Chapter 4

Outside Melrose, Sarah sat down on the first bench she spotted. Her legs could no longer support her weight or the stress of her recent nightmare.

She had always hoped to run into Ezra one day, but the interaction she had just had was nowhere near what she envisioned. She never questioned his dislike for her, but not to the point where he would throw her outside his building like an animal.

Her phone beeped, it was Chelsea, her friend. After wiping away her tears, she turned to the message. Her friend was inquiring about her employment status.

She placed her phone away and began crying. She was a total failure or was she cursed? She wanted to go back to the day before, the interview was a nightmare that she wanted to wake up from.

As she sank into the bench, the phone rang. It was a new number. She decided to ignore it as well but afterward thought it was Ezra who had a change of heart.

Wiping away her tears, she picked up the call.

"Why aren't you working at your desk?" An icy voice asked.

Sarah briefly felt her heart quiver.

"Is this not Sarah Norwell's line?" The voice inquired, after a stretch of silence.

 Sarah gasped, "Yes?"

The voice said, "This is your boss, half-boss, Liam, who you signed a contract with."

Sarah exhaled a sigh of relief, for unknown reasons she was glad it was not Ezra.

She began to explain, "Your... brother," but was cut off.

"Yes, I heard that he threw you outside the building. He did the same thing to the previous secretary," Liam said and asked her not to take it personally.

"What?"

Liam remarked, "I neglected to tell you that my brother is harsh, rude, ill-tempered, and mean to everything on two feet," he laughed. 

 "Anyway, take today off, but be in the office before 8 a.m. tomorrow and honor the contract," he hung up the phone.

Sarah's gaze fell silently on the phone. She was tempted to call back and alert the person on the other end of the line about her history with Ezra but an inner voice cautioned her against it.

 The contract was not committing her to anything especially when Ezra did not intend to allow her in his office.

The phone rang again flipping her heart, she looked at the line and it was Chelsea. She chuckled and chose to pick up the phone. She was in a tricky situation and was hoping that her friend might help.

"You signed what?" Angry at her, Chelsea yelled.

Sarah sobbed, "I was desperate and we needed the money."

"Where are you?" Chelsea asked and ordered her to stay there. 

*******

 In Liam's office

Ezra could hear Sarah and Liam's conversation, breathing heavily, his fists folded. 

"You have two choices here: run me over with your chair or wheel yourself to your office," Liam said after hanging up.

"You left this company when it was sinking, and I lifted it up alone, so this company is not even half yours!" Ezra yelled.

"I do not recall resigning when I left, and I thank you for lifting the company," Liam grinned as he sat down next to his brother and sneered;

 "Do not mind my manners, but I think it's disrespectful to stand while you are seated," he added and started outlining how their late father divided up all the inheritance in half.

"Furthermore, given that you'll probably force the new secretary to resign, why are you getting so worked up about her?" He queried.

Ezra turned to face away realizing Liam was correct. He didn't fire any of the other clueless secretaries because they all quit. And unless Sarah had no self-respect, he didn't think Sarah would show her face again.

"What's up?" Liam's curiosity grew. "Does she know you? Is she your former sexual partner? Or did she insult you after your one-night stand ended in failure?"

Without warning, Ezra crashed his wheelchair into Liam's chair before he could finish his sentence, sending him tumbling backward on his back.

He then rolled himself out of the office with a warning, "Tame your stupid mouth, next time I will ram the chair between your legs.

 Liam was left hissing in agony.

Regardless of how many times he insulted Ezra who was exceedingly irritable, he was never physically violent, which simply indicated that the woman he had employed was responsible. 

He gritted his teeth in annoyance as he attempted to stand up but was hampered by a painful sting. Ezra had gone too far, he was going to make him pay.

Outside, Chelsea arrived and picked up Sarah. The two then proceeded to a pub for drinks. 

Sarah narrated her past and described what happened at Melrose, leaving Chelsea's mouth hanging.

"Why on earth did you agree to spy for the brother?" She yelled.

Sarah sobbed, "I need the money; we need the money and when he was talking about his weird brother, he came out as if the brother was some obese lazy cripple pulling the company down."

Chelsea sipped on her beer.

"I never thought it was my hot, long-lost friend."

"Hot?" Chelsea's eyes opened wide.

 Sarah looked away, embarrassed.

Chelsea took out her phone and googled who owned Melrose. Articles about Liam popped up. None of them had images of the other brother, who held the other 50% ownership stake in the business.

She raised an eyebrow at Sarah.

"Well, the Liam brother is hot too, and it says here that Liam stepped back two years ago, but there is still no picture of the other brother," she said.

 Sarah picked up the phone and read the articles, to her surprise Chelsea was right. There was no picture or mention of Ezra's name. She now understood why she had no idea who owned the company when she went for the interview.

Chelsea explained, "I believe the two brothers are at war, and I believe the other brother is using you to get eyes on the crippled brother."

"Oh my god, I should warn Ezra and tell him," Sarah thought as she reached for her phone.

In an instant, Chelsea seized her hands and stopped her.

 "What are you doing?" She asked.

Sarah answered, fidgeting, "Ezra has to know what his brother hired me for."

"Don't you read books or watch movies?" Chelsea asked.

Sarah was almost rolling her eyes; her friend was very irritating when it came to her stupid novels.

  "Cripple's brother obviously knows the hot brother is after the company, and perhaps that's why he keeps firing all the secretaries."

Sarah put an end to her bag-flicking.

"From the way you described how he chased you out of the building, he wouldn't even give you a second to snitch on his brother," Chelsea added.

Sarah sat back in her chair and closed her eyes. She responded, "I can't just watch and do nothing."

"Yes, you can, or you can choose to pursue the second course of action and go to work. But instead of spying on the cripple, you spy on the hottie and uncover information that the cripple can use to fire the hottie from the company. You and the cripple can then reconcile and live happily ever after," Chelsea explained and clapped for herself.

Sarah remained motionless, Chelsea's phrases were laced with a strange mixture of hotties and cripples, confusing her.

"What?"

Chelsea said, taking a drink of her beer, "We need the money for rent."

Sarah knew that but everything was a total mess.

"Don't you want to share your side of your story with Cripple?" she inquired. "As in? Why you left him in the cave?"

In agreement, Sarah nodded.

In plain English, Chelsea said, "Then go to work and spy on Liam for Ezra."

 Sarah's eyes bulged;  "Chelsea, you are so brilliant. Oh my God!"

Standing up, Sarah gave her friend a bear hug.

"It will be hell," Chelsea cautioned, "Remember, the cripple hates you?"

Sarah finally smiled, "I once left him in hell, so I am ready to go through hell for him," she replied.

Chelsea raised her glass. "Cheers to hell and rent money," she joked.

Sarah lifted her glass of water and hit Chelsea's glass, her heart beating fast.