Uncharted Waters

[2Times2Many]

Thank you Job and AJM. I don't know why it is that I can get past just about everything he's done except the lying. He's always been a "boaster" and inflated himself some, but I feel like he's taking me for a fool when he's lying to me, face to face, and expecting me to believe it all. Maybe someday he'll figure out that I expect him to be truthful and that unless he is, I can never rebuild any trust in him. That is the goal, right?

Now on to today which has been one for the books. This will be long, but definitely not boring.

Job, BIL is gone.

After everyone got down to business this morning, I went to talk to H to try to do some damage control. He was extremely angry and spewing. I couldn't have gotten a word in if I tried.

He then picked up a cup of coffee on his desk and threw it across the room spilling coffee all over the place and shattering the cup. Then he stormed out of his office.

I was shaking and on the verge of tears ... a complete mess. I stayed in his office, hiding from the employees who I knew heard the crash and just trying to calm down. He came back a few minutes later and starting ranting that he was never coming back here again, etc.

I let him rant and spew his venom for a while and finally asked him if he would take a minute to listen to me. He angrily said yes.

I asked him to think about who and what had instigated our argument yesterday. I told him I really hadn't cared why he was taking the morning off until BIL started in on me about it and I took the bait. I related what BIL had said to me (and his Dad).

H, still angry, said he was just sick of this and brought up a couple of things about BIL that I had told him recently.

I then continued by saying that I had told him in the past that I didn't want to get into a he said/she said with BIL but I just couldn't do this any more either. I said here are some of the things that I've heard over the past couple of years and I started listing all the stuff BIL had said like I could destroy H in a D and that BIL had a weird smile on his face when he said it as if he would enjoy seeing that (he did!); BIL's speculation about H hiding money from me or selling the company out from under me and parking all the proceeds somewhere that I couldn't access. I went on and on. I let it all spill out. Two years of divisiveness, back-stabbing, disrespect ... all of it.

I then said that this is the crap that I've been dealing with for 2 years and I just couldn't do it anymore.

H responded that he had enough and he was done.

I responded that BIL had been trying to drive a wedge between us for two years and apparently he finally succeeded. Then I left the room.

I was a wreck. I was just sitting in my office staring at the wall as though I were in some kind of shock. I felt so lost and had no idea what to do next. So I just sat there.

A short while later, H came to the door and "ordered" me to his office. He also "ordered" BIL to his office (in front of all the other employees). H was extremely angry and started confronting BIL - mostly about the things he had said the day before. BIL got defensive, then angry. They were shouting back and forth. Most statements began with "Who in the h3ll do you thing you are to ..." BIL finally stood up and told H FU as he stormed out of the office. He packed up his personal belongings and left. As he was loading his car, H asked if he was quitting and BIL said yes.

I went back to my office and resumed my Zombie like state. I was so stunned. I couldn't believe what had just happened and that it happened so fast.

H then asked that I and our next most senior employee come to his office. He had calmed down immensely and told the employee she would be taking BIL's place and the three of us started discussing what to do from there and came up with a game plan.

H's demeanor did a complete 180. He apologized to me for his outburst. He said he wasn't angry with me and that I hadn't done anything wrong. He said he was relieved that BIL was out of the picture and that he had been thinking about firing him for months. He told the employee that BIL had been trying to drive a wedge between him and me for two years and enough was enough. He said we (he and I) may have issues in our personal life, but as business partners, we were on the same page and as tight as we could get.

He then met with each employee to explain that BIL was no longer with the company, what changes were being made and how it would affect them.

Now, H has to go face his parents. His Dad will be livid and of course, all of this will be H's fault. H is preparing to pack up his belongings there and leave tonight. He plans to store what he doesn't need here and stay in a hotel.

I feel like a huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders. I feel a tremendous amount of relief. I feel like a ball and chain has been removed from the company and my life.

But I also feel like I was the one to spill the beans and cause a family rift. I know I will never be welcome in the in-laws home again and H may not be either. That's why I've kept my mouth shut for so long. I didn't want to be the one to instigate that. I had so hoped H would see the light and take care of things without my intervention.

But the more I thought about the turn of events yesterday, the more clear it became that BIL, once again, saw an opportunity to get H and I at each others throat. He planted the seed about "people only lie when they have something to hide" and the stuff about whether or not H stayed at a hotel with his friends. Then he went to H to complain about things I had done in the office which, of course, H came to me with. It was a trap and we both got caught.

I just decided (at 4am this morning) that I was tired of putting up with BIL's antics and suffering in silence. It had to stop. It was time to speak up, regardless of the consequences.

So that's where things stand with 2T. I'm emotionally and mentally exhausted. And I feel so bad for H. He has a tough task ahead ... facing his parents.