixed, and he needed to catch up on some work.  Derek agreed to this as he couldn’t see the harm of helping out a colleague.

It was Gordon who had set him up.

Before he had the chance to say anything, the gun fired and blew his head clean off.

………………………………................................................................................................

Gordon had been promoted, and it felt great.

He peered down at Derek’s lifeless body.  

A slight smile appeared on his face, while he muttered under his breath, “Sorry about that, Derek.  But sometimes there is just too confident, if you know what I mean.”

                         The End

Reviews

[Enid Blake]

Poor Derek! I enjoyed this Steve.
There's one typo I picked up, a mised 'd' off 'supposed'. I think the line was 'today was supposed to be the best day ever...'
Let's hope Gordon gets his come-uppance lol :)

[steve]

Thanks, very kind.

[Marie]

Very good. People really scramble to get to the top. Even killing isn't too much. Yet I feel Derek may regret what he's done. After all, somebody may someday want his job...

[steve]

Thanks, Marie. It's really good sometimes to write a new story, and when this came into my head, and I just thought, go for it.

[Marie]

I know you're working hard on your book, but it's nice to see a new story from you.

[steve]

I'm writing another new story, hopefully I'll be able to stick it on here tomorrow. Then I should get back to proofreading.

[Marie]

Good. Keep it up.