CHAPTER 5

~Joanne~

The office felt like it hadn't fully woken up yet. Most desks were still empty. Only a handful of people arrived and they barely filled up the space.

‘I guess today I was part of the punctual workers’

I murmured good morning greetings to my co-workers with my signature fake smile plastered on my face. They were already clustered in small groups, gossiping like the day hadn’t just started.

“Good morning to you too Joanne,” one of my colleagues bothered to respond.

“Hope you had a good night's rest,” he added, trying to strike a conversation.

“Yh, I did. Thank you,” I replied,brushing it off with a short nod.

Without another glance in his direction, I made my way to my desk and settled down— preparing myself mentally for the hectic day ahead.

“I noticed you didn't report to work yesterday” Someone said from behind me.I didn’t need to turn around to know it was the same guy from earlier. He was really persistent apparently.

“I had a personal issue to deal with,” I replied flatly before returning my attention to my phone checking for any reversal mail from the company.

“Oh I see… you were too busy dealing with personal shit that you forgot you owned a job?”

I was taken aback

Who the f*ck did he think he was. he might be related to the director but that didn't give him the rights to query me.

I bit down on the inside of my cheek and said nothing. I didn't bother to acknowledge him. I was already on the edge, one wrong move or slip, and I could snap and that wasn’t the kind of attention I needed right now.

I had better things to do than exchange words with an incompetent mummy's boy who got his employment through the backdoor.

Yh, I wasn't a princess or a daddy's girl. I grew up on the streets with a drug addict father, so if I'm anything, I'm definitely not a pushover. I could readily get into a fight if needed, and I'm not afraid of crazily exchanging words but I didn't just bother to. He wasn't worth it.

I didn’t dwell on the earlier confrontation. There were more pressing matters at hand. I had to talk to Mr. Peter — Director of Internal Audit and Risk management. I needed to explain my situation to him and, hopefully, get some help. I was ignorant to the fact that he was stripped of that title.

So, when I saw him step into the office, I headed straight for him.

It was quite surprising that Mr. Peter came to work early. He was never an early bird. If anything, he was notorious for sauntering in halfway through the morning. But I brushed the thought aside—it wasn’t my business.

What caught me off guard was the look he gave me as I approached. I noticed something was off. His gaze was sharp, almost heated, and laced with something dangerously close to hatred.

“Where did that come from?” I muttered under my breath,ignoring the warning signs as I moved closer.

“Good morning Mr. Peter” I greeted with one of my brightest smiles, trying to keep things civil. He didn’t respond right away. Instead he assessed me from head to toe and I could see that he was barely able to control the hatred from dripping out of his eyes.

“Oh, so you reported your shameless ass here today,” He said with venom dripping from his words.

I blinked, stunned at his outburst

“Excuse me? my younger brother had an attack and needed immediate medical attention,” I said in my defence

“His face twisted into something ugly. “He should as well have an attack every damn day of his life.” He said before storming into what seemed to be his office.

My hands balled into fists. My teeth clenched. I had to stop myself from hurling something sharp and satisfying back at him.

It suddenly clicked why Mr Peter looked like he was about to chop my head off this morning after a colleague of me gave me a run down of what happened.

I wouldn't say I was completely guiltless but ‘damn!’ emergencies occur. He went to a company's year-end meeting without any preparations only to give excuses. Maybe if he took his job more seriously, he would have kept his job.

“I wouldn’t say he didn’t deserve it,” I muttered, shrugging it off.

I figured that if I waited for the company to reach out to me, I might as well kiss my salary goodbye. So I made my way to the HR department to file a complaint.

Without wasting time I was already at the HR department laying my complaint.

“ I’m Joanne Callen, internal audit department. My one month's salary was suspended because of my unreported absence from work. I wasn't at work because of a health emergency….”

She didn’t interrupt, but the moment I finished, she gave a tight nod. “We received your email this morning.”

“And?” I asked, hopefully.

She glanced at her screen again before responding, her tone practiced, distant.

“The decision was communicated from above. Salary suspensions are at the executive level. We’re not authorized to alter them.”

“So that’s it?” I asked

“Ms. Callen… I understand your frustration, but decisions made by the CEO are final. HR can’t override them.” She said, sounding so professional.

Then, her expression shifted ever so slightly—just enough to show there was a human behind the corporate mask.

“But if you’re brave enough… you could speak to Mr. Blackwell directly. Most people don’t usually do that.”

I scoffed under my breath.

Brave enough?

At that moment, my fear of the CEO didn’t matter. What mattered was my brother—his medication, his treatment, his survival. I couldn’t let him suffer, or worse, because I was too scared to face a man in a suit. So, without thinking twice, I turned and headed for the top floor.

The CEO’s floor was nothing like the rest of the building. It was quieter. Sleeker. Colder. The walls were glass and steel, decorated with sparse, expensive artwork that gave off a look-but-don’t-touch vibe.

At the end of the hall was the secretary’s desk—polished wood, minimalist design, and a woman with a headset and a look that could kill a fly mid-air. She didn’t even glance up from her screen when I passed.

“ Good morning Miss…Callen,” The CEO's assistant, Miss Olivia, greeted, looking at my work ID to get my name.

Her desk was off to the side, just outside the CEO’s door.

“Good morning,” I replied.

“Pls can I go in? I need to see Mr. Blackwell.”

“You can’t go in. Mr. Blackwell is very busy. You’ll have to come back later or book an appointment.”

‘Damn!’

I didn't think I had that patience… I really needed to see him.

“It's urgent, please,” I said .

“I’m sorry,” she added, stepping in front of me. “He’s not seeing anyone right now.”

After so much persuading and pleading, I clenched my jaw, nodding like I understood. I turned slightly—pretending to walk away.

She sighed, clearly relieved, and sat back at his desk.

But the moment her attention returned to her screen, I pivoted fast, moving my heels silently on the plush carpet. My heart thudded hard in my chest as I reached the large black doors bearing the name Alexander Blackwell – Chief Executive Officer in gold letters.

I didn’t knock.

I simply pushed the door open and barged in—just in time to collide with a broad chest.My body jerked back as a strong hand gripped my arm to steady me.

I froze.

“Mr. Bla…ckwell,” I stuttered