This is a story I wrote many moons ago (with some edits). Since I'm considering writing again, I thought I would share it. Let me know your thoughts. By the way, at the time, 15 years ago, I uploaded it on Diana the Valkyrie's web page (one of many stories, really), under the name, Alamsci .
Why?
by notsane
___________________________________
"Sam, I'm thinking about getting you an assistant. I'll put an ad in the paper and in a few weeks I'll start interviewing candidates."
Sam was extremely relieved at this remark. The work was really piling up and he simply couldn't do it alone. His boss, Rosemary, was a highly skilled and experienced Human Resources professional. About a year ago, the company recruited her so she could get an HR department up and going. Six months into her tenure she hired Sam as her HR manager, but as the HR responsibilities grew she could tell that Sam needed some help.
He was definitely a hardworking individual, but he didn't really have that aggressive attitude she was looking for. Sure, he could be counted on to take care of personnel matters and employee grievances, but he didn't have the tenacity needed for recruiting and he was neither articulate nor persistent. She needed someone that could negotiate with unions, insurance companies, benefit providers, and more importantly someone who could market internal programs.
The best thing to do was to let Sam go, but she felt sorry for him. Secondly, Sam had the education and the knowledge required, but there was no way he could implement anything. He was simply too passive.
Her plan was to hire someone, who could really accomplish things on the ground and she thought Sam could take an advisory role instead of a managerial one.
A month later, Rosemary, had narrowed down the applicant pool to 3 individuals, but before deciding, which one she would hire, she thought it would be a good idea for Sam to interview them and give her a recommendation. After interviewing all three Sam went to Rosemary's office to talk to her.
"Rosemary, the first two seemed like go getters, but I don't know, they really don't have an HR background. I don't think they'll be around for long. The third young lady seemed to have a lot of potential, she's pretty young, but I'll be honest with you at times during the interview I felt like I was being interviewed. She really drilled me. To be honest she has the background and the attitude we're looking for."
"Sam that's interesting, I didn't think you'd like her much."
"I was mainly concentrating on her attributes and how she would fit the role, nothing more."
"All right Sam, I'll take your feedback into consideration when I make my decision."
As Sam walked out, Rosemary leaned back in her chair and started chuckling to herself. She really couldn't believe Sam recommended Lacey. She was going to choose Lacey anyway, but Sam had really surprised her. She thought that Lacey was bound to intimidate the hell out of Sam. Lacey was a pretty big girl. She was probably around 5'6" and looked strong. She wore a light blue business suit during the interview, had a bone-crushing handshake, and stinging rejoinders.
'She must've really made him piss his pants!' Rosemary thought to herself or he was too naive to see who was actually in front of him.
A few days later Rosemary told Sam that Lacey would be starting in a week's time. Rosemary knew things were about to change for the better. Lacey seemed to be the ideal person for the job. Her only concerns revolved around Sam's future. This young woman was likely to push Sam to the side in no time. He definitely won't be able to deal with her. Well if worse comes to worse, I'll just make Sam my assistant. I just can't let him go, who knows what his wife will do to him.
When Lacey came in, Sam went through the motions of showing her around the office, introducing her to folks, and giving her a general idea about the company and her job.
When lunchtime rolled around. Rosemary came out of her office and suggested that all three of them go out to lunch. They made their way to a nearby Italian restaurant, where they proceeded to order their lunches. Rosemary, being the HR Director started up a conversation. She mainly wanted Sam and Lacey to start conversing so they would feel comfortable around each other. Lacey seemed really comfortable, but Sam seemed a bit shy and timid. In the midst of their conversation Lacey decided to take off her jacket.
This, to say the least, was an eye opener. She was wearing a striped sleeveless collared shirt, which really showed her awesome upper body. Rosemary had a feeling Lacey was a strong girl, athletic that is, but this girl had arms. They resembled the arms of a fitness competitor. The only difference was that they were not as defined, but looked bigger. Her forearms were also veiny, solid and pretty big. She took one glance at Sam and then turned red and decided to avert her gaze to her empty plate. Sam was simply gawking at Lacey's solid shoulder. She looked at him and then put her hand through her curly dirty blonde hair causing a casual flex.
Sam's eyes almost popped out of his head. Lacey reacted by sternly smiling at
him.
Rosemary had to say something, she didn't know what, but if Sam kept gawking
at Lacey's arms, Lacey was bound to use them on him, but before she could say
anything Lacey looked into Sam's eyes and said, "What's wrong? Never seen a
woman with muscles before?"
"I get all different types of reactions." She chuckled and then quickly flexed her right bicep. It looked stupendous, but her words had broken Sam's trance, "I'm sorry it’s not that, I just was a bit surprised I didn't really expect to..."
Rosemary cut him off, "Oh! Sam's seen strong woman, trust me!"
Lacey's confidence and aggressiveness reminded Rosemary of herself at a younger age. She looked over at her two employees and felt a little more comfortable. They were talking away now. Sam definitely looked small next to his assistant, especially with his thin forearms inches away from her solid ones. His visible gut and pointy shoulders next to her most probably solid abs and definitely well rounded shoulders, but that was the reality of the situation. She needed Lacey and had to take care of Sam to keep her conscious at rest.
Rosemary began to drift away from the conversation, averting her gaze toowards a painting on the wall, and began remembering the first time she interviewed Sam. She didn't think much of him. He was shy and timid. At first, she didn't think he would be able to perform well, but as she interviewed other candidates, she realized that he was probably the most educated. She kept thinking about what to do, whom to hire?
The weekend rolled around and she had not made a decision.
That Saturday when she was grocery shopping, she noticed Sam standing outside of the grocery store with two young kids, a boy and a girl. As she approached him she looked down at the two kids, the boy must've been about four and the girl, maybe two. When she looked up at Sam she was surprised to see that his left eye was swollen.
"Hi, Sam, what happened to you?"
At first, he was surprised to see her, actually stammered a bit and after an awkward silence he said, "Ummm, I tripped on a toy and fell down the stairs.” He then looked down at the young girl and then looked back towards Rosemary with a smile, “Kids leaves toys in the strangest places. How are things going with you? I know I am not supposed to ask, but have you come to a decision regarding the position?"
"Not yet Sam, but we'll be in touch." She said with a smile on her face.
"By the way what are you waiting for.. Do you need a ride?"
"Thanks, Rosemary, just waiting for my wife to come out. She went in to grab a
few things."
"Well, I'd like to meet this lucky women, who has such a handsome husband and two
cute kids."
Sam was good looking; he had handsome facial features and a comforting smile,
which Rosemary did like.
" Ah... thanks, but its okay... I think she'll be awhile!"
"Sam that's nonsense, besides I have all day!"
Then in the midst of their conversation Rosemary heard a husky voice bellow,
"Sam didn't I tell you to go to the car!"
Rosemary instantaneously averted her attention to the source of the threatening and imposing voice. Her gaze was met by a very strong woman. She was tanned and muscular. She was wearing tight white shorts, which seemed like they were having trouble containing a pair of imposing thighs. She looked up and saw a broad- shouldered young woman, with Mediterranean like facial features, a thick neck, and strong arms. This woman's arms were easily bigger than the average man's. Rosemary watched those thick arms dance as they easily carried a lot of grocery bags. Her stern facial expression made her look intimidating.
"Carrie, I'd like you to meet Rosemary, she interviewed me a few days ag..."
Carrie looked at Rosemary with that same stern look and said, "Nice to meet you ma'am, I'd love to chat, but we're in a hurry." Carrie did this in stride, without slowing down to respectfully acknowledge Rosemary or to shake her hand.
Rosemary felt sure that Sam was a victim of domestic abuse. Who else could have given him that shiner, she thought to herself. Sure, the shiner could have been due to a plethora of other reasons, but that woman was a bully. The way she talked to her husband was simply wrong and portrayed aggression, an animal-like aggression.
After he was hired, Sam’s personal life did not come up in conversation, but did interfere with his work. Rosemary would become extremely disturbed when he couldn't make it to work or when he came in with a black eye or a busted lip.
Now, there was another strong women entering his life.
As Rosemary looked towards Sam, she noticed his lustful eyes glued to Lacey's arms.
"So I see you two are getting along fine." Rosemary said, as she slowly drifted back to the present.
"Yeah, we sure are, Carrie is going to be a fabulous addition to our team." Sam added.
"The department has been lacking some muscle, but not anymore!" Rosemary said
as all three laughed.
Lacey quickly acclimated to her new surroundings. She was bringing in top-notch candidates in no time. She was also regularly negotiating with unions and insurance providers on sensitive issues. Everyone in the company began noticing her drive and attitude. Conversely, Sam was becoming invisible. He spent a lot of time in his office. He rarely left, from time to time; Lacey would walk in and have a chat with him about something.
Rosemary had to do something. She tasked Sam with introducing a new performance management system. The first step would be a presentation to a number of staff members.
Rosemary expected Sam to do this on his own, but he requested Lacey’s involvement. Rosemary was irked at his request, but agreed to it anyway.
Sam started off the presentation, giving brief introduction and then delving into technical terms in detail. Within five minutes he had completely lost everyone's attention. Lacey noticed this and decided to take matters into her own hands. She walked towards Sam, "Thank you Sam, I'll take it from here!"
Lacey managed to regain everyone’s attention and pique their interest (as much as one can when discussing such a topic). She also answered all of the questions thrown at her with precision and clarity. Needless to say, Sam's image was tarnished. From that day onwards, anyone who needed help or advice on HR matters went to Lacey without thinking twice.
Lacey herself was extremely disappointed with Sam's presentation and began losing respect for him. This was evident with the way she talked to him. Instead of going to her manager for something she would call him up and tell him to come to her. He simply acquiesced. His days had become monotonous and pointless. This continued for a few weeks, then, Sam took a few days off. He came back to work with a busted jaw and a black eye.
Rosemary spotted him as he was entering his office and followed him in. "Sam, Oh Sam, what is going on? She's really taking it too far, look at yourself."
"I can't do anything about it, I have to keep the family together, besides, if I leave her or report her I'm sure she'll track me down, Ehe, ehe..." He began to cry.
Both Rosemary and Sam knew this day would come, but Rosemary felt disappointed with herself. Why hadn’t she confronted Sam about his personal problems. It was her duty as a human being. Rosemary just looked at him with sympathetic eyes, but thought it would be best to leave him alone for now. She gently put her hand on his shoulder for a few seconds and then walked out.
An hour later, Lacey walked into his office, "Welcome back, Sam!”
As she took a closer look at his face, she noticed the damage and was really taken aback, a mixture of surprise and sympathy, but the words that came out of her mouth were, “What the hell happened to you?"
"Ahh... I got mugged a few days ago."
"Ohh I'm sorry to hear that!" She said as she made her way to his side and
gave him a comforting hug.
"Well, I guess I'll let you recover for a few days, when you’re ready come see
me or if you need to talk you know where my desk is."
Lacey obviously did not need Sam's help. His job was definitely in question and Rosemary had received a few inquiries regarding his role in the HR department. She had to act fast, but really did not know what to do. Rosemary had to make a business decision, but her heart was getting in the way. She decided to let things go until Sam healed. A week later, Rosemary decided it was time to have a talk with Sam. As she was about to enter Lacey raced by her, opened Sam's office door and quickly shut it.
Rosemary simply walked back to her office and figured she could wait a bit.
"Hey, Sam its time to get back to work", she chirped as she put a stack of files on his desk. "Why don't you start off by filing these and then when your done drop by."
"Excuse me! That's your job young lady!" Sam angrily said, to Lacey's surprise
and to his own surprise for that matter.
"Oh really Sam and I guess it’s my job to give presentations and do everything in this department. What the hell is your job?" She threateningly said as she got in his face. Sam realized his mistake, but there was no turning back now.
"Look I've had enough of your shit young lady, you better go back to your desk right now!"
Lacey was furious, "Sam you better watch your mouth, don't get angry because you're a useless piece of shit. You’re lucky to still have a job. Everyone around here knows you do nothing. I came in and took over not because I wanted you out of job, but because you're a fat lazy sack of shit, who shouldn't have been hired in the first place.”
Sam knew she was right, but he was frustrated at what was happening to him at
work and at home. He wanted to lash out at her, strike her. His emotions got the better of him and he shoved her as hard as he could. His efforts did not really have an effect on Lacey, who just laughed at his hopeless effort.
"You better think before you act, you know I can kick your fat ass with one hand tied behind my back."
Sam was overflowing with anger and frustration and did not hear a word she said. He just charged at her, but when his shoulder connected with her midsection nothing happened, she did not move, instead she wrapped her arm around his head and wrestled him to the ground with ease. She did not want to make a scene and did not want anyone to hear them, so she kept him down until he agreed to calm down.
She stood up and looked down at her purple-faced manager, "File those folders
before I decide to really squeeze that frail neck of yours! You know that I've been covering for you and telling folks that you're not as hopeless as they think! Think about that you stupid bitch!"
Sam slowly got up and did as he was told. A few hours later Rosemary and Lacey entered his office, "Let's go out for lunch" Lacey remarked.
As they were walking Lacey began telling Rosemary about what had happened earlier. Sam became furious, stepped back and punched Lacey, in the back, with
all his might. Lacey let out a little groan, turned around and grabbed Sam by the throat. Sam helplessly clawed at her forearm. "Come on Lacey let it go, it's not worth it." People stopped and watched as Lacey pulled Sam closer to her and began yelling at him. She then looked around and noticed all the on lookers As a result, released her grip and they continued towards the restaurant.
At the restaurant, Lacey sat down next to Sam. After they ordered, she put him into an excruciatingly painful headlock. Luckily the restaurant was pretty empty so not many people witnessed this spectacle.
"Listen up, boy, next time you lay a hand on me I'll break you in half, I mean it, is that understood?!" Lacey bellowed
"UhUh yes..."
Lacey let go of Sam's head, grabbed his hair and pulled him out of the booth and then sunk her fist into his gut. Sam fell to the ground in a heap of pain. The few people in the restaurant didn't catch the incident as they were chatting away in their respective booths. All they saw was a man whimpering on the ground and a woman helping him back into a booth. Rosemary looked at Lacey and then at Sam, who was holding his sore gut and whimpering quietly.
"Well, let's keep this incident between us. I know tensions have been building up between you two, but I like you both and know that both of you are an asset to the department and the company. Obviously things have changed since Lacey joined the department. She's gotten a lot of things done in record time. Now Sam, you're not as aggressive and confident as she is. I've decided that Stacey will be the new HR manager and Sam the only thing I can do for you is make you my assistant and you'll have to take a pay cut. If this doesn't work out for you, I apologize, but that's all I can do."
Sam looked into Rosemary's eyes and began crying, "What am I going to tell my wife, you know what she'll do to me, please Rosemary..."
"Sorry Sam.."
Lacey sympathetically put her arms around Sam and tightly hugged him, "Come
on, let it all out, it’s okay."
"You don't understand, you don't know my wife...."
"It's okay Sam, I'm gonna tell Lacey about your situation may be she can help."
"Go ahead, it’s not gonna change anything."
Rosemary proceeded to explain to Lacey about Sam's wife and her repeated acts
of abuse towards him.
It turned out that Lacey knew Carrie from the gym. Lacey was more than surprised to hear that Sam, the chubby quiet man, was married to Carrie, who, simply put, was a hardcore woman. She didn't only hit the weights, but she was also known for her fighting abilities. She was a woman that demanded respect. Most gym members stayed out of her way. She may have not been the strongest person in the gym, but she was a fighter who was capable of mixing it up with any man or woman.
In reality, Carrie did not just happen to work out at the same gym as Lacey, she actually owned the gym.
Sam went home after lunch. When he arrived no one was home, Carrie was at work, his young boy was at school and his young girl at the nursery. At least this way he had a few hours to think about what he was going to say. When Carrie and the kids arrived Sam tried to act as normal as possible, but his wife knew something was up, but she waited. Sam put the kids to sleep and then approached Carrie.
Carrie was standing at the kitchen sink, having an apple, when Sam approached her. He couldn't help noticing her bicep bulge every time she took a bite out of her apple. The size and power of his wife made him wince. He knew that in a few minutes, maybe seconds, those sculpted muscles would be administering some serious pain to his feeble body.
Before he could open his mouth Carrie said, "What's wrong with you? Is
everything all right?"
"No, actually there is something I want to tell you about."
Carrie slowly put her apple down and turned around to face her husband, with wide open eyes and a threatening look on her face.
"Well, go ahead!"
"I don't know how to say this, but..."
"You better start talking!" She said as she took a step towards him.
"Well, I'm no longer an HR manager, I'll be Rosemary's assistant.... you know she's the director."
"So you got demoted, is that what you’re trying to say?!" She remarked as she grabbed him by the collar and pulled him towards her.
"So how much money are you making now?" She spat.
"I'll have to take a pay cut!" He timidly whimpered.
WHACK, she painfully slapped him across the face.
"Well, I see that you're a worthless piece of crap inside and outside of my house. I guess that assistant you were telling me about out did your sorry ass!"
She then walloped Sam in the eye with a closed fist and followed it up with a knee to his already sore gut. Next, she grabbed him by the collar with both hands and roughly slammed his body against the cupboards.
"Listen up, tomorrow morning I'm going to call this Rosemary and tell her that you'll no longer be working for her. You obviously can't hack it in the real world.I'm really disappointed in you! I thought you'd be able to hold a job."
She then maintained her grip on his collar with her left hand and menacingly planted her right fist into is exposed gut. Afterwards, she let his docile body drop to the ground.
The next morning, Sam was awakened by a jolt of pain to his midsection.. Carrie had her powerful thighs wrapped around his gut as she spoke on the phone, "Rosemary, hi, this is Carrie, Sam's wife. I'd just like you to know that Sam will no longer be working for you. He's decided to stay home and take care of the kids from now on. I’ll come back to take care of any paperwork."
As she got off the phone, she turned to her husband and looked at his bruised face and body, released her hold, chuckled to herself, got dressed and headed off to see Rosemary.
As she entered Rosemary's office, Rosemary stood up and glumly looked at her.
"Hi, Rosemary, I'm Carrie"
Carrie firmly shook Rosemary's hand, "Look I'd like to get this over with as soon as possible, I'm a busy women so let's get started."
"Why couldn't Sam make it? How's he doing?"
"Oh he's fine, but I thought I'd leave him with the kids."
"Well, why don't you go to Lacey's office, she's our new HR manager. She'll give you all his belongings; I'll take care of everything else."
"Thanks Rosemary!"
As Carrie walked out Rosemary slumped into her chair and sunk her head into her hands. She wanted to tell Carrie off or even report her, but she knew that she had aided in his dismantling, at least that's how she felt. All those years of experience and dealing with people could not help her at this moment. She had really gotten close to Sam, but had to make a business decision. Did she? She knew that she was doing him a favor by allowing him to stay aboard, but she didn't feel that way. She felt bad; nothing could convince her that what she did was right. She felt hollow and insensitive. She began thinking about some of the other decisions she had made in her 25 year career. They all seemed insensitive to her at this moment, maybe it was time for her to get out of the corporate world, she though.
Carrie walked into Lacey's office, "Oh I see it’s you, no wonder my hubby was pushed aside. There is no way he could compete with a strong young lady like yourself, especially, one that works out at my gym."
"Hi Carrie, I'm sorry things worked out the way they did, Sam was a real nice
guy..."
"No need to flatter me, I know who my husband is and what he is capable of doing, now please hand over his belongings, I'm in a hurry."
Lacey felt weak. She wanted to stand up for Sam, but she didn't want to get involved in his family affairs. It was none of her business. She had a bright future ahead of her. Besides why should she mess with Carrie, she had no reason to. She handed over Sam's belongings.
"Well, I'll see you at the gym, take care!"
The two ladies shook hands and then Carrie walked away. Lacey thought over what had occurred and came to the conclusion that there really was no other way for this situation to end.
Carrie was used to getting her way. She had worked for everything she owned, including her husband. She had always been a dominant woman and her husband knew that. Before they decided to marry she had beaten him several times. She had also clearly told him that once they were married this aspect of their life would not change, so if he didn't think he was capable of enduring her punishment he should have given the idea some more thought. It's not like she felt great every time she beat him, but she saw him as someone who was in need of discipline.
At times, after giving him a severe beating, she would cry herself to sleep. She would tell herself that she was not going to beat him anymore, but one thing would lead to another and BAM she would hit him.
Sometimes she wondered why he hadn't left her, but she knew that he was attached and a part of him yearned for those painful beating. As she walked out of Lacey’s office, she glanced over at Rosemary’s door and for a split second thought about walking in and telling Rosemary that Sam would be coming back the next day, but she couldn't.
Sam was limply lying down in bed licking his wounds. He thought about what he'd been through, but he really couldn't blame anyone, but himself. He chose to be with Carrie; he knew what things were going to be like. He also suggested that Rosemary hire Lacey. Sure, she didn't have to listen to him, but his suggestion may have swayed her opinion. Was his obsession with the stronger sex the reason he was laying here, bruised and beaten, would he have wanted it any other way?
Does Sam know?
