DON'T TAKE THIS FROM ME
"Did you hear about the meeting yesterday?" The first lady asked.
"Of course, he fired another three people." the second lady replied, rummaging through her bag.
The first lady lightly slapped her shoulder. "I'm telling you. It's like a sport to him. And notice how it's mostly women?"
My ears perked up, curiosity setting in.
My gaze flickered towards them as I walked closer and plastered on a smile. "Who are you talking about?"
One of them glanced at me hesitantly but she didn't look like she recognized me. They must be new. Then she answered, "Ezra Harrington. The new CEO."
I frowned. "New CEO?"
"You didn't know?" the second woman sounded surprised.
"She must be new" the first woman said.
"Mr. Dominic resigned. I heard the new Ezra Harrington is his nephew, so he took his place yesterday."
Ezra Harrington. Sacks people like sport.
"And apparently, he's a misogynist. Doesn't care who you are, he fires people left and right but mostly women."
The elevator dinged. The door slid open.
I stayed rooted to the ground as the two women hurried out of the elevator.
I raised my shaky hand and inputed the executive floor number.
This wasn't how today was supposed to start. I was supposed to walk into my new office, acquaint myself with it and bury myself in work, pretending that my world hadn't crumbled.
Instead, I'm walking into a company I thought I knew, only to find a stranger at it's helm.
A stranger with the power to take away the only thing I have left.
No.
I tilted my chin up and squared my shoulders as the elevator dinged. Then, with my chin up, I stepped out of the elevator and into the executive floor.
Office three. I repeated in my head as I made my way towards the third door down the hall.
And just like I had hoped, my name was written on it. But the name at the end brought back the ache I had managed to bury.
Thea Calloway.
I made a mental note to tell them to change it back to Carlisle before placing my thumb on the knob.
The door clicked and I was about to turn the knob when the elevator down the hall dinged and a slim woman who I recognized too well stepped out of it and rushed towards me, her heels clicking against the floor. Nora.
"Thea, oh my gosh. Where have you been?" she chimed as she stopped beside me, trying to catch her breath.
I've been fighting for my life, I wanted to say but I said nothing instead.
She inhaled deeply, finally catching her breath as I turned the knob of my office door and stepped in. She followed after me.
I glanced at her over my shoulders. "Well, how can I help you?"
"There's a board meeting going on. Mr. Harrington wants you there. You were not present yesterday."
"Yes, I..."
"Don't explain." she said, interrupting me as she rushed towards my new table.
She picked a document on the table and flipped it open. Then, she held it up as I dropped my bag on the table.
"This is the latest update on the stocks as of yesterday. Take" she stretched it towards me. "Be updated. We have two minutes"
My mouth parted but I hurriedly took the file from her and flipped it open. My eyes rushed through the content of the file before I slammed it on the table.
"It's too sudden" I said in panic.
She nodded, her lips pulled up in a mocking pout as she walked towards the door. "Follow me. But don't say I didn't warn you."
Oh God.
I inhaled deeply and followed her out of the office. I locked it behind us and tried to keep up with her steps as she hurried towards the elevator and punched in the second to the last accessible floor. Harrington & Vale has 44 floors.
The elevator dinged at the 43rd floor and she stepped out. She didn't wait for me and started walking calmly towards the double doors down the hallway; the boardroom.
When she reached the doors, she dusted her skirt and patted her hair.
"Have they started?" I whispered.
She only spared me a short glance over her shoulders before she slowly pushed open the door and slipped in.
I inhaled a shuddering breath and slipped in after her, afraid to make a noise.
As soon as we stepped in, the twenty two pairs of eyes or so sitting by the long oval table of the boardroom swivelled to us.
Sh*t.
I quickly bowed in embarrassment.
Nora rushed to the man seated at the end of the oval table and I saw her whisper something to him.
I stood frozen by the door, wishing the ground could just open up and swallow me.
Oh God.
And then—
He stood.
Tall. Imposing. And dressed in a sharp suit that fits his frame too well.
Ezra Harrington.
The man who supposedly fires women like sport.
The man now looking at me like he's deciding whether I'm worth keeping.
No. Please no.
Don't... take this... from me.