Devil's Prisoner

Chapter 1-Part II

No matter what these are, the patterns are the lucky symbols for Ria. The first one is from one of her free-hand scratching practices three months ago. The design naturally jumped into her mind as if it was already there waiting to be discovered. It was so beautiful, and Ria loved it. She used it to participate in a logo design contest and won the first prize. She was proud of her achievement, included it in her resume, and got the job offer from Y&M.

Inspired by the rose field she visited, the second pattern has a heart shape in the middle. Ria sculptured it onto a small piece of oak wood and made it into a lovely pendant for her necklace. She decides to wear it today as it adds a touch of elegance to her outfit. She hopes it will bring her luck on this important day.

It's already 7 a.m., and Ria has no time to think about her dream. Because of her tight budget, she rents an attic in the suburbs, located southwest of Miami. It takes almost 2 hours to commute from home to Y&M, but the rental is cheaper. She quickly gets ready and heads to the firm.

As expected, the first day of work has a very intense schedule. In the morning, HR assistant Sophia takes her on a thorough one-hour office tour, showing her around and introducing her to countless colleagues. The number of people she meets is overwhelming, and it is hard for her to keep track of all the names and faces. After the office tour, Ria could only remember two people: her team leader, Alan, who interviewed her for the position, and her buddy Emily, a junior technologist who joined the firm last year and sits beside her.

Sofia hands Ria a small box. Ria carefully opens it and finds a set of professional business cards prepared for her by the company. The cards read "Ria Xochitl Wilches, Junior Technologist." This milestone marks the beginning of Ria's journey towards her lifelong dream of becoming an architect. Her heart swells with an overwhelming sense of pride.

Following the tour, Ria moves to the new hire training session. The admin spends six hours discussing the firm's policies and regulations. By the end of it, Ria's mind is twisted hard and overloaded. She sits at her designated workstation and takes a moment to catch her breath, wondering what her first project will be. She takes a beautiful light blue leather business card case from her purse, a congratulatory present from her mother for her first job. Ria carefully places some business cards in it, ready to make her mark in the new role.

After long hours of intense concentration and hard work, it's time to unwind and enjoy the highlight of the day: the eagerly awaited welcome group dinner. The restaurant of choice is a magnificent, spacious, open-air establishment on Centre Street overlooking the shimmering ocean waves, aptly named the "Captains Club."

Alan has a particular reason for choosing this restaurant. A few months ago, the interior decoration project for "Captains Club" was put out to bid, and many construction firms participated. Y&M and their competitor, Power Structure, advanced to the final round after several rounds of screening. Alan and his team worked hard on their proposal, but unfortunately, the restaurant owner chose Power Structure's design. Alan was extremely upset as if he had fallen out of love. Now that the restaurant is open, he must see what decorative plan Power Structure used to win the project.

The dinner was scheduled at 4 p.m., a bit earlier than the usual dining time. The restaurant is fully booked after 5 p.m., which is how popular it is.

The sitting area is right on the beach. The waves of the sparkling sea collect all the golden sunshine, creating a stunning, glittering path to paradise. The view here is breathtaking.

However, Ria can only allow herself to be distracted for a short time by those stunning views. She has to stay focused to impress her colleagues, particularly her team lead, Alan. Alan is a highly intelligent, knowledgeable, and sophisticated gentleman. Ria looks up to him as a role model and aspires to be like him one day. To achieve this goal, she must find a way to showcase her skills and abilities while avoiding mistakes or missteps. Every interaction with her colleagues is an opportunity for her to prove herself and shine, and Ria is determined to make the most of it.

The table is decorated with exotic candles and a beautiful flower centerpiece, complemented by the elegant ivy draped, creating a romantic atmosphere. As Ria takes her seat, she gets a chance to look around. Every detail in this restaurant is perfect, except a nearby area surrounded by black wooden privacy screen partitions. Despite the exquisite reliefs engraved on the surface, the solid black color appears heavy, dull, and out of place. This enclosed area sparks everyone's curiosity, leaving them wondering what's inside and whether secrets are hidden behind the impenetrable partitions.

There may be some broken tables or unused outdoor air coolers that the restaurant owner left in the partitions because he needs some time to address them. It's nothing to be curious about, but soon, they discover these initial guesses are impossible to be correct.

A procession of impeccably dressed waiters, each holding a polished silver tray, forms a gentle line and quietly enters the secret area. No sound can be heard from outside. After a few moments of idle speculation, those waiters holding the empty trays exit the area silently from the other end.

No matter what it is, there is nothing Ria needs to worry about. That's other people's problem, not hers. Following a brief moment of mind wandering, she ceases her curiosity.

"Good afternoon! My name is Daniel, and I will be your waiter today." A good-looking young man comes to their table and greets them with his brilliant smile. "May I start you off with some drinks?"

As the team members take turns making their orders, Ria's attention is drawn towards the waiters serving at the restaurant. She notices that all of them are young, handsome men with chiseled physiques dressed in crisp white shirts that accentuate their toned muscles. As Daniel leans over to take Ria's order, she can feel her cheeks turning slightly red with embarrassment. Being a conservative girl, she seldom finds herself in such proximity to a handsome man.