I took a very deep breath, trying to let my nerves be steady as I entered into the modern office building.
The new badge they gave me felt very cold against my skin as I put it in my hand, my fingers was shaking when holding the edges of the badge.
All the floor was filled with activities; employees moved quickly from one end of the room to the other, laptops and files in row, and the faint ringing of phones and the printers they were using filled the air.
It was nothing like the diner where I was working before. Here, I felt like one tiny thing in a very large, moving machine.
"Lena Thompson?" A serious voice brought me back to my reality.
I looked up to see a woman standing closer to my side, there are some documents in her hand and a very sharp look in her eyes. "Yes, that's me."
The woman did not smile at all. "I am Ms. Kerrigan, Mr. Elias's executive assistant. Follow me please."
I quickly hurry to keep up with her, as Ms. Kerrigan went down the hall, her heels sounding against the tiled floor.
She led me into a very big office lined with a very big windows that can be viewed from the top, overlooking all the city.
Behind a very huge desk sat Elias, I thought he would be the one because he was the one sitting at the huge desk, his eyes was focused on a pile of documents in front of him, entirely occupied with what he was doing.
Ms. Kerrigan cleared her throat. "Mr. Elias, your new assistant, Ms. Thompson, is right here."
Elias looked up for some time, his eyes was cool and assessing. "Good. Ms. Thompson, I hope Ms. Kerrigan has given you the employee handbook?"
I nodded, trying to meet his eyes with my confidence. "Yes, she has given me."
"Then you are also familiar with what you are supposed to do." His voice was sounding dismissive, and he did not even bother with saying something nice.
"I need all these documents filled, according to each order, by the end of the day. And make sure they are related with the last quarter's data."
My eyes opened wide small at the stack of papers, but I quickly composed myself. "Noted, Mr. Elias. I will get started right away."
Elias did not respond to anything she says, already returning his attention back to the work he was doing.
I felt a mix of relief and frustration, I had hoped for at least a small words of encouragement from him, but he clearly saw me as just another ordinary assistant.
I gathered the documents given to me together, I was really feeling the weight of my new role settling all over me.
I did not have time to stay on that, though because there was just too much work for me to do.
Hours passed in a jiffy as I worked through all those files, checking every page of the files again and again, making sure every number I was working on matched with each other.
By the time I noticed that the time is 5pm already, my head was really banging.
I had just placed the last document in the drawer when Ms. Kerrigan showed beside my desk, I was shocked by her appearance.
"Mr. Elias would like you to see him in his office. Right now," she said, her voice sounding steady.
I swallowed hard my words, wondering if she was not making a mistake somewhere.
I walked down to his office, my steps was full of hesitation, and found Elias standing by the window in his office, his back turned to me as he looked out over to the city.
"Ms. Thompson," he started, not bothering to turn around to look at me. "I really need someone I can trust that can handle a very sensitive information.
This company is very high on discretion and loyalty.
I was stable for a while, feeling the weight of his words on me. "I understand, Mr. Elias. I will try to do my best sir."
He finally turned to face me, his expression was not readable at all. "Your best might not just be enough here. This job requires more than just filing papers and answering phone calls." He paused for a moment.
Then he continued "I need to know if you are really willing to go the extra miles when the time is right for you to do so." He said.
My heart was beating very heavily as I nodded, trying to keep my voice as steady as possible. "I am willing to do what is needed, sir."
Elias studied me for some time, then gave a short nod. "Very well. You may go now."
As I turned to leave, I was feeling both relieved and really disturbed by his words.
But as my hand reached the door, he said to me again, his voice softer now than before, almost deciding on what he should do.
"One last thing, Ms. Thompson." I stopped, turning to look at him again.
His eyes was very strong, sharper than when he talked before, as if he knew what was on my mind. "People here… often wear masks on their faces. Always remember that. Not everyone is who they seems to be."
My heart was beating very fast this time around, my thoughts were coming in with different ways. Then I asked myself inwardly, was he actually talking about himself? Or another person entirely?
"Understood, Mr. Elias," I replied him, my voice barely comes out more than a whisper.
I left the office, feeling a strange mix of curiosity and huge fear inside of me.
As I walked down the hall way, I could not shake the feeling that I had just stepped into something far more than complex and even very dangerous than what was on my mind before.