The three visitors did not expect anything less and were happy to see Laura in fear. Instantly, Barbara appeared from nowhere.“I'm here, Sgt Young,” she answered.“What is going on here?” George asked angrily.“I would not know, Sgt. Young. I waited for her to have her lunch before me. After she returned, I went for mine,” she explained innocently.George was furious. He faced Laura and asked indignantly, “If you can't give the right direction, can't you apologize for your mistake?” She looked fearfully at the visitors and apologized, “I'm sorry.”Although it was not sincere it was better than nothing if only George would see it that way.“It's all …”“What are you sorry for?” George interrupted them, hit his left hand on the desk, and revealed his wristwatch.Now, she shuddered and looked at the visitors like a moron. They giggled and waited for her to correct herself. Collins and the others waited patiently as well while Barbara smirked happily.“I'm sorry that I …”“Gentlemen, pa
“How would someone wish to kill innocent orphans who are trying to survive without their parents just to hurt their benefactor?” He grumbled and stared at the wall.After ten minutes of meditation, he concluded, “I will roast all of them.” He chatted him up again and appeared more desperate. (My contact said that the Third in Command is interested in anything that would make Gen. Richmond lose his integrity.)(Wow! Then the project will interest him.)(Yes. If your payment is encouraging, the Third in Command will encourage him to organize a first-anniversary for the orphanage.)(Oh! It is a good idea. Kindly find out if he can convince him to make the event bigger and invite the Heads of State of some Nations.)“Why does he want them?” He asked himself in wonderment and continued to chat with him. (Why do you want it bigger and their presence if I may ask? It will help me in my negotiation.)(My sponsor has got a beef with them and that would be the chance to eliminate them.)(I s
The Next Day - At Laura's House.Based on her parents' advice, she dressed modestly. When she was set to leave, she walked to their apartment to announce her departure.“Good morning, Mom and Dad. I hope you slept well?”“Good morning, my dear. We slept well,” her father responded.“I hope you slept well too?” Her mother asked.“Yes, Mom. I'm leaving. Take care of yourselves.”“It is okay, dear.”“Remember my advice. Don't disrespect Barbara. She is your boss,” her mother cautioned her.“Yes, Mom. I will be careful. Goodbye.”“Goodbye,” they responded and watched her as she walked away.“From her dressing, you can see that she will be careful,” her father pointed out.“Yes. She is ready to work peacefully with her.”She got to the bus stop and greeted everyone cheerfully. Her dressing and attitude of consideration stirred some staff members especially those who were unaware of her demotion. All the same, they responded, “Good morning.”Soon, the bus arrived and they boarded. Bright a
They never expected that their opinions would be read publicly and exposed before Reuben.“Secretary, collect their petitions from them and read out what they wrote,” George ordered when they hesitated.“Okay, Boss,” he said and stretched out his hand to them but they were reluctant to release their papers.“What are you waiting for?” Capt. Bruce barked and collected the papers from them angrily.He handed them over to the secretary at once and he began to read.“Three months without salary. One year deduction in salary by fifty percent. Sack him. Pardon him. Outright dismissal. Lock him up in the guardroom for one month.”“Ha!” The two Captains exclaimed and faced George.Bright was astounded and wondered if they would ever be leaders in their lives. He looked at Reuben who was already weeping and had compassion on him.“I'm innocent, General. I have a pregnant wife and children. I don't know how they will survive. Please …"“Who wrote 'Pardon him'?” George interrupted him and asked.
At The Auxiliary Armory PLCAt The Car ParkAfter they left the President's Office, the five liars were led to the guardroom while Capt. Bruce and the two returned to the car park. They sat at the drivers' shed in silence. For whatever reason, Capt. Bruce felt that he was responsible for all the trouble.“Maybe I should have believed Reuben and followed up on his complaint. But I didn't ask them to lie against their colleague,” he thought after mulling over the whole issue and got up.He walked to the bus and looked at it again. Meanwhile, Barnabas was regretful and did not know what to say to Reuben.“I did not mean to implicate him. I don't even know that it was his bus,” he tried to justify his act.However, he was relieved when Reuben spoke and exonerated him from his haters.“Why did they hate me so much? I can't remember having any conflict with them.”“It baffles me too. How can they attest to what they know nothing about?”“If I may ask, was it the General who drove the bus? W
At that point, Laura stood up too out of fear of being reprimanded.“Yes,” he answered and walked away.Now, Barbara had collected all the envelopes and apologized to the Cadets, “Thank you for your patience. It is not in our characters.”The Cadets were more interested in submitting their applications than the apologies. They walked away happily at once.Nevertheless, Bright joined George and they left.“What happened? Where were the officers?” He asked.“She went to the Personnel Department to drop the applications that she collected previously,” he answered.George was not aware of who he was referring to but he asked, “They were supposed to be two, where was the second person?”Even though he would not like to create more problems for Laura, he had to protect himself.“She was there.”At The Production DepartmentPresently, they were at the department's entrance and they walked in. George forgot about the front desk and saluted Capt. Miles. After he returned the salute, they began
Now, Barbara was inquisitive when she heard Jerry's voice and wished to know what happened in her absence. She searched their faces for a clue but got none.“I will find out from the Lance Corporal later,” she resolved.Laura returned and sat down. She never bothered to go to the canteen because she was aware that there would be nothing for her.Not quite long after, George came out of the elevator and they closed for the day.At The GuardroomThe five liars were sitting on the bare floor and waiting for Capt. Bolton's next action. They were too shocked to speak with one another especially when they knew that they brought the calamity to themselves. To their amazement, Capt. Bolton's instructions, some staff members from the Media Department arrived with the cameramen to record their confessions.“Why were you locked up in the guardroom today?” A Media Team Member asked one of the culprits.One cannot be wrong and bold at the same time. Their guilt bled into their expressions at once.
nstantly, the house was quiet, and only the chiming of the clock could be heard. After a long while, her father took a deep breath and mustered up the courage to speak.“This is a trying time. We only have to be strong and hope for the best.”“For how long?” Madeline cried out and released her suppressed emotions.“Please don't cry, Mom,” Laura cried out too.Likewise, her disillusioned father was lost of what to do.The Next DayAt The Front DeskPresently, Barbara had concluded that Laura was a witch and had been hexed by another one. She made up her mind to ignore her and work alone.“She can implicate me if I don't keep her where she belonged,” she told herself and continued her work.Nevertheless, she had forgotten about her threat to call the Management's attention to her salary until Laura called her attention.“Barbara, I wish to plead with you to let the issue of my salary pass. I promise to work peacefully with you as your assistant.”Barbara had never had it so good and gra