AN EMPLOYEE'S CHALLENGE

I still couldn't believe how quickly things have spiraled out of control. Whenever I remembered everything that had been happening, I would feel like throwing myself against the wall. It had only been a week since I started working here, and yet I feel as though I've been sucked into a vortex of deceit and betrayal. It was all caused by me. It was my fault, so I could imagine.

I'd always been a bit of a kleptomaniac, but I never imagined I'd get caught. I thought I was slick, I thought I was careful, but I was wrong. Gerald actually caught me red-handed, stealing from the store. I never thought about the CCTV cameras and that was why I was in this mess. I thought for sure I was going to be fired and arrested, but instead, he made me an offer I couldn't refuse.

"Do whatever I ask, whenever I ask it, and I won't turn you in," he said, his voice low and threatening. "And if you say no, I'll make sure you rot in jail for a long time." He repeated that severally when I was in his o