The CEO's Secret

Chapter Twenty - Dishonest

Work had been long. At five months pregnant without much support outside of Megan and Ashley, who were the only ones who knew, it seemed like the days were harder to get through. Every day was stressful. I woke up and fussed over my outfit, making sure my obvious bump was covered by layers and properly placed waist lines. My body was sore and tired. The baby had started moving which made everything feel more real.

Today, I had to take a million calls from upset customers. Their complaints were escalating. We were a pharmaceutical company and sold drugs to help with addiction. Suddenly, our product wasn't working like it had been. Our customers, which mostly consisted of rehabilitation facilities and hospitals, were unhappy with recent results. According to them, the medications weren't working at all. This was strange beyond belief. Megan was in purchasing, so I was going to ask her about it tonight so we could possibly go right to the vendor. First, though, I knew I had to tell Shane.

I was self-conscious as I entered Shane's office. He was expecting me due to my email, but I was afraid he'd notice my stomach. I pulled my shirt down to be extra careful and then knocked on the door frame to let him know I was there.

“Hey, Taylor. Are you alright?” He asked.

“I'm... stressed.” I said. “We've been getting complaints by the hundreds that the medications are no longer working. Like, any of them. No results.”

“Really?” Shane said. That had caught his attention.

“Yeah. I'm going to do some digging and get back to you. I think we have a real mess on our hands, I'll keep you posted.” I said.

“Yeah, let me know what you find out.” Shane said. “Thank you for looking into that.”

I went immediately to Megan's office. Naturally, Ashley was also in there. They were having a serious conversation while staring into the screen of Megan's computer. I explained the kinds of complaints I was getting and asked Megan to reach out to the suppliers.

“Close the door.” Megan said seriously. I did.

“We're going to tell you the secret. You're our best friend. You can't tell anyone else. No one can know. We'll get fired, or arrested.” Ashley said. “Seriously, you have to promise me that this doesn't go anywhere.”

“What's going on?” I asked.

“I bought placebos. I didn't expect it to blow up like this.” Megan said.

“You... what?” I asked. I was genuinely confused.

“I bought a much cheaper product that is basically a fake pill. Have you ever heard of the placebo effect?” Megan asked.

“Yes, I think so. Basically, you give someone a pill and it works because they THINK it's going to, and not because it actually does? There's nothing in it, it's just mental.” I said.

“Exactly. I've been purchasing a placebo. It's a lot cheaper and there's a lot of extra money left in the budget. Honestly, I thought the placebos would work on, well, the placebo effect.” Megan said.

“Did we need to cut costs? This probably wasn't the best way to do it.” I said.

“Actually... Okay, honestly. We created a fake business and have been 'purchasing' from that fake business with the extra money. We have an LLC that we put on the vendor list. It looks like we're buying from them with the extra money, but the money really just goes into the bank account. We eventually cash out on the account every so often.” Ashley explained.

“So... you're... embezzling money?” I said.

“Listen, we can give you a cut if you don't say anything. You'd be able to get your own place and support your baby with it. There's a lot you could gain here.” Ashley told me.

“I don't know if I want to be involved. Your secret is safe with me, though.” I said.

Their secret wasn't safe with me. I couldn't keep this from Shane, right? I had no obligation to him, but this could tear his company to the ground. Our reputation would be effected. We'd be the company that sold placebos. Shane was the father of my child. I had to watch his back to make sure my son had a good future. Shane didn't know it now, but he had someone who would need him to be doing well in life. Having his company ruined wasn't good.

I also needed to protect myself and my ability to make money to support my son. How would I make it in life if I had no job? With things going so badly so quickly, we'd surely go under within a year? Two years? This was how I made a living.

But where would I live if I told on my best friends? What would happen to the people who had given me all the love and support they could during my pregnancy?

This wasn't the stress I needed.