ZACHARY FLETCHER

Zachary Fletcher stepped out of his palatial villa which was a stunning testament to his success and refined taste. Nestled in a picturesque location; Zach Estate, Mayfair was one of the most luxurious estates in London.

His domestic staff lavished Zach with greetings but he merely nodded curtly and approached his Bugatti without noticing that his housekeeper and chef were staring at him longingly through the windows.

His chauffeur, Tony, quickly ran and opened the back of his car, and after Zach sat down, Tony got into the front and began driving to Zachary Fletcher Conglomerate.

On his way to the company, Zach made a phone call to his assistant, Luke, and asked, "Are you at the office?"

"Yes, sir," Luke replied.

"Good," Zach said and hung up.

The moment he stepped out of his car, he began to make his way into the iconic skyscraper building. The CEO's personal office was on the highest floor. It was the only office on that floor and the most spacious in the building; offering panoramic views of the city.

Right from the door, his employees began to bow, greeting him with, "Good morning, sir."

He barely said a word in reply as he went straight to the elevator and took it to the thirtieth floor. When he got to the top, his three secretaries, assistants, and eleven managers were waiting for him outside his office.

They all greeted him and he nodded curtly. Staring at Tina, the most senior of his secretaries, he nodded and she quickly unlocked the door to his office before giving the keys to his assistant.

"Let's go inside," Zach said to everyone and they all walked in behind him.

"Tina, let me have the files." He said before taking his seat at the head of the table.

She quickly picked up a laptop from one of the tables in the office and placed it in front of him, pointing at the necessary folders.

He dismissed all his secretaries and said to all the managers, "Let's begin."

One after the other, they began to give their different presentations while he stared at them with a scowl on his face, not pleased with what he was hearing. After they had all finished, he began to ask questions.

"Yes, Mr. Morris, how far have you gone on the project with the Dunmis Council?"

"Sir, well, I..." Mr. Morris stammered.

"Why are you stammering? This is exactly the type of attitude I do not want to see. Henceforth, you're dismissed. You can leave your resignation letter with the HR department."

"Sir?..." Mr. Morris wanted to argue."

"Leave this place right this instant!" Zachary yelled.

Mr. Morris got up and instantly left, and all the other board members were filled with more fear.

"Yes, Mr. Lincoln, go ahead. What about the project I asked you to work on?"

Mr. Lincoln got up and began to explain while shivering.

"Let me see the file," Zachary said.

He took the file from Lincoln, flipped through the pages, and threw it back at him, "This is not satisfactory. What is going on here? You were all informed about this meeting two days ahead of time. I'm really disappointed."

Angrily, he got up and began walking out of his office.

"We'll have this meeting again tomorrow. Mr. Michael, reschedule and let me know about it."

"Yes, sir," his senior manager replied.

After speaking, he walked out of the room. Looking at his assistant who was standing by the door, he asked, "Luke, are the members for the foreign alliance ready?"

"Yes," Luke replied. "Although I told them that you'll be having a meeting now, I can put a call across, and make sure they are all available."

"Do that on the way," He said and began to leave while Luke followed behind him. He spent the next few hours having different meetings until it was past his lunchtime.

When he finally looked at the time, it was already past two. He had more meetings to attend but he was hungry and to make it worse, it had been raining for so long.

He walked out of the building and when they got into his Bugatti, he instructed his driver, "Take me to my favorite hotel."

Luke sat beside him in the car with a wet umbrella in his hand. When they arrived at the hotel, Zach came out, and from the door, all the staff began to, greet him respectfully while he went in to take his seat.

Zachary was known as the king of Garden City, and one of the wealthiest men alive. Some said he was proud, arrogant, and even mean, but most people just described him as ruthless.

He never gave second chances, and he hated people who tried to curry favor with him. Initially, there were scandals about him. Some claimed he was gay, others said he was married. At thirty-two, he had not been seen with any woman.

All the media houses that reported the news about his marital status and sex life were shut down on the same day, and ever since then, no one else dared to say anything wrong about him.

He crossed his leg and waited for his meal to be served while his assistant stood by his side, staring at him. When he began to eat, he gave Luke the opportunity to also eat but at a different table.

When he was done eating, Zach got up and wanted to leave, but then the downpour became heavier. He cursed under his breath.

"Today has been nothing but a terrible day."

Staring at his assistant, he asked, "Luke, are Elite buyers still waiting for me?"

"Yes, sir," Luke replied. "I put a call across to them earlier to ensure they do not waste your time and at this point, I'm sure they are already gathering."

"This is annoying. Okay, I guess I have to leave for the meeting. I hate being kept waiting, and I like to be punctual. Let's go."

Luke quickly opened the umbrella in his hand, and, covered it over Zachary's head. He led Zachary into his car, and when they got in, the driver who had been waiting, turned on the ignition and began to drive.

Zachary crossed his legs and ordered, "Drive slowly. You can see that the weather has gotten worse"

The driver nodded, "Yes, sir." And began to drive more slowly.

Picking up a magazine lying beside him on the seat, Zach began flipping through it, seeming amused by the entertainment news. He had always been interested in it for reasons best known to him.

As he flipped through the pages, he soon became bored and dropped the magazine. He looked at the window, his eyes gazing through the glass. A memory flashed in his mind, but he quickly shook it off, not wanting to ruin his mood.

However, right at that moment, he spotted someone on the ground—a girl.

"Stop the car," he said.

The driver immediately stopped the car and asked, "Is there a problem, sir?"

Even his assistant who sat beside him became concerned. "Mr. Zachary, is something wrong?"

"Who's that girl?" he asked.

They were all surprised as they followed the direction of his gaze. There lay a girl on the ground, her face as pale as a sheet. She was unconscious, and her complexion had changed due to the rain.

Zachary couldn't tell if she was dead or alive, she appeared very young—around sixteen or seventeen, he guessed. He kept staring at her and wanted to leave at first but then something tugged at his heartstrings. His assistant and driver were surprised because he never bothered about things or people like that.

"I'm stepping out right now." He said, shocking them even more.

His assistant quickly came out with an umbrella and ran to the other side, opening the door and holding the umbrella for him. Zachary, who was six feet two inches tall, walked over to the girl and stared at her for a while.

Finally, he said, "I want her to be taken to the hospital if she's still alive."

His assistant stared at him in surprise. Zachary wasn't known for being kind or helping strangers, but it wasn't in his place to question him.

Seeing that his assistant was confused, Zachary took the umbrella from him and said, "Right now, take her to the back if she's not dead."

Luke checked her pulse and saw that she was still breathing. He lifted the unconscious girl from the ground; her body was soaked with water, and he knew the seats would be soaked as well. He worried that Zachary would complain and later blame him, but at this point, he could only follow instructions.

He turned to the other side of the car and got in, sitting beside the girl, while Zachary went to the front to sit beside the driver.

Finally, they arrived at the hospital and Zach got out. He asked his assistant to take her out. Then he walked straight to his doctor, who was surprised to see him, and said, "Mr. Zachary, you should have told me you needed my services. You know I will come to you at any time."

"I know," Zachary replied, "but, this was different. I need you to look after this girl. Something has happened to her. Just make sure she gets better and send me the bill."

"Okay, sir. Is she related to you?" The doctor asked.

"No, she's more like a stray dog I picked up. I just want her to live." Zachary said.

After that, he turned and left, going back to his initially intended destination. The doctor quickly ordered his nurses and they rolled the girl, who had been placed on a stretcher, to a room and transferred her to a bed.

He attended to her quickly. Since she had been brought by Zachary, he knew her health was a priority.

Two hours later, Paige opened her eyes, blinking weakly. When she looked around, she realized she was in a hospital and sat upright.

She recalled what had happened earlier in the day and wondered, "Am I dead?"

When the doctor came in, he said, "Hmm, I see you're awake."

She smiled, "For a moment, I thought I was in heaven."

The doctor laughed, "Heaven? That's interesting."

"I remember passing out under the rain. How did I get here?" Paige asked.

"Someone saved you and brought you here." The doctor replied.

"Someone saved me? This hospital looks quite expensive. Will the person be coming back?" Paige asked.

"I don't think so. He just wanted you to live." The doctor replied.

She nodded, "Okay, can I speak to him?"

The doctor said, "Well, I don't know. It depends on him. I can put a call across, and if he's willing to speak to you, I'll let you know."

"Please put a call across. Thank you," she replied.

The doctor thought about it for a while. He didn't want to offend Zach but he decided to call him just to be sure of what he wanted.

In her mind, Paige was thinking that if the person who saved her was a wealthy man, she would ask him to employ her. She wanted to live and fulfill her dreams. She had earlier made a mistake by giving up on life.

She wanted to make something out of her life, and for that to happen, she needed to start from somewhere. At the moment, she did not have a roof over her head, and if this person could pass by without letting her die, it meant he could be kind enough to give her a job.

She was ready to do anything decent as long as it gave her the opportunity to save up enough money and pursue her dreams.

When the doctor called Zachary, he was in the middle of a meeting. He looked at the call and answered it, saying, "This had better be important."

"I'm sorry for disturbing you, Mr. Fletcher," the doctor said. "The girl you brought has gained consciousness, and she insists on speaking to you."

"Speak to me? Didn't I ask you to just treat her and let her go?"

"You did, but, I wanted to find out if you would be willing to fulfill her request."

Zachary thought for a while and finally said, "Alright, put her on the line."

The doctor heaved a sigh of relief and handed the phone to Paige as he said, "Here, he wants to talk to you."

"Thank you very much," she replied.

Taking the phone to her ear, she said, "Hello."

Zachary replied, "Hello.