CONTRACTUAL TORTURE

“There's no way you can weave your way out of this one, Miss Brown. You were caught in the act! You might as well confess now!” Mr Gregory slammed the table hard with his frustration evident in his eyes. “Again, I didn't steal from you.” Irene Brown repeated firmly. “I wouldn't do that. Never has, never will.” “The CCTV footage is there, Miss Brown. There's no denying that.” Mr Gregory argued. The said camera footage showed a figure in a hoodie slip into Mr Gregory's office and extracted some money from the drawer before heading out again. This had happened the previous day when Irene and few other staff stayed back to finish a project they were working on. The camera footage was there, there was no denying that but Irene thought Mr Gregory wasn't really thinking clearly because he had already found the culprit his mind WANTED to find. “Doesn't it ever occur to you that I might be framed?” Irene asked. “Take a look at the footage, I mean look at it for real, Mr Gregory. Whoever stole from you clearly isn't me!” “Oh yeah? Then who's it?” Mr Gregory asked with his arms folded on his chest and his eyes scrutinizing Irene hungrily like a predator ceasing up it's prey. Irene's eyes darted to the corner of the room where Maria, her co-worker and rival sat. “Isn't it alarming that the person in the video has the same bracelet as Maria?” Irene asked. “What in the seven hells are you insinuating?” Maria exclaimed. “You would throw the blame on me, just like that?” She demanded in a voice that was supposed to carry her anger but Irene wasn't really buying it. “That can not be Maria.” Mr Gregory spoke up, defending Maria, to Irene's utmost shock. “Maria has a curvy figure...” He flashed a look at Maria. “Whereas the person on the footage appears plain.” His eyes scanned Irene from toe to head as he said this. Irene chanced a look at Maria and was even more annoyed when she saw the Maria smirking slightly with her eyes fixed mischievously on Irene. How can you be so stupid?! Irene screamed within her. It was clear that Maria was the one on the camera footage, she was the one who stole from Mr Gregory but Mr Gregory's judgement was clouded simply because he was intimate with Maria! “The bracelet, Mr Gregory.” Irene repeated. “That's the same bracelet Maria has in her hand right now.” “I'm sure that's a replica.” Mr Gregory replied. “There are probably a million of the same thing out there.” “Oh really, the tattoo....” “Will you stop all this nonsense?!” Mr Gregory bellowed, putting a stop to Irene's arguments. “I don't understand why you're so bent on damaging Maria's reputation. Stealing directly from me is one thing and blaming it on another co-worker is another, especially one whose dedication to the company knows no bounds.” Maria smiled widely. “She's probably jealous I got promoted.” She said. “See what I have to go through all because of my promotion.” Maria said in a fake and sad voice, at the same time, sniffing loudly and dabbing her eyes with her handkerchief. “Oh... You shouldn't be moody.” Mr Gregory said in a calm and soothing voice. “You shouldn't regret your position in the company my dear. You actually deserved your promotion.” He said. At this point, Irene could not take it anymore so her inner demon took over and she snapped. “I am innocent! I didn't steal from you, Mr Gregory. But obviously, you're too blind to see that, all because you're sleeping with Maria!” Her words came out loudly, a little too louder than intended and they actually struck a nerve in Mr Gregory. Mr Gregory himself froze for a few seconds with his eyes narrowed as he gazed at Irene, giving her that feeling of being scanned by an x-ray machine. Just when Irene thought Mr Gregory would explode in anger, the man relaxed in his leather chair. “Thievery is not something we appreciate in this office. You didn't only break that rule, Miss Brown. Your lack of respect for coworkers and your own manager clearly deems you unfit for this work, which is why I'm firing you.” Mr Gregory declared. The words fell heavy on Irene's ears. Her heart skipped a beat and it felt like the walls of the office were closing in on her all of a sudden. “Sir... I don't... I can't....” She stammered. “Are you really firing me?” she asked in disbelief. “You have 10 minutes to vacate the premises, Miss Brown.” “But my... Mike... Mike's bills...” She said this more to herself than to Mr Gregory. “I wish you luck in your future endeavors, Miss Brown. You can leave now.” The finality in Mr Gregory's voice left no room for argument. Irene looked at Maria again and the look on the Latter's face was enough to push her into rage mode but she kept her rage in check. With one last angry look at Maria, she stormed out of the office angrily. Irene's anger was boiling and bubbling beneath the surface as she stormed back into the work area and made her way to her work station. Her coworkers stopped to stare at her but one angry look from her was all it took to send them back to their work. Irene angrily made her way to her cubicle and began to pack her belongings into a big box with her mind whirling with emotions and thoughts. “I told you so.” The whisper came behind her, sending a shiver down her spine and she wheeled around to see Maria sneering at her. “I told you not to mess with me. When you mess with the queen bee, you get screwed.” She said. Every inch of of Irene's body screamed in rage and raw fury and she balled her fists while her veins throbbed with adrenaline. “You lying b***h! I'll get back at you for this. Mark my words, I'll.....” “You'll what? Spit in my coffee?” Maria asked mockingly and then proceeded to laugh. Unable to stand it anymore, Irene let the beast within her loose. SMACK! She slapped Maria hard and strong on the face, causing her to stagger back while the other workers gasped in shock. The slap did nothing to deter Maria's spirits but only succeeded in adding fire to her deviousness. “You know something?” She smiled. “This slap doesn't mean anything to me concerning the pain you're presently going through. Your pain has just begun.” She said. Something about her evil sneer unhinged Irene and she quickly closed the distance between her and Maria, her hands shot up and she grabbed Maria by the hair and began to yank her up and down amidst the concerned voices of the other coworkers. “What exactly is going on here?” Mr Gregory's voice thundered behind the ladies, prompting them to release themselves. Marie immediately switched to that pathetic and crybaby attitude that seemed to work on Mr Gregory every time. “I only came out to give her my well wishes since she's leaving and she immediately attacked me!” She said. “Miss Brown!” Mr Gregory exclaimed angrily. “Your actions are so uncalled for! You're a disappointment for real. Leave now unless you want to be thrown out of the building!” “Maria is lying!” Irene screamed out in frustration. “She framed me! She was the one who stole from you! She's playing you but you're too blind to see it because you've got your head too far up her a*s!” The whole room gasped. “Security!” Mr Gregory screamed, probably weary and eager to get rid of Irene. Irene however didn't stop, she kept screaming insults at her ex-manager and co-workers as the security men dragged her towards the exit. Irene was thrown out of the building and she landed quite hard on the hard floor and her box was thrown after her, it landed beside her with the contents scattering on the ground. While cursing and muttering under her breath, Irene slowly began to pack her belongings back into the box. Irene walked down the street hopelessly sad and depressed with the events of the past hour playing over and over again in her mind. A thousand thoughts raced in her mind and the most recurring one was that of her sick brother, Mike. She needed money for his bills, she desparetely needed money and now she was jobless. Sure, she'd only have to apply elsewhere and get another job but with the hell it took her just to secure her previous job, Irene wasn't quite sure she'd be getting another job anytime soon. She never wanted to do this, she never believed she'd be doing this anytime soon but she really didn't have a lot of options at the moment so she found herself making her way into Parkview, one of the most wealthiest neighborhoods in the states. Irene made her way melancholically to the door of a big and expensive looking house and knocked. Her knock was soon answered by a stout man with his dressing giving away his profession. The man wore a white dress shirt with a starched detachable collar and cuffs with Formal black trousers with a strip of satin or braid down the outside of each leg. He was clearly a butler. “Good day, ma'am. How many I help you?” The butler asked politely. “I'm here to see Natalie. Is she in?” Irene asked...