She's The Troublemaker

Chapter 9 - Trian Company

" Where is he ?" I asked as I slammed my fist on the reception desk. Ms Jones seemed to have been ignoring me for about 30 minutes when I decided to make my point clear. She would always gaze at me then return back to her own world of manicuring her nails. Which I noticed were way long for normal nails. Painted in seductive red colour it was sure to gain attention. After looking at me the final time she huffed and waved her hand at me. Enough is enough you ought to punch her. I fear her nails. They aren't as scary as yesterday are they? True, they were far more innocent than the incident in that alley. Last night was terrible, I couldn't sleep for hours until exhaustion came over and I drifted off to sleep. Come back to reality, would you? Ah yes, I had been carried away. Since Ms Jones or Kristen was not in a mood to answer me I just tore myself away from the desk and was headed to the exit. When familiar blonde hair caught my attention.

" Logan " I called out. Logan turned and waved me in return. He pushed aside some people in the way as he strolled towards me. Logan was a natural beauty, he looked chilled out in his minty shirt and black trousers. Pair that up with an amazing personality and there you had it. A total package. Would you quit with your detailed explanation already ?. He looks good, what's wrong in that? I do know he looks not good but great enough to make any girl topple over. But don't you think you should get back to what you came after? My boss. Thanks for reminding. Anytime.

" What's the matter? You look a little off, " he said. True I did look as if I just rolled off the bed. My hair was frizzy, my t-shirt not ironed and my shoes were replaced for flip-flops. I did look out of the picture. In reality, I just hoped he didn't have to look at me right now. But the overwhelming feeling of strangling my boss consumed my thoughts entirely. Clearing those thoughts away I asked him whether he knew where our boss was since I couldn't find him in his cabin. In response, he told me that our 'beloved' boss had not come and Sebastian would know where he would be. Sebastian was one of the 15 drivers the firm had. Most of the time we didn't need a driver hence they left at 5. But only Sebastian would remain sometimes to reach our boss safely home. Logan exchanged his number with me. I thanked him and went down the elevator to the parking lot. I saw Sebastian at the far corner with the elegant limo.

"Sebastian. Good morning. I need you to take me to Mr.King " I said.

" Sure Mademoiselle. Please get in . " he ushered me to get into the limo. Your gonna get a ride on the limo. Wow. But the limo belongs to the boss. I possibly can't sit in it. Sure you can. No, I can't. Let's ask Sebastian. Shall we ?.

"Sebastian. Is it really ok to ride on this Limo? The boss won't fire us Won't he ?" I asked. He chuckled at my reply and entered the car himself. Following his cue, I entered the car as well. The limo rode the ramp as if it was a straight road. We exited the parking lot. I had gotta say one thing the limo felt great compared to the bumpy cabs or fast subways. It's made for billionaires and it's worth whatever the price may have been. We passed building after building. People taking their dog for a hearty walk while some eventually dragged them. Yellow cabs visible in every nook and corner of the road. People riding bicycles, the usual traffic jams. It was as if the time was at a slow pace and I felt so relaxed that I paid attention to every detail around me. I was so caught up in my world of description that I had forgotten to ask where we were headed to?

" So Sebastian, Where is Mr.King right now ?" I asked as I saw another one of those food trucks pass by and peoples faces plastered with a hearty smile.

" He happens to be in Orchid Mansion, Philadelphia, " he said. Philadelphia. Wait for a second PHILADELPHIA? That's about an hour drive from here. What the bloody hell was he up to in Philadelphia? That's a pretty good city, devils don't live there. Nor do they live in New York. But his office does happen to be a hell in its own way. Right. Wow, he really is dedicated to his work everyday travelling such long distances. My respect for him grew a little.

" He takes his clients over there. Because it is a 20-acre property and the clients are sure to invest or envy. Anyone of those two. Mademoiselle ." And that blew off the half inch of respect I just had. I knew he would be a show-off. That was evident. He might have had many mansions across the world. After knowing that I had an hour for myself, I plugged in my headphones to my damaged cell phone. Thank goodness nothing happened to the inner system. I put the songs on shuffle as the drive continued. From the busy city to the simple outskirts the views were amazing. Farms, cattle and also people around the whole span.

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"Ms Raykar ?" A soft sound called out. I opened my eyes slowly to see a blurred image of a man. Blinking my eyes a few more times, I regained the actual focus and I saw Sebastian gently shaking my arm. I rubbed my eyes as I gave out a soft hum. He had already opened the car door for me. I exited the car stretching my arms in the process. I had fallen asleep and I didn't even know when. The headphones were already on my head but the plug was detached from the mobile. I packed the headphones in my bag and slipped the phone in my front pocket. I took a brief look at my surroundings and my jaw dropped. I was standing in front of a house which was enough to accommodate my whole family. When I mean my whole family its includes Ethan, mom, aunt, my cousins, my cousin's cousin and my cousin's cousins cousin. It was so big. Ivory roofs, marble towers holding the entrance dome 20 ft up. Stairs ascending upon a large door. Behind me there was a huge fountain surrounded by a circular garden filled with roses, tulips, Lilies etc. Sebastian was already waiting for me at the entrance, I climbed up the fleet of stairs to the main door. He rung the doorbell as the might 7 ft doors opened and a petite old lady came out. She had a weird expression plastered over but when she saw Sebastian she lightened up.

"Sebastian. How are you ?"

" Madame Margaret, I am very much pleased to see you and I am doing fine . " he greeted her. Madam Margaret was a petite woman with grey hair which was in a bun and circular glass on her nose she looked like the grandma from looney toons. She smiled at me once again and ushered me inside. Even though it may seem perfectly normal she was hesitant or more likely disgusted in my presence. Sebastian took her aside and they spoke for a minute or two while I awkwardly waited for them to return. After their chit-chat, Madame Margaret had an entirely different attitude towards me. This time her smile was genuine and warm enough to feel me home.

" I am so sorry dear. I had misjudged you. I thought you were one of those undisciplined, unmannered women who you know ......do indescribable things behind the scenes. " she said. So that was what she had in mind. You know because of this woman the whole image of a woman changes and that's a pity. Yeah. I was escorted through a series of lefts and rights until we reached a mahogany door. Madame Margaret knocked a few times and then the door opened. At first, I thought it opened by itself but no there was a butler inside. We were greeted with the aroma of sandalwood essence sticks. Directly in front was a wooden table and behind it was my intolerable boss.

" Sire, someone's here to see you, " Madame Margaret said. Without even looking up he said, " Send them home, I don't wish to see anyone". Madame Margaret looked immensely sorry as she turned her back to leave. You need answers, remember. Yup, I get it. " I am not going anywhere, sir, " I said. Madame Margaret looked shocked, so did the butler. Slowly the green orbs met mine. A cold shiver crept up my spine. He looked dangerous alright. He then shifted his gaze to Madame Margaret and then to the butler. Flicking two fingers they scurried off closing the door in the process. He signalled me to sit on the chair.

" Why did you come here ?" He said

" I need to know why the bloody he-"

" Language, " he said in a stern voice. " Why did you leave me alone in that dark alley? I could have been killed " I said. He looked at me yet again. " As far as I can see you are in one piece, " he said. The nerve of him, I am in one piece but the aftershocks of the event still haunt me. Talking to him is useless, it's like talking to a wall. Yeah right. I huffed as I decided that this was a waste of time. He didn't care nor did he try to understand. I stood up and turned my back to leave when -

" Stop, " he said. I turned slowly and folded my arms in frustration. He stood up from his own leather chair. He grabbed me by my arm and we exited the so-called office with me struggling to keep up with his long strides. We soon entered another room but this happened to be a conference hall. Large table with leather chairs and a big projector ahead. He let go off my arm and took a seat on the host of the leather chair. I stood there awkwardly. What was I supposed to do here? Dance on the table. It isn't funny.

"Presentation, Melissa. Rehearse the whole speech you had written. "

" N-Now ?" I said. Why are you stuttering? Because I don't know anything. How pleasing to hear.

"Yes. Right now. The officials of Trian company will be here soon. "

" B-But aren't the main head of the firm supposed to s-speak? "

" Yes. They are but I don't speak such lame introduction. So rehearse ." He said.

The next hour was spent memorising the whole speech and saying it in front of him. After one presentation he would say me to present it again and so before I knew it I had presented it 5 times already. After that, he came in with a comb in his hand. I think that's the mic. He threw the comb towards me as I caught it and looked at it weirdly.

" Your hair it's frizzy. Comb it " he said. That's why the comb was given. I turned my back towards him for a reason which I didn't even know and combed my hair till it was at least simple looking. I kept the comb in one of the drawers in the cabinet beside the right wall. About 15 minutes later, a crowd of 8 poured in the room all of which were sporting a formal office wear and ' Trian ' written on the pocket sleeve. The lights turned off as the spotlight fell on me.

" Ladies and gentlemen, I, Melissa Raykar would like to present you the project for your new hotel venture. As per your requirements, we have included the trapeze swing at the swimming pool and the 3 ft canal surrounding the hotel. First, I will be showing you the walk-in or virtual tour of the whole project. Later on, I will show you the required structural drawings, area plans and ventilation systems in and around the hotel. So let's begin with the virtual tour ." I clicked the button the remote provided. And a virtual walkthrough of the whole hotel came into view. After the virtual tour. I explained them the basic precautions and the fire drawing required. Then I spent another one hour telling them the architecture we came up with our inspiration for this and also the main difficulty. But throughout the whole lecture, I couldn't even see the devil boss anywhere due to the dark atmosphere. After the whole presentation, I was greeted with claps all over. The lights flickered on and I saw my boss sitting next to another man. My boss gave me a silent no as the others left. Due to the crowd, I couldn't see the person next to my boss. When finally I stood beside my boss despite being crushed from either side by people. I looked at the man and I swear my jaw hung open. Wide enough for a swarm of flies to get in.

" Ah, Melissa. Long time since we met, isn't it ?" He said.

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* Drum roll at the back *

I ended this chapter with yet another mystery. The most gruesome part of this whole chapter was typing Madame Margaret over and over again.