Chapter 3

"But don't worry about paying me for those extra minutes. I've always been reasonable like that."

The moment those words left my mouth, I felt a weight lift off my chest.

The line went dead silent for a long time, like the calm before a downpour.

While I waited, I scrolled through the work group chat to catch up. It turned out that without me there to help, the negotiation with that client fell apart completely. The company took a massive loss over it, and the owner personally called Vivian to chew her out.

On top of that, since I hadn't picked up any of the miscellaneous tasks people usually dumped on me, everyone's workload shot up overnight. Nobody could adjust, and productivity tanked across the board. By the end of the day, the entire office was in shambles.

It wasn't until they were truly desperate that they started calling me. But I'd already turned on "Do Not Disturb" after clocking out, so I never got a single one.

Vivian stayed quiet on the line for what felt like forever. Finally, she forced the words out through gritted teeth. "Fine. I got it, Sadie. Just make sure you're at your desk on time tomorrow."

I knew she was up to something, but I didn't care anymore. I was almost out the door for good. There wasn't much she could do to me now.

The next morning, I arrived at my desk right on time. But Vivian still came looking for me.

She approached with a smile. "Sadie, this company isn't some kind of torture chamber. There's no need to avoid it like the plague, is there? Just be honest with me. If you have a problem with me, I can sort it out."

I laughed to myself. Of course. All that smiling was just a fox circling the henhouse.

I understood exactly why she was doing this. If she could've just fired me outright, she would have. The fact that she only docked my pay told me I was too valuable to let go.

She wanted to use the contract to keep me in line, but she didn't actually want me to leave. The only flaw in her little scheme was her terrible memory. She'd forgotten exactly when my contract expired.

I kept my composure. "Vivian, what are you talking about? Of course I don't have a problem with you. We've worked together for years now. Why would I?"

Seeing me play along, she dropped the subject of last night entirely. Instead, she scribbled something on my pay sheet and knocked off another 200 dollars.

"Sorry, Sadie. I told everyone to be here on time today, but you were late."

I stared at her in confusion and was just about to argue when she cut me off, feigning surprise.

"Oh, I forgot. I announced it during overtime last night. Everyone was supposed to come in half an hour early today.

"But since you didn't stay for overtime, you must have missed it. You should really keep up with your messages after hours so you don't miss anything important. Understood?"

She bit down hard on that last word. It was a warning, plain and simple.

Then she tossed a file onto my desk. "I'm leaving on a business trip soon, so I need you to take over this. It's a new deal, and the client is one of those tough ones you've closed before. Take Hailey with you this time and get it done."

"Next week we'll be bidding against Yorker Corp, and I'll be there for that. But once we win the bid, don't hog the spotlight in front of the boss. Give the younger people a chance to shine. Got it?"

She didn't wait for my response before someone called her away, and she was gone.

I had to hand it to her. She played her cards well. Everyone knew Hailey was her niece. This whole thing was designed to let me pave the road, then hand everything over to Hailey before kicking me to the curb.

I knew it had always bothered her that I was better at my job than she was and that the boss valued me more. That was why she'd been quietly undermining me all along, trying to strip away my influence piece by piece.

But I wasn't going to fall for it.

It was Tuesday, just three days until I was gone. And in those three days, I wasn't going to touch this deal.

After all, in three days, I'd be reporting to Yorker Corp as their newest hire. Leaking confidential information was illegal, and I'd never do something like that.

But showing up just to rub it in her face? That I was absolutely going to do.

"Vivian, I'll be there for the bid. Just not as your employee."