AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Beasley is here in the conference room, ready for your two p.m.,” Sandra says, walking in and putting some files on my desk, the small mass now gathering into an insurmountable mountain.
“Is he alone?” I ask. He has been quiet, and I am on edge, knowing that he has something brewing. He always has something brewing.
“He’s alone. But his smile is a mile wide,” Sandra offers, and my brow furrows. My eyes flick to my cell again, as I look for any news from Em, yet my screen is blank.
“That can’t be good. What do I have this afternoon?” I look at her, my own plan building.
“After Beasley, a meeting with the acquisitions team at three p.m., then a meeting with the financial auditors at four p.m. At five thirty p.m. is the conference call with the construction team with Tennyson, before your dinner arrangement.” Sandra rattles off my schedule, and I clench my jaw. I don’t even have a fucking minute to myself. Something I used to love is now something I loathe.
“Cancel it,” I say to her as I grab the files for Beasley.
“Which one?” she asks, starting to tap at the tablet in her hand, ready to adjust my schedule.
“All of it. After Beasley, I am out for the day,” I say, standing, my body now itching to be with Em. My curiosity has piqued at where she is, of whom she might be with.
“Oh. Sure. Shall I move everything to next week?” she offers, her eyebrows high in question.
“Yes. Great.” I already feel lighter as I walk past her and out of my office, strutting down the hall to get this meeting over with.
I push through the door to the conference room and see that Michael is already here and looking uncomfortable.
“Johnathan,” I say by way of greeting, extending my hand for us to shake. Sandra was right. He looks too happy.
“Why the hell are you are engaged to our opposition?” He jumps right in as I take my seat.
“I disclosed it to your team in writing as soon as it happened. I can assure you that Michael is managing this case; I am merely here as support.” I run my hand down my tie and take a seat at the board table, feeling on edge.
“Well, it doesn’t matter now anyway,” he quips, taking a sip of his expresso that we offered him, in a pristine Hermes porcelain cup.
“Why, what has been happening?” Michael asks, clearly just as out of the loop as I am.
“Oh, I just have a feeling they will let go of that school sooner rather than later.” I know by the look on his face he has done something.
“What did you do?” I ask, my stomach feeling heavy.
Beasley merely shrugs at me. Michael starts talking, going through a few things with Beasley, so I grab my cell and shoot off another text to Em, asking her if everything is alright at the school. Even though I know deep down, it’s not. I wait, seeing my message has been read, but I get no reply.
Something is going on, and I am going to find out what it is.
* * *
As soon as Beasley left my office, I was gone. Sandra had Ralph waiting at the curb outside the office, and we were out of the city in record time. As we pull up outside the school, I can already see that things are not how they are meant to be. There is not a spare space in the parking lot, something that I have never had to combat before. There are people everywhere. Some I recognize as parents, who are standing around the entrance as Ralph double-parks to let me jump out before he circles to find an alternative lot.
I pull at my collar as I push through the door and see Margaret battling parents at the front desk.
“She’s in her room, Ben,” Margaret says to me before quickly picking back up her conversation with a parent. Her eyes flick to me quickly, already knowing who I am here to see. Although I see her lips purse like they haven’t before. Clearly, she is stressed.
I push through the doors and stop short in the hallway. It is a mess. Water damage, chairs, desks, flooring, all stacked on top of each other in the hallway. People are walking around with garbage bags, mops, all of them eyeing me warily… like I am not meant to be here.
I pace to Em’s room, dodging the people crowding the halls, my shoes slipping on the slush that remains, as I wonder what the hell is going on.
“Em!” I rush out as I push through the door and see her mopping up the floor. Her head flicks up quickly, surprise written on her face, but her shoulders look weighted down.
“You have some nerve,” George seethes, stalking toward me. I’ve yet to see him so angry.
“George!” Em admonishes softly, dropping her mop and walking over to me.
“What happened?” I ask, but the sinking feeling in my stomach tells me I know exactly what happened.
