C06
“Stop, let me go. Do you know my boyfriend is? He’s going to come after you.” I screamed and punched as I tried to sit myself free from my kidnapper.
All my words proved futile. The kidnapper did not stop. He walked even faster. Even as I continued to fight and scream. He did not walk towards the carpark. Instead, he took me back to the office.
I began to worry about what you would actually do to me if he wasn’t kidnapping me. Maybe he had even more ulterior motives. There weren’t much people at the office this early in the morning.
So I started to fight in a different way. “Please I beg you. I will give you any amount of money. Just let me go.” The kidnapper did not respond until he had gone past office doors and then he let me fall into the chair at the reception.
As soon as he dropped me, I took off one of my heels and aimed it at the head of my kidnapper. I missed. And the shoe went flying past his head to the door.
“Careful, Ashley. It’s me.”
I recognized the voice. “Boss?”
“Yeah, I saw you taking that strange box out of the office and I was worried that whoever sent that box was waiting for you outside.”
My life had flashed in front of my eyes a few moments ago. I fell into the chair shaking and thinking of it all. My boss was right. Someone could’ve been waiting for me by the dustbin.
“Boss, I can take care of myself. I’m fine.”
“You’re not doing fine.” He raised his voice,. When he saw how much his raised voice affected me, he lowered his voice asking, “Does this have anything to do with a strange man that has been following you for the past month or so?”
Jared had not contacted me since the day of the movie premiere He kept his distance and I was fine with it:
“No boss. It has nothing to do with him. I think it’s just one of my friends playing a prank.”
My boss frowned, “That is not a good joke. You should really be careful of such people.”
He didn’t have to tell me twice. From the first time I saw Sarah something in me just did not vibe with her. She also didn’t like me too.
Of course she was crazy enough to pretend that she did in front of Jared. But after he left the room, she was always mean to me saying all sorts of nonsense that Jared wouldn’t believe even if I told him word–for–word how she said it. She would just fake a medical crisis.
I stood and put up a smile even though my voice was really shaking, “I said I’m fine. You’re worrying for nothing.” My boss said, “All right I believe you’re fine but I will personally drop you off this evening at home.
10:33 AM
After the Fireworks Faded
I shook my head to stop him. There was no telling if Sarah had planned something else for me at home.
“Of course not. Boss, you live on the other side of town I’m good.”
“No. You have worked a lot over time these few days. You have given your all and it would be irresponsible of me
as your boss if I do not look after your well–being. I insist.”
Everyone knew you didn’t argue with the boss, so I just shut my reservation out and went back to work as I tried to shake off the weird feeling of almost being kidnapped by my boss.
###
The ride home with my boss was awkward at first. Even though we had worked closely for over three years, he always kept to himself.
I didn’t know much about his personal life and he didn’t know much about mine. But apparently he had also got
wind of the beautiful dresses I made for our colleagues and he wanted me to make some for his wife.
The conversation drifted from his wife to college where we both found out that we both attended the same
college in the city.
He was much nicer and more attentive than I expected.
And at the end of the conversation, he promised to link me with a fashion designer in the city beyond the river. My boss belongs to a well–connected family so it was possible that he knew this designer. I think he was just being
polite because he also wanted me to make a dress for his wife.
But I did not question it because the designer he wanted me to work with was one that had been dying to meet
all of my life. Victoria Steele. She was my greatest inspiration.
And by the time we got to my house, I was already smiling and had forgotten everything that had happened this
morning.
That was until I saw Jared standing in the car park.
As soon as I opened the door and stood, he began to walk towards me with a very deep frown on his face.
“Where are you coming from? Who is that? Do you know how long I’ve been waiting?”
I looked past him and turned back to my boss then waved. “Thank you for today. I had such a great time.”
Jared grabbed my waist and then pulled me towards my boss‘ car. He yanked open the door, then pulled my boss up by the color of his neck asking, “Who the f*** do you think you are to give my girl a good time?”
My boss looked at me in fear.
I said, “Jared please stop behaving like a spoiled child. That’s my boss.”
I hoped Jared would drop my boss and not ruin a good relationship that I just formed. Especially one that would help me take my career forward.
He tightened his hold on my boss‘ neck, “I don’t care who he is. Isn’t he the person who refused to allow me to
enter your company to see you?”
In that moment, even I was afraid for my boss‘ life.