Eyes Of Muniz

Chapter 3

Michael was in his office by 7am. He summoned Tom to his office. The man came as soon as the summons reached him.
He found the boss man waiting for him.
" Tom, what took so long?" Michael asked the older man. He felt satisfied with the way Tom's face quickly drained colour, his presence was being felt.
    "I came as soon as..."
" Did you?"
  " Well I took..."
"See. I need a file on Marisa Muniz" Michael requested. Tom rushed out at once.
Michael had got the file in three minutes. And Marisa Muniz was standing in his office in five minutes.
  " Good morning, Mr Howard. I came as..." He cut her shot.
" You wanted to a secretary post and got a janitor position because I refused to consider your curriculum vitae" Michael said looking at her. She wore a black woolen skirt and a satin blouse. He could tell she was a low life.
  " Yes I did and..."
" You took the job anyways and have been working here for six months" he said still surveying her reaction.
  "Where are you getting at, Mr Howard?" Marisa finally asked. She he had been avoiding direct eye contact with Michael. She had seen his bruised jawline and cracked lip. His expression seemed like it didn't hurt.
"You have a perfect reason to assign a hit on me. What do you want from me, Muniz" he said with a straight expression.
  " A hit...on you? What are you saying?"
"Don't play games with me. You got me beat up last night. It can't be a coincidence that you are the same person I refused to give a secretary post, the same person who broke my vase and the same person who found me beat up. You do know I could have you arrested right?"
    " This is insane, there is no coincidence in that. I accepted the janitor position because I needed money for my grandmother's surgery. I was desperate. I just happened to be at the bar whilst you were there and I found you there"
"Are you a prostitute?" Michael saw that she was taken aback by his question. He had asked a personal question.
   " Why would you..."
"Are you a hooker?"
   " I am not. I work at a bar! I go to Crissy's after I'm done here. I need money for my grandmother she is dying! You think...think that I am interested in taking advantage of being an employee at Howard Telecom. No...sir I am better than that!" Marisa was breaking down.
"I thought we paid our employees enough here. You're not satisfied with that?"
  "The hospital bills are tight" Marisa said wipping a stubborn tear from her face.
"So you turned to prostitution?"
   " I am not a..."
" We have no proof of that. You seriously.."
   "I will not let you disrespect me like this Mr Howard. I have a dignity to protect" Marisa finally cut him shot. She saw him smirk.
" You cannot cut in when I'm speaking, Miss Muniz. I am the boss here. And this job of yours can..."
   " I quit. Now whose boss are you now?" Marisa knew she had made a grave mistake. She had her dignity but she was now jobless. Her grandmother was in a hospital, dying.
" Then leave my office and never set foot on these premises!"Michael said with anger. No one had said such words to him, ever. He watched her leave.

Marisa spent the rest of the day job hunting. She couldn't go back to Crissy's and she couldn't go back to Howard Telecom either. She had found nothing. She decided to go to the hospital for the six thirty visit. Her grandmother was in intensive care and she was not allowed to go into her room, she had to see her through a glass.
   At the hospital, Marisa waited for the doctor who was treating her grandmother. She went to her grandmother's room and stood on the glass. The patient on the bed was not her grandmother. So where where was her grandma?
   "Miss Muniz" it was the doctor.
"Doctor this is not my grandma, where is she?"
  "She's dead, she went straight into a cardiac arrest. We tried all we could but it wasn't enough."
"No, no, no...this is not happening to me. She was all I had!" Marisa screamed.
   "I'm sorry for your loss."
The world went blank. She lost track of her environment. She was on her own now. Alone in a foreign nation. The only person
who had the answers to her history was gone. She was jobless as well. The bills still needed to be paid. Where would she get the money? How would she get out of this?
There is no way out. I can't do anything to help myself. I can't go to Crissy's. I can't..go to Howard...but I could. I could go back to Howard Telecom and ask for my job back. But Michael Howard won't let me ...at least I'll try. I have to try...I have to.

Love from, Vanessa....
Take care...😘