Chapter 8 The Office Space

• “Greg, how is he today?” Sarah asked as Lucas’ driver took her to his office.
• “I can’t tell Ma’am. He’s been in a bad mood since we got to the office. I guess the new business deal is taking a toll on him.” The driver replied watching her through the rear view mirror occasionally.
• “Do you think it’ll pull through?” she asked, honestly curious.
• “I have no idea Ma’am. Mr Anderson always gets what he wants.” He said boldly.
• “Thank you Greg.” Sarah said as she turned her head to observe the hustling and bustling of the big city.
• “Welcome Mrs Anderson” the door keeper said as he opened the door for her.
• Lucas office was a modern space filled with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city skyline; it was a testament to his power and great wealth. Sarah was in awe of the view.
• “Is he in?” she asked the cussed looking receptionist as she came out of the elevator.
• “I have to confirm, please be patient. Who are you?” she asked sizing her up.
• “I’m his wife” Sarah said with so much authority, flashing her gigantic wedding ring at her face.
• “Please go in Ma’am” the receptionist responded as she dropped the telephone in its place without making any calls.
• Sarah walked to the direction the receptionist showed her with the basket of food in her hand, praying that he wasn’t in a bad state of mind.
• “Come in and sit. I was expecting you thirty minutes ago.” Lucas said as his office door swung open.
• His office had minimalistic décor, dark mahogany furniture just like his study, and expensive artwork, exuding an aura of cold efficiency. The only outstanding feature was his huge glass desk.
• “I got caught up in tra...”
• “I need those document on my desk first thing tomorrow morning, you dimwit!”
• Sarah didn’t finish her sentence before she was rudely interrupted by Lucas' yelling at his personal assistant over the phone.
• Sarah sat down gently on the leather sofa, taking extra care in order to not piss him off.
• “I came with your food like you asked” Sarah said as she sat down.
• “I can see that, I’m not blind!” he replied coldly, and Sarah regretted speaking at all.
• After what felt like five hours, Lucas finally strolled over to where she was waiting for him.
• “What happened to your hand?” Lucas asked taking a short look at her bruised finger.
• “I wasn’t careful with the knife in the kitchen while I was preparing your meal” she replied rubbing her thump,
• “Of course you weren’t, you’re clumsy. Please be careful next time, everything about you is being monitored. The blogs don’t smile in reporting cases like this” Lucas said as he picked up his fork to eat.
• “So, all you care about is what the blogs would say about my bruised finger?” Sarah looked at him with anger in her eyes.
• “Exactly, I told you, this period is a crucial one for me and I can’t accommodate any mistake from your end. You’ve done enough damage already.”
• Lucas did not hide the fact that nothing else mattered to him aside his empire.
• Lucas took a bite of the food.
• “Is this the best you can do?” his expression was sour almost immediately as he slammed the fork down.
• “Well, you wanted me to play the perfect wife, and I did.” Sarah said looking at angry Lucas.
• “You could have at least learnt how to prepare a simple dish, Sarah!” He snarled his voice low and menacing.
• “My day has been terrible, I was looking forward to this moment to at least make me happy, but you’re as useless in the kitchen as you are in every other aspect of this marriage”
• Sarah’s heart started to beat fast in her chest, the storm in his eyes was promising nothing good.
• “I’m sorry you had a bad day, but...” Sarah was trembling as she spoke but she didn’t finish her sentence.
• “I told you never to apologise to me again, Sarah” he grabbed her fragile arm and yanked her closer to himself.
• Sarah flinched; her heart sank as she looked into his burning eyes that pierced into her soul.
• “Why was I expecting anything good to come from you? You’re good for nothing.” he said letting her go.
• She recoiled, her eyes wide with fear and humiliation. Tears welled up, but she fought them back, knowing he despised weakness.
• “I’ll be home late, so don’t wait up” he said as he went behind his huge glass desk observing the city like nothing just happened.
• Sarah got up to quickly gather the dishes back into the basket, a tear escaped her eyes.
• The pain of all the effort she put into preparing his meal was heavy on her. The door closed behind her with a soft click, and she leaned against the wall, finally letting the tears fall like rain.
• “My mother was wrong, he is that bad.” She whispered to herself, cleaning the tears off her face.
• “Is everything alright Ma’am?” Greg asked her as she got to the car barely holding up. It felt like that knife cut through her thump a million times again.
• “Yes, I’m fine, Greg. I’m just a bit tired.” Sarah lied; she wasn’t sure why she said what she said, though. Maybe she thought about her family or Lucas.
• “Do we go straight home, Ma’am?” Greg asked as he started the engine.
• “No. I want to go to the art gallery on Spruce Avenue.” Sarah replied.
• The art gallery was the only place she could think of at the moment. Her soul was crushed and her body was probably bruised.
• “Yes Ma’am.” Greg said moving in the direction she gave.
• They arrived at the gallery and her spirit was lifted seeing those painting hung neatly on the white wall. It was a beautiful moment for her and she wished that one day her works would be displayed on the walls too.
• Sarah was lost in the world of art when her phone rang.
• “Hello” she answered.
• “I told you to go straight home, why are you on Spruce Avenue?” Lucas on the other end of the phone spat as she answered the phone.
• “I needed to clear my head, Lucas” she said almost in whispers.
• “Well, you have the whole house to yourself, clear you head at home! I need you to get back into the car and go straight home right now, Sarah!” he yelled over the phone and Sarah was glad she was out of his reach.
• “Okay” she replied walking out of the gallery, but it was too late. The press was already outside the gallery waiting for her to come out.
• Apparently, they had been tipped off by an unknown source that the wife of Lucas Anderson was in the art gallery on Spruce Avenue.
• “Is it true that you’re the legal wife of Mr Lucas Anderson?”
• “What relationship does he have with BIG FIVE?”
• “Is your marriage a contract marriage?”
• “How did you meet him?”
• “Are you pregnant for Mr Anderson?”
• “Will he buy over BIG FIVE?”
• The pressed thronged and pushed and Sarah was overwhelmed. She tried to hide her face and walk through the crowd but it was very difficult for her.
• “Come with me!”
• A man in a dark outfit grabbed her hands and led her away, saving her from the hungry press.