her rules now dramashorts

Here is a drama short based on the theme "Her Rules Now." Title: The New Management Characters: ELENA: (40s, sharp, recently promoted to CEO) MARCUS: (40s, ex-CEO, now board member, arrogant) JESS: (20s, Elenas assistant) Setting: A sleek, modern CEOs office. Elena sits behind the massive desk. Marcus stands in front of it, arms crossed. (Scene opens on tight shot of Elenas hand signing a document with a decisive flourish. She looks up, calm.) ELENA: You wanted to see me, Marcus? MARCUS: This is an ambush. You cant just gut the executive floor in your first week. ELENA: Gut is an interesting word. Id call it streamlining. MARCUS: (Leans forward, voice dropping) I built this company. I know where the bodies are buried, Elena. ELENA: (Leans back, smiles slightly) Thats the old management style. My rules now. (She clicks a button on her desk. The door clicks shut, and the glass walls frosted to opaque.) MARCUS: What are you doing? ELENA: You had your time. You had your rules. The all-boys club, the whisper campaigns, the smile more memos sent to women in marketing. You ran a machine that worked for you. MARCUS: It worked for everyone. ELENA: (Tone turns to ice) It worked for your ego. Your pension fund is protected. Your golden parachute is signed. But your corner office? Your influence? That dies today. MARCUS: You need the board. You need me. ELENA: I dont need anyone who uses company jets for personal vacations and calls it out-of-state client meetings. I have the receipts, Marcus. All of them. From the last seven years. (Marcuss face pales. He tries to speak, but the words die in his throat.) ELENA: The board has two choices. They can keep you on as a figurehead, a toothless ceremonial crown. Or, they can read my report. Stock manipulation. Inflated expense reports. That thing with the junior VP in Prague. MARCUS: (Whisper) That was a lie. ELENA: Was it? You dont even remember which one I mean. Thats the kind of culture you built. The culture that ends now. (She stands. She is shorter than him, but for the first time, he looks small.) ELENA: You will leave this office. You will take your severance. And you will be very quiet. Because if youre not? (She holds up a small USB drive.) ELENA: I call it the sweep. It airs all the dirty laundry in one press release. Your wife, your kids, your church board theyll all get to see the real Marcus. (Marcus stares at the drive, then at her. His arrogance cracks, revealing pure hatred.) MARCUS: Youre a monster. ELENA: (Picks up a pen, ready to dive back into work) A monster follows your rules. I create my own. (She doesnt look up as she speaks for the last time.) ELENA: Jess? Please show Mr. Vance to his car. And security? His badge is deactivated as of now. (Marcus stands in stunned silence. The door slides open. Jess stands there, a professional, grim smile on her face.) JESS: This way, sir. (Close up on Elenas face as the door closes. Her ruthless facade cracks, just slightly, into a look of exhausted, hard-won peace.) (FADE OUT.)