Chapter 23 Protect Her
Faced with Marshall's denial, Regina remained calm. He had repeatedly harassed her in various ways, and Regina had enough chat screenshots, recordings, and videos to prove it. He couldn't simply deny it with a few words.
"I didn't lie," Marshall said to the cop and Douglas.
Marshall's face was stern as he confidently said, "Regina, I don't know what misunderstanding you have about me. We can discuss this privately. You've got it all wrong, and you went to the police. That's too much. Century Group is not a small company. Do you know the damage this scandal would cause to our company's reputation?"
"Sir, I'm sorry. It's not a big deal, and we shouldn't have troubled you to come here. We're dropping the charges. We've decided to settle this privately," Marshall said more and more composedly. He even walked up to Regina and threatened, "Regina, Mr. Semona is looking at us. Withdraw the report immediately. We can talk to Mr. Semona."
Regina didn't speak, and he urged in a low voice, "You'd better think about the consequences."
Regina opened her mouth, but before she could speak, she heard Douglas' voice. "Drop it. I'll handle this."
Marshall was content. Douglas' voice sounded cold. Obviously, he was annoyed by Regina's ignorance.
Regina looked at Douglas and said expressionlessly, "Well, drop the case."
Finally, Douglas stood up and walked to the police officers. "I'll handle the internal affairs of my company. Sorry for wasting your time." After negotiation, the cop decided to drop the case after they agreed to settle it privately.
In an instant, only the higher-ups and Regina and Marshall, the two parties concerned, were left in the spacious office.
Marshall breathed a sigh of relief. "Mr. Semona, let me explain." He was about to speak, but Douglas ignored him and said to Regina, "Bring the evidence."
Marshall's face instantly turned pale. He watched as Regina handed her phone over. She showed Douglas their chat records, including his sexual innuendos and even the topless photos Marshall had sent to Regina. Regina suppressed her disgust to preserve this evidence. Then, Regina played the recording of Marshall's sexual harassment, including what he had said in the elevator, thinking he had carefully avoided the surveillance.
Douglas remained expressionless, but the tendons on the back of his hand holding the phone bulged. There were many more recordings and videos. Douglas hadn't listened or watched them. He handed the phone back to Regina and, without giving Marshall a chance to speak, said to the higher-ups, "Did you all hear that?"
They were sophisticated and cunning. Everyone except Marshall realized what had happened.
"Yes, we do, Mr. Semona."
The executives' response embarrassed Marshall. His fear spread from his back to his whole body. He used to brag that he was calm, but at this moment, he was trembling with fear.
"From now on, Marshall will no longer serve as the manager of the marketing department. Now, go to the personnel department to handle your resignation."
"Mr. Semona, give me another chance!" Marshall knew he couldn't fool Douglas. The evidence was right in front of him, and his sophistry was useless.
So, he pointed at Regina and said, "She seduced me. Everyone in the company knows she has had several boyfriends. I'm not as scheming as her, so I didn't keep any evidence. In fact, she seduced me. She..."
Douglas suddenly grabbed the cup placed beside him and threw it at Marshall. The sound of the cup shattering made everyone very nervous, and Regina held her breath.
He sneered. "Lies come with a price."
Marshall wondered, 'Why does Douglas favor Regina? I've worked at Century Group for over a decade. Haven't I created more value for Century Group than a new girl?' Marshall felt confused. However, Douglas's attitude made Marshall grit his teeth and dare not speak. Douglas's assistant took him to the personnel department to handle his resignation.
After dealing with Marshall, the public relations department of Century Group immediately responded to the news of sexual harassment of Century Group employees online. The official statement explained the truth of the matter and stated that they had severely punished the harasser. From the outbreak of the incident to the release of the handling results, the whole process took less than two hours.
In fact, as long as the handling was proper, such news would not have any impact on Century Group. Marshall felt it was unfair and was full of hostility towards Regina. At this moment, he had not yet realized that losing the position of the manager of Century Group's marketing department was just the beginning.
In the president's office, Douglas sipped a cigarette, leaned back in his chair, and said a few words to Jason.
