Fallen 1: Berlin

Chapter X: The Woman Beside Berlin

Sage looked at herself in the mirror and took a deep breath. She was not used to such outfits but yesterday when Shel took her to Berlin's suit shop and she handed them his card, everyone flocked around her, taking measurements and choosing colors and the latest trends for her. Everything looked great in Sage's eyes but she didn't want to upset Berlin by bankrupting him with her frivolous shopping spree. As she tried a few outfits, she was served with crisp champagne and posh stuffed rolls. She wanted to take three outfits but the store owner made a call to Berlin and got Sage in trouble. At the end of the day, Sage had new outfits for the office as well as casual wear. However, her evening wear was going to be sent to her that coming weekend because they didn't have her size in that branch.

Though Sage was excited about her new outfits, she felt a little guilty that she spent money that she didn't earn. She straightened the cream wide-neck blouse and the khaki checkered pencil skirt. They all smelled brand new and were very comfortable. She looked down at the shiny point heels that the store owner insisted she took so as not to insult his outfit with classless accessories and shoes and flinched. She knew they were going to pinch but she didn't want to let Berlin down. She smiled brightly hoping that he would love the outfit but a little frown appeared on her face when she looked at the nest of hair on her head. She knew she had spent a fortune at the store yesterday that she didn't want Berlin to incur extra costs for her hair and nails.

She put on a simple yet exquisite bracelet the store owner matched with her clothes and applied a light touch of makeup on her face. She looked down at her phone and cursed out colorfully as she dashed out of her small apartment. As she stepped out, she could feel eyes on her. She always felt safe in that neighborhood but ever since Berlin dropped her off in his fancy world-class car, she had been feeling uneasy as if someone was constantly watching her.

The sun was already peeking from behind the buildings as she started walking along the walkway when suddenly a car drove beside her. Her heart burst in her ribs because she did hear rumors about that place being susceptible to kidnappings. She clutched her handbag tightly against her side and readied herself to run when someone suddenly called her name.

"Sage."

Sage stopped and turned to the silver Benz. The back-tinted window went down and inside was the amused Berlin. Sage fought the urge of rolling her eyes at him because there was always something about her that had Berlin amused. It had her think she was a toy of some sort. However, the relief that went through her body was immeasurable.

"Berlin? What are you doing here?" She asked as he opened the door for her and shifted to the side to give her space to sit. The entire interior was saturated by his heady cologne. It was a good scent and it suited him perfectly.

"We have an eight o'clock meeting, remember?" He said.

Sage c****d her head up in surprise. "We do?"

"I sent you an email last night telling you about it. You didn't read your email yesterday, did you?"

"Uh..." Sage looked guiltily at him as she browsed through her emails on her phone and saw the message sent yesterday at ten in the middle of the night. She was too exhausted with the shopping and fitting that after a quick dinner, she went straight to sleep. Shel was kind enough to help her take most of the clothes to her new apartment. She had started packing her stuff slowly but realized that she didn't have much to take with her.

"Nevermind. We have an emergency meeting this morning but you don't have to worry about the details." He stopped suddenly and looked at her thoroughly, his eyes so intense that Sage felt as if she was seeing details that even she didn't know about. "You look great this morning, Sage."

Sage cleared her throat and fanned herself lightly as the heat seared up her cheeks. "Thanks, uhm--it's a little too hot in here, isn't it?"

Berlin chuckled. "I heard you refused to go to the salon because you didn't want to dent my wallet. Do you know how much I make just sitting here and talking to you, Sage? No amount of spending done by you or anyone at the company can dent my wallet, sweetheart. What you spent yesterday can barely be viewed as an expenditure."

Sage knew that Berlin was merely telling her the truth but to her, it sounded a little arrogant especially since she always had to think about her expenditures each day. She knew if she bought food, she was sacrificing a new pair of shoes or if she bought a new dress then she had to reduce the cost of her food in order to cover her mother's monthly medical bills. She doubted Berlin ever woke up one day and thought about how he was going to survive.

Sage wanted Berlin to understand her. She wasn't the person to look at material things for comfort. Yes, she always had very little but she always had the positive attitude that helped her make it to the next day. No matter how many times Robert made her cry and how many times she felt defeated, she always found a way to move forward.

"I'll visit the salon when I get paid. I'll use the money I earn. I refuse to take advantage of you, Berlin, especially when you have such a big heart." She muttered.

"I have a big heart?" Berlin echoed in surprise.

Sage turned to him and nodded. "You have no idea how much you have already given me and I am very grateful."

He hummed softly and said. "You are moving to your new apartment this weekend. This is not a very safe place for you."

"By the way, I have to go and see my mother this coming Saturday. Can we do that on Sunday?" She remembered. She had already canceled on her mother once. She didn't want to cancel again this time.

"Your weekends are for you alone unless there is some sort of an emergency and you have to come in or if we have traveled out of the country." He said and Sage felt relief because it meant that she was going to have time for her mother. "However, there is a stakeholder's meeting Saturday evening so I hope you will have time then."

Sage had planned to go and see her mother early that morning so she was free in the evening. "I will. Thank you."

That was never the case with Robert. Her weekdays and weekends blurred together. The man worked them so hard so Sage didn't understand why he was not as wealthy as Berlin. He should have been wealthier with the number of hours he put in work.

"Would you like to go and see the progress of the renovations after the meeting?" Berlin asked as he turned to his tablet and started scrolling through a document.

Sage knew how busy Berlin was but she felt that he was paying too much attention on her. Something like that was bound to bring mixed feelings at the office with the other employees even though they did not know his secret. She had felt the way Nellie looked and interacted with her. She knew she was going to meet with several others that will feel the same way as Nellie felt.

She nodded lightly. "Of course."

"This is for you." He handed her a white envelope and when Sage peeked inside, it had her identity card, the black access card, and the silver card that Mr. O'connor had told her to keep a secret. There was also a new phone--one of the latest models--and a tablet identical to Berlin's. As she slipped them out, another black card slipped out and she frowned as she picked it up.

"That allows you to access our bank accounts because you will also be responsible for setting up my meetings depending on my clients. Lucian did that for me before you arrived so now I will leave that job to you. Just so you know, I love places with good views." He smiled lightly. "That card can also be used for different work-related expenses so I expect you to use it when the need arises. Do you have a driver's license, Sage?"

Sage swallowed hard. "No, I don't."

He sighed and nodded. "Since you are my P.A., I don't expect you to be late to work and you should be available at all times so I will assign you a driver--"

"Berlin! That is too much." She exclaimed in surprise. She was just a mere personal assistant, why did he have to give such priveledges? "I know you somehow managed to convince Robert to allow me to leave him even though my father owed him a lot of money and I was working there trying to pay the debt but you are doing too much for me and it is really unnecessary."

Berlin was quiet for what felt like centuries. Sage felt a little exposed by telling him the situation she was in. He didn't look like the person who could exploit her with such information but she felt like a liability to him.

Finally, he turned his dark eyes towards her and they were unreadable although they glowed eerily as usual. "I'm a businessman, Sage. Every second for me counts. The number of minutes or hours my employees lose because of petty excuses amounts to large sums of money. Assigning you a driver from your apartment to work is convenient for you but it is saving me a whole lot of money as well. There is no "doing too much" when it comes to my office and my projects. Unless you find a way to teleport yourself mentally to the office every time I need you to be there, there will be no public transport for you. Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes, Berlin." Sage felt her cheeks heat up again and placed her air-conditioned palms against them to cool them down. She was very sure that was a reprimanding from him. How dare she question his authority? She was his P.A. after all. Of course, she was going to have extras that kept up her pace with his. She had seen how Charli also coordinated stuff for Robert. She was still learning about what was expected of her so she needed to keep quiet and let Berlin lead the way.

For the rest of the way, they sat quietly in the car until they finally arrived at their destination and Sage realized it was the logistics branch of the company. A man in a beige suit quickly rushed forward and opened the door for Berlin while another one moved around to Sage's side and opened it for her.

"Berlin," The man acknowledged him.

"Give me good news, McGrady," Berlin said as he walked towards the building with him...then stopped abruptly and turned around as if he had forgotten something. "Sage, I would like you to come here and make sure you record everything that McGrady says for the president."

Sage nodded and jogged across before she started walking alongside them, jotting down everything that the other man was saying. She was glad that the heels that she was wearing that morning were not too high because she had to walk fast to keep up the pace. She could see that the convoy was curious about her because when she looked around the men in black suits and scowling faces, she knew that she must have been a surprise to them.

"What do you think, Sage?" Berlin turned to her suddenly.

"Uh--" She didn't even know what they were talking about.

"Should the president give him time?" He asked her patiently.

Sage found it strange when he spoke about the boss who was himself but nodded vigorously because McGrady looked so pitiful. "Yes, I think he should."

Berlin grunted and turned back to McGrady whose face paled down a shade. "How long should the president give him?"

"How much time do you need to get the work done, sir?" Sage looked at the sweating man.

"Talk it out with him and get back to me," Berlin said and placed his hands in his pockets before he made his way towards a fleet of trucks that looked brand new. "Is this the new shipment...." He asked the other gentlemen who followed him while Sage remained behind with McGrady.

She could see him relax a little but he eyed her cautiously. She straightened her spine and cleared her throat. "Please remember that every second counts for the president. He is a businessman and he is losing money with every delay. I would not want him to think you are incompetent because I know that he trusts you to work hard in accomplishing your task so I would suggest you do it diligently."

McGrady's eyebrows snapped up as he thoroughly looked at her as if trying to figure out who she was and how Berlin could trust her with such a task for the president. She, too, couldn't believe that Berlin would leave her with such responsibilities.

"I need at least a week for it."

Sage scratched on her tablet and smiled up at McGrady. "Then a week it is. Should we join the others?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks to his keen hearing, Berlin was able to pick up Sage and McGrady's conversation. Berlin expected Sage to be a stuttering mess because she was a timid little thing but she presented herself well to McGrady. Berlin knew everyone was buzzing with excitement and confusion as to who she was to him and Berlin planned on taking her around with him so that she gets accustomed to the kind of jobs and people he dealt with. If she needed to survive out there in the world, she needed to develop a thicker skin. Perhaps that was the kind of guidance Berlin was supposed to give her because his guardian went wild every time she was close. He was glad that she was not the person to pay too much attention to him or she would have seen how much he was struggling to keep himself under control.

That was a case with Cairo as well because the moment he stepped into Berlin's office, Cairo was able to detect Sage's presence. Berlin saw the way he reacted to it. The blue fiery veins emerged from his skin and crackled in the air with their fire so hot that if they were fully unleashed they could vaporize a person on the spot. Berlin was glad when Sage didn't return to the office that day. He didn't want to expose her to someone like Cairo until he discovered what it was about her that made their guardian sides react. If they were not careful, they could hurt her. Just the thought of Sage getting hurt and Berlin quickly pushed that thought far from his mind.

That morning, he did not plan on picking her up but somehow he found himself telling Shel to drive to her neighborhood. Berlin could sense all the evil that was polluting the neighborhood. There were very evil people living there and it was only a matter of time until they did something to her. The urgency to get her away from them was an entity unto itself. Berlin wanted to protect that fragile human female because she was light and she was good. He recognized that at soul level. He was a judge of species so he unconsciously judged her too.

As she and McGrady made their way towards them, one side of his mouth quirked up in a smile. Her shoulders were square and her spine erect. She walked beside the scowling McGrady with purpose and when she looked up and saw that he was watching, her eyes widened and her cheeks stained with color. She pursed her lips nervously which made Berlin frown.

Robert had thoroughly broken down her spirit and made her doubtful but Berlin was sure she was very capable of different tasks.

"Have you come to an agreement?" Berlin asked her.

She nodded and glanced at McGrady for a moment then turned back to him. "He will accomplish his task in a week's time."

Berlin looked at McGrady and narrowed his eyes dangerously at him. "I trust her words as much as the president and I hope you will not let her down."

When Cairo came in to see him yesterday he assured Berlin that there was someone in his team that was working with Seoul and War in making sure that the apocalypse of the human species was well underway and Mrs. Sinclair's cargo was part of that plan. Berlin didn't know why Cairo was there to give him such information because he knew how much Cairo hated him and how he wanted to do everything in his power to go back home. He didn't ask the male why he suddenly had a change of heart because of their fragile relationship but Berlin had his suspicions and one of them was McGrady. He was responsible for the cargo when it went missing.

However, when he met him that morning and examined him, he found that McGrady had no idea what was happening. The next closest person Berlin could think about but couldn't see would betray him was... Lucian.

"Let's go, Sage," Berlin said and turned towards the exit.

"Who's that woman?" --"I don't know but she must be someone important."--He heard someone ask behind him and smiled grimly as he allowed Sage to walk ahead of him, giving them all the more questions to ask. When they got to the car, he opened the door for her and allowed her to enter before he joined her and they drove towards the office.

"You did that on purpose, didn't you?" Sage's voice came through while he checked to see if there was any progress in the location of the cargo by the trailers he had sent to search for it.

"I don't know what you are talking about." He muttered then sighed and asked. "Do you think McGrady knows where the cargo went?"

"I doubt that. He was shaking like a leaf while he was talking to me." Sage said then gasped softly in surprise and turned to Berlin. "I mean I can't tell for sure but I don't think he knows anything."

"Trust your instincts, Sage. The first thing you feel in your gut is always the truth." Berlin said and turned back to what he was doing. "When we get to the office, I want you to reschedule all my other meetings for the day." He needed to go around digging to see what Lucian was up to which meant he didn't have the time to stick around the office.

"Uhm--you told me to tell you about your meetings with Miss Ferry. You are scheduled to have lunch with her this afternoon." Sage looked down at her tablet and Berlin felt a frown furrow his brow.

That was Lucian's doing. The boy refused to send the flowers to Elise and tell her that it was over. Berlin didn't understand why he was tagging the kid along when he was useless. How did Lucian expect him to break it off with Elise...unless--

He turned and looked at absentminded Sage. "How good are you at relaying a message, Sage?"

"Uh--it depends on the message." She tucked a hair lock behind her ear and Berlin found himself following the lithe movements of her fingers.

"I want you to go for lunch with Elise and tell her that I will no longer be seeing her. Wish her a happy life and buy her a parting gift or something." Berlin said and Sage's mouth fell open in surprise. He hummed to himself and sat back. "Seems like it is a little too early to ask you for such favors."

"You ask people to go break it off with your girlfriends?" Sage exclaimed incredulously.

"I don't have a girlfriend," Berlin answered darkly.

Sage opened her mouth and wanted to add something but quickly caught herself because of who he was. He watched with disappointment as she swallowed back her reply and settle back on her seat. He didn't know why but he was looking forward to hearing what she had to say about his lifestyle. She was quite a refreshing person especially every time she let her guard down.

"I'm sorry, Berlin, but I can't do that for you. You have to do it on your own. Please tell me if you are going for the lunch so that I can book a good restaurant for you or if you are not so that I contact Miss Ferry before this afternoon." She said.

Elise was never going to leave him alone until he gave her a reason to do so. "I'll go for lunch."

"Okay...should I pre-order a breakup package for you?" She peered at him curiously and Berlin found himself throwing his head back and laugh.

"Is that even a thing, Sage?" He chuckled seeing the way her face turned red. She was such a...girl.

Sage shrugged her small shoulders and rubbed her nose lightly. "I mean If you are going to make someone cry, at least get them a cushion of gifts for them to cry comfortably on."

"You are priceless, Sage. Alright, get me the breakup package." He chuckled and saw the way mirth swam in her eyes as she turned to her phone and her tablet and went to work to make his breakup lunch a success.