Flatline - Murder | Mystery | Intrigue

Chapter 17

I woke up groggy. I’d had one too many, but felt I deserved it after the sh*tty day I’d had. I dragged myself out of bed and got ready for work. The house was so quiet without Seth. I missed him terribly and hoped he was doing well at the clinic.

I couldn’t quite decide how to deal with the Emile situation and called Izzy from the car. 

“Hey b*tch, what’s up with the early call? Is Seth okay? Are you okay? What's wrong?” She had yet to take a breath. I smiled, Izzy was always hyper.

“Hey Izzy, Seth is fine, thankfully. I have other problems right now, I need your advice.” I filled her in on the previous nights events. 

“What the hell babe, who does this fvcker think he is?” Izzy hissed, “You should have cut off his d*ck and shoved it down his throat. You know I’ll help you bury the body right?” She was always so extra and very often I couldn’t tell if she was joking or not. 

“It’s ok babe, I’ve dealt with worse.” I consoled her. “My main concern is whether to tell Mr. Andrews or not. He will probably cancel the deal now,” I speculated. 

“Well, I guess I would go with honesty. At least then you don’t have to try to explain why the contract was cancelled when it happens and hopefully Mr. Andrews will have your back,” she advised. 

“You have a point there, I guess I will do that. Wish me luck,” I sighed. 

“Break a leg,” she cheered. I couldn’t help but smile as I ended the call, despite my churning stomach. 

The auditors were still hard at work when I arrived at the office. I was glad Jess was nowhere in sight, I didn’t have the strength to tell the story again before seeing Mr. Andrews. I dropped my belongings at my cubicle and decided to bite the bullet. I went straight to Mr. Andrews’ office. 

“Giana, could you ask Mr. Andrews if we could talk for a few minutes?” I asked politely. 

“Sure, just give me a moment,” she replied and picked up her phone to check with him. She nodded as she spoke and then indicated that I could go in. 

I knocked and entered, my stomach did a few flips and I felt acid rising to my throat. His office was the only traditionally decorated room, a reflection of his personality or perhaps even his age. It was tidy as usual and he was seated at his desk with a cup of coffee, still looking as if he was heading to the gallows. 

“Hi Mr. Andrews, I’m sorry to barge in so early in the morning, but I have something important to tell you,” I started. He looked at me with concern. The smell of the coffee made me nauseous even though I probably needed a jug to get me through the day. 

“Sure Kay, go ahead,” he urged. I took a deep breath and tried not to fiddle with my fingers. 

“Well, you see Sir, Mr. Riley came to my home last night. Our phone conversation had been cut off when I was attacked and he came over to make sure I was ok.” Mr. Andrews nodded and gestured for me to continue. 

“Mr. Riley then propositioned me, I refused, saying I would like to remain professional and he tried to coerce me using the business deal,” I exhaled. I managed to get it all out without losing my cool. 

Mr. Andrews looked at me, he seemed to be considering something deeply. The silence stretched into awkward territory and I tried my best to keep my breathing even. 

“Are you sure, Kay? Could you have misunderstood him?” he asked. My brow creased. 

“He said it in that many words, Sir. There was no way I could misunderstand,” I clarified. He stroked his chin, still in thought. 

“Well, did you lead him on in any way? Wear revealing clothes or anything of the sort?” he continued. I stood there wide-eyed for a few seconds and then my temper went from zero to one million in a matter of seconds. 

“Excuse me?” I bristled. 

“Well, these things don’t just happen Kay. In any case, I asked you to make sure there were no problems with this account. I knew Mitch was the better choice, this wouldn’t have happened then,” he sneered. 

“So, if a male client asked Mitch to have s*x with him would that be ok in your books? How about you, would you take one up the *ss for the team?” I knew I had crossed a line, but I also had a point. His face froze in shock and then disgust as he pictured the scenario.

“You’re fired,” he seethed as his face turned red. I took a deep breath and decided that I might as well go all the way. 

“Fine, you don’t pay me enough to be a prostitute anyway. You should add ‘pimp’ to your job description as well,” I shouted as I turned around and left his office, slamming the door behind me. 

I stomped off to my office ignoring the curious stares and starting gathering my things. I noticed an unread email in my inbox. It was from Emile. I opened it quickly, in it he confirmed the shoot on Friday stating that all was in order and that he was looking forward to a successful shoot. I stood gaping at it for a full minute, I had assumed he would cancel the deal. 

I sat down and exhaled slowly, well the morning’s drama could have been avoided had I read the email first. I’d still have a job. Well, at least I knew that Andrews wouldn’t ever have my back, I had uncovered his true colors. I got up and packed the rest of my things sullenly. I didn’t even get to see Jess, we would have to catch up later. 

I would miss the energy of the place. I had made great friends and good memories there. I felt a little nostalgia as I walked down the corridor and out the door. I hoped no one noticed the tears as I left. I sent Izzy a voice note telling her about his reaction while driving home. 

I wasn’t even home for ten minutes when she showed up at my door with ice cream and hugged me tightly. Bless her beautiful soul. We spent the day planning what I would do next and how I would pay my bills. 

*_*

Emile 

I hadn’t heard from Kay despite the email I had sent confirming the shoot the day before. I was a little concerned. From what I could tell, she was always professional regardless of the circumstances and I knew she had put in a lot of effort to get the shoot arranged at such short notice. I tried calling her, but she didn’t answer. I frowned, that was strange. I decided to call her office instead and was redirected to Mr. Andrews, the CEO. 

“Good afternoon Mr. Riley,” he greeted. 

“Good afternoon Mr. Andrews, I am trying to reach Kay. Is she available to talk?” I enquired. 

“Unfortunately Ms. Maloney is no longer with us, I will be more than happy to transfer you to Mitch who will take over your account,” he said. 

“What? What do you mean she is no longer with you?” I growled. 

“Yes, unfortunately she made some accusations against you that I am sure were completely baseless. Your account is very important to us and I can assure you that she will no longer trouble you or stand in the way of our mutually beneficial relationship,” he continued. 

My knuckles turned white as I gripped the phone. So she told him what had happened and he didn’t believe her. Then he fired her, a gifted employee who had pulled her weight for more than five years. 

“Right,” I said and I could hear him breathe a sigh of relief, “she was right, I was completely out of line and I need to apologize to her.” I heard him gasp. “I expect her to be back at work tomorrow or I will cancel our deal, the shoot needs to continue on Friday. I have made arrangements accordingly and Kay has worked hard to put it together. I look forward to your call tomorrow morning advising me of her reinstatement,” I concluded firmly and hung up. 

I imagined his panic and smiled, he would have to go crawling to convince her to return. He was an *sshole, but I was a bigger one. I was the reason she was in the situation to begin with. I owed her a huge apology.