Hidden By Her Sister, Loved By The Billionaire

Trapped

Sage POV

I looked at myself in the mirror, touching the scar that was at the corner of my right eye gingerly. It was prominent, at least in my eyes, a constant reminder of whatever had happened that day and I sighed, wishing that my memory would come back. The scar was an eyesore, but I consoled myself that it was also a mark of bravery, a sign that I had survived, attempting to make it a positive flaw on my skin instead of viewing it as something horrible to be looked upon or hidden and disguised, even if that's how Sapphire felt about it, unable to look at it without a frown appearing on her face or a look of disgust or revulsion.

"Sage, where the hell are you?" I heard Sapphire's voice, loud and shrill as it flooded through the large house, demanding and impatient as I flinched in response.

I smoothed down my basic white shirt and black pencil skirt, glancing wryly down at myself, and then rushed out of my bedroom, hurrying down the stairs and into the kitchen, where Sapphire was tapping her foot, glancing at her watch, and exhaling loudly.

"I'm hungry" she sniped.

I tightened my lips. As soon as the will had been read, Sapphire had not hesitated in letting go of many of the staff in the house, claiming they were no longer necessary as she had me. My attempts to protest had instantly been dismissed as she casually reminded me of the inheritance waiting for me, an inheritance, she had told me coldly, that could be spent as she wished beforehand if I did not do as she had asked. Her sweetness and pretense of taking care of me in front of the solicitor and out in public had vanished. I was now no more than her maid and assistant, bowing down and scraping to her every whim.

"Make me a smoothie, low fat, and hurry up. I have to go into the company and start restructuring" she drawled, grinning widely "in order to maximize our profits and my salary" she giggled, flipping her hair.

"Do you think that's a good idea?" I said, gathering up the ingredients, attempting to make her see reason "Our employees have always been loyal to us Sapphire and it's so soon after Mother and Father's death. Don't you think that it might be seen as...." I trailed off, putting the fruit and yogurt into the blender, pursing my lips as Sapphire shot me a sharp glance, her expression turning thoughtful.

"Look, if you love the company, you'll stay with me" she warned "because otherwise I'll take it down a path you won't like. You've always been the driving force behind it, the one who had the passion for it. I want the money, the fame. I'll do anything to get that, and I won't hesitate to do what it takes to ensure that happens. You don't want employees to lose their jobs?" she asked as I looked at her in fear "Then come and work for me. Keep the place running, make sure that profits continue to grow" she said raising a brow as I bit the inside of my cheek "Do what I ask and their jobs are safe, for now" she amended "but walk away, defy me, try and leave and not only will I fire some of the more loyal and older employees of the company" she paused and looked at me coyly "I'll spend your inheritance before you can get your hands on it."

How could she be this cruel? This ruthless? I stared at my sister feeling as though I was seeing a monster. Or maybe I was seeing her in a different light. Maybe this was the real Sapphire, the true Sapphire and I was only just seeing that now. She had always had a selfish streak in her, and an inability to empathize but I had thought becoming the CEO would have matured her, along with the grief of losing her parents. What choice did I have now? I thought about the company, Elite Fashion, which I had spent several summers working at, some of the employees were like family to me. They had children, wives, and husbands that depended on the income they provided. If they lost their jobs, it would be difficult for them to find another one, at the age they were now. Not only that, but our company was known for its quality of work, the impressive designs, and the sophistication and luxuriousness of its collections. Sapphire would ruin it, all for the sake of making more money. She would drag our reputation down, our family name. Mother and Father would be rolling in their graves.

There was no choice. Unless I turned my back on the one thing I had always loved and on the people who needed me most. I was not a coward. I was not prepared to put people's livelihoods in jeopardy for my own selfish reasons. Sapphire had me wrapped around her finger and she knew it. There was a look of triumph on her face as she waited for me to answer. I could feel resignation wash over me, my heart feeling like it was being stomped on. She had me. I ducked my head, blinking back the tears threatening to spill from my eyes.

"I'll do what you want" I whispered, feeling as though I was about to give my life up completely.

"Good, then let's go" Sapphire's voice was cutting “and do something with that scar. I can't bear to look at it.”She walked out of the room, her heels clacking loudly on the floor, while I stared at the back of her numbly. Sapphire was well and truly in charge now and in no uncertain terms she had just let me know it.

Arriving at the company, Sapphire made a beeline to the top, where the designers resided, an impatient frown on her face. She sat down behind what had once been our Mother and Father's desk, crossing her petite ankles and frowning at the large spacious office, the door left wide open. She tapped her fingernails on the table, while I hastily began to clear it off, leaving just the computer or laptop, along with some files on it.

"What exactly were you guys working on?" she asked deliberately, while I put the papers to one side.

"We were preparing a new line. One that would be for formal businesswear for the everyday modern woman" I answered quietly "nowadays women are CEO's and heads of companies. We wanted to design clothes that reflected how much times have changed and combined practicality with fashion."

"Sounds boring" she snorted, "who came up with that idea?"

I swallowed "I did" I admitted sheepishly “I thought that it was a good idea, considering that women don't have access to formal business clothing that reflects their femininity along with providing them with practicality, such as clothes that could be worn not only at work, but also be slightly altered to also be worn in more formal social settings.”

"Sounds intriguing" Sapphire drawled, rolling her eyes "How far did Mother and Father get on this so-called new line?" she asked.

"We haven't even gotten the idea off the ground yet. The designers were to come up with several different concepts to produce and present in a meeting" I advised her "which I guess means will now be with you."

"When was this meeting to take place?" Sapphire asked.I frowned “I'm not certain a date has been set yet. I was not made privy to that information.”She sighed, turned her head and yelled "Elaine" in a loud voice, causing me to jump slightly.

Elaine was one of our senior designers and has been loyal to our company for over ten years now. She was a mature aged woman with a cheerful disposition and she genuinely loved designing different clothes, always happy to go the extra mile for our company. She scuttled inside the office, a solemn expression on her face, the smile that usually accompanied her wiped clear.

"Miss Sapphire and Miss Sage," she said, bowing her head "May I first offer my condolences on the loss of your Mother and Father. They are sorely missed by all of us working in Elite Fashion," she told us.

"Thank you" I whispered, touched by her sincerity. I could see her eyes shining as she held back tears of grief. Sapphire was not so easily touched.

"Elaine, was there a meeting set for this new concept that Mother and Father were introducing? Some sort of business/formalwear line?" she asked impatiently.

Elaine looked surprised "Well no, there wasn't. In fact, we were advised not to continue with that idea" she glanced apologetically at me "until the new CEO had been confirmed and operations would recommence."

In other words, my idea had been pushed aside, to make way for Sapphire becoming the new CEO, I supplied dully. I should have known that would happen.

I bit my lip. I had put my heart and soul into pleading for this new line. It was something I had been passionate about. Now, in one fell swoop, Sapphire was about to crush my dreams again, without even trying. I saw the gleam come into her eyes as she carefully looked Elaine up and down.

"I want to see what everybody has come up with. One by one, you will come to the office with your designs and show me what you've changed and designed. I want to see the best designs. Just because our parents are dead" Sapphire said, narrowing her eyes at poor Elaine who was beginning to tremble "doesn't mean that anybody can slack off. I expect everybody to be as hardworking as before, if not even more so."

"Yes. Miss Silverspoon" stammered Elaine as I sat there tongue tied, "Shall I send the first person in?"

Sapphire waved her hand and glanced at her watch. "Give me a half hour and then send them in. Tell each designer to have a spiel about their design ready. I want to be sold on why I should introduce it to the current collection" she smirked "and I want designs that are economical not exuberant to make."

"Elite Fashion has always used the very best of fabrics" Elaine began "in order to be more economical we would have to..."

"Look at changing suppliers," Sapphire said calmly, looking over to me "that will be one of your jobs Sage. You can start looking into suppliers with fabrics cheaper to import. I still want good quality but I also want better profit and less overheads. I don't want to see useless things on the designs either" she said tetchily to an astounded Elaine "Simple but good-looking" she advised.

Elaine snuck a look at me but I slowly shook my head at her. I couldn't protest. I had nothing with which to overrule Sapphire. She was the new boss of the company, not me. I could see Sapphire eyeing me, a cold smile on her lips.