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CHAPTER TWO: FRAMED AND FORGOTTEN.

Penulis: prissywrites
last update Terakhir Diperbarui: 2024-11-20 00:52:06

A deep, firm voice suddenly cut through the tense atmosphere, commanding attention and halting the brewing conflict between Laura and her coworkers. It was the CEO of the company.

“What’s going on here?” He demanded, his voice stern and unyielding, laced with authority.

The troublemakers, caught off guard and sensing the power shift, quickly scrambled to distance themselves from the scene. 

“Nothing, sir!” they answered in unison, their voices dripped with false innocence, their expressions smug. They couldn't help but feel satisfied by the emotional pain they’d just inflicted on Laura.

Still boiling with frustration and anger, Laura felt her control slipping. She wept uncontrollably, a mixture of emotions clouded her composure as she looked her boss in the eye. 

The disgust and anger she had tried so hard to shield her face from, poured out in an uncontrollable flow of tears. Without answering, she took her cleaning supplies and turned away from the scene, bitterly crushing all the hope within her.

The others watched her leave without offering a shred of sympathy or concern, their stares insensitive and dismissive.

Still staggering from the humiliation, Laura sought refuge in the restroom, as she hoped to get away from the torment. She started cleaning the floor, but every scrub of the mop only served to intensify the memories of what just happened.

Flashbacks of the cruel taunts and the maltreatment filled her mind, and the tears continued to flow freely.

“When will this end?” She thought to herself. “Why can’t I come to the office and be happy for a change”? Her feelings swirled and overlapped with confusion, sadness, and a feeling of incapacity.

All at once, her phone buzzed in her pocket and  interrupted her stream of consciousness. She hastily placed the cleaning items on the floor and trembled as she picked up the phone. 

It was her younger brother.

“Hello, sis,” he said in a quiet, worried tone.

Laura, already on edge from the earlier ordeal, answered impatiently, “What’s going on Daniel? Why are you calling me so many times?”.

"Mom is sick... We're at the hospital," he said as his voice oozed with fear. 

The shock of the news was felt by Laura as an impact blow to the stomach. She immediately had trouble breathing and her heart missed a beat.

“What happened? Where are you? Which hospital?” She asked as her voice tightened with worry.

Her brother waited for a long moment before he answered. “I tried to tell you this morning, but you were off to work in such a rush… There was no time for me.”

A wave of guilt crashed over Laura. She could have taken a moment to listen. She should have. But she hadn’t. Why hadn’t she paid attention?.

Before she could say anything more, a cold, commanding voice cut through her thoughts.

“End the call now!.”

She froze. It was the voice of her boss. Her stomach dropped. Slowly, she turned around to face him, dread crept into her chest.

"I will call you back in a minute," she told her brother in a rush and disconnected the call. She was trembling as she raised her head to face her boss. 

Before she could comprehend the situation, she received a hard hit on her face again on the same cheek where her colleagues had struck her seconds ago.

The sting was immediate and intense. Her face burned, and her body tightened in shock. 

She stammered as her voice trembled, “Sir, you slapped me?, Why…. Wha - What’s going on?”

His eyes were cold, his face hard as he voiced out, “You’re fired!”.

He turned on his heel and stormed out of the restroom, leaving Laura reeling as her mind struggled to catch up with what just happened.

“Is - Is this real?” She murmured to herself, her thoughts became blurred. "Are you kidding me?".

Bitter tears threatened to fall as she sprinted behind him and panicked in the middle of the race with her heart beating wildly. 

“Please, sir, I beg you, what is wrong?” She cried, her voice thick with desperation. “Why am I being fired?” The words tumbled out, raw and pleading, as she followed him into his office, refusing to be left in the dark. 

Her breath came in quick, shallow gasps as she stepped inside, clutched the door frame as if to steady herself, her gaze locked onto his in a silent appeal for answers.

To her shock, when she stepped into the office, she found the three troublemakers and several other coworkers already present. Her stomach twisted in confusion and anger. 

“Wha - What’s happening?” She asked, her voice quivering, thick with confusion and hurt. 

Sweeping the room with her gaze, she looked at everyone present in search of some hint, some recognition.

Yet the rest looked away uneasily and pretended not to notice her, their eyes averted from her.

A hint of panic arose within her; she was beginning to understand that no one was going to even give her any explanation.

It was a claustrophobic feeling, as if everything around her was shutting down on her while even the eye contact was full of blame, and there she was lost in a group of people.

Then she noticed her purse, which rested wide open on her manager's table. Beside it was a stack of money. Her heart skipped a beat as she stared at the cash, her mind began to race.

Her boss didn't wait long to explain. 

“$20,000 has gone missing from the company,” he said, his voice cold and accusing. “We’ve gone through the CCTV footage but found nothing. However, when your handbag was brought to me, we found the money hidden underneath it.”

Laura’s stomach dropped. Her gaze flicked to the cash and then back to her employer as fear crept in. She was in utter disbelief. 

"There's no way this is happening." “This isn’t me,” she said as she tried to defend herself, her voice lifted in desperation. “I - I didn’t do this! I’ve been set up! You’re all part of this!” she yelled as her voice trembled with emotions.

The three women exchanged sly, triumphant glances. They smiled at her misfortune, clearly relishing the moment.

Laura, still unaware, had no idea that while she was cleaning the restroom, they had secretly planted the money in her bag, framing her.

Her boss lost patience as he stared at her.

“It’s clear you’re guilty, Laura. Your explanations don’t matter. You’re fired,” he declared, his voice final. “Pack your things and leave in five minutes. Your services are no longer needed here.”

With that, he turned and walked out of the office, leaving Laura alone with her coworkers.

The three women moved closer to her, grinning with satisfaction. One of them leaned in and whispered maliciously, “We told you we’d make your life miserable here. We told you you’d be gone soon.”

Laura stood there, heartbroken and humiliated, gazing at them in disbelief. Her eyes filled with unshed tears, and her voice cracked as she whispered, “God ... .this is too much for me”. 

The words hung in the air, raw and vulnerable, as if she pleaded for an answer. But the silence was her only reply.

Suddenly, the tears rushed down, unstoppable, each one carrying the weight of her grief, frustration, and exhaustion. 

Her whole body trembled, a storm of emotions broke through as it caused her to feel small, exposed, and utterly defeated.

Without a word, they walked out and left her as she stood there, utterly alone. 

Laura’s gaze fell on her handbag and the pile of money beside it. Her world crumbled around her.

The weight of everything, her humiliation, the betrayal, the depressed feeling, crashed down on Laura all at once. 

The weight of her own body seemed unbearable and her legs buckled under her. Her heart pounded violently while breathing became impossible for her.

A wave of unbearable pressure, fear, and despair washed over her and she collapsed on the ground, losing her consciousness.

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  • BEHIND OFFICE DOORS   CHAPTER THREE: IN THE GRIP OF HOPE AND DESPAIR.

    “Everyone please step aside!”. “She has now regained consciousness,” Laura’s boss ushered the others.It was all disorienting as she gradually rose and noticed that she had passed out in her superior’s office.She used her hands to support herself, but they were shaking partially. When she looked around the room, her colleagues fixed her with such an incredulous look that she almost felt like a ghost.The images of what took place at work not long ago started to come back to her memories just as they began to escalate the fear that was building in her heart.In a fit of rage and disbelief, a contemptuous glare was directed at her boss before Laura stormed out of the room without a second look.Laura, emotionally exhausted and struggling with dizziness, limped to her work section and quietly packed her things.It was almost as if each item she stuffed into her bag was an artifact from her previous ill-treatment in that organization.As heaviness overtook her, Laura walked towards the

    Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-11-20
  • BEHIND OFFICE DOORS   CHAPTER FOUR: DESPERATE MEASURES.

    Having come to terms that her tears and worries could not conjure the funds required for the treatment of her ailing mother; Laura was the first to interrupt the unsettling silence with a desperate appeal.“Sir, I don’t have that kind of money at the moment,” she began her sentence shivering. “Please, can you start the treatment? I promise I’ll pay as soon as I can. I just need some time to arrange it.”The doctor’s expression remained stern as he responded, “I’m sorry, Laura, but we can’t begin treatment without the $1,000 payment upfront. Our policy requires it before we can proceed.” His tone left no room for negotiation and signaled his unwillingness to bend the rules.Puzzled, Laura stared at her mother for a while before switching her attention towards the doctor and racking her brain for something to say. A flicker of determination kindled in Laura’s eyes as she sensed a chord tingling in her mind. I think I know what to do, she whispered, almost gingerly under the context of

    Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-11-20
  • BEHIND OFFICE DOORS   CHAPTER FIVE: SHATTERED EGO, NEW BEGINNINGS.

    Panic surged through Laura as she fought and screamed, “Leave me alone!” in a burst of self-preservation, she raised her right hand and slapped him as she knocked him away.Fred stood shocked by Laura’s boldness, touched his cheek with his left hand, and stared at her in astonishment.Laura became the first woman to truly stand up to Fred; not only did she resist him, but she also struck back and shattered his ego for all to see.People passing by gazed at Laura as if she were a deity. The cafe’s customers hurried outside, forming a circle around them and watching in stunned silence.“Who do you think you are?” Fred demanded, visibly angry. “I am a woman who refuses to stand by and let herself be harassed by an uncivilized man,” Laura shot back, storming into the cafe in anger and leaving him standing there.Fred immediately followed Laura silently with a sinister grin spreading across his face as he vowed to himself that he would have her in his bed, even if it were the last thing h

    Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-11-28
  • BEHIND OFFICE DOORS   CHAPTER SIX: THE MEETING AT ACADEMY STREET.

    The lowering of the fading sun cast a shadowy presence over the towering structures upon the street as Laura scurried on the pavement and her heart thumped and paced.She pressed her palm to her ribs as she gasped and was frantic. Laura reached out with her fingers to grab her handbag, which she knew contained money for a taxi to take her away from Fred and the troubling incident that had her head in confusion.Her hand met nothing but the fabric of her dress, and a sick realization washed over her. She’d left her purse on the counter, right there, right where Fred could still be lingering. Her heart sank like a stone. She couldn’t go back; the idea of facing him again filled her with dread. She looked around, feeling trapped as shadows crept across the sidewalks, swallowing the street in a dim, unsettling haze.In a hurry, she rushed to the sidewalk’s border and settled herself into a battered wooden stool placed outside a shut shop. Clutching the edges of her head, she attempted t

    Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-11-29
  • BEHIND OFFICE DOORS   CHAPTER SEVEN: THREADS OF TENSION.

    Fred looked from Laura to Jerry, suspicion darkening his expression as he took in the scene. Laura’s breath caught in her throat and, without thinking, she pressed herself against Jerry, her trembling hands clutching her bag.“Laura?” He asked the question while stepping slightly forward, but a tone of mockery laced his voice. As Laura looked up at him and watched him take a step closer, she gripped on her bag so hard to avoid falling off, she felt like a prey being hunted, and wished the ground would open up and swallow her.“Back to upset me, I see,” Fred’s drawl oozed mischief as he moved forward, a smug grin spreading across his face. “Are you following me everywhere now?”.Laura took a small, instinctive step back, her pulse racing. The depth of his gaze was penetrating and almost teasing which made her feel uneasy.“Why are you in my house?” He demanded as he looked at her with surprising amusement.“Your...your house?” She repeated in a voice so low that only her thoughts c

    Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-11-30
  • BEHIND OFFICE DOORS   CHAPTER EIGHT: A DANGEROUS WELCOME.

    As much as she would like to shake off the persistence of the terrible feeling of fear she felt, Laura assuredly looked calm on the outside. Determined, she gritted her teeth, looked up at Fred, and equally bore the gaze of Fred’s eyes at her, refusing to be intimidated. She would not let him see how scared he made her.Fred broke the silence, his tone casual but his smile unsettling. “At least you could be polite enough to say hi, my lady.” He said as he tilted his head and studied her as though waiting for her to respond with something more than silence.Laura clenched her jaw, pushing down the urge to recoil. She forced herself to respond, her voice tinged with disgust. “What do you want from me, Fred? And how did you even know I was here?”.Fred’s smile deepened a glint of mischief in his eyes. “Walls have ears, darling,” he replied smoothly. “A little bird told me.”His gaze swept over her, lingering as though assessing every detail. “The dress suits you, though,” he added, r

    Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-12-01
  • BEHIND OFFICE DOORS   CHAPTER NINE: A CRY IN THE CROWD.

    Laura and Jerry ran outside the cafe and looked for the cause of turmoil that had broken loose minutes ago.Pandemonium reigned in the street with a rise of voices, and even in that frenzy, Laura fixated on something across the road that was distressing.Across the street, within the mob stood a victim, no older than she predicted to be sixteen years. He looked beaten and helpless, he was their captive.This boy’s oppositional face was both dirty and frightened; Laura winced at the pure horror reflected in his eyes.“Do you see this?” Laura gasped, her voice tight with horror. She turned to Jerry, the disbelief and disgust clear on her face. Violence had never been something she could tolerate, no matter the circumstances. She felt her pulse quicken with an urge to intervene.“I’m going to stop them,” she said firmly, her gaze locked on the boy, empathy welling in her eyes. She took a step forward.“No, hold on. Don’t rush in,” Jerry cautioned, catching her by the hand. His grip was

    Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-12-02
  • BEHIND OFFICE DOORS   CHAPTER TEN: UNSEEN BONDS.

    “Is Jack safe?” Laura’s voice was barely a whisper, the question slipped from her lips as if voicing it could ease the tightness in her chest. Her heart beat a frenzied rhythm.She took a deep breath and cast one last glance toward the street as she forced herself to step back into the cozy, softly lit cafe.Her mind raced as she approached the counter, her thoughts tangled and pressed. She needed answers.“Fred took the child away in his vehicle,” she finally said, her voice quivering as she locked eyes with Jerry. “Why would he do that?” The question lingered in the air, carrying an undertone of desperation that she couldn’t hide.Jerry’s brows shot up, his surprise evident as he turned to look at her. “Fred? When?” He asked, blinking away his shock. He glanced at the line of customers but didn’t seem in any hurry to attend to them; something about Laura’s expression held him in place.Laura clenched her hands, willing herself to stay calm, though unease gnawed at her like a rele

    Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-12-03

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  • BEHIND OFFICE DOORS   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-TWO: WHEN THE PAST STRIKES.

    Maggie froze at the entrance of Fred’s living room, clutching her breath, and became stunned as her eyes found the two men sitting, looking straight at her. This space is large, yet it seemed to be suffocating, with its very walls pressing against it. Shadows foreboding in the dim light extended the shapes of Fred and Thomas almost to the point of monstrosity. Her eyes darted between them and Maggie could hear her heart thumping in her ears as she tried to gauge the nature of the trap she had unknowingly walked into. Amusedly, Fred reclined in his chair, a devilish grin on his lips. His sharp eyes gleamed with something sinister, his posture exuding dangerous confidence. "What's the matter, Maggie?" He said, dripping with falsehood and mockery. "Cat got your tongue? Come in. Don't be shy Maggie. Join us."Maggie's breath caught in her throat, and she had to barely swallow to force her quaking legs forward. Each step was like marching toward the inevitable. She could feel Fred's steel

  • BEHIND OFFICE DOORS   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-ONE: BETRAYAL UNVEILED.

    The next morning. Fred Walker lay motionless in bed, staring at the ceiling while the tempestuous thoughts of fury and regret further entangled his mind. The betrayal burned within him, raw and relentless, deeply sank into pride like a jagged knife. It tortured him now as Maggie would deceive him for years through an intricate web of lies, convincing enough for him to see nothing till now. And now that he had seen it, he was going to make sure she faced the consequences. Not yet, however. Not until Thomas was there.Fred required Maggie to see him standing before her, feeling undeniable and suffocating weight pressing down upon her by her own deception. He wanted her to know what she had done and see it reflected in his eyes, knowing there was no escape.Shame clawed at his chest, a little bitter and unwelcome companion. He hadn’t even had the courage to tell Jerry everything that had happened. Not yet ready to confess the truth about him and Laura, but Jack’s situation was one thing

  • BEHIND OFFICE DOORS   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY: THE TRUTH THAT BURNS.

    The weight of betrayal felt like a stone upon Laura's chest; Laura had held on to the letter with trembling fingers that grazed over its frayed edges. A thick choking lump was rising from her throat, one that the harsh truth of what she had just read was now finding its way into. Her heart was behaving erratically, each blast sounding against her ribs with a warning sound she could no longer ignore. She thought she had broken a heart and hurt someone enough to last a lifetime. Yet nothing compared to the raging storm that now engulfed her from inside. Jack was not Fred's son. Maggie had kept deceiving him for over ten years, making him believe he had fathered the child when the truth was far darker. The revelation burned like acid in Laura's gut, as each thought seared through her mind while she forced herself to breathe. Fred had the right to know. With that conviction, Laura stuffed the letter into her bag and held on tightly to it, imagining that it might be able to disappear if

  • BEHIND OFFICE DOORS   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-NINE: BITTER REVELATIONS.

    Laura gasped, retreating from shock as Jack suddenly threw himself between her and Maggie, his small body shaking with an odd frenzy of fear and urgent determination. His large brown eyes, usually so innocent and childlike, expressed something more desperate, aimed at accusations against his mother."Mom, no!" Jack shouted in a cracking voice. "You put something in her food! I saw you!". Silence crashed over the dining room like a suffocating wave. Maggie went even paler, instantly losing her color. For a second, she had opened a window into her soul, revealing something genuine and unguarded behind her mask. The napkin rested in her lap and was now twirling and twisting between her fingers and around her clenched fists. Then the placid, practiced expression came back onto her face again, the one she had worn so many times before and which froze every heart with its innocence."Jack," she said, her voice sharp, even venomous. "That is enough." But Laura was not there yet; she had n

  • BEHIND OFFICE DOORS   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-EIGHT: FATAL INVITATION.

    Maggie had her phone clasped tightly while sitting stiffly on the couch. It glowed faintly on her face but burned hotter deep within her mind as Laura's message went into her through each excruciating word. The words blurred as Maggie's eyes became obscured with fury. A sharp breath ripped from her lungs, and she expelled it slowly as the strangling pressure inside her chest felt like it could crush her from within.Laura was pregnant with Fred's child. Maggie still could not believe her eyes.A cold hollow ache lodged deep inside Maggie’s gut, swiftly engulfed by an almost furious tide so powerful that her hands began to shake. Her jaw was clenched, grinding her teeth as she reread the message, every single word fueling the fire that ravaged her."Fred's child..." that thought slumped into her mind like a deadly toxin, curling around her heart. She could see it happening: Laura, radiant with the beauty of motherhood, next to Fred, her palm on her distended belly, whispering his nam

  • 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

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