Giving Notice - Chapter Eleven

Well gang, the next chapter is ready at last, and damn but this chapter was rough to write. We're in the final stretch, with only two chapters to go. Giving Notice is already longer than The New Job, believe it or not!

I wouldn't have gotten to this point without your encouragement and support. That's not me flattering my patrons with hollow words, it's just a categorical fact. This has been the hardest year of my life, but I'm finally turning a corner, and I think that's being reflected in my writing.

I've been so worried that the greater emphasis on story and character development, and the reduced focus on sex scenes, might put my readers off. But you guys have given me the confidence I needed to write from the heart and see this journey through, and I can't thank you enough. Seriously, I can never tell you what your support has meant to me.

That's all I wanted to say. Thank you, from the bottom of my tired old heart. And now, here's chapter eleven. ❤️

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CHAPTER ELEVEN


For a moment, the thunderous boom of the microphone striking the stage floor was the only sound in the packed auditorium. The stunned crowd was absolutely silent, their confusion thick in the air. It was so unbelievably quiet in the auditorium that Max could hear the distant hum of the central air conditioning units. It seemed to Max as though the passage of time had slowed to a standstill as all eyes in the room were trained on him. 


In that awkward, frozen moment, Max scanned the audience for people he recognized, looking for some visible reassurance or comfort in the face of the realization that he’d just shared his deepest, darkest secret with his parents, the last two people on earth he had ever wanted to know about this side of his life. Everything was certain to change now. Whether it was to change for the better or for the worse was anyone’s guess, and that was what frightened Max most. He tried futilely to swallow down the stony lump that had become lodged in his throat.


In spite of himself, Max’s panicked gaze was first drawn to his nemesis, Marcus. The donkey wore a shocked, incredulous expression as he stared up at Max from the audience. Max shivered unconsciously and looked away, unwilling to spare the donkey any more mental bandwidth. His eyes fell upon Connie, admiration and pride evident in the doberman’s expression as he beamed back at Max.


In the last moment before Max’s sense of time caught up to itself, the canine caught a glimpse of Astral. The winged horse was standing bolt upright, braced wings fully extended (to the visible annoyance of his seat neighbors), and appeared to Max to be steeled for a confrontation. Max had no time to wonder at this unexpected behavior, because everything began happening all at once. Time rushed back into its normal cadence like the crash of a waterfall.


The sudden chaos was both maddening and deafening. Marcus began howling his innocence at the top of his lungs. Astral, meanwhile, had closed the distance between himself and Marcus in four impressive, loping strides. He grabbed the defiant donkey into a tight, arm-binding hold and refused to release him, despite Marcus’s increasingly agitated struggling. Stephen leapt to his feet and was shaking a fist and shouting at Marcus from the stage, while at the back of the large room, Corey and Seventeen were holding each other and cheering as they whooped and called to Max.


In fact, most of the crowd was on its feet now, and the auditorium was filled with a rumbling, confused cacophony as the gathered residents of the manor attempted to make sense of what had just happened. Max tried his best to shrink into himself and become invisible, as the enormity of the choice he’d just made began to sink in.


Stephen, ever the pragmatic manager, was the first to recover his senses, and he immediately began to take control of the situation. He picked the microphone up from the floor and spoke into it in his most authoritative voice. “Hey! HEY! Everyone calm down! Senior managers to the stage please. Department heads, please escort your people out in a calm and orderly manner.” His voice dropped. “Astral, you good?” Stephen turned toward the grimacing Astral.


“Better’n good, sir,” he said through gritted teeth as he kept the furious Marcus pinned in a submission hold. Max couldn’t help but notice how thick Astral’s arms were, or how corded his thick bicep muscles looked under the stage lights.


“Management asks that you all vacate the auditorium now and return to your normal routine. We will update you shortly, but we first need to confer to formulate our response,” Stephen said, the loudspeakers projecting his voice across the din. Astral steadily shuffled Marcus toward the stage.


The crowd began complying and making their way towards the exits. “Right,” Stephen said, setting the microphone back on its stand and turning to the relevant parties. “I want Astral, Marcus, Corey, James,” Stephen said, nodding over to Mr. Warren, “and Max to follow me, right now. Corbin?” Stephen said, addressing the Chief Butler, Mr. Davies, who had just arrived on stage. “Your office? I don’t think we’d all comfortably fit in mine.”


“Probably for the best, m’boy,” the stallion replied, his words slanted by his thick Welsh accent. “Nefi blw, but this has been a ceremony for the history books,” the piebald equine said, shaking his head grimly.


The wolf nodded. He turned to Damon and Oliver, who both looked very confused. “I’m so sorry, guys. This isn’t how your special day was supposed to go. Would you mind returning to your rooms for now? We’ll pick your celebration up again this evening at the Master’s private banquet, after we’ve dealt with this situation.”


Oliver nodded, a bemused smile curling the corners of his lips. Damon giggled and gazed up at Stephen happily. “Are you kidding, sir? This has been the coolest day of my whole entire life! Nobody is ever going to forget my hiring day now! I’ll be telling this story until I’m ninety! Max, that was the most badass thing I’ve ever seen anyone do! You’re a freakin’ legend, my guy!” The terrier wagged happily, and he and the ermine quickly vacated the stage.


Stephen ducked into the backstage area, followed by Max and his friends. Marcus was swearing and struggling but was unable to break Astral’s grip. Max rushed to Stephen’s side and took his paw, holding it tightly.


The group walked quickly and in relative quiet. Even Marcus settled into pouty silence once he realized that his squirming against Astral’s impressive hold was futile. The companions wound their way through the back halls of StartAgain until they came to an elevator. Once they were aboard the car, Stephen retrieved a key from his large, overloaded key ring and inserted it into a keyhole in the elevator’s button panel. He turned it and the door began to smoothly close.


Max shivered, and suddenly he felt weak in the knees. He frowned. Corey found his gaze and flashed him an uncertain look. “You okay, Max?” the cheetah asked quietly. Everyone in the elevator turned to Max.


“Um… I don’t know. I… I just outed myself to my family, didn’t I?” Max said, his voice weak and cracking. “My dad is going to lay an egg when he gets that voicemail.”


“Young man,” Mr. Davies said, “what you just did was immensely brave, and no doubt terrifying. You’re allowed to be shaken from it, you know. But this family is here for you. We won’t allow anything dodgy to happen to you,” the kindly older horse said.


“You, on the other hand….” Mr. Warren addressed Marcus through a tightly clenched jaw, trailing off ominously as he narrowed his eyes. The donkey visibly wilted in Astral’s grip and silently cast his gaze to the floor of the elevator.


The elevator door opened to an incredibly large, poshly appointed office. At its center was a massive desk made of some dark, somber wood. On the wall behind the desk, a massive portrait of a very distinguished-looking horse stared down at the group as they entered the room. Max couldn’t help but notice the subject’s resemblance to Mr. Davies. Perhaps this was an ancestor of his? The carpets were thick and plush, and everything in the expansive office had an air of grandeur. In spite of everything that had happened, Max couldn’t help but look around in awe. If he thought Stephen’s apartment was well-appointed, it had nothing on the Chief Butler’s office.


“Welcome to my office,” Mr. Davies said, gesturing to the space with a sweeping arm. He turned to Astral, who still held Marcus tightly, the donkey’s arms pinned behind him. “I’m sorry, young man, I don’t believe we’ve formally met. Your name?”


“Ashley, s-sir, though my friends call me Astral,” the winged horse said nervously.


“Ahh! Yes, indeed, I know who you are, young man. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you, ever since I saw your previous employment on your CV. Thank you for your service to the Crown. That explains how you were able to take the situation in hand with such ease.”


“Yes sir, though that was a lifetime ago,” Astral said, a blush rising to his cheeks. 


Wait, what? Max thought, eyes growing wide. Apparently, Astral’s backstory was a lot more complicated than he had initially let on.


“Very good,” Mr. Davies said. “Can you please ensure that our young instigator here is seated?” Mr. Davies said, nodding to Marcus. “Stephen, you’ll find some leather cuffs in the bottom-left cupboard of the credenza. Can you please restrain him for everyone’s safety until we can get things sorted?”


“With pleasure,” Stephen said, his voice rough.He immediately set to work securing Marcus to a chair. Once he was certain Marcus wasn’t going anywhere, Astral finally released his grip on the donkey and stepped back.


The butler nodded. He turned to Max. “You’re looking rather pale, young man. Have a seat, lad. James, be a mate and get Maxwell a bottle of water from the mini fridge.” Mr. Davies walked around to the other side of the enormous desk and sank into his massive leather chair. “I have a feeling we’re all going to be here for a while, so please make yourselves comfortable,” he said, addressing Astral and Corey. He pointed to a pair of plush chairs and gestured for the boys to move them closer to the center of the room. “Now… I want to hear everything,” he said, “starting with your version of events, Max.” As he spoke, he quietly typed into his computer. Max couldn’t see the monitor, but he guessed that Mr. Davies must be creating some sort of official record of the conversation.


Mr. Warren pressed a chilled bottle of water into Max’s hands wordlessly before placing a reassuring hand on the boy's shoulder. Max nodded in gratitude.


“W-well, sir,” he began, stammering from adrenaline and nerves. “It’s as I said on stage. But, hmm, I should probably begin at the beginning. The other day, I went to the library to find a book to read. I know the library’s not open right now, sir, but I’m on the restoration team with Mr. Warren and he had said I could borrow a book now and then as long as I return them in good condition.” 


Max drank a sip of water, the cool liquid soothing his throat. He inhaled and then resumed his story. “Anyway, sir, I went into the library and heard something upstairs. I thought maybe Mr. Warren was working on his day off, so I went up to see if I could be helpful. Except I found Marcus and another guy. They were… um… you know. In the middle of things. I was going to turn and leave but Marcus saw me and got really mad, sir. He started calling me names, and then he slammed me against one of the bookshelves. He p-pulled down my shorts, sir, and th-th–” Max shook his head. His voice had suddenly cracked and left him. Mr. Davies stopped typing and stared at Max, his expression unreadable.


“He attacked Max, pulled down his shorts and took a bunch of pictures of him with his phone, Mr. Davies,” Corey jumped in helpfully. The cheetah rose and stood at Max’s side, reaching for his paw. Max took it gratefully. “Max’s family didn’t know he likes wearing diapers and stuff like that, and Marcus decided to be a complete asshole and try to blackmail him into quitting. Er, sorry for the language, sir, but that’s about the only word that fits.”


“I see,” the butler said. He resumed typing into his computer.


“See, Marcus told Max he has two phones, sir,” Corey continued. “He smuggled one in that still has a working camera, like Zane said before. I… uhhh… I tried to sneak into his room to find it so I could delete the pictures, but I didn’t have any luck. I know I wasn’t supposed to go into his room without permission, but we had to do something, sir.”


“You went into my fucking room?” Marcus said, attempting to stand. The unyielding cuffs attached to the chair he was seated in pulled him right back down again.


“Oh, so blackmail is fine, but your goddamn bedroom is off limits?” Mr. Warren growled, his voice thick with barely-suppressed rage. “You’ve got some nerve, I’ll give you that.” The hawk took a step toward the seated donkey, visibly trembling.


“James, don’t…” Stephen said, pulling the hawk back. The hawk shook his head angrily and glared at Marcus.


Mr. Davies looked at Marcus appraisingly. “You seem to be in some serious trouble, young man,” he said. “If these allegations are true, you have violated some of StartAgain’s most critically important rules.”


“Yeah, well, they’re lying,” Marcus said glumly. “I ain’t done anything like that!”


“Yes you did, you absolute tosser,” Astral sneered. “I’ve no doubt in my mind. Max wouldn’t lie.”


“It’s true, sir, I promise,” Max said. “His friend Zane even gave us the passcode for his phone so we could unlock it, sir. It’s 4-2-0-6-9. Once we got the phone and unlocked it, we were going to delete the pictures, sir.”


“James,” Mr. Davies said, “can you have this Zane chap brought up?”


“I’ll go get him now,” the hawk said, turning for the elevator.


“These are very serious allegations,” Mr. Davies said. “But if they’re true, why didn’t Marcus keep his room locked?”


“It was, sir–” Corey began hesitantly.


“–but Corey had my key,” Stephen interjected. “With my permission, I should add. The boys told me what was going on as soon as I got back home yesterday and, given the circumstances, I allowed their plan to go forward in the hope that Max wouldn’t be blackmailed into leaving StartAgain.”


Mr. Davies raised an eyebrow. “I see,” he said cryptically. Max swallowed hard, desperately hoping that Stephen wasn’t throwing himself under a bus on Max’s behalf. 


“See? SEE?” Marcus practically shouted. “They’re fucking ganging up on me, lyin’ through their teeth, every one of ‘em, just like I–”


“THAT IS ENOUGH!” Mr. Davies said, slamming his fists down on the sturdy desk. The bang echoed through the expansive room like a gunshot, and nearly everyone in the room flinched. 


“You are not doing yourself any favors by continuing to dig this hole you’re in,” the chief butler told Marcus, his eyes narrowing. “This house, this family, is built on trust. And you have violated that trust irreparably. You have assaulted a coworker, attempted to blackmail him, you have lied and manipulated and slandered. And, perhaps most importantly, you have inexplicably forgotten that every single room in this house is absolutely crawling with cameras.” 


Mr. Davies rotated his computer monitor so everyone could see the camera footage he’d pulled up. The display was looping a short, high-definition video clip of Marcus slamming Max into the bookshelf, pulling his shorts down to reveal his diaper, and taking pictures on his phone. There was no audio, but the video was more than damning on its own. Mr. Davies clicked his mouse and the camera shifted to a different angle. He clicked again, and once more the scene shifted. Again and again the scene played out, in close-ups and distance shots, seemingly captured from every imaginable angle. Marcus visibly wilted in his seat.


Stephen turned his head, unable to watch the scene continue to play. He lifted Max from his seat and pulled the shorter man into a tight embrace. “I am so, so sorry this happened to you, Max,” he rasped. “I’m supposed to protect you, and I failed.”


“You didn’t do this,” Max said, his voice barely above a whisper. “Marcus did. Let’s lay the blame where it deserves to be laid.”


“Needless to say, your employment by StartAgain is extremely, well and truly terminated,” Mr. Davies said to Marcus. “The only remaining question is what we do with you now.”


Just then, the elevator bell dinged and the door whooshed open. Zane and Mr. Warren emerged from behind the group.


“It’s all true, everything they’ve been telling you about Marcus,” Zane said as soon as he entered. He walked toward the group. “Marcus has had a stick up his ass about Max for no reason, pretty much since Max started. I was there when Marcus attacked Max, and I’m just sorry I didn’t come forward from the beginning. But everything they’ve told you is true, and I’ll sign whatever you want me to sign before I pack up my stuff.”


“Oh, don’t fire Zane, sir, please,” Max said, turning to Mr. Davies. “It’s not his fault, he just didn’t want to get bullied, sir. He didn’t do anything wrong, and he took a big risk helping us.”


“Aye, don’t concern yourself about that, lad. Zane, no worries,” Mr. Davies said. “Marcus alone is responsible for his actions, and he alone will reap what he has sown with this unacceptable behavior.” Zane nodded, visibly relieved. Corey nodded to the zebra and patted his shoulder.


Max swallowed. “What happens next?” he asked, voice still a bit unsteady.


“I’ve got a housekeeping team going through Marcus’s room looking for his phone now,” Mr. Warren said. “As soon as we find it, the pictures will be deleted, Max. I do wish you’d come to me from the beginning of all this, though I understand why you didn’t. Perhaps better than anyone,” he added, giving Stephen a quick glance. “But we will take care of this, yeah?” The hawk wrapped an arm around both Stephen and Max, hugging them loosely. 


“What’s gonna happen to me?” Marcus asked glumly.


Mr. Davies frowned and looked at the donkey sternly. He stood up and sighed. “Law enforcement is on the way. The local police chief is a friend and former StartAgain employee, and I’ve texted him asking for help. You will be charged with assault, among other things, and taken into custody. We’ll turn over the video evidence, and I suspect what happens afterwards depends on how cooperative you are. Your career here is over, and I assure you that we can make your life outside these walls extremely difficult if you decide to continue to make trouble. Don’t worry, Max,” Mr. Davies said, raising a hand to stifle Max’s still-forming objection. “The police chief has assured me they will treat this with the utmost confidentiality. Neither your name nor the video evidence will be released to the public. We count more than a few legal professionals among our roster of former employees, and I’m sure we can pull some strings and make sure this case goes before a sympathetic judge who understands StartAgain and who will respect your privacy.”


Max nodded gratefully to the stallion.


Mr. Davies smiled back at Max warmly. “I’m told the police will arrive within the next half hour. Ashley, would you continue to stand guard until they arrive, please?”


“It would be my pleasure, sir” Astral said. Max still couldn’t get his head around this new authoritative, in-charge version of Astral, and he was more determined than ever to get answers from his friend as soon as possible, once the immediate situation had been resolved.


Max spent the next two hours in Mr. Davies’s office. When the police arrived, a plump, kindly doe named Officer Thibodeaux guided Max into a small adjoining chamber that turned out to be the Chief Butler’s secretary’s office. Officer Thibodeaux asked Max to go over his version of events yet again. When he was finished repeating his tale, the officer asked him to read over and sign his witness statement before gently guiding him back into Mr. Davies’s office. Corey was called in to give his statement next. Max saw Seventeen, Zane and Astral huddled into a corner and he walked over to join them. The four companions watched quietly as a detective, a Great Dane, read Marcus his rights and transferred him from Mr. Davies’s leather cuffs to proper police handcuffs. The donkey’s gaze was fixed on his own shoes as he was escorted onto the elevator and presumably out of the manor by the detective and Mr. Davies.


Max wanted more than anything to be standing by Stephen’s side, but the wolf was giving StartAgain’s formal statement to a third officer, a large-tusked boar whose name presently escaped Max. Instead, the canine wearily sank into one of the plush chairs that adorned the office. Astral gave him a gentle pat on the shoulder.


“It’ll be over soon,” Astral whispered reassuringly into his ear.


Max nodded softly, suddenly too physically and emotionally drained to trust his own voice. Everything seemed to have a surreal, dreamlike quality. Was the nightmare really over?


Officer Thibodeaux and Corey emerged from the secretary’s office, and Corey immediately rushed to Max’s side, taking his paw and holding it tightly. Officer Thibodeaux joined Stephen and the boar on the other side of the room. “This is Detective Stoddard’s card, please call if you need anything,” she told Stephen. The two police officers thanked everyone and departed through the elevator, escorted downstairs by Mr. Warren. Stephen joined the huddled group of Max and his friends.


“And that’s that,” he said, rubbing his temples. “Marcus will be taken to the police station for booking. Max, you and Corey may be called to testify if Marcus enters a plea of innocence and the case goes to trial, but that won’t be for a while. The detective told me they’re treating this as a case of sexual assault, which means nobody will be allowed in the courtroom except for the court staff, the attorneys and the defendant when you give your testimony. No press, no curious members of the public. And your name won’t be released either, Max.” Stephen took Max’s other paw and held it lovingly.


“I’m just glad this part is over,” Max said. He looked up at his gathered friends. “You guys… thank you. I couldn’t have gotten through this without you.”


“I’m just so sorry I didn’t do something sooner,” Zane said, his voice thick with regret. “I had no idea Marcus was so terrible, Max. And then I got scared. I’m very, very sorry Max.”


Max shook his head. “Don’t be. It all worked out in the end, didn’t it?” He scratched his neck, the collar of his dress shirt feeling tight and itchy.


“Max, you were such a total badass. I’m so proud you’re my baby bro, yeah?” Corey said, giving Max’s paw another tight squeeze.


The elevator bell let out a cheerful bing, and Mr. Warren and Mr. Davies stepped out into the large room. They crossed the large room and huddled into the semi-circle that had formed around Max. “Max, you okay?” Mr. Warren asked.


“I will be,” Max said quietly. He looked up at the men standing around him. “I’ve got my family here with me to help me through it,” he said gratefully. He had to blink away tears of gratitude, exhaustion and relief.


“Lad, would you prefer we held off on the celebratory banquet? After everything that has happened today, I don’t think anyone would mind,” Mr. Davies asked gently.


Max shook his head. “Heck no, sir. If anything, I think I need a celebration tonight. It’s been way too serious today, and I want to shake this mood and get things back to normal as quickly as we can.”


“Aye, that’s the spirit,” Mr. Davies said. “I know the Master has been looking forward to expressing his pride. There will be a quiet dinner in his quarters, but we’ve got a few hours yet. Each of our new hires can bring one guest from among the permanent staff, and the senior managers will be in attendance, but everyone else will have dinner in the dining hall as normal. Afterwards, we all assemble in the ballroom and party the night away, and everyone gets a day off tomorrow to recover since I’m sure the champagne will be flowing.” 


Max nodded slowly. “Can I bring two guests, sir? I really want Corey to be able to come, too.”


“Corey can be your plus one, Max, since I’ll be attending in my managerial capacity anyway,” Stephen said, grinning.


Corey’s eyes grew wide. “Really, Max? Wow! That’s so cool, baby bro! Thank you!” The cheetah gave his best friend’s paw yet another tight squeeze.


Mr. Davies smiled warmly. “Just know, young man, that in all my decades in this household, I’ve never witnessed anything like the courage and strength you displayed today. You are going to have a long, successful career with this organization, mark my words. You should be tremendously proud of yourself.” As he spoke, Mr. Warren nodded enthusiastically.


“Thank you sir,” Max said. He released Stephen and Corey’s hands and stood slowly. His knees felt a little shaky. “I don’t feel particularly brave or strong right now, though.” 


“Pssh,” Seventeen chided gently. “You were awesome, Max. Why don’t we get you back to your room so you can rest for a bit before dinner, okay?”


“My room,” Stephen corrected. “Corbin, James, can I leave you guys and the rest of senior management to deal with letting the staff know what has happened? My place right now is with Max.” He pulled the golden retriever into his arms protectively.”


Mr. Davies and Mr. Warren nodded. “We got it,” Mr. Warren said. “Get your boy home and settled. Come on, boys,” he said to the rest of the group. “If anyone stops you in the halls to ask what happened, let them know we’ll be making a statement shortly, but please keep what happened here today to just our little group for now, alright?”


Corey, Astral and Seventeen each gave Max a hug in turn. Mr. Davies clapped him on the shoulder. Zane awkwardly extended a hand to shake, but Max surprised the zebra by pulling him into a friendly embrace. When it was Mr. Warren’s turn to hug Max, he practically lifted the boy off his feet.


The group boarded the elevator together and returned to the residential floor, where they dispersed after many words of encouragement and well-wishing for Max. The exhausted dog clung to Stephen as they made their way back to his suite.


Once they were inside, Stephen led Max to the bedroom. “Why don’t you take a short nap, kiddo?” the wolf suggested. Max frowned and started to protest, but Stephen cut him off. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to leave your side. Possibly ever,” he added with a weak smile. He laid on the bed and pulled Max down next to him, and he pressed Max’s head into the soft spot under his shoulder gently. “There now. Safe in Daddy’s arms. I’m so proud of you, Max. I know how hard that must have been for you.”


Max nodded and closed his eyes. “Thank you, Daddy,” he said. “Should’ve probably changed out of my dress clothes first,” the boy said as he snuggled into a more comfortable position.


“Bah, we can take care of that when you wake up,” Stephen cooed softly. “Just lay with me, okay? And no more worrying about anything. It’s over now. The bully is gone forever, and it’s just you and me here. We can stay right here for as long as you need, okay?”


Max nodded and fought a yawn. This was the most drained he’d ever felt, and he could already feel consciousness slipping away. “Don’t let me sleep through the party,” he muttered as Stephen stroked his hair. In the briefest of moments, he was sound asleep and gently snoring.