Amanda couldn’t believe what was happening. She sat for a minute looking dumbfounded before slowly getting up to leave his office. When she came out, Sam was waiting for her. She looked at him feeling utterly betrayed.
“Amanda, I’m so sorry,” Sam said quietly. “I don’t agree with their decision. I fought for you. I was overruled. There’s nothing I can do. I’m so sorry.”
Her eyes teared. “It’s okay.” She took a deep breath and fought not to cry. “Where’s my new desk?”
Sam looked so upset and he wished he could do something for her. “Do you want me to get your things so you don’t have to see Derek?”
“Does he know?” she asked, feeling like she was being punished.
“No. I haven’t said anything to him.”
“I need to use the restroom,” she said, half dazed.
“Okay. I’ll wait outside the office.”
“Thank you.” She walked into the bathroom, made sure no one was in there and then called Viktor.
“Hey, babe,” he greeted her. “How’s it going?”
“They’re moving me back to Support,” she said, crying.
“What? They’re moving you?” he sounded very surprised.
“It’s virtually a demotion and I have more seniority than him. I’ve been here years, he’s been here months.” She paced as she spoke, feeling so angry. “This is exactly what I was afraid of.”
“Come home.”
“Viktor … They’re going to fire me.”
“No they’re not. I’m going to take care of this. Come home now. Your biopsy is tomorrow. You don’t need this stress.”
She wasn’t convinced that would be a good move. “I don’t know, Viktor.”
“Amanda. Tell Sam you need to go and come home.”
“Okay,” she finally agreed, feeling like she was going to come apart if she stayed anyway. “I wish I had never reported it.”
“Everything is going to be fine, Amanda. Don’t give it another thought. I’m going to take care of it.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I’ll tell you when you get here. Come home.”
“All right. I’ll be there in 20 minutes.”
Amanda met Sam outside the office. “I need to go home,” she said.
“Are you okay?”
“I can’t be here.”
Sam frowned, feeling terrible for what was happening but feeling powerless to help her. “Go home. I’ll take care of it. You’re off tomorrow?”
She nodded.
“Well, let’s leave everything where it is and worry about it when you get back. In the meantime, I’ll see if I can convince management to reverse their decision.”
“Thanks, Sam.”
“I’m sorry, Amanda,” he said again.
“It’s okay.” She gave him a smile and then walked towards the exit. She cried a little in the elevator and on the way home. She wondered what Viktor had planned.
Viktor was waiting for her as she walked in the door. Without a word he took her into his arms and held her.
“I feel so horrible and worthless,” she cried into his chest.
Her mother came over and rubbed her back. “I’m sorry, sweetie.”
“I feel like I don’t matter,” she added.
Viktor squeezed her tighter. “You matter a great deal.”
“How can they do this?” she asked, angrily.
“Honestly, Amanda. I’m a bit surprised,” Viktor admitted. He brushed her tears away and looked in her eyes. “You will be working for Sam again. Derek will be moved. You will be paid for today and any other days you miss because of this. You will not lose your job and everything will be as it should.”
“How can you possibly know that?” she asked.
He responded with, “Do you have a wireless printer?”
She was a little stunned by the question. “Umm. Yeah.”
“I need to print something.”
She was totally confused. “Right now?”
“It will answer your question.”
“It’s in my bedroom.”
Viktor sent a document to her printer and brought it to her in the living room.
“What is this?” she asked as she took it from him.
“A letter from my lawyer that’s being overnighted, informing your employer that we are carefully documenting their response to your complaint. It states that we consider your transfer as retaliatory especially considering your seniority and that we hope that the matter can be resolved without involving the courts.”
“You’re threatening to sue them!” she said in disbelief.
“Umm … yeah.”
“Why would you do that?” she asked, wide eyed.
“What do you mean?”
“Why are you helping me?”
“That’s a silly question,” he replied. “Because I love you.”
“You don’t want me to work there. You’ve been after me to quit.”
“You’re right. I want you to quit. But I don’t want you mistreated and bullied out.”
She looked down at the letter again. “I’m a little nervous.”
Viktor smiled. “Don’t be. I know what I’m doing.”
Amanda glanced over at Brenda. “Mom, you look exhausted.”
“I didn’t sleep well last night.”
“Do you need to lay back down?”
“Probably just for a few hours,” she agreed. “You going to be okay?”
“Yeah,” she smiled. “I’m sure Viktor will take good care of me.”
Brenda gave him a broad smile. “I have no doubts.”
“Amanda,” Viktor said, when the bedroom door was closed. “When does your mom see the doctor next?”
“I think in another month. Why?”
“She’s thinner and weaker than when I last saw her. I’ve spent the last 2 days with her and there are times where she seems like she’s in pain. I asked her about it and she said it was just ghost pain from the surgery. But I’m worried it’s something else. She doesn’t seem well.”
“I’ll call her doctor today and push up her appointment. Thank you for telling me.”
“Hopefully it’s nothing.”
“I’ve been worried about her too but she keeps telling me she’s fine and I know I have a tendency to worry so I just thought I was overreacting.”
Viktor kissed her on her head. “Taking care of you two is becoming a full-time job,” he teased.
The next day Amanda went for her biopsy. Having Viktor and her mom with her helped ease her anxiety. Though they couldn’t go in the room with her, nor would she have wanted them to, knowing they were near and that she had their support helped her through the process.
Amanda moved her mom’s appointment to the following Wednesday. Viktor offered to
