Even though the image was sexual in nature, something about it calmed him. Remi being his good boy soothed some inner part of Dimitrios’ mind. Though he was still angry, it allowed the alpha to reign in some of his explosiveness. He took a deep breath and blew it out before replying.
Dimitrios:Those are perfect, Baby. I’ve got a lot going on at work today. Shit just hit the fan so I might not be available most of the day
Remi:I hope everything is okay. I know I can’t really help with this stuff but call if you need anything
Dimitrios felt himself soften slightly at the sweet words. Remi really was a little treasure.
Dimitrios:Thanks, sweetheart. See you this evening
Remi::))
Dimitrios scrolled up to take one last look at the picture before setting his phone aside. He was still angry and he was still going to fire someone, but some of the alpha’s fire had banked now. Talking to Remi made him feel like he could breathe again. They weren’t going bankrupt. The company would continue to run, except now they had no manufacturing plant to keep up with orders. They had enough stock to continue to supply their vendors for about 3 to 5 months, but past that they would need more. Which meant that they were going to have to step up the timeline on getting the Maine facility up and running.
“We need to get Damien Bishop in here as soon as possible. Because I’m going to have to be running point on most of the preparations for the new manufacturing plant, and I’m going to need someone to run things up here. I think you’ll end up probably working with him more than I will on getting him ready. Sorry to foist that off on you.” Dimitrios said to Leon.
“If we can’t produce products to sell, then we’re fucked. I get it. Don’t worry, I’ll get Bishop up to scratch. Though I don’t think it’s gonna be that hard. He’s smart and he has experience.”
They spent a few moments agreeing on a wage offer and Dimitrios had just sent the email to HR about Damien Bishop, when there was a knock on his door and he called for them to enter. It was the head of accounting, Harold Adams.
“Have a seat.” Dimitrios said with cold professionalism.
Leon was sitting in his usual chair, and for once wasn’t lounging back with his legs crossed. He was straight-backed and deadly serious as Harold hesitantly sat down.
“I’m assuming you have heard about OTR Manufacturing?” Leon asked, looking at the accountant who was sweating profusely.
“I-I did hear. It was all over the news this morning. That’s horrible.” Harold said, wiping his hands on his slacks nervously.
Dimitrios could sense weakness. Something was wrong. Harold’s scent was becoming distressed. Maybe it was just the fear of losing his job, but Dimitrios didn’t think so. Something more was going on, and he was damned sure going to find out what.
“How much did they pay you to screw up our books and make it look like they weren’t ripping us off?” Dimitrios asked, his tone even and emotionless.
“W-what? I would never! I’ve worked here for years. I would never do that!” Harold practically screeched.
“Either you helped them to rip us off or you’re so incompetent at your job that you didn’t notice all the extra charges on their invoices. Which one is it?” Leon barked.
“I… I… I didn’t know what else to do! They made the offer sound so good, but they disappeared with all the money and never even paid me! I’ll tell the cops everything! I didn’t do anything wrong… really! I just looked the other way. I didn’t steal from you. Please, I need this job.”
Dimitrios curled his lip as he paged security.
“Send security up here to collect Harold Adams and hold him until the police arrive.” Dimitrios spoke into the receiver then hung up after he got his confirmation and looked at his former employee. “You are so far past the possibility of keeping your job. You broke the law. You aided in a theft, and though I don’t know the entire total yet, I’m certain it’s enough to be a felony charge.”
“Oh gods… My mate is going to kill me. What have I done?”
“It’s a little late for that now, I think.” Leon said with an icy demeanor.
The accountant looked like he was about to make a run for it, but Dimitrios met his eyes with a cold stare.
“I wouldn’t suggest moving your ass from that seat unless you want to make a much more unseemly scene than this is already bound to be.”
The threat was clear in Dimitrios’ voice. If Harold dared to move from his seat, he would sorely regret it. They waited as the guilty accountant quietly cried into his hands. Dimitrios and Leon both watched out the window, feeling no sympathy for the thief. Security came and restrained Harold while Leon explained the situation, and Dimitrios called the police.
Security had already escorted out the guilty party by the time that Dimitrios managed to get in touch with the detective in charge of the case, and officers were dispatched to pick up the guilty party. Dimitrios and Leon also now had a 2:00 PM interview with the lead detective on the case.
Dimitrios could barely get any work done for the rest of the day, too pissed off as he went through their vendor accounts with a fine toothed comb, trying to figure out what the damage was. He went back and forth between frustrated and angry, but every once in a while he would look through his phone at the pictures that Remi had sent him. The one from his nest the previous night was probably the alpha’s favorite, because it was the most characteristic of his little one.
The alpha longed for the evening to come. Not for the dinner, but afterwards when he could take Remi home and get him back in his bed again. Dimitrios wished that he could just cancel the dinner, but he didn’t want anyone getting the impression that Scepter Tech was too harshly affected by the scandal with OTR.
The interview with the detective was informative. They discovered that the brothers had not actually escaped the country to the knowledge of the police. There was still hope that if they were caught, it was possible that Scepter might get back, at least a portion of what had been stolen.