Chapter 5
1350 Words
The Shift
I quickly put my hand to my mouth, but it was too late. The voice was like a ghost that I couldn't get out of my ears.
That voice. That voice was familiar to me.
I was immobilized as I gazed at the screen.
As if air were being squeezed out of me by unseen hands, my chest constricted.
"Just make sure Naomi doesn't know."
Before fading into silence, the message was repeated once more, in a mocking manner.
My fingers were shaking over the mouse, but I was able to pause the audio. My mind attempted to refute my prior knowledge. That tone of carelessness, that laugh...
It was Asher.
It must have been. But to whom was he speaking?
And, who the hell was "N"?
I felt sick.
I got up too quickly and nearly toppled the chair. The betrayal, the confusion, and the foolish loyalty I had squandered on him left my head spinning.
I had stood up for him. cherished him, loved him and made a sacrifice for him.
And he was plotting against me now?
With another person?
And taking credit for work I believed I was assisting him with?
I needed answers.
I pressed my fingertips to my temple as I paced the tiny area between my desk and the window.
Was this why he wanted me to sabotage my own report?
Was this why he wanted me to fail?
I reached for my phone, paused, and then threw it back. It wouldn't help to call him. He would only tell lies. These days, he only ever gaslighted and lied to me until I started to doubt my own intuition.
Not now. I would play smarter this time.
I didn’t cry.
I wanted to. My chest ached in that ugly way that begged for a breakdown — for tears, screams, anything. But I just stood there, blinking at the screen like it had personally slapped me.
I closed the tab, cleared the history, and sat down like a robot, hands folded tightly in my lap. My breathing steadied… but my thoughts didn’t.
Why?
Why would Asher treat me like this?
Why now, at a time when my career was finally taking off?
And, who was "N"? Was it Nelissa?
God.
I quietly glanced around the office, focusing on her desk.
She was flipping her long hair as if she didn't have a dagger in her spine while speaking with an HR representative.
Perhaps she didn't simply despise me.
She may have been paid to despise me.
The paranoia came like a wave. But I didn’t have time to drown in it.
Now was not the moment to become unruly.
It was time to move smart.
I picked up my notepad and began writing — not nonsense doodles or lists like I usually did to calm down — but facts. Questions. Names.
A soft tap landed on my desk.
I looked up. It was Henry’s secretary.
“Mr. Vance wants to see you.”
Of course he did.
I followed her quietly down the hallway, clutching my notepad like it could protect me from the truth. From Asher. From the mess I was gradually unraveling.
---------
Like a man who saw the city and ruled it, Henry stood by the window of the office, his back to the window, his hands in his pockets.
He remained silent until the door shut behind me.
“You’ve been quiet,” he said.
"Just working, sir."
He turned. “Good. Keep doing that. Whatever you’re doing to think the way you do — keep doing it, Naomi. Because I need more of that.”
A small chill ran through me. Not fear — something else.
Admiration? Suspicion?
Maybe both.
“Sir…” I hesitated. “could there a reason you picked me for this level twelve project?”
He turned his head a little. “You mean aside from your brilliance?”
That made me blink.
“I’m not sure I follow,” I said carefully
Henry took a step forward. Naomi, I'm keeping an eye on everyone in this company. I see things. I am also aware of what doesn't add up.
I swallowed.
Did he know?
Was this about Asher?
“Do you believe in loyalty?” he asked suddenly.
It seemed like a trick question. "Sometimes," I said truthfully.
He smiled. "Good response."
And then — almost casually — he said:
“Be careful who you trust, Naomi. The person sitting across from you might be the one sending your ideas to a rival firm.”
He knew.
My blood froze.
I opened my mouth a little, but I remained silent. I couldn't. My brain was still trying to process what he just said.
A rival firm?
I looked into his eyes, hoping to find out more. Was he suspicious of Asher? Nelissa? Me?
He didn't blinked. As if he hadn't just blown my mind, he simply strolled over to his desk and sat down, opening a folder.
"Close the door, Naomi.”
I turned slowly and shut it, pulse kicking harder now.
He pointed to the chair across from him. "Take a seat."
I did as I was told, gripping my notepad as if it were my only source of stability.
“Tell me something,” he said, eyes on mine. “How close are you to Asher James?”
Just like that.
No warning. No softening.
Straight to the wound.
I blinked. “We… we used to be close.”
Henry raised an eyebrow. “Used to?”
“Yes,” I said, steadier this time. “But things have changed.”
He leaned back in his chair, fingers steepled under his chin. “Good. Because I don’t like to have traitors close to the people I invest in.”
There it was.
He knew something.
Or maybe he was testing me.
“Sir, is there something you want me to do?” I asked.
He smiled faintly — not kind, not cold. Just calculated.
“Not yet. But if you keep paying attention, I might give you more than just promotions.”
My heart raced.
More than promotions?
What did that mean?
“Until then,” he said, returning to the folder, “I suggest you act normal. Let no one suspect you know anything. Especially him.”
I nodded slowly. “Yes, sir.”
Act normal? With Asher?
After hearing his voice in that message?
After reading proof that someone was stealing my work?
After Henry just confirmed there was a snake in this building?
I stood, still dazed.
"Naomi.”
I turned.
“If you feel like breaking,” he said, “don’t. I’ve seen what you’re made of. Just don’t disappoint me.”
He didn't say it like a threat.
But it felt like one.
___
Back at my desk, my phone buzzed.
A message from Asher.
“Dinner tonight? We need to talk. ❤️”
I stared at my phone screen.
I wanted to scream.
Instead, I smiled.
I typed back.
“Sure, love. Can’t wait.”
I spent the rest of the day with a calmness that didn’t belong to me.
My fingers moved across the keyboard, typing numbers and progress summaries, but my mind was elsewhere — locked on that email… that voice… that damn “N.”
I looked up occasionally, watching the office like I was on surveillance. Nelissa had returned to her desk, all elegance and deceit in a fitted blazer. She smiled at a client on the phone, but her eyes — they were always calculating.
Asher came in briefly. I didn’t look up. He didn’t say a word. Just walked past like everything was fine — like he wasn’t a walking lie in designer shoes.
He’d know soon enough.
When the workday ended, I didn’t pack up immediately. I waited, watching the office slowly empty, desk by desk, until only a few late workers remained.
And then—
A shadow moved behind the frosted glass.
Not Asher.
Not anyone I expected.
My pulse stuttered.
Someone was watching me.
- Writer
