The lady in Red (REWRITTEN!)

Chapter 37

The betrayal of trust. The pain was unbearable. It was heartbreaking. No matter how many times I tried to turn away, I couldn't. Without making a sound, I listened carefully to the conversation taking place in front of me. Unshed tears burned my eyes.

I wanted to run out of the office, screw the paparazzi. My only wish was to go home, relax in the comfort of my bed, slurp some wine to numb my pain, and then go to sleep. It was a crushing feeling to know I trusted him with my life story, and he did not honor it. However, at what cost? Hearing a rustling behind closed doors, I listened closely.

"This shouldn't have happened. She trusts me to keep her life private, son." I can hear fingers drumming against the table, and I immediately knew whose it was. The same fingers that touched me. The same fingers that stirred the strings of my heart inside my chest.

"You know how this goes, father."

Jay's voice gets closer by the door, but I don't move. "Do you have any idea what that poor girl is going through right now?" He could open this door right now and catch me eavesdropping, and I wouldn't even care.  It never opened.

"Are you implying that I hurt her?"

"You have."

"This is going to help her." Help me? A teardrop rolled down my cheek as I blinked.

"By exposing her like this?"

"Father, you know what I am capable of. We talked about that." I had a very hard time fighting my urge to scream at him or slap him across the face that very moment. The rage in my body made my body tremble. In reality, my body and my heart were at war, because I knew what my heart wanted. Listening to him gave me a glimmer of hope that maybe he had a very good reason for hurting me. However, my brain was unwilling to compromise with this reality.

"Exactly how is this going to help her?" Something slides across the table that sounds a lot like a newspaper. Jay Dean is furious.

"I protect what's mine. If what's mine is damaged, I fix the problem. This is where it all starts." I hear an edge in Reece's voice, one that makes all the hairs on my body rise to attention.

"Are you aware of what will happen if she finds out?" Find out what? I listened closely.

"She'll never find out, I will be sure of that." Secrets. More ways to hurt me. I could not listen any longer. My eyes brimming with tears, I wiped them away as I turned around and bolted for the elevator. I waited impatiently for the doors to open as I clicked furiously on the down button.

He had no business putting me in a position like this. I had been hiding the truth for almost a decade, and he just blew it out there. The damage he did to my reputation took him only a few minutes. Nevertheless, I didn't worry about what other people thought of me. It broke my heart when he exposed me to those people I have been hiding from for since I can remember. My tears gently dried as I wiped them away and tapped my foot impatiently against the tile of the floor while I waited for the elevator doors to open. After a few long seconds, it finally opened. Except I didn't go in. 

Slowly, I stepped back and turned around to walk towards my office instead. Some people were still lingering in the office. There weren't as many people, but I guess I understood why. For this office, and for Reece, those who stayed behind were vital. The place was kept together by them. I ignored them all and walked right past them and into my office before slamming the door behind me. My point was an assertion, not a slam of the glass door. The anger was strong. I felt dejected. 

I shuffled things around on my desk, moved papers aside, and turned on my computer. My fingers began to type vigorously. Then I hit the print button after typing all my frustrations on the screen. I snatched the paper from the print as it fell, before standing up.

I've done it before, and I'll do it again. Only this time...it will be my last. I cried one last time before leaving my office. There was so much in me that wanted to confront him, to set the record straight...but I just couldn't. To face him was beyond my strength. I didn't even have the will to face Jay, the man I had known and worked hard for for years. As opposed to that, I approached the first person I came across. His face was astonished when he saw me; he looked shocked. Those lingering around me looked shocked to see me as if it was their first time seeing me. People gave me depressed looks, but I ignored them. I didn't need sympathy. I needed a way out.

"Here. Give this to Mr. Reece Dean." The paper felt like a ton in my hand, but when I handed it over my body felt light as a feather. He nodded, took it, and then walked away. Turning on my heels, I walked straight to the staircase. I did not want to be around when he read what was written in the letter.

My feet practically flew down the stairs. The building was very high, so it took me a long time to descend, but once I did, I quickly made my way out of the building. However, not before turning around and giving the building one last glance.

My heart sank. It killed me from the inside out. It paralyzed me. He took away all the hard work I had put into getting where I was today. I turned on my heels, called the taxi, gave him my address, and watched the headquarters behind me blur away as we drove away in silence.