Aunt Elsie was aware that convincing the company's employees to trust herwould be a difficult task. They had all worked for the Feller's family for a long time, and were likely to be wary of change. However, she was determined to do her best to keep the company running smoothly -no, to keep onto the company for her personal interest.
She decided to begin by explaining that Dwayne's was no longerwith them, she knows this was a difficult truth for each member of the company to accept, but it was something they will have to face.
Aunt Elsie breathed in slowly before speaking. "Mr. Dwayne can't be here with us in person -any longer." She enunciated, each member of the board meeting was wearing a questioning look. "...this is because he is dead!"
The room was plunged into an eerie silence, as the executives processed Aunt Elsie's words -which were too hard to digest, it was just like a big lump in their throat that's too hard to swallow.
"What?" One of them finally gasped, his voice barely escaping a whisper. "Mr. Dwayne is...dead?"
"That's not possible!" Another one exclaimed, shaking his head in disbelief. "He's only in his thirties, how can he be dead -just like that?"
Aunt Elsie took a deep breath. "I know this is hard to believe." She said, her voice steady. "But it's true. Mr. Dwayne died in an accident whilst taking his bath last Tuesday's morning; he slipped and broke his head, but it was too late before Ms. Fellers could arrive at the scene."
"If this is true as you've said; how come no one knows about this and a word hasn't gone out about the news yet." One ofthe executives countered, still dwelling in disbelief. "-not even the media?"
"How do you expect such drastic news to be published?" Aunt Elsie butted in, her voice was sharp, and her gaze wasn't friendly. "Don't you understand? Ms. Fellers is in a bad condition at the moment, who would want to have such news published?"
"Even if the medias are exempted, shouldn't there be someone else who knows about this aside you?" The eldest among them enunciated, each executive intending to not giving in too soon to her. "Did you keep such news to yourself alone -or is this some kind ofjoke?"
"Ah -j...joke?" Aunt Elsie blurted out annoyed, unsure of how best to reply without her anger getting the best of her. "What do you mean joke? Who plays this as a jokes these days?"
"Then tell us -how are we supposed to believe this." Aunt Elsie heard from the other end of the table. "There is a possibility that you want to take advantage of Ms. Fellers since she's ill and covets what she owns -if not, there should be someone else."
"Someone else is aware..."Aunt Elsie enounced, earning a questioning look from them. "-Gerald does. He's aware of everything but decided to keep it a secret, knowing how hard it would be if such news should leak out; with Ms. Fellers health inclusive. Everything."
The executives hung their mouth open in shock. This only means one thing
-everything she told them was nothing but the truth! But they were all still clouded in denial, wishing it was an expensive prank being played on them.
"No." The eldest executive whispered, his face ashen. "This can't be true. Mr. Dwayne was...he was healthy and strong. He gave me a call a few days ago and promised to pay the company a visit soon. This...this can't be real."
The others murmured their agreement, their faces reflecting a mixture of shock and disbelief. Aunt Elsie felt a pang of sympathy for them, even though she knew this was the best way to ensure her plans went smoothly. Still, she couldn't ignore the feeling of losing someone who's very dear.
"I'm so sorry to have to tell you this." She said, her voice soft. "I know it's a lot to take in, but I promise that we will get through this together -we can all do this."
"Ms. Fellers..."One of them began, paying less attention to herwords of encouragement. "How is she? What's her state of health and what hospital is she admitted to?"
Aunt Elsie was pissed that they kept throwing questions at her like it's her duty to clear their doubts and curiosity. She can't answer all their questions -this will only ruin what she has in store already. There are things needed to be kept private; which is everything concerning Ciara.
"I'm sorry -that's too personal, I can't disclose this to anyone else." She muttered, pretending to be sorry. "I'm supposed to keep this private for her safety. I apologize if my reply makes you feel uncomfortable."
"But as the executive staff of this company, we are supposed..."
Aunt Elsie banged herfist on the long table, not giving the man who wanted to speak the chance to complete his statement. "You shouldn't ask questions anymore." She lilted, her voice hard and firm. "There are things needed to be kept private -and I hope you respect others' privacy."
The executives present all nodded, and not ready to say anything again. It's only right if they keep their curiosity to themselves and wait until Ms. Fellers comeback.
"Fine then..."Aunt Elsie stated, with a slow nod. "Since nobody has nothing else to say, I should excuse you all. The meeting already ended -I need to meet with the employees too, I can't waste all day here with you all."
Even with the thick silence and awkward atmosphere, she already knows what was going through their mind, but she cared less -her goals were her priority.
She picked her bag up from the table and attempted to leave but stopped abruptly. "And yes -I'm resuming my position as the executive owner of the company today." She announced in a sharp tone, not minding their reaction. "Anyone who's not ready to work with me should resign now that the chance is still wide..."