Chapter 72. outta
Jackson Johnson
In the morning, I got ready to leave for the company, but Richard appeared in the foyer of the penthouse.
"Good morning, Mr. Johnson."
"Good morning, Richard. Is the car ready?"
"Yes, but we'll be delayed for a moment." I raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to explain the delay. "Mrs. Johnson has arrived at the building."
"At this building?" I asked, surprised.
"Yes, sir."
I furrowed my brow, now intrigued by her unexpected visit.
"Fine, let her come up." Richard nodded and gave an order through his microphone. The elevator numbers started moving. I left my briefcase on the foyer table, where there was a vase of white flowers. They smelled wonderful.
The elevator bell rang, the doors opened, and my mother appeared. "Good morning, Mother. What are you doing so early in my penthouse? I was just about to leave for the company."
"We need to talk. Do you think a text message saying 'All good' is enough after seeing you all over the media?"
"Fine," I looked at Richard. "Tell them I won't be arriving at the company yet, please." He nodded and gave us privacy. "Have a seat, Mother." I led her to the main living room. She sat down and placed her designer bag beside her. I sat on the couch opposite her. "It's too early to be in a bad mood."
"What’s this about Arya being back? I still can’t believe it."
"Oh, it's that," I murmured.
"Yes, it's that. What's going on, Jackson?"
"She just returned from who knows where."
"I don't want her in our lives, Jackson," she said in a tone full of annoyance. It was something that surprised me about her.
"I didn't think you had any kind of..."
"I haven't forgotten the humiliation she caused you in school." I raised an eyebrow, surprised.
"I appreciate your support on that," I confessed.
"How could I not support you? Because of her, you became overly reserved and distrustful, even of your own family." I tensed. "She hurt you deeply. And no mother will ever forgive that." An uncomfortable silence followed, then she softened her gaze. "I hope you're not meeting with her. I won't allow her to enter our family, no matter how powerful and important she is."
"I have no intention of getting close to her or anything else."
I could see relief in her eyes.
"And to think that Maxima imagined there could be a second chance with her. I got irritated just imagining you married to that woman after what she did to you."
"Maxima told you that?" I asked, intrigued.
"Yes, a couple of days ago when we had lunch together. I already told her then that the topic of Arya was off the table. And then yesterday, when I saw that note in the magazine, I was shocked."
"Mother, you need to know something. I don't know how you'll take it," I began to say. She tensed.
"Say it."
"I'm going to remove Maxima from her position." She was shocked.
"What?" she blurted out.
"I discovered that Maxima is allied with Arya." My mother turned pale. I became alarmed and immediately stood up. "Do you want some water?" She nodded slowly. I went to the kitchen and poured her some water. When I returned, she was pacing back and forth, murmuring something I couldn't hear. "Here, drink the water." She stopped and took a long sip until she finished it.
"How is that possible? She's almost like family. She knows us, she..." Her voice broke as she finally understood how I felt. "She was welcomed into our home..." Her eyes welled up. "We've known her for years, I knew her parents..." She paused briefly. "But have you confirmed she's really allied with Arya?" I nodded slowly, placing a hand on her shoulder in consolation. She placed her hand over mine and let out a long sigh. "Do what you have to do. In our family, there's no room for those who betray us." The tone she used to say those words gave me chills. My mother was determined to remove Maxima from our lives. I showed her the two audio files, and she remained completely silent. After a while, she left without saying anything else, only my warning not to say a word about what I had just shown her.
During the drive to the office, I carefully thought about what I would do with Maxima. I had ordered the HR department to start preparing the documents and everything she was entitled to up to today as an executive employee of the company.
"Mr. Johnson, the media has called," my secretary began to inform me. I opened the doors to my office and put my things down, my coat and my briefcase.
"Block the calls."
"Yes, sir. Miss Luken will arrive in a few minutes to go over the details of the press conference."
"Perfect. Call Maxima and have her come to the conference room and inform the HR manager that I have arrived and to bring the documents I requested to the conference room."
"Yes, sir." She then disappeared from the office, leaving me alone. My hands turned a bit cold from the anger and disappointment about what would happen in the conference room. I typed a message to Lilly, telling her that I was in the office and to be prepared at lunchtime.
I arrived at the conference room and the HR manager was there, sitting, with a folder in front of him. Maxima entered through the other door and smiled when she saw me.
"What do you want to talk to me about?" she asked, noticing we weren't alone. "Good morning," she greeted the manager, who returned the greeting.
"Yes, take a seat." I pointed to the chair. In front of her was the manager, who was completely tense, silent, and ready to run when he understood what was going to happen.
"What is the HR manager doing here?" Maxima asked, intrigued. I sat in the chair I usually used, she was two seats away on one side.
"Begin," I told the man, who nodded and got up. He walked over to her and placed a brown folder with the company logo on it, then returned to his seat. Maxima opened it and gradually widened her eyes until she turned her face towards me.
"What? Terminate and settle me from the company?" she asked with quite a surprise, not seeing it coming. She looked in my direction, then at the manager.
"I need you to sign on the dotted line..." Maxima interrupted him brusquely.
"I'm not signing ANYTHING," she said, then looked in my direction.
"You are going to sign," I said in a tone loaded with coldness.
"Is this a joke? Right? How can you terminate me from my position overnight? It has taken me so much to get to where I am."
"At what price?" I asked. She opened her mouth, but no words came out. "At what price, Maxima? Why have you sold your loyalty?"
"I don't know what you're talking about. Did someone tell you a bunch of lies to get me out of the company? I have the right to refute," she threatened.
"Then, give me a refutation of this," I extended my phone in front of me, pressed play, and her voice was heard.
"Heart? Jackson doesn't have a heart, he wants to pretend that he does.
Maxima, I think you're not aware of several factors and my instinct tells me that I have to stop, and if I stop, you will too.
We are not going to stop, your plans benefit me and of course, what you give me for giving you the ins and outs of what he does, but I'm not going to lose that because of your instinct. If you marry Jackson and take him to Dubai as you've always dreamed, as well as make him part of the family business, I'll be in charge of the conglomerate in his absence." She paused. "Only I hadn't counted on Lilly. I thought she was just a plaything..."
Maxima turned pale.
"Jackson..." she stammered.
"I want you to sign that documentation now. In there, you will find the check that you are entitled to by law and for the time you worked, although I still think you don't deserve a cent, but I'm not that cruel, as I am aware you were good at your job and helped me. So... after signing, you will collect your things and leave my company, my family, my life, and everything that has to do with Lilly Bradley and her family."