The morning started early, as usual, except that Siel was still carrying the disappointments and emotional scars of last night.
With a little less motivation and a fake smile, she got the twins ready for the day, welcomed Nella, and left for work.
Traffic didn't seem to agree with her either, as it took a while for her to get through her usual route. After all, it is that time of year…
"At least, I still have a job, right?" she muttered to herself as she got out of her car.
Her office day had officially begun, but she felt disconnected and distracted. Not even Di's cheerfulness or Raquel's perkiness was helping to improve her mood. Not even the never-ending requests of her boss were making her feel beyond her numbness.
Surprisingly, she had enough time to go to the lounge area to buy ingredients for her personal cinnamon tea mix, one of her favorite comfort drinks. She even ate an apple strudel from one of the coffee shops nearby. But instead of making her happy, it just made her feel angry that she could do this now but not manage to have gone to the cafeteria a few days ago so she can…
Oh, wait… It's that man from the meeting a week ago?
Siel found herself staring at the tall, beautiful man who introduced himself as V as he walked down the lobby of the building, about a few meters away from her table.
He really looks magnificent in that dark blue suit, although he still looked great in that black one. What was his full name again? Damn, I've already forgotten. How could I have not seen him in here before?
She smiled to herself as the broad-shouldered elegant male paused in the distance. He brought out his phone and took a call. For some reason, her memory of their meeting pushed itself through the fog of her hurt feelings and she suddenly remembered that unfamiliar jolt she felt as his hand touched her bare arm.
Unknowingly, she flushed slightly at these thoughts, the reddish tint enhancing her natural beauty better than if she wore makeup. Which in most days, she didn't wear any anyway… like now.
Should I try and get his attention? Would he even remember me…?
Right then, her mobile beeped, and the few seconds it took for her to get the phone out of her pocket, he was already gone.
Damn, how could he have gotten out of sight so fast?
Her smile vanished, and yet she suddenly wondered why she had felt a spark of life just because she saw that "stranger" again. I wonder if it was really him who I just saw. I only saw him once… Not that I could easily forget how he looked like, being that close, but… Oh, Siel, what are you thinking… just stop it!
She sighed, disappointed. But even as she chatted with Nella on her phone, her thoughts about that mystery man still continued…
What is wrong with you!? Just because you've been divorced for three years? Why would you want to get in a mess like that again, anyway?
Even when she's already riding the elevator, the same way she has done for the past five years working here, her mind was still thinking about him…
Besides, do you really think a man as good-looking as him would even think of you like anything special? With your messy life, underpaid job, and your pregnancy-marked body? Seriously? That kind of guy only goes out with supermodels and high-class society girls."
Somehow, she managed to bring her perked-up mood back to its original depressed state as she made her way to her desk to place her small bag of purchases on top.
Then she saw it… "W- what is this?"
Her hand was shaking as she picked up a legal-sized paper from her desk. Suddenly, she was finding it hard to breathe, which made reading what was on the note a little difficult.
"Miss Elena Camden,
You are appointed for an emergency consultation meeting by the Central Management Office. We will expect you on floor 166 at 2:00 P.M. today, December 12th.
Your immediate superior has been notified that you will not be available during the time of your appointment.
Please, be punctual."
Sincerely,
Vincent Riegel
Chief Executive Officer
These kinds of notifications were legendary in the company. Siel was aware of those memos and had even seen a few before in the past years. And the story goes that after the said meeting, the recipient was never to be seen again.
And all of these stories were true.
What did you do now, Siel? Damn it, girl, we NEED this job. What the hell did you do!?
She was about to panic when Diwa came up to her, "Oh, you're back!"
Siel turned to her dearest friend's face, looking pale and with tears brimming in her eyes. Di stopped midway her greeting upon seeing her co-worker's face and the piece of paper that she's holding in her slightly shaking hand.
Diwa took the memo, read it, and was silent for a moment,
"This is an official notification from upper management. Siel, what is this about?"
"I… don't… know."
Even as she tried to comfort Siel, Diwa suddenly remembered the day when she saw V collide with her friend. And later on, when her Alpha started staring at Siel…
"Oh, nice to see you, Alpha," she had mindlinked him, being protective of her human friend.
"Long time, no see Diwa."
"Indeed. I see you intently looking at my friend. So, you haven't found your mate yet?"
She was so surprised that she saw him blush!
What is going on here?
She looked a moment at Siel, then back at him… Then back at Siel again and then back at V…
But before she could psychically talk to him again, one of the executives who were with him asked all the suited gentlemen to enter the meeting room.
Di remembered all that, so this couldn't be something bad.
Yet, she can't help but wonder…
V has never been a bad guy, but why would he… Is she…?
All of her confused thoughts, and Siel's, were interrupted suddenly by a bellowing voice…
"SIEL!!!"
Typical… doesn't this brute have a heart? Siel is already upset, and…
"What the hell did you get yourself into?! You better get all my orders ready and every one of my tasks done before you go to that frigging Central Management meeting, you hear me?!"
Yes, Roderick, she heard you. As a matter of fact, the whole bloody floor just heard you announcing that she's going to have a damned meeting that's known for acing employees off! Good job, asshole!
"Good morning!" Raquel cheerily greeted Diwa and Siel, as she entered their office area. "I kinda heard him announcing the end of our lunch break, so I skedaddled over here ASAP."
The new girl had great timing because Roderick was already stomping towards them. He was so furious and so red in the fact that he looked like his head would explode any minute now. However, the moment he saw Raquel giggling in front of Siel's desk, he almost skidded to a stop.
Ok, this Raquel bitch was sent from many management levels above me. Must not let her see me like this… I'm already in deep shit… shouldn't make it worse…
All three ladies watched as he inhaled deeply in an effort to calm himself down. It was so comedic, R almost guffawed aloud, Di bit on her lip to stop herself from laughing, and Siel even smiled a bit.
"Good morning, Miss Molave, very pleased to see you today," the now-calmed boss said with a fake, lame smile.
"Good morning Mr. Roderick. It's Mrs., by the way. Molave is my husband's surname."
R's smile was genuine and innocent, but her attitude was firm, almost intimidating. It was hard to explain how someone so cheery can be so lethal so quickly.
Well, Di could, but this wasn't the time or place to do that…
"Alright, I'll continue with my work. Remember what I told you, Siel, ok? Ladies…" Roderick stated as he walked back to his office with his tail between his legs.
Diwa glanced at Raquel as the rest of the girls watched their boss's hasty retreat. Di lightly nodded at R, complete with a thankful and relieved smile, and Siel caught that little wordless exchange just at the last moment.
Wait… is this letter related to this girl coming here? Was I right that she must have been sent to take over my position? And why is Diwa having non-verbal connections with her… Ok, stop it, Siel! Get a grip, please!
Siel had a tendency to overthink when she's stressed. These are one of those times. Her exhausted brain was now starting to show her the worst-case scenario that she feared above all: the image of her ending up with a cardboard box full of her belongings before the day ended.
I need to focus… I just can't let myself lose it… Not right now…
She tried her best to finish what she can within the one hour allotted to her but no thanks to her boss' megaphone-like announcement, it made it more difficult to deal with other workers that were part of the other departments.
With the amount of work, she had to complete she barely noticed the time passing… again. Yet, she could see that, when she walked to the printer, the legal department, or even the coffee machine, her co-employees would immediately avoid her. Some won't even look her in the eye.
Her paranoia grew exponentially, and by 1:50 PM she was ready to beg for her job.
There was no way she can manage being unemployed, even if she didn't like her position. It was all she had to take care of her babies, and it was almost Christmas.
No matter what, she had to keep it.
"Are you ready?" Di asked her as her friend combed her hair and put on a bit of lip tint.
"No, but I can't cancel on this one, Diwa. Wish I could…"
"Aww, don't worry much, ok? I have a hunch that everything will be fine," Di assured her. "Just being honest about my feelings about this."
"Di… I don't know anymore…"
"Girl, you haven't done anything wrong! Why are you so worried?"
"I…" A second of clarity came to her upon hearing her best friend's words. "You're right, girl. I haven't done anything wrong. Why are they calling me out, anyway?! They can't fire me just like that! So yes, I'll fight to keep my job!"
Di stared in shock at her friend as her volume increased and her fierce expression intensified by the second.
Oh, dear goddess, what did I just say? What did I just do? Diwa thought anxiously.
"Yeah! I'll tell that… that Chief Executive Officer that he can't just fire me! I have always been a good hardworking employee! They have no right to can me!"
"N-no, Siel… I didn't mean that… SIEL!" Di tried to go after her friend, but it was too late.
She had already rushed out the door, with her head held high, furious, and so ready to be feisty. The thing is, she's probably got the wrong idea about this whole thing, which was now worrying Diwa.
"I'm sorry, Alpha," whispered the operations manager of SCIT.
Raquel took this time to approach Di by sitting on Siel's office chair.
"So, she's on her way up?" Raquel asked.
"Yeah, and, no thanks to me, she's in a fighting mood… even hostile…"
"Don't worry, he'll manage. He's our Alpha, after all."
"But he's also a werewolf, and you know how they are when they like a woman."
"Puppy eyes and all silly?"
"Exactly!"
Both giggled, in the same familiar way they used to do when Diwa still lived in the packhouse.
"So, your job here is done?" Di asked.
"Since yesterday," R answered with a smile, proud of her proficiency in her line of work.
"Means that you're leaving again soon?"
"I believe tomorrow is my last day."
"Then we should go for a celebratory drink after work."
"I agree. Margaritas night?"
"That sounds great! We have a lot of catching up to do."
"We do, indeed."
As the infiltrator turned to walk away, Di gently asked, "Was she your mission?"
"Sort of," Raquel answered after a long pause.
Diwa sighed, "Damn, I've been her friend for this long and never noticed. I think I let someone down."
"It's not your fault. For a long time too, not even we knew. But he knows now, and that's all that matters."