Morning all. Feeling a bit more normal this morning. Or as normal as I get I suppose. Settled back into my schedule would probably be a more accurate term. And the first thing on that schedule is the morning prompt. Well technically putting the coffee on to brew was step one but as the scent is snaking through the air I am happy to move onto the prompt. So, timers set for fifteen and off we go.
Not sure where this is going, but the theme is one I’ve played with before. I have quite a fw prompts circling the same basic concept of someone cut free from the family business, but I haven’t quite satisfied my brain on a complete story line. I expect I’ll circle this idea a few more times before I land on something I like.
Monday March 31st: I wish it didn’t have to be this way.
“I wish it didn’t have to be this way,” he said. Sean had to give him credit. Jeff didn’t even smirk when the words left his mouth. He had his I’m sincere face on. Sean nodded. He knew there was no point in arguing.
“I am so glad you understand,” Jeff continued. “But the business will only thrive if it is under one person’s leadership. Dad knew that and trusted me at the helm. Having you here would just confuse people.”
“I understand,” Sean said. And he did. Jeff had always wanted to be the sole commander in chief. He chafed under their grandfather and then their father’s command. Now that both men were gone he wasn’t about to share. There would be no delegation. Anyone else the employees might look to for guidance had to be ousted. Sean watched his two uncles leaves a few weeks prior and was quite surprised it took Jeff this long to get rid of him.
“But look at it this way,” Jeff continued. “You have your inheritance and can go off and do whatever it is you want to do with the funds and I am chained here to the company.”
This time, Sean saw the smirk peek out. Jeff received slightly less of a monetary inheritance because he received the bulk of the company shares. In an effort to cut Sean off from the company most of the extra funds he received went to buy not only Sean’s but their uncle’s shares in the company. Jeff was certain however that he could easily make that money back with the company at his disposal.
Sean had his doubts but kept them to himself. He had also made Jeff work hard to convince him to sell his shares so that he wouldn’t think Sean was too eager. In everything Jeff had to think he was getting the better of whoever he was dealing with.
“I’m, sure I’ll find something to do with myself,” Sean told him.
There was little more to say and Sean soon left, trying to look both resentful and resigned. He hated the subterfuge but a lifetime of dealing with Jeff made him certain it was the right thing to do. He had to make Jeff feel that he won if he was going to cut ties with him for good. If Jeff felt victorious then he would leave Sean alone.
That, more than anything else in this world was what he wanted. He hated working at the company but knew it was required. His grandfather demanded all family work for the good of the family company and his father reenforced the idea. As Sean left, he felt as though he was making a grand escape.
‘I wonder if the uncles felt the same,’ Sean mused. They had always seemed pleased by their work at the company. Both Jon and Mark believed that they would take over. Instead when his father Dan took the reigns they were disappointed. Having outlived their brother he was certain they expected to step into the gap and might not be dealing with Jeff’s position well. Since they more or less ignored him, Sean didn’t really feel the need to reach out now and see how they were coping. He wanted to be done, away from all of it. ‘For good.’
Ten til Midnight 