Management Failure

The gym's clean, sharp colours and brash music welcomed Charlene. Rick, the duty manager, hurried up to ask: "You are early. Everything all right? I prepared the room, do you want to check that all is in order?"

She smiled. "I am sure it is, Rick, but I will check. Many bookings?"

He nodded. "The normal, a few newbies. Don't work them too hard."

She grinned. New people attending her aerobics classes were easily discouraged if she worked them too hard, but they must have value for their money. She glanced at the room while checking her phone. All was in order, the mats were laid out, the steps were in place, all the equipment neatly racked, and the aircon at just the right temperature.

Joy stabbed her at the expected ringtone sounded. His picture came up. She answered: "Honey, you are back? How was the trip?"

His lovely laugh sent all sorts of shivers through her body. Henry had been away on a Six day sales trip, and had come in on the red-eye that morning, going directly to the office. "I managed to find my way back, my love, and I just have to survive another dreary day's slavery before I can do things to you that you may not even have thought of."

She giggled. "You think? I might surprise you."

He laughed again. "Five nights away from you, I am about to burst, my love. Meet me at the door with nothing on and we will take it from there."

She giggled again. "What will the children say? Not to mention the Himes's across the road? I am first going to feed you, baby, I have all ready, just one or two things to pick up. And then, after the children are in bed, you better be ready for some serious loving. Saturday we have time for serious fun once you have your golf game with Dave out of the way, I'm farming the children out to my parents. And you remember I have an exhibition on Sunday, don't you?"

She could hear his smile. "Of course I remember, and in any case Darlene has it all in my diary. I will admire your pottery from afar, and cheer whenever someone buys something, love. Darlene told me it was already in several papers. You and Tony are becoming famous."

She giggled again. "If you ask nicely I will give you a discount on an autographed piece. Tony did say he has already had offers for some pieces and most of the china sets had sold out already. One of these days we might have to employ you to sell our production. Did you have a good trip, baby?"

His voice became a little more serious. "Reasonably so. I had one or two disappointments, but the Tentown people doubled their orders, and I have a few new leads that might just pay off in spades. In fact one... But it would be bad luck to talk about it. Suffice to say I am on track for the bonus come end of the month, provided next week's trip is as good as this one."

She grinned into the phone. "Henry, you are the best. Look, I have to go, my students are arriving. See you at five, looking forward to it."

He laughed again, that laugh that clenched her thighs. "Not as much as I do. Sharp at five."

She did work her aerobics students a little hard, and had then exercising their Kegel muscles thinking of the workout hers was going to get that night.

After the class she showered, and was about to go for her usual fruit juice when Rick approached. "Charlene, a moment? There's a lady, she asked for you. I told her we do the bookings, but she insisted. Shall I send her away?"

She hesitated. Bookings were the gym's job, but she was flattered at the thought that someone wanted her personal attention. Maybe a new student? "Let her join me at the juice bar, Rick, I can offer her something, who knows."

The tall willowy girl was dressed in a neat office outfit. She avoided Charlene's eyes, looking at the ground. She accepted an apple juice, sat down, and stumbled through a greeting.

"Marna Maynard. Mrs. Danforth, I have to talk to you. It's personal. I must..."

Charlene was intrigued. Prospective aerobics students sometimes have hangups about their bodies, but this seemed to be excessive. "Come, out with it. You want to join a beginner's class? Nothing to be ashamed of, we are all here to improve our bodies, we all have to start somewhere. And this is discreet, nobody will laugh at you or criticize."

Marna shook her head, blushing. "No, it's not that, I am not here to talk about your classes. It's about work. I work with your husband, with Henry. I was on the sales trip with him, he took me with. He... he forced me to... I don't know how to say, he made me have sex with him... I'm sorry, I should not have come to you, but I had to. I should have known he was married, but I only found out when he asked me to buy you and the children gifts. I can't break up your marriage...."

Charlene could not believe her ears. "What? I don't believe a word. Henry is the gentlest person on earth. He would never force anybody, he is kindness itself. How dare you..."

Marna cringed. "No, he did not force me in that sense, he just... he told me I would never make any sales unless he helps me, and only if I... if I go to bed with him. I refused, but he had me call Sherry, she told me that's the way it works. She went with him on previous trips, and they... They had sex and he showed her how to sell and so... He was so persuasive and funny, I went along with him although I knew it was wrong, and he was all over me and told me I was beautiful and he would... he would..."

The girl broke down and sobbed, and Charlene instinctively leant over and offered a tissue. "Calm down now. I appreciate your telling me. But how... You had sex with him once?"

Marna shook her head. "That was the first night, then we went on to Tentown and he invited their procurement people out and made me have sex with two of them and then he took me again, and the night after that... Oh, I cannot live with that, I had to tell you."

Charlene looked at a worried Rick and shook her head. "Look, Marna, I appreciate you coming over. I am going to take you to a friend who will help you. Do you know your HR lady? Sharon? Call her and tell her you are sick and cannot come to work, do that now."

Drs. Bella and David McCall were family friends and had been so since they were together at school, so Bella made space on her schedule. A few minutes with Marna, a tranquilizer, a referral to a local counselor, and she came to see Charlene. "My dear, what a kettle of fish. The young lady is incoherent, had an unpleasant sexual experience. That's about all I can get out of her. She was not raped. Thank you for taking care of her."

Charlene stood up. "Can I see you? I need you to examine me."

Bella's eyebrows went up, and she stood back, opening her door. "Come in. What about, Charlene?"

"I need you to run a full STD test. I have been having a few itches, and I need to be certain."

Bella went all professional, and a few minutes later she had done the examination and had all the samples she would need. She looked at Charlene over the desk. "Look, my friend, I am afraid I think the tests will be positive, but let's not anticipate this. What the hell is going on?"

Charlene was in full, ice cold control. "I want you to schedule a similar test for Henry, and for the young lady who was here just now."

"What? Henry? I did the tests for Marla as a matter of routine, we have to and we have to notify the authorities and all potential contacts. Was it Henry? Are you serious?"

Charlene shook her head a little. "I wish I could say no, but I fear I cannot. Can Dave see him? At four thirty? I know they are golf partners, but..."

Bella nodded. "I will set it up. Charlene, what on earth..."

Charlene said: "I think we will know when the test results are out. Can you call me when you have them?"

Bella nodded. "We will have a printout by four, I'm sure."

"Great, ask Henry to bring them home, but call me. I will explain later, ok?"

Bella stood up, and Charlene asked: "Oh, can your reception call Darlene to tell Henry about the appointment? Can she say it's something about insurance? I would prefer not to."

Bella nodded. "I can do that. Are you going to be all right, Charlene? You took a big shock,. Do you need anything? Can I suggest you see Dr. James?"

Charlene shook her head. "I'm Ok, thank you. When I need counseling I will ask you for a referral."

She drove home, but stopped at the botanical gardens, went to her favourite grove, and sat for a while, just sat and thought.

Henry's favourite food was bubbling on the stove when his call came. She glanced at the clock. It was fifteen minutes to. She ignored it.

His car pulled into the driveway just after five, and the two little girls were clamouring for his attention as the door opened. It took him a few minutes to disengage himself from them by giving them the trinkets he, or Marna had bought, then he came up to kiss Charlene. She turned a cheek and said: "Careful, my hands are floury. A moment please."

He stood back, surprise and disappointment on his face, and she asked: "Please go play with the girls and get their program on the TV. Food should be ready in a little while."

He looked at her and asked: "All right with my favourite girl? Something worrying you?"

She shook her head, her back to him. She knew he would have missed her usual dressing up to meet him after a week on the road, and the usual warmth of her greeting, but she just could not fake it. Suddenly the words 'favourite girl' had developed a double meaning. Instead she said: "Later, Henry, just keep the girls happy, ok?"

The girls were delighted to have their father all to themselves, and they were clowning and laughing. Charlene looked on, the happy scene like a knife in her stomach. This was the Henry she knew and loved: funny, witty, drawing his daughters out to play with him, making faces and reacting with each other.

Dinner was more reserved than usual, with Charlene not engaging in the joking and fun, giving only the most basic responses, not volunteering crazy ideas to the usual riot as the girls made up stories and Henry tried to top them. He took them off to their bath, then put them to bed with a story.

She was at the sink, washing up when he came into the kitchen, his hands going around her, cupping her breasts as he hugged her from behind. She closed her eyes in lust and disgust, feeling his hardness against her backside, remembering the pleasure he had given her, had given Marna and Sherry. She disengaged herself and shook him off, then turned to face him.

He stood back a little, his most engaging smile on his handsome face. "Is my kitten having a bad day? Come, let me love it better. I have someone here that wants to make you feel real good, baby."

He was drawing his zipper down, fumbling for his erection, and she reached behind her, the carving knife coming to hand. "If you get that out I will cut it to size, Henry. Get away from me."

He stood back, bafflement in his face. "My love, what on earth is wrong? What got into you? What happened?"

She shook her head. "Did Dave give you an envelope for me?"

"Yes, I did not think it important. Shall I get it for you? I don't know where the appointment came from, Darlene said something about insurance? How did you know about it?"

She did not reply, but when he returned with the envelope in his hand she told him: "Open it, read it."

He asked again: "Charly, love, what is going on?"

She watched as his finger, his graceful, loving finger, went under the flap, slid the folded paper out. He frowned: "It's a lab report. Names, titles, letterhead. Reports. Something normal something 6.5, something else normal, presence of Chlamidya confirmed. Charly, what does this mean?"

"It means that you gave me the clap, Henry. Me and Marna and Sherry and who knows who else. That's what it means, Henry. That you have been screwing around without protection, that you have been cheating on me. Is that clear now?"

He blanched, the paper dangling from his hand. "Clap? I never... You know? Who told you? How did... But it means nothing, my love. It was just sex, everyone does it. I love you and only you."

She was furious, now, the rigid control slipping. "Maybe it was just sex to you, Henry. I will need to come to terms with this, in the meantime I will not have you touch me or come near me."

"Come now, sweetheart, this is nothing, really, I love you."

"And you told Marna and who else you loved them too? We made promises, Henry, and you cheated on me. I don't know what we are going to do, but until then you don't come near me."

Her mother called the next morning. "Charly, the two dears are helping their granddad making a mess of the kitchen, but I had to call you. When he dropped them off Henry said you two had had some differences. What's wrong?"

It took a few tearful minutes before Charlene had told her mother everything. The reaction shocked her. Her mother said: "There, now, my dear, I hope you feel better for having that off your chest. Go wash your face, make yourself up and go meet him at the club. Don't let this spoil your marriage, dear. Boys will be boys, and I must say I am disappointed, but you have the girls and..."

"Mom, I can't believe you are saying this. Are you telling me that it would be Ok for dad to cheat on you, and you are just going to wash your face, put on fresh makeup and that will be that?"

Her mother sighed. "Of course that will never happen, love. But it is not worth damaging your marriage. Let me keep the girls overnight, and you two make love and put this behind you. You are such a beautiful couple..."

Charlene felt anger flood her. "Well, there is no ways I am going to face the crowd at the club, I'd rather go to the studio to make sure everything is all right."

Henry was waiting at home, furious, when she came back. The good feeling she had from the easy companionship and understanding Tony had offered, the satisfaction from seeing her creations of the past months being displayed, vanished at the sight of his face. The very satisfying interview with a local journalist vanished like fog in the morning sun.

"You let me down, Charlene. You shamed me by not coming over. For a start Dave did not turn up, and I had to get another partner, some new guy at the bank. Well, we won a small award, and people expected you to be there at the prize giving. Questions were being asked. My MD was there and asked where you were. What did you think you were doing?"

She looked at him, her head cocked. "You think I should have been there to tell them you are a cheater, Henry? Should I have told your boss you are pimping out the sales girls to your clients for orders? What would you have said?"

His face flushed red. "You are impossible, do you know that? I cannot even talk to you."

She shot back: "And did you get your results from the tests? Do you think I should have told your precious MD you gave the clap to all the salesgirls, and who knows who else at the company?"

He blushed and said: "You would never do that, Charlene. You are not the type to be disrespectful..."

She shrieked: "Disrespectful? How dare you even use the term? Were you respectful to me, to us, to the girls when you went screwing all over the countryside? Do you even begin to imagine what you did to me and to the trust I had for you? Just get out, get away, I will not have you in the house tonight. Mother asked for the girls to sleep over, and I just want to be alone."

He blanched: "But what, where... Look, my love, I know you feel bad about this, I did not mean for you to find out, I knew... Look, can we talk about it? I mean, can I explain?"

Her fury was white hot now. "Your love? I am your love? While you were screwing the girls who trusted you to teach them how to sell? Your love while you were telling them how pretty they were, and pimping them out? And you want to explain exactly what?"

He retreated to the door, and for the first time she saw him at a loss for words. The Henry that could charm a bird from a tree, the Henry who laughed their way through university, turned her life into a song, waltzed her through a bad work experience, built a life for them. The dazzling Henry who supported her through a difficult and dangerous first pregnancy, gave her the courage to face the second. The Henry who sat by her side as she went through labour, who held her when a dear aunt died, who nursed sick children through the night.

She broke down then, sobbing her heart out. Henry came to hold her, made some comforting remark, and she shouted through her tears: "Get out! I want you out, now. Just get out. All your life has been a lie, all my trust has been a lie. Just get out!"

In the dark hollow of the night she woke, found herself on the couch before a television set that was blaring inanities. She had a warm shower, made some tea, wrapped herself in the quilt Henry had brought back for her from a sales trip, and sat staring at the blank wall.

They had been so happy. She had had a difficult childhood. Somehow her parents could not accept the artistic side of her personality, could not share the creative urge she had, Her aunt was the one to nurture the flame, allow the thread of creativity. Her father wanted her to study economics, to make up for the lacking he felt stopped him from achieving more than middle management levels. Yet she changed course in the second week, choosing creative art and pottery instead. Henry was the one of her former economics co-students who did not scoff at her choice. He was the one to express appreciation for her first sculpture, to gaze admiringly at the mug she presented him.

She sobbed as she remembered how he had helped her set up her first show, how he used every sales technique to push her creations on to students and faculty, how he had kissed her and made love to her afterwards.

She rolled on to the empty side of the bed and smelled him, remembering the nights of making love, of her comforting him when his first job failed, when he lost a major contract, how he held her when she was sued by an aerobics student who had twisted a hip joint. The years of building what they had together crept by her like the dark hours. In the pale dawn she was in the kitchen, the kitchen he had had renovated for her as an anniversary gift, using all his bonus for the first major contract.

She gritted her teeth as she drove to the studio. Tony was already there, bustling about setting out signs, making sure the exhibits were just so, arranging the flowers. She called the caterers, arranged the snacks, put the drinks in the fridges, then met the first visitors.

By ten thirty the place was booming, People were thronging the studio, overflowing the space, crowding the exhibits. Bella and David McCall came up, asked her the price of a big raku bowl she had thrown with clay from a small hidden creek nearby. Then Bella said: "Are you all right, my friend? You do look drawn. I know what strain you are under. Do you need something?"

She looked down, and David took her arm. "We are here for you, Charlene. Now, this bowl will be the thing for our living room, we must have it. But can you make us another one? A pair?"

She thought about it. "Of course I cannot guarantee colours and finishing, the clay is not very homogeneous. Look, I will try. It might crack, it might be a flop, you know."

Bella laughed. "You are the star, my dear, we trust you. Let us know when it will be ready."

In the crowd another friendly face: Melissa, the family solicitor. She had been with them since college, and she gripped Charlene's arm, insisting that she show her around. Then she asked: "What is on between you and Henry, Charly? You look like a disaster, and he looks even worse."

She looked at her friend, startled. "He is here? Oh god, what..."

Melissa took her hands. "Now I know there is something wrong. Yes, he is outside, with friends. Have you had a fight?"