Chapter 1

Adrian Tank’s mean eyes glare insidiously at me. 

“Know what, Ally? One more blunder from you and you’re out!”

I cringed but bit my lower lip, focusing my mind. Sure, I could use my innocence as a tool. Perhaps Adrian would fall for it. But, whatever it was, my mother and brother couldn’t go hungry.

I am Ally Shale, a high school graduate working in A City as a junior reporter. Adrian Tank is my boss. And, I probably should tell you that it’s tough for me to find a job because I do not possess college qualifications. I am also an orphan working to feed my family members. But, I can’t lose this job, I remind myself.

So I decided to play innocent with Adrian. 

“But Sir, I have just been here a few weeks,” I pleaded, nodding my head. “I have mouths to feed at home; I know you won’t be that heartless, Sir.”

I put on the sweetest look I can manage on my face. He gloats, grabbing my collar.

“Maybe there’s one thing you can do, Ally.” A glint of evil flashes in his beady eyes. 

I don’t like that he is using that tone on me. I thought of the other girls whom I work with, Stephanie, Shirley and Sandi. I had once accidentally seen Sandi performing a senseless act on him, kneeling before him while having his pants unzipped. Before I could take a closer look, I accidentally kicked a chair in front of me, causing them both to pause and look for the source of the noise. Fortunately, none of them saw me, so I escaped unscathed.

“I know you just turned eighteen a few days ago. It’s been a long time since I had a fresh one begging me to take her,” he intimidates me with his dark tone.

He tore open my collar, pulling hard on my blouse that the buttons pop. He feasted his eyes on my exposed cleavage and slurped his lips pervertedly.

The mere look of Adrian makes me sick. He was bald and in his forties. In addition, his beer belly just turns me off, and I cannot imagine his filthy hands on me. Damn, that bastard!

I took my chance and begged with him using my doggy eyes. “Please, Sir, not here. The others will see!” The blinds on the window of his room were open. ence, anyone could have a glimpse of what was happening at any time.

He grabs my ponytail and yanks on it hard. “Do you think your colleagues could have stayed on for so long without giving me any benefits? And now, it’s your turn to give me some benefit. I’ve been watching you for a very long time, Ally. Your mother and brother, who do you think was the one who provided for them all this while?”

I winced and scoured my brain quickly for a solution out of this.

“I’m on my period, Sir!” I exclaimed, pulling myself out of his grasp. “You surely don’t want to have a stinking mess on your body and hands, Sir! And in your office!”

Adrian threw a disgusted look at me. “Ally Shale, you win this time. But don’t think you will be lucky all the time. Since you insist on it and this is the only time I can allow an exception, then I entrust you this task.” He let go of my hair, granting me relief.

I quickly buttoned my blouse, nodding obediently. “Yes, Sir, I’ll do my utmost to do Tank Publishing proud!” I felt lucky to have avoided a bullet. But, unfortunately, Adrian was not the person I was willing to surrender my innocence! He was also divorced and had many affairs even while he was married. 

“Go downtown and buy the sexiest dress in your size you can find, Ally. Tonight, I have news that Tyler Banks, the CEO of Zeusolutions, will appear at one of his assets, the Zeus Club. Catch his attention and seduce him with all you can. You need to find out at least one of his secrets.”

I knew failure was not an option and neither did it exist in Adrian’s dictionary. But it was the first time I had heard of Tyler Banks. Albeit being a reporter, I knew nought of the most reputed businessmen in the world. Before arriving at Tank Publishing, I was a model student in a rural neighbourhood. My aim in coming to work in the city was to earn enough money to get to university since I did not qualify for a scholarship. Besides saving money for my studies, I also needed it to put a roof over my family’s heads: my mother’s younger sister: my little aunt, who is just a few years older than my younger brother.

He warned me with a stern, no-nonsense tone. 

“You have to put your life on the line. The bosses know about your aunt and your younger brother. If anything goes out about us, or if you fail in your duty, they will never live another day of peace. And your aunt, I’m sure she has never been touched before in any way...”

What is this, an underworld society? I question in my head, barring the tears from drizzling down my cheeks. How could Adrian? It was enough that he had tried to harass me in the office sexually, but now he was threatening me using my family! But above all, I was afraid that Adrian would easily bend my aunt to his will, given her naivety and childishness. 

Be strong, Ally. I tried to tell myself and refrain from sobbing. But there was no use. Even going to the authorities was not of any help because I was not a registered employee of the company. My employers paid my salary under the tables. I had no employee benefits. If I went to the police, my family would be in danger. Tank Publishing paid me a handsome salary, much more than any company out there would be willing to pay an undergraduate.

 “Shirley will teach you the art of seduction,” Adrian ordered. “You are to learn the skills from her and do what she tells you to. Take it as my orders to you.”

I nod, still shaken by Adrian’s threats. “I’ll do it. I’ll seduce Tyler Banks. Just stay away from my family, please?”

“I’ll be waiting for the good news,” he patted my back. “Now, now, Ally, don’t take it so seriously. Whether you sleep with Tyler Banks or with me, you’re just a whore. Nothing about you is precious enough that you cannot be replaced. Do you think you’re a gem? Look at that stack over there, Ally. We get plenty of job applications all the time.”

He pointed to the stack of papers on his desk. “Come on, Ally. If you succeed in this task, I will promote you. None of the other girls who I groomed myself has ever succeeded. Think of the benefits you will get if you succeed.”

I was already mentally drained. “Sir, I told you I would do it. You didn’t have to say all these words to cheapen me,” I said without thinking. A sharp slap across the face brought me to my senses.

“Ally, know your place. I am the boss here, not you. I can promote you, but I can flatten you with a step of my foot. Say one word like that again, and you’ll be grovelling at my feet, begging for mercy.” He pushes me hard, making me fall on the cold floor.

The arrogant bastard, I cursed under my breath. Isn’t he just a mere dog working for the bosses over him? 

His eyes direct themselves to my pale thighs exposed by my fall. The impact of the fall had lifted the bottom of my skirt slightly. He greedily ventures towards me, and I am unsure if he has reconsidered his decision to not touch me after I had lied that I was having menstruation. 

A girl comes rushing into the room in a panic. Then, I realised it was Stephanie, her red hair streaming down her back like a waterfall. She was older than me by a year, yet, I know that she has exposure to much more painful matters than me. 

Unlike her typical attire, she has worn a short but sexy office outfit, tight enough to reveal her busty figure and, at the same time, her long legs. A patch of red is visible through her white blouse. My heart rages at how he disrespected his female employees, but this is the first time I have seen Steph dressed in this way to appease Adrian.

“Sir, don’t get mad,” she cooed, stroking him on the outside of his pants as she gestured for me to leave quickly. Adrian smiles greedily before lifting her blouse and slipping his fingers under her bra.

Disgusting lecher, I cursed under my breath. Had Steph not intruded, probably the one undergoing such disrespect would be me?

“Ah, Stephanie, you whore, didn’t I tell you to wear something with easy access?”

I shut the door with a depressed look. Goodness knows how many years Adrian had been humping Steph. In Adrian’s eyes, we are all just whores. 

“Come with me, Ally,” Shirley beckoned. Shirley is of Asian origin, which I assumed to be Japanese or Korean. She possessed dark curls that twirl their ways around her shoulders. Her off-shoulders dress accentuated her curvy figure. “We’ll get you out of here; then we’ll shop for your dress and begin the training.”

I rubbed my hand over the red mark on my face where Adrian had last slapped me. Shirley offers me her ointment, applying it for me with a sigh. My face was still smarting.

“Let’s talk about it outside,” she told me, ushering me out of the door. 

Getting her hint, I scurried out of the office like a frightened rat.

When we are alone in Shirley’s Mini, she pulled out the lighter she had in her pocket and began lighting a cigarette. I am used to smoking around my colleagues, so I just calmly listened as she spoke.

“You’re new. All of us here are used to his harsh treatment. But no matter how harsh he is towards us, we can never give in. At least, all of us are experienced, and we have that part to satisfy him. But you are different, Ally.”

Even if it weren’t Adrian, it would be the notorious Tyler Banks, I thought. Shirley put out the cigarette and dumped the stub in a small bag she kept in the car, turning the ignition. 

“Ally, you can’t let the bastard rip your innocence from you.”

I sighed as the tiny car zoomed through the streets. Life in the city wasn’t what I had expected. I looked up into the dark clouds in the sky, pondering how different everything would have turned out if my parents had not made their ultimate decision to move to A City.

Maybe they would have still been very much alive.