Chapter 8 You Will Know, Very Soon

• (REYA'S POV)
• A sudden idea occurred to me, hearing the last piece of information. To know more about how my sister’s death and Ragnar is connected, I will have to enter his territory. I will become his personal secretary. This way, it’ll be easy for me to get close to him without the fear of exposing my identity.
• Finishing my drink, I said to the bartender, “Kylie, it was so nice talking to you. I wish we could talk more, but I have an appointment. If you don’t mind, can I have your number? I want to keep in touch with you. Really enjoyed my time chatting with you.”
• “Sure, here. How may I address you as?” Kylie asked with enthusiasm.
• Kylie, a kind hearted and good-natured girl, her only downside is that she loves to gossip a lot. She is a total chatter box and starts blabbering whenever somebody initiates any topic of her interest, without any filter. Reya, being a clever and smart girl, understood this after only a few words of exchange between them. So, she wanted to acquaint with Kylie to know more about the inside stuff which may come in handy for her in the future.
• “Thanks, Kylie. I am Reya” extending my hands, I greeted her. She shook my hand back and smiled like she has found her long lost best friend.
• “Reya, I am so happy to be your friend.”
• “Me too. I am new in Kingsterdom, so I’m glad to have found a friend like you in a foreign land. Now, I am getting late. See you around.” Getting up from the bar stool, I headed towards the lounge’s exit. As I was waiting for my elevator, a person wearing a gray suit and spectacles’, looking visibly frustrated, was on the phone talking to someone, “I know these days Sir has been in a bad mood, that’s why the atmosphere of the whole secretarial department is tense. We have to appoint someone to that position as soon as possible. Otherwise, not just the secretarial department, but the whole office has to bear his wrath.” After the other person on the phone said something to him, he disconnected the phone, looking dejected and agitated.
• I looked at his ID card, which said Aston Thomas, head of the secretarial department, R&R Group. ‘Ummm, he must be talking about Ragnar’s personal secretary position. I need to grab this opportunity which is gifted to me with boths hands, thank you Shiva’, I talked inwardly.
• “Hello, Sir. Please don’t be offended, but I coincidentally heard your conversation on the call earlier. You are looking for a person to fill in the position of personal secretary for the CEO. Am I correct?"
• "Y-es" he replied, in doubt.
• "Then I would like to apply for that role. I assure you, you won’t be disappointed in the least”, I approached him with a smile plastered on my face.
• He looked at me weirdly, and shrugged off without saying anything in return. In a desperate attempt, I tried to ask for details, “Sir, I am very much qualified for that position. You can try me.” I stared at him with a focused face so he can understand my sincerity.
• “Miss, I don’t know what you can do but if you so wish to apply for that post, come to the secretarial department, R&R Group, for an interview tomorrow at 9 a.m. sharp.”
• “Thank you so much sir”, I bowed to him.
• After that, I entered the elevator, waiting for tomorrow to come sooner.
• For the interview, I didn’t have any appropriate attire, so I decided to pick some clothes as well as footwear for myself. I booked a taxi and headed for the store which I went yesterday. Setting my foot inside the store, I was greeted by the same salesperson. Ignoring her, I started browsing the formal wear section. I didn’t spend much time choosing an outfit, as I myself am a designer. A black turtleneck with ruby colored tweed pencil skirt was a perfect attire to shine in any interview.
• I picked them according to my measurements and without trying them on, to save time; I headed towards the payment counter. Smiling at me in pretense, she asked, “Ma’am, would you like to try them on before purchasing them.”
• “No need to, just bill them up” I shrugged her off, not giving into her provocations.
• “Ma’am, I would like to tell you that you won’t be able to replace or return them, as it is our store’s policy” she claimed.
• “Ok, I get it but I would just take them, bill it for me” I told her firmly.
• “Ok, as you wish” she said to me, rolling her eyes. 'Some people do not learn their lesson.'
• “Ma’am your clothes” she handed me the paper bag. When I reached for it, she dropped it and it fell on the floor. Picking them up, I dusted the bag. She was making a smug face. I grinned at her and walked out of the store. ‘She needs to be educated. There won't be a next time for you sweetie.’
• Taking a taxi, I headed back to the hotel. In the car, messaging Avimay, I wrote, “VMay, can you please mail my education certificates and documents regarding the same. I need them urgently.”
• Five minutes later, VMay replied, “I’ll send them to you in an hour but what do you need them for? Are those people (her family) forcing you or something?”
• “They won’t be able to. I’ll explain everything to you later”, I messaged her back.
• ‘Clothes check, documents check. Now, I can’t wait for tomorrow. Ragnar Rivers, you just see. I’ll be the one to punish you for what you did to my sister’, I resolved in my head.
• My thoughts were interrupted by a call from Jeff, “Hello Reya, How are you doing? Which hotel are you staying at? Do you need any help from me? You didn’t have any clothes prepared for this weather? How are coping with it?”
• “You don’t have to pretend. You already know where I am staying at. The spies you sent after me were quite sloppy.”
• “They are not spies, but your bodyguards, dear. We can’t bear to have anything happen to you. It is dangerous outside” Jeff defended himself.
• “I can handle myself well; have done that for 10 years, when none of you were with me. And you, sending people to tail me, only makes it more suspicious. No one knows my identity here. Why will a nobody like me, have bodyguards?”
• For a while, there was silence at the other end. Understanding my arguments, Jeff said, “You are right. But you have to promise few things in return for revoking the bodyguards. You have to tell me if you feel anything suspicious, even if it’s just a little. And you have to answer all my calls. And lastly, when you shift into an apartment, do inform me about it.”
• “If you have said your things, tell me, when are you going to take me to visit my sister? Do not test my patience any further” I threatened him.
• “Reya, I’ll take you to Marsha as soon as it’s safe out there.”
• “I’ll give you a week at most. Otherwise, after a week, I’ll expose all your dirty past and your wrongdoings. You will become a laughing stock for all to see”, threatening him in this way, I disconnected the call, not wanting to continue the conversation. ‘Marsha Di, I miss you so very much.”
• After that, I called for room service and had my dinner in my room.
• When the dinner was done, checking the phone, there was a message from Avimay, “I have sent the mail. Check, if you need anything other than that.”
• I opened my mailbox and checked her e-mail. All the documents required were in there. “Thank you so much VMay. You are the best. I’ll call you when things are settled down a little. There is lot to talk about.”, I voice mailed her. She sent me a smiling emoji in return.
• After preparing all that’s required, I felt tired and went to sleep.
• _______________________________________________
• *Next morning*
• I woke up early, to get ready for the interview. Performing my morning routine, I skipped the breakfast and asked the hotel to call for a cab to take me to the R&R’s headquarters.
• The R&R headquarters was located in the central part of Kingsterdom, where all the posh businesses were lined up. I reached the place at about 8:55 a.m. Getting out of the car; I paid the driver and stood in front of the building. Glancing at the structure, I could not see the top as the building was extremely tall, a skyscraper. With a deep breath and a bit of pep talk, I walked towards the company’s entrance gate.
• ‘Don’t be nervous, Reya. You can do this. You need to do this.’
• As I entered the revolving glass door, the place was bustling with people entering the company who were going towards their respective offices, it was packed. I headed towards the reception. The receptionist was quite busy taking a phone call, waiting for her to finish the call, I glanced around.
• Three minutes passed and he was still on the call. I was in a bind as only two minutes were left and I didn’t want to lose such a precious opportunity. I pulled the cord of the landline receiver secretly. The receptionist guy was confused but I didn’t give him any chance to check and asked, “Hello, I was called for an interview for the post of CEO’s personal secretary.”
• “75th floor, Secretarial Department”, without looking at me, he told me in a hurry. I paced towards the elevator as I was already running out of time.
• R&R Group is indulged in diverse organization apart from the hotel industry which is their primary business. They have businesses in telecommunications, media house, entertainment, retail, food, textile and fashion house, automobiles, airlines and so on. At the headquarters’, about 4-5 floors are allotted to each business for their planning, marketing and sales, finance, HR, logistics, security departments for better work efficiency. You name it, and they have it. Every business has various other branches within and outside Kingsterdom.
• So, there were separate elevators allotted for each business ventures. There was one particular elevator without any departmental label, which didn’t have any single person in front of it.
• I was in a scurry and did not even notice people staring at me as I entered the empty elevator.
• After entering the elevator, I punched the 75th floor button quickly. Panting after all the running, I calmed my nerves and observed my surroundings. The elevator was quite spacious for called to be an employee elevator with gold plated walls. As I was thinking this, the elevator door opened at the 44th floor. I was looking at the floor, someone wearing an Indigo colored three piece suit with double breasted waistcoat paired with garnet shaded neck tie and custom made black formal shoes entered the elevator. He paused for a second, staring at me with his intense gaze. His face was covered with a mask which obstructed me from knowing his expression. I was rather perplexed and lower my eyes. He entered and stood behind me with the hands in his pocket. I could feel his piercing gaze at the back of my head. He did not punch any button for the floor where he was headed to and the door of the elevator closed again. Nervously, I asked him, “Let me press the floor number for you. Which floor are you headed to?”
• In a deep and raspy voice he said, “No need. It is same as yours.”
• ‘Oh, so he is from the secretarial department as well.’ Taking this as an opportunity, I turned around and looked at him. “Good Morning sir, I am here for an interview for the post of CEO’s personal secretary. Can I ask you something?” I asked him. He was silent. Taking it as his consent, I continued, “What do they ask in the interview? Is it true that all the CEO’s previous personal secretaries have been chased away by him? Is he a difficult person to serve?”
• A creased formed at his forehead as he frowned. Smiling at him, I explained, “Do not misunderstand me, I am not trying to gossip about him or anything of that sort. I just don't want to make any mistakes like the ones before me. If I cleared the interview, I will serve him with my utmost sincerity.”
• He peered at me for a few seconds, and then his expression eased a little. He was smirking beneath his mask. In a low voice he said, “We will see that.” After speaking this, he looked straight without speaking anything further.
• *Ding*
• The elevator door opened as we reached the 75th floor. He walked passed me. I stopped him and asked, “At least, tell me your name? We may become colleagues in the future.” Without looking back he said sounding smug, “You will know, very soon.”
• To be continued . . . . . . . . .