Story: A Simple Act of Delegation. Chapter 10.

by Jackie J

The email addressed to Miss Ferguson, the financial and most senior of the directors at Sapphire and Ross, from Mrs. Ross’s required a second read. When Sheila Ferguson entered Jenny’s office and showed her the email from Mrs. Ross Jenny looked up with a look of practiced surprise and having read through the text again her look of concern was no less convincing.

“It doesn’t say how long she will be away, it’s all rather sudden and no mention of where she is going, or gone just that she is visiting a sick relative? I thought all her family where in the Middle East? Well we will just have to manage Sheila, but why has she chosen me, you I can understand you are the senior director. 

Jenny paused, stood from her desk and handed the email back to Sheila.

Well its clear she wants you and me to hold the fort whilst she is away and I will obviously do what is required, I will come up to your offices later and we can make some plans, will you be letting the other directors know Sheila?

Sheila took back the email and shrugged her shoulders.

“Yes, I will let the others know, can you organise a staff notice Jenny then come up around eleven and we can discuss all this.”

Like all good CEO’s Mrs. Ross was a good delegator and after some initial organizational issues the business settled back seamlessly into its routines with Miss Ferguson and Miss Phillips at the helm. Two weeks passed and a further email, which Sheila shared with Jenny, arrived. The situation had worsened Mrs. Ross asking for the months financials to be sent hoping Sheila and Jenny were coping in her absence but that she could not give a date for her return.

Jenny had moved into Long Acres even using Mrs. Ross’s chauffer company, who were a little surprised that Mrs. Ross had not used them to take her to the airport but happy that Jenny had continued with the contract.

Winnie had been fed and drunk through the ring gag and used the sluice drain previously. Although it was seldom in the past and whilst she had never slept in the apparatus of her confinement this was becoming her life. Sensory deprivation is a cruel and effective tool of disorientation as Jane Simpson had read in the book given to her to read by Jenny.

Time had lost all meaning for the disheveled slavering hooded resident of the back scullery at Long Acres. It was feeding time and Jenny raised the ramp and opened up the cage. Attaching the leash to Winnies collar Jenny pulled her lethargic captive down into the scullery to the rattle of her manacles then out into the kitchen. The hood removed, bleary weak dead eyes blinked in the light. Jenny looked down at a bewildered Winnie and chuckled removing her ear plugs. 

“What does Winnie do when she wants feeding, beg for Jenny.” 

Mrs. Ross was a proud woman and when she realised Jenny’s offer to confine her for an extended session was more sinister than she could ever have imagined she tried to resist, of course she did. The healing welts on her ass bearing testament to that but the weeks of sensory deprivation had taken its toll and broken the confident CEO of Sapphire and Ross into a shadow of her former self. There was no resistance now only compliance and sat back on her haunches with her manacled gloved hands raised to her chest she dutifully begged for each spoonful of her food pushed through her ring gag. 

The plugs reinserted into her ears and the blinding hood replaced Winnie was returned to her cage for her stupefying silent torment to continue. Her empty mind filled now only with the words of her captor. She was a maid, she didn’t remember that but the Lady who fed her had told she was and her continuing imaginings were driven by these thoughts these words, these continually repeated words. She had been a bad maid a very bad maid and when she was released, she would have to be a good maid a very good maid. Flash backs to her previous life grew every more infrequent and distant until they were no more. The woman caged, shackled and hooded robbed of touch, speech, sound and sight for most hours of each endless day becoming an empty vessel into which her new life was being poured. 

Sapphire and Ross continued to prosper under the leadership of Miss Ferguson and the help of Miss Phillips. Updating emails from Mrs. Ross periodically received requesting month end financials never with any mention of her return just that she was increasingly enjoying her time in Yemen and may be considering remarrying. The photograph of her in full Islamic dress with a gentleman outside a mosque seeming to confirm a return to her roots, of course the woman in the in the photograph wearing the niqab could be anyone and of course it was. But who was to know, Mrs. Ross was from the Middle East previous emails, skillfully written by Jenny, had hinted at a relationship and it all seemed to fit. 

Jane had visited Jenny at Long Acre on a number of occasions witnessing the relentless stupefaction of Mrs. Ross.  She had read the book given to her by Jenny but seeing the effects of this insidious process first hand made her shiver. The first two months proceeds from the double mirror program having been siphoned off the sixty forty split, in favour of Jenny, was acceptable to Jane and it was a tidy sum which seemed to justify what Jenny had done to the CEO of Sapphire and Ross.

Almost three months had passed and Jane on another of her visits sipped her wine staring down at the pathetic hooded naked figure curled up at the feet of Jenny on the end of its leash loyally nuzzling its head on Jenny’s legs. Gone the manacles just the cowl along with the ring gag and ear plugs depriving speech, hearing and sight plus the mittens remained. 

“So when will she be ready, she looks ready to me I am anxious to get all this finished and get that bloody Debbie out of the company, she is still a risk whilst she is still there You know one of Jackson’s old clients saw and recognized her the other day Janet Laidlaw from Ellison and Simpkins.

Jenny smiled pulled on the lease raising its head put down her glass and patted the cowl of her willing captive as one would a pet.  

“You worry too much Jane everything is in hand I will get an email prepared the last one I sent hinted thinks were not right this one can come from Mustapha then we will take it from there. Debbie, come on Jane have you seen her recently?”

Jenny patted her pet again and smiled wickedly at Jane with the obvious suggestion.

“You are not suggesting, are you?”

Jane laughed and shrugged her shoulders.

“It’s an option.”

Sheila Fergusson strode into Jenny’s office and slapped an email down on her desk.

“I think you better read this.”

Jenny read the email she herself had written.

“O no, this sounds serious, Mrs. Ross is coming back, this is from the guy she was considering marrying isn’t it? A breakdown? What sort of breakdown? He is not coming with her? Poor Winnie, Mustapha gives a flight number she is booked on she will be back tomorrow? Look Sheila, I will go to meet her, this is an HR matter after all, it’s my responsibility leave this to me.” 

Sheila looked worried.

“Jenny this is awful from her emails she seemed so happy now this, I know you are close but you don’t have to take this all on yourself if you need any help just let me know.”

Jenny looking convincingly concerned put down the email.

“Sheila it’s my job, it’s what I do, looking after the staff here at Sapphire and Ross and that includes its CEO Mrs. Ross. It might not be as bad as it sounds so let’s stay positive until we know the facts. Let’s keep this between ourselves for now no point in worrying anyone else.”

Sheila smiled.

“Jenny you are so calm and you are right, there is no point in saying anything until we know how she is.”

Sheila received a call from Jenny around seven the following evening and drove over to Long Acre, Jenny was waiting at the door.

“Come in Sheila its awful let me fix you a drink you will need it.”

“Where is she what’s happened?”

Into the lounge Sheila sat a brandy pushed into her hand.

“I shouldn’t really with driving but”

Sheila took and large drink from her glass and looked across expectantly at Jenny.

“You said on the phone you had managed to speak with Mustapha what did he say, can I see her, how is she?”

Jenny sipped on her own brandy then put her glass down.

“Yes, I spoke with Mustapha I cannot believe these people I really can’t.”

A pause, a contrived sniffle and a dab of a tissue and Jenny continued spinning her web of lies.

“They have disowned her, her family Mustapha all of them the Imam at the mosque, some sect or other convinced them she was possessed, a western she-devil. She could hardly walk off the plane dressed in those bloody robes, the doctor came earlier they are going to run tests. She just needs to rest for now. The doctor took some blood tests, should have the results tomorrow, he thinks she may have been given something, said he had never seen anything like it. She is just not the same she’s not, O Sheila what shall we do?”

More sniffles and dabs of the tissue and Sheila stood and put a comforting arm around Jenny.

“Can I see her Jenny?”

“Yes, yes of course she is in bed upstairs.”

Outside the bedroom door Jenny paused and spoke in a soft quiet tone.

“I only have the side light on and whisper she doesn’t like the light or noise it seems to frighten her, I don’t know why so speak softly.”

At first sight of Winnie Ross Sheila tried in vain to mask her gasp with an intake of breath and she turned to Jenny gripping her arm having seen unfocused eyes staring out into the half light of the room mouth gapping.

“O Jenny, she, she looks, so different.”

Approaching the bed Jenny lent forward and spoke in no more than a whisper.

“Winnie, someone to see you, Sheila Ferguson from work, look at me Winnie.”

Startled, Winnie’s arms grabbed around Jenny hugging against her moaning trying to make words her mouth hanging open her muscles weakened by the months of the tormenting ring gag.  

Jenny gently stroked Winnie’s hair and whispered.

“It’s alright, Jenny is here. You are safe.” 

Sheila stared at the act of contrived compassion convinced of the well-meaning motivation of Jenny. It was awkward and upsetting for Shelia seeing her CEO looking so pathetic, helpless and confused staring into space moaning incoherently drooling from her gapping mouth. She could not help thinking that those less enlightened could well have been convinced what lay on the bed clutching at Jenny was indeed possessed it was certainly bearing no resemblance to Mrs. Ross CEO of Sapphire and Ross?

Tucking the sheets restrictively tight around Winnie Jenny stood back from the bed mores sniffles and dabs of her tissue and looked tearfully at Sheila herself emotional, and pointed to the door.

Down in the lounge convinced by what she had seen and been told by Jenny Sheila accepted another brandy.

 “I will stay here with her of course Sheila and speak with the doctor again tomorrow when he visits, there is nothing that can be done until then, just comfort her.” 

Sheila raised a weak smile.

“You are an angel Jenny you really are doing all this for her I know she is in good hands with you. I saw the way she grabbed at you like she did, pressing herself against you, whatever got her to this state, and we may never know, she obviously knows that you care and will look after her.”

Jenny never letting her act of concern drop sniffled.

“Thank you, Sheila, and thank you for coming around I thought you should see for yourself the state she is in. Like we discussed the other day perhaps keep this to ourselves until we find out more from the doctor and I will try and speak with Mustapha again see if I can find out more about what happened.”

Sheila drained her glass and stood to leave.

“Yes Jenny, no point in broadcasting this yet let’s see what the doctor says and don’t worry about work I will keep an eye on HR for you.”

Jenny smirked watching Sheila’s car snake down the driveway and out of the main gate all was going to plan.

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