Write a story based on: ‘The Hypocrite’

THE HYPOCRITE

He seemed so honest, kind and gentle that everyone believed whatever he said; I was no exception. Jerome spoke in a soft voice and was the person in whom everyone confided their problems. He was so understanding: He listened without interruption; he gave good advice and exactly what we needed at the time. In work matters he was an example that we all wanted to emulate. He was the best in customer relations and brought in more sales than any two of us combined. He was also a persuasive bill collector. Even recalcitrant customers were happy to pay up after he spoke to them.

Jerome did not have any bad habits that anyone knew of. He neither smoked nor drank nor gambled; not even 4D. He was punctual and stayed late whenever he had to; and did not think twice about volunteering for extra work. Some of us who were ‘not-so-perfect’ felt small in his presence. Even our boss thought that Jerome was a saint; and that was high praise coming from a perfectionist like Mr Morgan.

Then one day it happened. Jerome did not turn up for work. Since he had never taken medical leave for years, we were sure that he was really sick. When he did not call the office up to about 12:00 noon we called his home. Calls to his home telephone brought the realisation that the number had been changed more than a year ago. Naturally Mr Morgan was concerned; he called me to his office. Another officer, Jeanette, and I were to go to his home and check.

The address given was a hut in Sembawang road. We knocked on the door, which was opened by a thin and sickly woman. She invited us in. We asked for Jerome and the woman, who said that she was his wife, told us that she had not seen her husband for two years! We looked about the hut and realised that the living conditions were very bad. A child who was nearby looked as thin as its mother. We were shocked and looked at the woman. Then she burst into loud sobs and in between crying told us her life story.

Jerome had left her two years ago; as soon as their child was born. He did not support them and the poor lady worked hard at menial jobs — since she had little education — to bring up her child. Even before he abandoned his family, Jerome had been a wife beater. He came home drunk every night and gambled all his salary away. He hardly gave her any money to buy food, but beat her everyday when the dinner was not to his liking.

Jeanette and I listened in shock at her sad story. This was not the Jerome that we had known over the past six years. I dipped into my pocket and gave the poor woman whatever money I had and Jeanette did the same. Then we consoled her as much as we could and went back to the office.

At the office a bigger surprise awaited us. While we were away, Mr Morgan had been checking on the clients handled by Jerome. He found out that more than $200,000.00 had been paid to Jerome by the clients, and none of the money had been handed over to the cashier. Immediately Mr Morgan made a police report, but the culprit had just disappeared. It is now two years later and he is still at large; perhaps he has left the country.

What a hypocrite! He had fooled all of us.

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