text: All the sales representatives have a healthy competition amongst themselves every month. The 2 representatives that are usually first and second are Jerry and Linda. This month, at this point, Jerry is ahead of Linda by $ 1000. Today, being the 23 rd day of the month, the quota must be met in one week’s time. The 28th day of the month has arrived. All the employees sales are listed on a chart. Jerry has reached the quota for the month. The list indicates that Linda is $ 5000 below the quota requirement for the month. She has only 2 days to match or surpass the sales quota for the month. Mr. Richard Sentinel, their boss, calls a meeting for all the sales reps. He makes an unexpected, but gratifying, announcement. “I have called this meeting to make a special announcement. The sales representative with the highest amount of sales, in dollars, this month, will be rewarded with a Caribbean Cruise that must be taken Christmas Week this year.” When the sales reps heard this news, they all clapped their hands and cheered. At the end of the month, a last-minute sale catapulted Linda $ 1000 ahead of the sales quota for the month. That means that Jerry ended up $ 1000 behind Linda in total sales for the month. When the monthly meeting is called to announce which sales representative made the most sales, in dollar amount, Mr. Sentinel announces that Linda has. “Linda, you have surpassed the sales quota for the month by $ 1000. Congratulations! I am also pleased to announce that you have won the Caribbean cruise as an added bonus to the employee of the month award.” Linda is ecstatic! She cannot believe her good fortune! She is practically packing her bags to go on the Caribbean cruise right this minute! --- It is now Friday, the end of another work week. Something totally unexpected happens to Linda. One of her client calls with an alarming announcement. The client decides his company no longer needs the $ 5000 of merchandise they bought last month. Therefore, they are cancelling their last order. The repercussions are immediate. It is now a fact that Linda did not exceed the sales quota for the month. Therefore, Jerry is awarded with the employee of the month award. To add insult to injury, he is also awarded the Caribbean cruise that Linda had won. This news does not sit well with Linda. She is very upset about this whole situation. Rest assured; she will not take it lying down. --- Jerry invites the 10 sales representatives to his house to celebrate his success. On the night of the party, Linda brings with her some rat poison in a bottle. She knows that Jerry has a pet dog. All the sales reps and Jerry are enjoying drinks and food at the party. Linda excuses herself. She goes to the kitchen where there is the tray for the dog food. She discretely pours the bottle of rat poison onto the food and returns to the party. Unbeknownst to her, she accidently leaves the bottle, with her name on it, next to the dog food tray, and it rolls under the kitchen counter. She returns to the party to celebrate with her colleagues. This all takes place 4 days before Christmas holidays are to take place. --- After the party is over and everybody leaves, Jerry notices something peculiar about his dog. It stops barking and eventually stops breathing. He quickly rushes with the dog to the animal hospital. The veterinarian indicates that the dog has been poisoned but still has a chance to survive. With this situation, being what it was, Jerry cannot take the Caribbean cruise. Therefore, since Linda had the second highest sales for the month, she takes the cruise in his place. The following week is both good and bad. Good for Linda because she is basking in the warm Caribbean sun. Unfortunately, it is a bad week for Jerry. That is because his dog ended up dying from food poisoning. He wondered how that happened. It certainly wasn’t a Merry Christmas for Jerry. He returned to his home dejected and heartbroken. He wondered who could have poisoned his dog’s food? He had to return to as normal as life as possible without his dog, Rex. --- When he was in the kitchen, he bent over to pick up Rex’s dog food tray. When he bent over, he saw a quick flash of light. He wondered what it was. It turned out to be a reflection of light shining off a small bottle. He extended his arm to pick up the bottle from under the counter. He took a close look at it. Upon close observation, he saw a label attached to it. The name on it was “Linda”. He was shocked, but not really surprised. He now knows who the culprit of the crime was. This called for a drastic measure. He was going to report this cruel act to his boss, Mr. Sentinel, when work resumed after Christmas holidays. --- The Christmas holidays were over. Jerry placed the bottle with Linda’s name on it, in his briefcase. The first thing he did was walk into Mr. Sentinel’s office when he got to work. “Mr. Sentinel, you have a killer working for you!”, exclaimed Jerry. Mr. Sentinel was shocked to hear these words from Jerry. “What do you mean, Jerry?”, asked Mr. Sentinel. “Linda Cross poisoned my dog’s food and Rex ended up dying.”, said Jerry. “How do you know she did it?”, asked Mr. Sentinel. “I’ve got the proof right here.”, replied Jerry. Jerry pulled the bottle out of his suitcase and handed it to Mr. Sentinel. He explained how he found the bottle, where it was located in his kitchen, and when the dog died. Mr. Sentinel is not pleased with this malicious occurrence. He summons Linda into his office with Jerry present. Linda walks into Mr. Sentinel’s office and gets nervous when she sees Jerry present too. “Happy New Year, Mr. Sentinel. What can I do for you?”, asks Linda. “Miss Cross, you undertook a malicious act against Mr. Reed. You poisoned his dog’s food and killed it.” “I would never do that!”, replied Linda. “Mr. Reed has the proof. Show her the bottle, Jerry.”, exclaimed Mr. Sentinel. Jerry showed Linda the bottle with her name on it. She was speechless. She knew she couldn’t defend herself. “You are to pack all your belongings and leave this building immediately. You are no longer an employee of this company.”, stated Mr. Sentinel. Linda left his office. She packed her belongings and left the building. --- Mr. Sentinel thanked Jerry for his candor and honesty. “Jerry, because you were honest about this act of treachery that Linda committed, I am going to reward you with the Caribbean cruise you originally won.” Jerry was over the moon. He thanked Mr. Sentinel for his kind generosity. Jerry also realized something: Revenge is a dish best served cold.