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CHAPTER FOURTY: THE BURDEN OF BLOOD.
Last Updated:
2024-12-16 17:27:05
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BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER FOURTY-ONE: THE COST OF DECEPTION.
Sarah was running behind Mr. Tim, she was filled with confusion and anxiety. Why in the world was he so furious at her? This was the man who had always been kind to her, someone she could always depend upon, but just now, he had denied her hug, his eyes looking at her with some undefined emotion.Fear started to take deep root within her as they walked to the counter, her steps became slow."Sarah..." Mr. Tim's voice broke the silence, and she came to a halt, in instinct knowing the gravity with which his words would impact.He turned to her with an unreadable expression. "So, you are one of those women who robbed and destroyed Laura's home?" His words seemed to slap her in the face. The charge was symbolized clear and loud with disappointment in his tone.Sarah's breath stopped at her throat. The weight of the words smothered her, and she frantically held her composure.Laura and Jerry, who had been quietly observing them, stopped abruptly at the question. Their heads turned at the s
Last Updated : 2024-12-16BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER FOURTY-TWO: THE RIFT WITHIN.
Helen’s voice trembled as she called out, her tone sharp and heavy with disbelief. “Laura…” she said, her gaze locked on the scene before her. Standing in the doorway, she froze as her eyes fell on Fred, who had been far too close to Laura just moments ago. Her shock quickly gave way to a searing fury that flickered across her face like a storm.Fred stepped back immediately, raising his hands in mock surrender, though the smug curve of his lips betrayed him. He averted his eyes briefly, adjusting his stance to conceal the undeniable evidence of his excitement. His pulse quickened, but not with guilt, his satisfaction was palpable. He wanted Helen to see. He wanted her to suffer from jealousy, a little revenge to make her feel guilty about the betrayal. Speaking to Jerry regarding their affair? That could hardly go unanswered."Helen?" Laura's voice was soft, almost hesitant as she turned towards Helen. Innocent in her expression, she was unaware of all the tension in the room. To he
Last Updated : 2024-12-17BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER FOURTY-THREE: ECHOES OF RESENTMENT.
Jerry stood up slowly, his expression filled with disappointment as he turned to Laura. “What’s she saying, Laura?” There was an edge of concern and frustration in his voice. Laura was caught off guard by the sudden confrontation. She stammered, her words caught in her throat.She could only glance at Fred with growing disgust, unable to process the situation. She squirmed in her mind, thinking of all that had just transpired, but the tension of the room made clear thoughts impossible."Laura!" He was getting louder almost by the second, the patience in Jerry's voice was running out. He needed an answer, and fast.Laura flinched at the sharpness of his tone. She wanted to explain, to make sense of everything, but the words seemed to escape her. Her gaze shifted back to Fred, whose calm demeanor only added to the confusion.Fred, noticing Jerry’s growing anger, quickly jumped in to deflect the blame. “Relax, man! I was just helping her with the washing machine and that’s all,” Fred sa
Last Updated : 2024-12-17BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER FOURTY-FOUR: TANGLED IN SCANDAL.
“You! Fred! It’s you!” the woman screamed, her voice sharp with fury as she swung at him with small, frantic punches.Fred stepped back in astonishment as he swung his arms to dodge her fists. "What is the matter with you? Who are you?” He yelled, his voice growing louder amidst the turmoil.Her attacks didn’t slow, her anger unwavering. Each blow seemed fueled by something deeper, something unresolved. Fred’s heart pounded as adrenaline kicked in, his movements desperate to avoid her. He couldn’t make sense of it, her rage, her accusations, or why she knew his name.“Stop it! What’s your problem? Who are you?” Fred yelled, his voice cracking with frustration as he struggled to fend off the furious woman. Raging like fire, her continuous aggressiveness pumped up his heart and made him move frantically.Maggie quickly threw herself in between them, grasping the woman by her arms and hauling her away from him. But the woman, preoccupied by rage and fire, resisted, but her grip did not l
Last Updated : 2024-12-18BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER FOURTY-FIVE: BETWEEN GUILT AND BLACKMAIL.
Laura and Sarah walked to the table, the atmosphere between them tense and filled with uncertainty. As they sat down, Laura’s gaze remained fixed on Sarah, her mind racing with questions. What could Sarah possibly want to talk about? The last time they spoke, it was all about hostility in the air. Laura wondered whether this sudden change of behavior really meant anything or was just another game of Sarah's manipulation. All she could do now was wait for Sarah to speak, the silence between the two leaving Laura high and dry on what to expect.Fred shot Sarah a warning stare from across the room, his eyes cold and intense. Sarah met his gaze, understanding the silent threat instantly. She couldn’t help but laugh softly, the sound carrying through the air with an almost mocking undertone.Laura, sensing the tension between them, turned to Sarah, a hint of confusion in her voice. “What’s funny?” She asked, her brows furrowing slightly. The question hung in the air, but Sarah just smirke
Last Updated : 2024-12-18BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER FOURTY-SIX: UNDER PRESSURE.
Fred came to a halt, frozen by Jerry’s penetrating stare, his pulse raced as he considered his next move.Jerry’s question hung in the air, accusatory. Fred looked back and forth at Sarah and Jerry, resolving that he would not let the secret out about Jack.“Listen… there’s nothing,” Fred finally said, not quite with his clipped voice but calm, a cover for the tension wrapping itself around him. He wanted to get out of this before it went south. “And I have to go. We have to go now.”Not waiting for an answer, Fred yanked Sarah’s arm as they walked out of the cafe.Fred couldn’t leave Sarah behind with Jerry; he knew her to be unpredictable, an opportunist who flourished on blackmail. The last thing he wanted was for her to play him in order to profit off his secret.Fred and Sarah left and Jerry stood there watching them go, his head filled with confusion. He had tried to fit it all together, and none of it had made sense.Jerry felt that Fred was concealing something, especially wit
Last Updated : 2024-12-19BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER FOURTY-SEVEN: UNFINISHED BUSINESS.
Jerry hesitated, feeling his heart race as he saw the woman in front of him. Her presence was unexpected and almost surreal. "Linda?" He whispered, barely audible, as he cautiously stepped closer. She gazed at him, calm and confident, her expression inscrutable, but oddly familiar. Her dark eyes gleamed with curiosity of knowing, and her lips formed a small smile that didn’t seem to reach her eyes. "Yes, Jerry, it's me," Linda said, her tone steady as she extended her hand towards him. There was no hesitation in her gesture, only a subtle firmness that showed her self-assurance. Jerry reached out carefully and briefly shook her cool, deliberate hand. He pulled back quickly, his mind racing. Why was she here, of all places? "You seem surprised," Linda observed, tilting her head slightly, her soft smile unchanged. "I can see it written all over your face." Jerry tried to compose himself, but questions flooded his mind. He couldn't shake the unease creeping up his spine. Why now? W
Last Updated : 2024-12-19BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER FOURTY-EIGHT: THE CRY FOR LIFE.
Fred and Maggie rushed into the car, their hearts pounding with fear as if the walls of their reality were closing in.“Go… please go!” Maggie sobbed, her voice quaking as she kept hitting Fred's arm, urging him to drive faster. She cried out in agony, tears flowing down her cheeks almost as if every drop was tearing at her very flesh. Fred's palms quivered as he held onto the steering wheel.The car sped off, leaving the company and its cold, indifferent walls behind. His focus remained locked on the road ahead, though his mind raced with dark possibilities.“Maggie, relax, please,” Fred pleaded, his voice cracking under the weight of his own rising panic.But Maggie couldn’t be calmed. She wept uncontrollably, her mind echoing the haunting words of her neighbor. “Fred… they said something happened. Is my son dead?” She choked out, her body shaking as she buried her face in her hands.Fred glanced at her briefly, his chest tightening. He had never seen her this broken. He fought bac
Last Updated : 2024-12-20
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BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-SEVEN: LOST AND FOUND.
It was weirdly still in that office, amplifying the noise of Laura's own heartbeat in it. She stood frozen, taking shallow breaths, trembling fingers clutching the photograph in place and eyes skimming over the glossy image, disbelief tightening around her like a vice. Her late father was in the picture, standing alongside Maggie. That crash over her mind was the very realization that it knocked the air out of her lungs. "No..." she whispered softly, her voice trailing off. Her hand shot into her mouth as if trying to prevent a sudden gasp from rushing out.But the truth was right there and undeniable. Her father, whom she had loved and dreamed of since his passing, was smiling in the photograph with his arm around Maggie. They looked happy. They looked like family. Like they belonged together.Memories surged through Laura’s mind, swift and relentless. The warmth of her childhood, the love she had once known, before it all shattered.The arguments. The bitter accusations. The pain
BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-SIX: THE MOMENT THAT BROKE HER.
The small white piece of paper trembled in Fred's hands, the two bold lines staring into him like a silent accusation. The very well-structured life that he had lived stood on the verge of being devastated-nothing else but the evidence that dangled in front of him forfeit. Gingerly, he tightened his grip around the paper; his knuckles turned white as sharp bursts of breath followed. Underneath his skin, anger simmered so closely to boiling; but, it was just a matter of time for it to explode. "What the… what is this?" He said in an intrusive, icy voice.Laura winced under the venom in his tone. This was not how she was expecting the moment to turn out. She hadn't really envisioned it at all. Still, if she had, surely it would have and should have been different. Different from this. "Fred?" Her voice became soft; she paused. “Why are you looking at me like that, Fred?”. Fred gave a bitter laugh, a short one without warmth. He shook his head, disbelief in evidence by the way his eye
BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIVE: THE PRICE OF ONE NIGHT.
As the doctor's words vibrated in her ears, she found herself stuck when she sat staring into blank air.“The test came back positive”. The doctor revealed. A sharp pang shot through her chest. The world blurred around her; her vision swam. "What? No”. Her voice trembled like a whisper. "How? It was only one night. That's impossible."Her cold, unsteady hands reached forward to grab the paper resting on the table. And she grabbed it without care, wrinkling the edges with her fingers and quickly scanning through the results. With her tear-stained vision, she barely saw the words, but she understood their meaning beyond doubt. A heavy surge of emotions inundated her, guilt twisting her insides, shame scorching her heart, and anger bubbling just beneath her skin as images of her mother flashed through her thoughts, the tenderness of her voice erasing into utter disappointment in memory.She lied to her mother, to Jerry, to herself. The truth lay buried within Fred, believing that one
BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FOUR: A CROSSROAD OF CONSEQUENCES.
There was an awful silence in the house, the deadlier with the slight rubbing of leaves against each other outside, while on the edge of the couch Mrs. Charlotte excitedly tapped her fingers against her right knee. Her mind had, for a time, fought against her growing unease, but the suspicion would not yield any further. There's something really wrong with Laura.Over the past couple of days, the girl had been acting really weird, pale, weak, and a shadow of her usual energetic self. Initially, Mrs. Charlotte was convincing enough to persuade herself that her daughter was simply wearing herself out, probably getting over a passing illness. But the signs got hard to ignore eventually. That feeling of concern transformed into sheer determination. Steeling her breath, she stood up and made her way again toward the hallway that led to Laura's room. This time, she would not simply let a vague conversation fade away on easy reassurances. Her feet settled against the floor beneath the doo
BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-THREE: UNSPOKEN FEARS.
Laura stood in Fred's office with her arms crossed in front of her and inspected him closely as though his face was some complicated puzzle. The atmosphere between them was tightly strung with an electric hotness, as hundreds of different thoughts raced through her mind, all forming around the same question that had been torturing her painfully for the last few days. She wanted answers, real answers, no comforting platitudes or charming words thrown out there in reply to her discomfort. Dropping one foot after placing it gently in front, then lowering it into a whisper to bring him in. Laura began as she stared into his eyes softly, "Fred," “I don’t get it”. “If we are together, why should we hide it?”. “What are you afraid of?" She paused for a beat. "Why does it have to be a secret?".Fred did not answer right away. He remained still, an inscrutable expression on his face. The charismatic man she fell for now appeared far away, his gaze averted from hers while he tapped his finger
BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-TWO: A LOVE WRAPPED IN LIES.
Laura narrowed her eyes at the cashier; her suspicion was falling into the deep abyss of mistrust as the sharp, jarring laughter had escaped the lips of the woman standing before her. There was something, obviously, wrong about this, which made an awkward little tingle run throughout Laura’s neck. "I asked…”. “Why are you laughing?" She rephrased the question, forcefully subduing her feelings, but unmistakably the heat laced her voice. For a split second, the cashier's gaze held that of Laura's and seemed for a moment as though she might remember. But the idea dissipated quickly; her smile turned into a frown for a second and shook Laura off, saying, "Oh, it's nothing," now a voice suddenly too casual to be comfortable while sliding Laura's phone across the counter.“The payment has been successfully processed. You’re all set to go.”Laura hesitated, her fingers tightening slightly around the receipt. That laughter, it had felt pointed, like there was a hidden joke, one she wasn’t in
BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-ONE: GILDED LIES.
One could feel the energy in the cafe buzzing about tenfold, the thick scent of coffee, sharply contrasted by the sweetness of baking, and then made a loud, annoying harmony of swishing voices and clinking mugs, one that seemed to focus on absolute nothingness for Laura. Her world had shrunk to nothing else except for the awkward broken silence between her and Jerry.Laura stood at the counter, making herself stiff, aware of his nearness beside her, and he had been waiting, waiting for answers, for just one explanation that could somehow justify the change in her behavior. His patience was wearing thin, evidenced by the way his knuckles pressed down against the polished counter, his legs were drawn tense and his expression unreadable.Jerry did not want to prolong the silence any further and, after a few moments, reached behind him for a rag and began cleaning the counter, pretending that he was busy. His own eyes remained glued on Laura, watching, searching.Before he finally spoke,
BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY: THE TRUTH HE CANNOT HANDLE.
Jerry paced restlessly before the doorstep of Laura’s apartment, fixated on Fred’s car parked close to the building. He tried to fit pieces together of the dark thoughts surging through his mind regarding what Fred could be doing in Laura’s place for the entire night. Slowly, his jaw stiffened, and his hands curled into fists. He really got angry at the thought of Fred choosing this instead of returning home; him being there for Laura filled Jerry with fury. Jealousy coursed down his veins, giving him a tense posture. After a deep breath inward, Jerry turned back to the door and knocked loudly, the impatience building within him slowly with each moment of unresolved silence.Inside, Laura and Fred rushed toward the door while tightly holding each other's hands. “Open the door, really, come on!” Fred exclaimed urgently. His gaze passed over the door's glass panel, then managed to catch Jerry’s silhouette standing outside.“No”. “You open the door,” Laura insisted, wildly adjusting he
BEHIND OFFICE DOORS CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND NINETEEN: SECRETS BENEATH THE SHEETS.
Her memories enveloped her mind, still moments of stolen intimacy, with the warmth of his touch barely sliding off her skin. They made a pool of emotions rush through her, almost stealing her breath away while anticipation was mounting inside her. But water splashing in the bathroom jolted her from the bliss of memories. Seconds later, Fred stepped out, water droplets glistening down from his wet hair onto the floor as he passed his hand through the strands and shook them dry, his eyes glistening on her. His lips danced with a small smile as he advanced toward the bed, still bare of clothing. With the utmost tenderness, he knelt down and placed both his hands on her legs while saying, "Come here, beautiful" with a voice that sounded steady but was thrown in with tenderness.Laura hesitated for a moment but let him pull her closer. Known warmth trickled through her and chilled her deep heart. She inhaled strongly, as if the atmosphere were electrified by the pulsating moment. Fred's
