Chapter 358: Termination day.
His eyes widened. His memory worked through the details of the previous night. Sienna had called him, but then Miro distracted him and then his mind was swallowed by the game and all the excitement. After the game, he had rushed home, only to find the bedroom door locked. He figured she was angry about Ali’s fight and they could discuss it in the morning.
"You did not answer your wife’s call and everyone saw it. They were watching the game from here." Liman continued to share.
Elias groaned. "I did not refuse to answer deliberately, I was distracted."
Timothy strolled into the dining. "No, you were avoiding a fight over the fight your cub was involved in." He knew his boss better than anyone. "I have already spoken to Soren and the Prime Envoy and his wife. They gave me all the details on what happened. Lady Sienna is not angry about the speculations on BeastNet.
She is not angry that you simply chose not to answer the call. What pissed her off was what you ignored the call for. In her words, she does not answer your calls too sometimes, depending on the importance of what she is doing. From that, I have concluded that she is angry because she doesn’t think you take her as someone important in your life. At least, not as important as a game of Sky-fetch and dancing fox beast women."
Elias rose. "That’s not true."
Timothy nodded. "I know it, and so do you. But the footage says otherwise."
Elias sank back down into the chair. His wife was already living on the edge, always ready to pack a bag and leave because she was a transmigrator. If he didn’t rectify this soon, she would bring up divorce again on a whim!
Timothy touched his comm and a holo-screen appeared before Elias. "I have an apology trip plan, My Lord. It starts with flowers and ends with a kiss. Would you be interested in hearing about it?"
He didn’t need to ask, Elias was all ears.
***
Sienna did not allow her personal problems to derail the day. Before 11 a.m, she was already at the small textile loom work factory she was scheduled to inspect. It was the factory which specialized in weaving ceremonial fabrics used for all fox clan rituals. Many of the noble families patronized its services for special occasions. It relied on traditional craft to overprice its garments.
The factory was filled with beast women, their nimble fingers darting across looms. Yet the air was heavy with lint and the smell of mold and several workers coughed into their sleeves. It was winter, but the heating was very lacking. In fact, it was colder in the factory compared to the outside world.
Sienna’s eyes swept the factory floor. "Why are there on heating gadgets? And I am sure the ventilation domes are old or problematic too?" She sniffed the air.
The overseer, a chubby fox beast man who could not walk ten steps without wheezing stammered about costs.
But Sienna cut him off coldly. "Costs? The amount you charge for one of your products can feed one family for a year. You are spending lives as currency. Install heating devices immediately. I want a full inspection of the factory and I want filtration units installed immediately. I need all these women sent to the hospital for a full body check. If I return and find one woman coughing, you will be stripped of your post."
Her words cracked like a whip. The women bowed their heads. grateful yet fearful. Sienna did not soften. She ordered the factory to be closed until the issues she discovered were fixed. She signed an order on the spot.
As they left, Mija shook her head. "Damn, you are becoming more and more like your husband."
Sienna snorted and closed her eyes. The second stop was a a glass crystal ornaments factory. It was the one that produced chalices and some other things used in the temple. They had come for a visit because word had reached her office about mental strain. Workers forced into 24 hour shifts, their minds fraying under the heat and glare of molten surfaces.
She entered the foundry, the air shimmering with heat. The factory produced delicate works, so most of the workers were women. She found then pale and exhausted, with dull eyes.
Sienna did not question them on how many hours they worked. She looked at the time sheets, noting the time they checked in and out. Her voice was ice against the fire after she took in the details.
"Twenty six to forty eight hours shifts! Am I reading this right?" She turned to the manager, glaring at him sharply. "Do you think these women are machines? They are flash and blood. From now on, six hour shifts. Anything beyond that is overtime. Double the workforce if you must."
The manager, a tall middle aged fox beast woman tried to protest. "We have deadlines. This work needs precision and training of at least six years, not everyone can do it. We have an order for the fox lord’s birthday."
Sienna’s gaze silenced him. "Then, you should have turned it down. We did not force you to take it. If you cannot meet deadlines without braking women’s minds, then you are unfit to manage. This is a tribe owned enterprise, I will replace you myself."
The manager huffed. "They are beast women, not weak humans like you."
Mija grimaced. "You just signed your termination notice."
Sienna immediately listed the manager for termination. The workers voted for a new manager, that they trusted. Sienna ordered rest chambers to be built, with cooling domes and shaded gardens. Before leaving, she warned the new manager. "If you abuse your authority and maltreat these women, you will be fired too." Her tone was as sharp as shattered glass.
The third stop was a refinery that processed rare spices--blue pepper, moonflower pollen, and foxfire salt. The pollen was a royal tribute, but it could be used by nobles too. The blue pepper and foxfire salt were highly priced spices.
Rumors of harassment in the refinery had spread and reached her ears. Sienna had heard about it from her mother: supervisors preying on young uneducated beat women, intimidation disguised as discipline, inappropriate random searches for those suspected of stealing spices or recipes and hiding them in underwear. It sounded like a hellish place to work, so Sienna was going to take a look.
The moment they stepped inside the administration building, silence fell. Sienna walked straight to the supervisor’s office, where a trembling young woman had just been dismissed in tears.
Mija was already texting the legal department to prepare another termination notice.