neelwrites/flash/fiction/shortstory/29/12/2019

THE BOSS
By Neel Anil Panicker

“My sting is worse than my bite,” hissed  Abhay Pratap, the Owner-CEO of 9One Communications.

Seated across the table in the thirteenth floor corner room of the  telecom conglomerate, Manas Chatterjee shifted uncomfortably in his chair even as a wave of icy chill ran down his spine.

He knew that the man staring down at him from behind the oblong mahogany desk was dangerous with a capital D.

A rumour Manas heard time and again ever since he had stepped into his new role as Vice President—Marketing came back to haunt him.

‘The man is not just ruthless; he is highly vindictive too. He not just is full of spite but he also bites, even kills’…such were some of the highly disturbing comments that were passed around in office cubicles and corridors, albeit in hushed voices.’

Despite the air conditioning, Manas found himself sweating like a pig.

Involuntarily, his hands dug his trouser  pockets and extricated a handkerchief.

From the opposite end, his boss watched his discomfort, and smiled.

It was an evil smile.
To Manas,

it just confirmed whatever he had heard about his boss.

The man had more than a sadistic streak in him

“So, what do you say,”?

The question seemed to have stumped him.

He looked up to see the blood red eyes bore into him.

A spasmodic wave of cold fear ran through his veins.

For a moment, he wished the ground under his feet would open up and and swallow him.

Instead, he heard himself mumbling, ‘Sir, I will not fail you.”

All he got in return were the words, uttered in the by now infamous poison dipped baritone, “Failures don’t survive in my world.”

Manas felt his life ebbing away.

All he could murmur was a feeble “Yes Sir’ before he scurried out of the room, knowing his very life hung by a mere thread.

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