CHAPTER EIGHTY-SIX

CHAPTER EIGHTY-SIX

Alex POV

No word from Jericho still which was starting to piss me off.

I thought I would have at least heard from him by now but no, nothing.

I was tempted to just go down to his office and demand some answers but that wouldn’t solve anything only just piss him off.

And I needed him on side just until this situation with Sarah was over.

Plus, if she had a plan to bring me down.

I sure as shit was taking Jericho down with me.

I mean after all; we were both responsible for what happened to her that night.

But of course, at the time we didn’t know that.

Not before it was too late anyway.

I start pacing around my apartment.

I didn’t go into work today.

I lacked focus and to run a construction company you need focus.

Especially when you’re the one that owns that construction company.

Anything goes wrong and it’s your ass on the line.

I couldn’t afford any problems, so it was best that I didn’t go in.

I needed to go and do something.

I couldn’t stand around here waiting around for Jericho to call with news.

If he wasn’t willing to let me in, I would go to someone who would.

Someone who I knew wouldn’t reject me.

And I knew where she would be.

I grab my keys and wallet and head straight to my destination.

And to be honest…

I would be lying if I didn’t say I wasn’t excited about where I was going.

It had been a few days since I had last seen her and that seemed long enough.

I don’t know why I waited this long in the first place.

Suddenly I had a newfound joy for the day ahead of me.

I got into my car turned on the ignition put the radio on and stepped on the gas pedal.

Off I was to go and see her.

The one person that made me feel remotely calm and not like I’m intruding on their life.

Off I was to see Cassandra.

Cassie POV

As I arrived outside of McCormick’s Publishing house.

I suddenly felt a sense of guilt.

I think it was finally hitting me that I was really doing this.

Really leaving Jericho.

I turned the ignition off to my car and I just sat there.

Thinking.

Was this the right decision?

Was I ready to become a writer?

I mean yeah, I’ve wanted to be a writer since high school but was I ready for the commitment.

If I thought the hours were long now.

They’d be worse being a writer.

And the demand was heavy.

I sit here even longer doubting myself.

Spiralling when I hear a tap on the window.

I turn towards it to see who it was and when I did see who it was, I was absolutely shocked at who was staring right back at me.

Amy.

No fucking way.

I rolled the window down.

“Amy what are you doing here?”

She gives a nervous chuckle.

“Hey.”

“I work here.”

“What are you doing here?”

Oh, come on Amy like you don’t know.

“I’m here to sort some paperwork for HR.”

She looked shocked.

“You’re working here?”

“When do you start?”

I couldn’t believe she was trying to play me like this.

Did she not think I knew she knew I was going to start work here Monday.

“Erm, Monday actually.”

This seemed to surprise her even more.

“What are you doing just sitting in the car.”

“You’ve been out here for 15 minutes.”

I didn’t know how to exactly answer that.

“Yeah, I was just on the phone.”

I knew for a fact that she wasn’t buying my bullshit.

But I had to say something.

Make it seem I wasn’t some weirdo just sitting here in my car.

I grab my things, do the window up and open the door to get out.

Amy steps back to allow me room to move.

It had appeared to start raining, so we both head inside fast.

“I’ll take you to HR.”

“Thanks.”

As I follow her down the corridor to HR, I notice everyone staring…

But not at me.

They were staring at her.

What had she done.

This made me intrigued.

Hopefully when I start, I’ll get the info.

Maybe I will like this place after all.

As we stop outside a door that clearly has written on it Human Resources.

She turns to me and say the obvious also.

“Here we are HR.”

“Great.”

I reply.

“Maybe I’ll see you around.”

I nod.

“Good luck.”

She said as she walked away.

Back to her desk presumably.

I knock on the door of HR and wait for a response.

“Come in.”

A gruff voice comes through from the other side.

I open the door and enter.

Ready to seal my fate.

I enter the room and see the man behind the desk is not what he seems to be.

His voice doesn’t match his, well everything.

It doesn’t go with him.

“Hello I’m Cassandra Knox.”

“Mr McCormick told me to come down and sign some paperwork for my employment starting Monday."

He looks at me over his horn-rimmed glasses.

“Yes, yes I know who you are.”

“Come sit.”

I sat down immediately.

“Just give me a moment.”

I waited patiently as he was shuffling through papers on his desk.

“Ah…”

“Here we are.”

“Miss Cassandra Knox.”

I jump at the sound of my own name.

“Yep, that’s me.”

He pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

“I just need your signature on these two documents, and we should be all good.”

“Great.”

I reply.

He hands me over the papers.

I don’t bother to read them.

Which is stupid I know but I don’t feel like I have too.

As long as I don’t break any of their rules I should all good.

I hand him back the paperwork.

“Thank you.”

“Everything looks to be in place Miss Knox.”

“We’re all good here.”

“And welcome to the team.”

We both stand.

He shakes my hand.

And I turn to leave his office.

“Oh, wait Miss Knox this is for you.”

“Mr McCormick wanted you to have something.”

I turn to grab the envelope.

“What is it?”

He shrugs.

Then sits back down behind his desk.

As I left his office, I was tempted to check the contents of the envelope but something made me think against it so I left with the intention to check it in the car.

As I was walking back the way Amy had brought me.

I tried looking for her to say bye, but she wasn’t around.

I’d thank her when I start on Monday.

I exit the building and head straight to my car.

I wanted to see inside this envelope.

As I dumped my stuff and opened the letter…

What was staring at me was something I wasn’t expecting at all.

It was a cheque.

And I didn’t understand why.

I needed to go back inside.

There must have been some mistake.

A cheque of this magnitude.

I open the door to my car to head back inside when my cell starts to ring.

This time I check the caller I.D.

It was Mr McCormick.

Good I could just tell him and have this cleared up instantly.

“Miss Knox.”

I quickly cut him off.

“Mr McCormick there’s been a mistake.”

“It seems HR have handed me an envelope with a cheque init.”

I start to hear laughing.

“Miss Knox there’s no mistake that check is indeed yours.”

I can’t believe in what he is saying.

“I don’t understand.”

I say.

“The cheque Miss Knox is yours.”

“The story Miss Adams submitted to me as part of your recruitment was sold today hence the cheque.”

I still couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

Even more so now.

I wanted to scream with joy.

“I still don’t get it.”

“We’ve got plenty of time to talk shop on Monday.”

“Miss Knox go out and celebrate.”

“Your officially an author now.”

“You have a lot of work in front of you but for now, enjoy it.”

And the call ended.

I really couldn’t believe it.

My story sold.

And it was only a stupid assignment for college.

I needed to call and tell Lexi.

Which I was about to when my cell started to ring again.

I looked at the caller I.D.

It was Lex.

I answer.

Excited to tell her the news.

“Hey Lex, your ears must have been burning I was just going to…”

She cut me off before I could continue.

“Cass, Cass where are you?”

I could hear panic in her voice.

“I’m at McCormick’s why?”

“Get here now.”

“We’ve got a big problem.”

“And when I say big, I mean big.”

I knew exactly what this was referring to.

“I’ll be there soon.

And I hung up.

As I started the engine of my car and put the cheque in my bag.

I knew my good news would have to wait.

Alexis’s guy seemed to have come through.

And it wasn’t with good news.