Chris skimmed through the file with raised eyebrows and shoved it in front of Jo.
"Explain yourself!"
Jo looked at him, while picking up the file nonchalantly in her hand. Her consciousness was clean, so she was quite curious of what sort of evidence this idiot had, that could fire her on the spot.
She retrieved her glance from Chris and looked at the paper. It was an invoice from a famous art gallery with the amount of £147,202.55 pounds, worth of two Chinese traditional vases.
"Why have you purchased these items with your personal credit card on the companies VAT credentials. Are you employing clients outside your working hours behind our backs?" the finance director asked Jo for an explanation. "Or, don't tell me that these are for yourself... are we paying you that much, so you can afford these antiques so casually?!"
"Miss Muller, I tend to inform you that using the companies credentials, to get a discount for your personal use or in behalf of someone else's benefit, violates our company rules. This matter was clearly stipulated in the hiring contract. Also while working for Foster & Partners your copyrights belong to us. Therefore using your creative intelligence outside the company in exchange for monetary benefits, is completely illegal and we can hold you responsible".
Jo put the file down and a smirk was faintly contoured on her delicate face. She lifted her head and stared those two directors in their eyes maliciously. It feels like she had never left highschool, Jo thought to herself. She then pulled her phone out and scrolled through her emails, opening one in particular and then she handed her phone to Chris.
Chris took out her phone and read the email.
"Dear Mr. Sun,
I hope my email finds you well. I am writing to inform you that the two Wang Hing, Canton vases, have been sold before we could buy them, but I have liaised with the Gallery and they have another set coming into their stock next month. They are from the same year and by the same artist. Please find the informational file attached, along with pictures of the replacement set and let me know what you think.
Kind Regards
Joanne Muller"
Chris read the email and opened the attached file. At the bottom of the document a pro forma was attached with the cost of £147,202.55 pounds. He furrowed his brows and inquired the girl.
"Why have you bought these?! Does my company lack any money?"
Ted Chapman was becoming nervous, what has this woman showed to Chris, why isn't he scolding her, why is the girl so calm and collected, had he missed something? If he did, that would be utter and complete embarrassment. Unconsciously his face started to redden, Mrs Hale looked at him and sensed something was wrong.
"Chris..." The girl made a quick pause and continued. "I won't go into detail why Mr. Chapman and I are at each others throats, but the result of it is that the purchase orders I submit for my projects, are always delayed. Even though I always specify and emphasise the importance of the deadline, somehow these things still slip through. This is a perfect example. I didn't want to come to your office and bother you as this is child's play, in my opinion and I thought that Mr Chapman will get tired of it. Obviously, I was wrong." The girl said in one breath. Ted Chapman was as white as chalk, he resembled a Greek statue at this moment. Mrs Hale was rendered speechless, while Ben was enjoying the show, laughing on the inside.
"I have sent the purchase orders to finance, quite long ago for the original vases, but payment wasn't made in time and the reservation had expired, so I had to do something myself, otherwise I would have lost these set as well. As you can see from the email, I have made this transaction on Sunday and I still need to add the details into the project file. I was busy with Dumont and didn't had time to do it yet". Jo explained to Chris who was looking at Ted Chapman with a conflicted face.
"Jo, Millie and Mrs Hale please excuse us!" Chris asked the ladies to leave the office. Ben straightened his position at the meeting table, becoming alert. The ladies exited the meeting room one by one and closed the door behind them. Mrs. Hale headed straight towards her department, not even throwing a glance at Jo. Millie pulled Jo by the arm and whispered next to her ear.
"What a turn of events! I hope this time our files won't be left at the bottom of the pile, in the finance department anymore".
"I think its gonna be worse".
"Jo!... please don't scare me. Shall I put that amount on your expenses?"
"Yes!"
"Hahaha... Cath is gonna flip".
After this incident, the finance department was on its toes. They were micromanaged by the higher ups of the company and Ted Chapman was suspended from his position for a month without pay.
Two weeks later, after meeting Mr. Sun for a design revision at his new property, Jo was walking back to the train station. On a small path, she was struggling to carry a heavy A1 folder that contained the presentation boards, when she suddenly sensed, that someone was following her. She turned her head back and saw a suspicious looking Chinese man. He seemed to be in his late thirties and had a scar above his left eye, his dark hair was cut short and he was wearing black clothes.
Jo was thinking that this is a wealthy area and the UK's housing market was flooded by Chinese investors in the last years, but from the way he was dressed and his mannerism, he didn't seem like he was a wealthy man and a tenant of the area. Also the way he was looking at her seemed rather odd.
Jo pulled her phone and keyed 999, there were about 50 yards left of that narrow path and she would turn into the main road. She put her phone back in her pocket, with her thumb ready to press the dial key. The man kept a significant distance from her and she didn't want to alert the police on an unfounded suspicion.
A moment later the narrow path ended and Jo turned left on to the main road. There was a lot more human traffic on the main road and she mingled quickly through the crowd. Jo hurried her steps and soon arrived at the entrance of the train station, she looked back, but the man disappeared. She then took her phone out and deleted the number on the screen. Jo entered the station and swiped her oyster to get onto the platform.
One hour later she was back in the office. She quickly drooped her stuff on the floor, grabbed her notepad from her desk, a pen and her phone and headed towards the staff meeting room, if she stayed another more minute, she would've been late.
The design department held a meeting at every end of the month. They would report their progress and it was also the moment, where new projects were assigned. She knew it was still too early for the hand over of the Astoria Park project, so this meeting was a boring one for her.
Inside the meeting room her colleagues were chatting happily, Jo took a seat next to Millie who she had prepared beforehand a cup of peppermint tea for her.
"What's up girl" Jo asked Millie.
"Nothing much, I am stuffed with the usual gossip, I don't think I'll manage to have my dinner tonight!" Replied Millie rather loudly. Everyone stopped their chatting and looked at her.
"Oh..." replied Jo.
Before anyone could say something, Chris and Matthew entered the office, as well as Cath the design department manager and the styling team. While Chris was the department director, Matthew was the manager.
After a short petty chat between all of them. The senior designers started reporting the current situation of their projects. Chris and Matthew gave them a few suggestions and reminded them that Decorex was around the corner, if they wanted to attend, they had to book the day with Cath. Then Matthew proceeded in announcing the new projects. Jo's hands were rather full with projects, she didn't really want a new one now, but if she was offered one, it wouldn't have been nice for her to refuse. The Dumont project was being finalised in the next two weeks, which was perfect timing for her to grab Astoria Park. There were four new projects and all of them went to her colleagues, Jo was satisfied... she closed her notepad and was ready for the meeting to end, when Chris announced.
"We have been discussing a prospective new project between some big shots in the UK and overseas. Two investors that we are familiar with Mr. Doug Barrowman and Mr. Sun Fei have invited us, to share ideas with their lead architectural team in China. We will send somebody out there to make some research first and come back with a plan. Matthew and I were thinking that we could let Jo go, as she is now familiar with both investors and she already knows their requirements. What do you think Jo?"