Chapter 15: She’s Unprofessional!

At Urbangrid Innovation.

Vanessa, who was on her way to Ryland’s office, was startled by the sound of hands forcefully slapping the table from the CEO’s room.

She quickened her pace to check what had happened inside and why Ryland seemed to be venting his anger at the table.

When Vanessa arrived, she was surprised to see Ryland angry at his secretary, Milan. She halted her step and hid near the open door, waiting for the right time to enter.

"How could she not answer your phone, too!? Or maybe you didn’t try hard enough? I expect my secretary to be smarter than this!" Ryland’s voice was raised; he sounded like he was yelling instead of speaking.

"Sir, I don’t know why. I tried countless times, but nothing. I’ve tried texting, voice, and video calls, but nothing gets through. Maybe Miss Abigail blocked my phone number," Milan replied faintly, trying to avoid eye contact with him.

Milan was scared and frustrated with her boss. Why was he venting his anger on her? It wasn’t her fault that Abigail ignored him and probably blocked everyone in the office.

"Then be smarter by trying to use another number. If you don’t have another number, go buy it and figure it out! Or do I have to tell you how on everything?!!" he roared, still wearing the same expression as before as if he wanted to slap Milan with his gaze.

Clutching her hand tightly, Milan looked at him again, visibly terrified.

"Sir, I have done that, too. I was using multiple numbers. I managed to connect with Miss Abigail. But when she heard my voice, she ended the call and no longer picked up any calls from my new number," she explained.

"Damn it, Milan!! Can’t you use more of your brain? If she blocked your new number, then get a new one. Buy a hundred... keep trying until she picks it up, damn it! And get someone else to talk. Someone with a voice she didn’t recognize."

Milan trembled, holding back her fear and anger. She felt frustrated facing her boss, who now seemed like a devil. She could see his face turning extremely crimson as if all his blood was rushing to it.

"I did, sir. I bought ten numbers, but Miss Abigail never picked up my anonymous number. When I texted that you would fire me if she didn’t pick up my phone, she still ignored me," Milan explained wearily.

"What the hell is that damn woman doing? Why is she so childish? Does she think she is still nineteen? How could she run away from work because of a personal matter?" He angrily expressed his annoyance about Abigail before slamming his back on his CEO chair and gazing at the stack of papers on the table.

Ryland felt frustrated now. His client wants to meet Abigail to discuss her design, but that woman vanished yesterday, and she can’t be reached. He knows what he did must have hurt her, but how could she leave everything, especially her job here, just like that? She is so unprofessional.

He wouldn’t bother finding her if his client didn’t insist on meeting Abigail. However, the client said he wouldn’t sign the one-million-dollar contract if the architect were to be replaced.

"Sir, I’m sorry, but you should try to coax Miss Abigail. She seems very angry with..." Milan paused, looking worried.

"WITH what?" Ryland frowned at Milan.

Milan gritted her teeth before answering her boss.

"YOU, sir... I don’t know what happened to Miss Abigail, but she seems angry with you. This has never happened before; she is a responsible person. Even when you argue with her over a small matter, she never goes missing in action, leaving our clients hanging like she is now."

Ryland’s hand clenched into a tight fist as he heard Milan’s words; it felt like a jab straight to his heart. He knew for sure that Abigail was angry with him. But still, how could she leave like that?

"But now it seems you have made Miss Abigail extremely angry, sir. That’s why she left everything and avoided your call for over twenty hours. She didn’t even want to speak to me," said Milan.

A trace of sadness crossed Milan’s face before she continued, "Miss Abigail was so gentle and kind to me; she never avoided picking up my call, but now, she didn’t even want to speak to me. This... worries me."

Ryland felt his heart was about to explode, remembering the last conversation with Abigail. He thought Abigail would only be angry for a few hours, so he didn’t want to bother her again.

He still hoped she would come to work today, but she had never appeared after waiting since morning until now when the day was about to end. Even her cell phone was not active.

’Where are you, Abigail? Where are you?’ Ryland silently asked, trying to figure out where she was going. Suddenly, something crossed his mind. ’Damn it! How could I forget? She is still in the apartment, waiting for me to beg for forgiveness, right? Yes! She must be there...’

For the first time that day, Ryland felt his heart race.

"Sir, do you hear me?" Milan asked after waiting for her boss to reply, but no words came out from his lips. He only sat there motionless, staring at her. She felt worried now that her words might have offended him.

After a few moments of silence, Ryland finally spoke, "Milan, how long have you worked for me?"

"Two years, sir."

"Thank you for your hard work, Milan. But I no longer need you at this company. Go pack your things and meet with HR," Ryland calmly said, but for Milan, it felt like lightning had just struck her.

She trembled with shock, hearing her boss fire her out of the blue. Why did he do that?

Before Milan could ask, Ryland continued, "If you can bring Abigail back to the company, you can resume your work as usual, Milan. And I will raise your salary, too. Now, go find her!"

"Sir, why... why..." Milan lost her words when she saw Ryland waving his hand and asking her to leave his office. She could only go. She didn’t have the energy to speak now.fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓

Ryland sighed deeply as he watched Milan leave the room. He took out his cell phone and saw no reply from Abigail, which worsened his headache.

"It seems I need to return to my apartment," Ryland muttered as he stood. He believed that Abigail was still there.

However, the door swung open before he could walk, and Vanessa appeared. "Brother Ryland! Hi. Where are you going?"