Mina wracked her brains to find any clue on what just happened. In the last few seconds before the explosion, she remembered a voice warning her to move away.
Her face scrunched into an ugly frown when she recalled what came before that.
She literally had the worst Monday morning of her life.
Mina wanted to straighten things out with the tax bureau before heading off the work.
It was a regular Monday morning, and she explained her concerns after an officer asked her to have a seat. But what she thought was an error, turned out to be an unexpected nightmare.
She shuddered at the memory of just how awful that day has been. She could still hear the straightforward explanation of the tax officer. His voice was modulated but to her ears, it seems to have echoed all over the hall — catching the attention of roughly a hundred people inside the bureau.
"Miss, it was not a mistake. You owe roughly $15 million in back taxes."
Other people in the room peered at her when they heard how much she owed the government. The girl whom the assessor spoke to was fairly young—someone fresh out of university.
The young lady wore a skirt and a formal blouse and seems to have rushed out of her office. While the girl appeared pleasant enough, her clothes were serviceable and unbranded. Hearing how much she owed surprised everyone in the tax bureau.
After a few seconds of shocked silence, the people in the bureau were back to milling around and going on with their business.
"These days, you can never trust a person's appearance," chirped in a business owner waiting for her turn.
An old man reading a paper beside her reverted his gaze from the young lady to the woman who just spoke. "Yes, she could be a scammer who tried to pull one over the assessor."
A lady who berated the tax officer for giving her a $500 assessment stopped. She requested for the procedure on how to pay the penalties and thanked the officer graciously.
Everyone appeared to have an opinion about the matter.
Some pitied the girl who would most likely end up in jail if she can't find enough cash to cover what she owed. Others thought her pitiful appearance was a farce and behind the young and innocent face was a criminal involved in illegal dealings.
Mina was too shocked to process anything. She took the documents the assessor handed to her with shaking hands. After a deep breath, she glanced at the papers before her.
A quick look at the documents told her everything she needed to know.
Her grip loosened on the documents and papers fell on the ground. As if drenched in cold water, she shot out of her seat and picked up the documents scattered all over the floor.
Skylight Corporation. The company Hans created before he disappeared.
The numbers were all she had to see to realize that she has been implicated in some fraudulent scheme that could make her one of the unfortunate souls who landed in jail because of tax fraud.
When she saw the proof before her, she knew she was doomed. The tax debt would just be the beginning of her troubles. From the papers before her, she knew that lawsuits and other complications would follow.
Worst of all, she can't deny her involvement in this company. She signed the papers to establish the business.
She trusted that man with everything and she felt the searing pain of betrayal. She hated the man with a passion.
Now, there's another reminder of how brutal he can be—leaving her $15 million in debt and, possibly, a lawsuit. She found herself in a daze and without a word she walked out with a bunch of documents on her hand.
---
"HAHAHAHAHA" Mina let out a shaky, hysterical laugh. After leaving the tax bureau, she walked with no direction. She had no idea where she was headed or where she was.
Eventually, she found herself outside her workplace — the five-star Empire Hotel. She did not feel the tiredness after walking for hours under the scorching sun, but she felt her legs give way and she slumped on the ground. She collapsed on the stairs without a care in the world. Oblivious to her surroundings, she buried her face in her arms and let out a wail. Still, no one paid attention to her. People were rushing in and out of the hotel—it's always a venue for meetings and conferences and even a young woman looking up to the sky as if the heaven dealt her a fatal blow is the least of their worries.
Fear, anger, hysteria, and a strong sense of betrayal hit her all at once. She had been too shocked to say anything while talking to the assessing officer, but after wandering for hours, she finally gripped how dire her situation is. There is no salvation for her.
"$15 million! HAHAHAHA," she cried, laughing like a fool in between. "Here I thought owing my landlady $900 is the end of the world. Now, I owe the government $15 million."
Mina can't help but let out a bitter laugh at how ridiculous things are for her. She's just a regular office worker, barely making ends meet and now she owes more than what she would have earned in this lifetime.
HAHAHAHA, this time her laughter became even louder, and even passersby in a rush noticed her. Her blouse was drenched from sweat, her skirt was sideways, and her hair was a mess. She looked insane with her eyes fixed on the burning sun.
Losing all the care in the world, she had no qualms about acting up and bellowed, "So, what if you are the sun? I'll stare at you all I want! Who cares if I get a headache, dying from migraine is so much better!!!!"
As if scared of her crazy act, the sun hid behind the clouds, away from her angry stare.
She bitterly smiled. She felt anger wash through her system. In a few minutes, the once sunny morning turned gloomy and soon enough dark clouds covered the skies.
No longer caring about her surroundings, she yelled while looking at the heavens, " Come! Bring it on? What now? What's next? Rain? Getting struck by lightning? I might as well get toasted to death than work like a dog all my life to pay for someone's sins. I'd rather be an animal!"
After letting out her rage, the frustration washed over her, and she felt her knees growing even weaker. "WAAAAHHHHHH" she wailed.
Just as she let out a scream, raindrops slowly fell. Feeling pathetic about herself, she continued to cry. The rain poured harder as her cries became louder.
No longer caring about a thing, she sobbed to her heart's content. "That wretched man! How dare he use my name for his illegal dealings?"
Who would have thought that ex would use her name for a ghost company, pushing all the responsibility towards her after he left the country? When she received the letter from the tax bureau, she thought a quick trip to their office would fix everything.
Still swimming in the sea of regret, Mina was oblivious to everything. She was about to let out another cry when a booming voice interrupted her.
"Move! Woman, Move!"
She looked up to see someone rushing towards her. Dazed from her outburst, it took her a few seconds for the words to register.
"MOVE!"
The alarmed man yelled.
Feeling a sense of danger, she immediately stood up and ran away from the approaching man. The man continued to make his way closer to her, and she picked up her speed towards the hotel to seek help. Without warning, she crashed into something. And in the next second, she heard an explosion.
As everything faded to black, her last thoughts were of how brilliant she was to predict the end of her existence—pouring rain and then getting struck by lightning. Her eyes closed with a ridiculous smile. She was better dead than alive, anyway.