THE CEO MEMOIRIST

Chapter Four

Akshara was finally able to get a taxi after several minutes of standing and waving at taxis and being turned down by taxi drivers because none of them wanted to go as far as she wanted them to. She sat in the car as the vehicle traveled so far that she was getting sleepy. "Are we any closer?" She asked in tired curiosity. "You're the one who wanted to come this far." "I know. I just didn't think it'd be this far." "Well, it is. Why do you think I'm charging you as much as I am?" "I better get this job and the pay better be good," Akshara mumbled to herself. Her phone rang and she picked it up almost immediately. It was a wonder to her that her phone still had cell service. "Hello!" She basically shouted when she picked up the call. "Akshara, you're still alive, yes? I am talking to my sister, Akshara Ramakrishnan, right?" "That's not funny, Nakia." "Nothing about this is. I mean, you're going to what looks like the set for a freaky 80s horror movie. Seriously, the pictures gave me the creeps. They still do." "Nakia, are you still looking at those pictures?" "I can't help it. It's like it's possessed me. I keep going back to it." "Oh, dear. I pray the gods to help you." "The gods might be in on it too," Nakia whispered ominously. "Oh, my God. I'm hanging up now, Nakia." "Tell me when you arrive, okay." "I'll try."

Akshara said in a sing-songy tone and ended the call. She rested her back on the seat rest and began taking deep breaths. She had been so worried about the location and more preoccupied with the journey that she had forgotten to think about preparing for the interview… but at this point, she just didn't care, she decided she was going to wing it. And before she knew it, she had dozed off. "Ma'am, ma'am." The driver's voice echoed in her subconscious. She slowly opened her eyes and asked "Are we there yet?" "Yes. We're at the second gate. They wouldn't let me drive in. You'll have to continue on foot from here." "Um, okay." She blurted out as she sat up and gathered herself before leaving the car. She paid the driver and after he drove away, she was suddenly made aware of her surroundings. She was in front of a gate that had a security house at the side with three armed men standing in front of it. There were so many flowers and trees as far as her eyes could see. "Good morning." Akshara greeted. "Miss Ramakrishnan, good morning. He's expecting you." One of the soldiers said to her as he opened the gate. "Just follow the path." "Thank you." She said as she walked in.

The path she walked was broad and mostly dim, leaves and tree branches had enveloped the sky and there was barely any way for the sun to peek through. She was so caught up in admiring the scenery that she didn't notice how far she had walked until her legs began to hurt. "Shut the front door! I've been walking this whole time? This is another whole journey on its own." She spoke so loudly that she thought she was shouting. "How much further?" She sighed and continued walking, and within three minutes, she took a curve and could suddenly see the end of the path. It was so bright at the end so she couldn't exactly see through it. She kept walking, now speeding up and a figure slowly emerged from the light, definitely a human being. She hurried to meet the person and when she got to the person, it was a man in his early forties. "Good morning, Miss Ramakrishnan." "Good morning." She answered in exhaustion. "My name is Jotham and I will be your chaperone." "Hello, Jotham. Did I really have to walk all the way?" "Yes, Mister Branagh holds his privacy in high regard." "I see." "Walk with me while I educate you on some fun facts." "Please, I'm all ears." "Firstly, welcome to Grimeland." He said with presentational enthusiasm in his voice as they walked into the compound.

Akshara could not believe her eyes, there was a massive modern structure right in the middle with an extensively long porch that had a transparent swimming pool over it. The edge of the floors were embedded in reflective panels that made everywhere so bright. There were flowers and even a water fountain with rare fishes inside it. "Lord Krishna!" Akshara muttered in absolute awe. "I've lived here for almost 14 years and I still find it breathtaking. Oh, it might interest you to know that my family has served the Branagh family for generations." "That does sound quite awesome. How many generations?" "Longer than you could imagine." "That is quite the level of dedication." "Some responsibilities are trans-generational." "That is quite some cause." Akshara looked up at the swimming pool, she was curious as to what the view would look like from up there. Jotham opened the door for her to walk in before he did. The inside was much more grand than the outside. She could not believe her eyes when she saw the floor of the gigantic sitting room, it was transparent glass with water underneath and lots of fishes and colorful lighting that changed within seconds… It was like an indoor aquarium. "This is definitely not the image I saw on Google Maps." Akshara scoffed. "Definitely not." Jotham chuckled. "Compliment of yours truly.

As I said, Mr. Branagh prioritizes his privacy." "But isn't that what I am going to be doing, interfering with his privacy?" "I have to ask, Miss Ramakrishnan, do you know what your job is going to be?" "What?" "Okay, perhaps I'm moving too fast, do you know why you are here?" "For a follow-up interview." "I'm guessing that's Sira's not-so-subtle way of saying she's not still sure about you. You've gotten the job, Miss Ramakrishnan, the question now is, can you make the sacrifices the job requires?" He said while looking at her with a stern look.