The Proposal Series

Chapter 7: Jennifer Bing

Sara didn't have bad dreams every night. She had nightmares a few times a week, and she counted herself lucky for the other three or four nights of peaceful or erotic sleep. She couldn't speak to someone about her dreams because it would require divulging her secrets. Only Tom and Bonnie knew her secrets, and that was two people too many. She didn't talk about it, because that gave life to her ghosts, it gave life to her demons. So, the ghosts stayed hidden in the past, where they belonged.

Sara leaped out of bed and headed for the shower. It was finally her last day of exams, marking the end of her four-year University degree in Writing. The abrupt move she had to make in the last year of her degree had taken a toll on her. Her grades had suffered in her second and third years when things with Tom had taken a turn for the worse. She couldn't continue to live with him, and she didn't have much time to plan an escape route before he found out what she saw, and what she knew.

Sara had taken a leap of faith and made the major move from Thunder Bay to Toronto, in the hopes that her grades were sufficient for a transfer from Lakehead University to the University of Toronto. She used her mother's inheritance money to secure an apartment, and her life-long friend Bonnie was more than happy to move with her. Having been friends since childhood, Bonnie had never left her side, and the two of them were never separated for long.

Luckily, they both received entrance into the University of Toronto, and they only missed out on a few weeks of classes at the beginning of the school year to make the 1400 km move across the province. Sara didn't feel guilty about using her mother's money. Her mother had left her a small fortune, enough for Sara to live comfortably and take care of herself. Even though her mother's death caused her a world full of pain, her mother hadn't forgotten to ensure she would be cared for financially. If only her mother had put in methods to ensure Jack couldn't stay in their house.

Sara had two job interviews scheduled today; despite her mother's inheritance Sara wanted to build a career for herself and make a difference with her writing. The stress of the interviews combined with her final exams was enough to send her over the edge. She knew Jennifer would be arriving any minute to drop off Derek's proposition. Her final exams began at 1:00 pm, and her interviews were scheduled for 5:30 pm and 6:30 pm.

Her cellphone startled her. Loud ringing playing a familiar song, the ringtone she assigned to Tom's cell phone number or any number she thought he might try and call her from. She had attempted to block every single number he could or would use to contact her, but somehow, he always found a way. She stared at the screen, willing the phone call to cease. Bonnie ran into her room at the sound of the ring.

“That's him, isn't it? This is the fifth time you've changed your cell number," Bonnie said, looking a little panicked.

Sara continued to stare at the screen. The ringing stopped, but only momentarily before it blared up again.

“Sara? Are you listening to me? If that lawyer isn't going to be able to help you, we are going to have to move again. Exams are ending today. Maybe we should just move in the next few weeks," Bonnie continued.

Sara looked up from her phone and stared into Bonnie's eyes. Sara had waited too long. She waited too long to approach a lawyer, and now it might be too late. But she couldn't give up hope, at least not until she read Derek's proposition. He promised her she would be safe, and no one would hurt her again. She could believe him… she wanted to believe him.

“He... Derek... Mr. Walberg is sending his assistant over with some paperwork for me to look over. He is offering a proposition, for something that I inquired about during our meeting," Sara said shyly.

Bonnie sighed, “Sara, all of that sounds quite dubious, and it's clear you're hiding something from me. If you don't want to discuss it, fine, I am not going to force you. My exams start an hour before yours, so I have to run. But I do hope that once you read whatever it is this lawyer is sending you will have the common sense to talk to me about it after."

Sara and Bonnie both heard a loud voice from the street calling up to them. Bonnie had a habit of leaving her bedroom window open, which Sara hated. She often had to go and close it, because when it was open, she didn't feel safe. Sara wasn't entirely sure why Bonnie was so careless.

Both Bonnie and Sara ran into Bonnie's bedroom. Jennifer stood at the bottom of the steps leading up to Sara's building.

“Ms. Hopewell, can I please come and bring these papers to you?" Jennifer called up.

“Wait down there! I will come and get them!" Sara responded.

Sara didn't want Jennifer to see her apartment. She was accustomed to being careful. She also did not want Jennifer relaying to Mr. Arrogance that she lived in a rather low-scale building.

Sara ran down the flights of stairs, leaving Bonnie behind her. She quickly turned her head left and right, before opening the doors. She approached Jennifer, said a curt “hello" and went to grab the stack of color-coded papers from her arms.

“Sara, Mr. Walberg has asked me to relay a message to you before you read his proposition.

He said you must agree to all terms stated within without exception."

Sara felt quite odd knowing that Derek must have discussed her situation with Jennifer. Derek did not know much, but what he did know, he must have shared with his assistant. She blushed, looked to the ground, and avoided eye contact with Ms. Bing.

“Ms. Hopewell, here are your documents. All of Mr. Walberg's associates have signed non-disclosures, so if you are worried about your privacy or safety, you needn't be," Jennifer said.

Sara felt slightly better. She had figured they all signed non-disclosures, but she still wanted to know how much Jennifer knew. Sara gave Jennifer a half-smile, grabbed the documents from her hands and waved goodbye.

As Sara ascended back up the stairs into her fifth-story apartment, she recalled the words spoken by Jennifer. She would look at the documents, and she would read them, but she already knew she would sign them.

Glancing at the clock, she had one and a half hours before her exam. She made her way to her bedroom, sat down cross-legged on her queen-sized mattress, and opened the stack of documents to the introductory page. She took a deep breath and began to read.