I had always stayed late voluntarily, working unpaid overtime so as not to disrupt my colleagues in finance. I would burn the midnight oil to prepare every file in advance. But now, who in their right mind would repay their cruelty with kindness?

The company's internal system pinged again with a flashing red alert.

"Sales department staff must organize all order files immediately. This concerns crucial matters like tax reporting. Set aside other work and deal with it immediately!"

I couldn't help but laugh at the glaring exclamation marks. Methodically, I gathered all this month's orders, verifying each against the records and tracing them back to their source according to the sales submission rules.

I wasn't in a rush, but someone else clearly couldn't sit still.

…

The next morning, Naomi barged into the sales office. She jabbed a finger at me and barked, "Madeleine Shaw! Are you doing this on purpose? You know how critical end-of-month submissions are, yet you're deliberately stalling just to torment me! Who exactly are you trying to intimidate? If Mr. Gray finds out, he'll hold you accountable, not me!"

I paid no attention to her anger, keeping my focus on the files, and let out a faint, knowing laugh. "Oh? Is that how it is? Well, there's no need to rush then."

I dropped the sales submission guidelines in front of her. "Calm down. Ms. Lane, this is exactly why I'm doing what I'm doing. After being reprimanded, I'm simply doing exactly what the rules require. I trust someone as meticulous as you won't mind, right?"

Naomi was speechless for a moment, but her glare burned with pure resentment.

After Naomi stormed out, I handed a thick stack of confirmation forms to Lincoln Brooks, the head of finance. "Mr. Brooks, I've compiled all of this month's orders according to company procedure. Please review and sign once everything is correct. After that, I'll personally verify each order with our partners, and as soon as the review is complete, I'll submit the documents to the finance office immediately."

Before I could finish, Lincoln interrupted sharply, "Maddie, this won't do! It's already the end of the month. Without these files, the company can't file taxes. This is serious! We need to make an exception. Hand them over now!"

I looked at him without a flicker of emotion and said, "I'm sorry, Mr. Brooks. According to the sales submission rules, all month-end orders must be verified. If anything goes wrong, no one will be able to shoulder the responsibility."

Lincoln was at a loss for words, but he could do nothing except take the documents and sign.

Over the following three days, I only came to the office to clock in and out. The rest of the time, I wandered through the sales units with the order files, doing as little as possible.

Lincoln was beside himself, calling relentlessly to ask about the progress.

On the 28th, just as I was clocking out and gathering the files to leave, Lincoln appeared at my desk unexpectedly.

"Madeleine, what on earth are you doing?" Lincoln snapped. "Every other sales team has already turned in their paperwork. Yours is the only one still missing. You said you needed to follow procedures, and I approved all of it, but deadlines don't wait for anyone. I need a definite timeline from you today. If your team causes a delay in the tax filing, you won't be the only one dealing with the consequences."

I stared at him helplessly but said nothing.

A colleague at the next desk finally couldn't hold back and muttered under their breath, "Madeleine hasn't done anything wrong. Didn't Naomi from finance do the same thing? It's been over a month, and Madeleine still has a pile of expense reports waiting for reimbursement. Why does finance get credit for doing this, but sales gets the criticism?"

Lincoln caught on instantly. He didn't argue and simply walked off. In under two minutes, he came back, holding Naomi by the arm and forcing her to stand in front of me.

"Naomi, what are you thinking?" he snapped. "Who authorized you to withhold your coworkers' expense reports? You are staying in the sales department until you apologize to Maddie and earn her forgiveness."

After that, Lincoln turned to me with a broad smile. "Maddie, don't worry. I will process your reimbursement myself right now. The money will be in your account within ten minutes."

Even after Lincoln had made himself perfectly clear, Naomi still looked bitter and completely unconcerned.

As soon as he left the sales office, she lunged at me with a string of curses. "Well played, Madeleine. Did I give you too much slack? You actually dared to hide behind company policy to get back at me like this?"

I looked at her calmly and said, "No, not at all. I wasn't trying to get back at you. I was simply following company policy. Ms. Lane, you probably aren't familiar with the sales department's regulations. Give me a moment, and I'll go through them for you one by one."

My calm, unshaken demeanor seemed to set Naomi off completely. Her eyes flared red as she charged at me. Luckily, my height and speed gave me the advantage, and I easily stepped back out of her reach.

That seemed only to enrage her further. She blurted out, "Mark my words, Madeleine! Don't assume this ends just because Mr. Brooks handled your reimbursement this month. I'm the accounts officer, and if you manage to get even one dollar reimbursed from now on, I'll admit defeat."

By then, I was already thinking about quitting.

Naomi wasn't wrong. I could push finance once, like I did today, and get reimbursed. However, someone as petty as her wouldn't let it go. If she pulled this kind of stunt every month, would I ever have a single peaceful day at work again?

Just as I was seriously considering losing my temper before handing in my resignation, the sales office door was kicked open.

Lincoln stormed in and jabbed a finger at Naomi. "Is this how you handle things behind my back, Naomi?"