Chapter 1

It was the first day back after the holiday break, and the whole company was scrambling to get the year off to a strong start.

I was the only one leaning against the window, staring off into space.

Heavy footsteps came down the hallway, loud and deliberate.

"Her?"

"Yes, Mr. Hampton. That's Natalie Sadler, the employee who gets special treatment."

I recognized the other voice. It was Jason Tanner, who had just been promoted to deputy director.

I turned around and found a man in his early 30s standing in front of me. Jason was right behind him, and they both stood there with the same stiff, self-important air.

Jason lifted his chin slightly. "Natalie, this is Andy Hampton, our new operations director."

Andy said nothing. His gaze shifted to the laptop on the windowsill behind me.

"Yours?"

I didn't answer.

Jason quickly stepped forward. "Mr. Hampton, that's her personal laptop. She doesn't use the one the company gave her—"

Before he could finish, Andy grabbed the laptop. "So because you use your own computer, you think you can daydream on company time?"

He lifted it high, then let go. The laptop slammed into the floor, and the screen shattered with a sharp crack.

The entire office went silent.

Andy stepped over the broken pieces on the floor and stopped in front of me.

"So you did well last year, Natalie. That was last year. It's a new year, and we're doing things differently now."

Jason immediately jumped in. "Mr. Hampton, she's always gotten special treatment. Just because she did well last year, she never bothered showing up for any company events.

"And now she's slacking off on the first day back, of all days. You need to come down hard on her!"

Andy pulled out his phone, swiped a couple of times, and shoved the screen in front of me. It was a notice on the company's internal system, posted three days ago by Andy himself.

"See rule number three? Anyone caught slacking off during work hours gets fined 500 dollars. Anyone who openly breaks workplace rules and sets a bad example faces a heavier penalty, starting at 5,000 dollars."

He pulled his phone back.

"What you did counts as a serious violation. Your fine is 20,000 dollars. Pay it to Finance by the end of the day. If you don't, you're out."

I glanced down at my laptop on the floor, then pulled out my phone and called Michael Cannon.

He picked up after two rings, sounding surprised. "Natalie? Happy New Year—"

I cut him off. "Mr. Cannon, the new operations director smashed my laptop and told me to pay a 20,000-dollar fine or get out. I just want to confirm. Is that coming from you?"

There was silence on the other end for two seconds.

Then Michael suddenly raised his voice. "What? Andy? Stay right there. I'm calling him now!"

I hung up to find Andy and Jason still standing there.

Andy smiled. "You called Mr. Cannon? Fine. I'll wait."

He turned toward his office, then looked back after a couple of steps.

"Jason, stay here with Natalie."