THE ROMANTIC OFFICE SAGA: PART 81

THE ROMANTIC OFFICE SAGA: PART 81

“Oh! Chris, welcome, you have never been to my office.” I told Chris.

“Thank you.” He said as I settled in my office chair.

“How is work?” I asked Chris.

“Everything is fine.” Chris told me.

“Great to hear.” I told Chris as I waited him to tell me what perhaps brought him to my office.

“I was discussing something with Carol and she suggested I discuss it with you. I thought it was a good idea to have an electronic notice board instead of the one that we have.” Chris told me.

“Chris, that is a good idea. However, we also had it in mind. We wanted it implemented in our new office blocks that are coming up soonest possible. This place as you may have noticed is a bit small and soon some more people will be joining us. We are setting up larger offices and that idea was to be implemented there.” I told Chris.

“Oh! I did not know. So how soon do we get the new offices?” Chris asked.

“As soon as possible, in 3 to 5 months’ time.” I told Chris.

We talked a few more other things and Chris went back to their office. 

I realized perhaps we should have briefed the rest of employees about our expectations so that they would also be aware. I called Sally through her office extension. 

“Sally, I feel it is nice if we let the others know about our work plan that we wish to implement soon. We should at least hold a meeting and take them through so that they be aware.” I told Sally.

“Oh! Yea! I had not thought of it. Can you do that for me in the afternoon? I have some clients I am meeting later in the day.” Sally suggested. I would have wanted her to be there so I suggested that the meeting can be rescheduled, but all her week schedule was so occupied I just had to take up the roles.

“Besides, I am meeting the directors to discuss with them on the new position I am crafting. They need to know and take over the recruitment process.” Sally told me.

“Ok, I can as well do it today in the afternoon. Will give you feedback over an email.” I told Sally and hung up.

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After lunch, Sally come to my office.

“My dear, I am leaving, I probably will not come back so I might go home straight after meeting some clients.” Sally told me.

Later in the afternoon, we went to the boardroom and the meeting agenda was our 3 to 6 months work plan.

“As we all are aware, our company is growing very fast and I wanted us to discuss on our workplan, as you too can make suggestions.” I told them as the meeting began.

“We have acquired a new plot where we will soon have bigger office blocks which are more spacious and we shall soon move to that place.” I briefed them on everything necessary for them to know and it got a time I wanted their input or suggestions.

The suggestions kept coming.

Carol was the meeting secretary and she was taking notes as the meeting progressed. They all made their suggestions and after the meeting was over, I compiled them and forwarded them to Sally. 

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In the evening on my way home, I passed by some supermarket that had a restaurant attached to it. I bought some few items to take home and sat to have a cup of coffee. As I sat there scrolling my phone, suddenly a lady sat opposite me at the table where I was seated. I did not take much note of her as she was wearing dark sun glasses but as soon as she spoke, I stopped doing what I was doing.

“Tony, you mean you cannot even notice I am in front of you!” It was Reginah.

“Oh! I am so sorry. Welcome. I was busy going through some news in my phone.” I told Reginah.

“I noticed. How have you been?” Reginah asked.

“I have been fine. But am a little worried Irene was released. Could she be a threat to any of us?” I asked Reginah.

“No, not at all. She cannot dare. The court orders abiding her I think she can only cool down her ass as she waits for her case to go on. But I am not happy with the way our courts handle issues. Irene is connected to a dangerous criminal network and she might try something mischievous so I have a suggestion.” Reginah told me.

“What is your suggestion?” I asked her.

She smiled and replied, “I want to teach you how to use a gun, and give you a pistol. You can stay with it at your home for security reasons.” Reginah sounded serious. I wanted to tell her Sally knows how to use a gun but I did not know how she would take it.

“How will you do it?” I asked Reginah.

“I will go with you one of the Saturdays to a remote place, you can pick Amboseli. The wilderness is good as no one would know what is going on.” Reginah suggested. I thought for a while. The idea of me being perhaps alone with Reginah a literal seductress did not go well with me but it was like Reginah read my thoughts.

“You can come along with your girlfriend, make it seem like a holiday. You can even hire your driver Ken to take us there.” Reginah told me. Reginah sounded uncomfortable too, like she was afraid of the unknown.

“Why can’t you just kill her yourself?” I asked Reginah.

“We cannot, Irene is so crucial to us. She just led us to one of the criminal factions that we arrested. The other men just won’t talk no matter how much we tortured them. They are hardcore idiots. In fact, it might be a blessing that Irene is out for a while. And you have not told me how you netted her.” Reginah said. 

“You won’t believe what happened and how it happened.” I told Reginah. I was not so sure whether to tell her.

“Please, I beg, tell me.” Reginah urged on.

I narrated her how Sally pretended to be a lesbian, used the hypnosis knowledge to obtain information from her, drugged her so as to induce temporary amnesia so that she would not recall what happened to her and when. By the time I was done, Reginah’s mouth was wide open with wonder, shock and astonishment!

“JESUS CHRIST!” Reginah exclaimed until some restaurant patrons turned to look at us alongside some people in the adjacent table. I smiled to indicate to them all was well and they stopped looking at us.

“Your lady is a genius! I never thought this whole hypnosis idea could work with lesbians! In fact, it was written with the opposite sex in mind not same sex. How did she know that? Interesting! Tony, to cut the whole story short, I want you to organize a trip to Amboseli this coming Saturday, your lady might teach me a thing or two too. In fact, I so much want to meet her now, very soon!” Reginah was so excited. I knew somehow Reginah would get to know that Sally knows how to use a gun, but I wanted that to be a surprise to her. 

“Ok, we have a deal. Don’t arrest Ken.” I joked with Reginah. 

“I know Ken was a gangster, I even know he owns an illegal gun. But that is none of my business.” Reginah told me. I was shocked to learn Reginah knew Ken owned a gun.

“How did you know that?” I asked Reginah, genuinely concerned.

“It is an open secret among the forces, most guns in criminal hands come from crooked police officers. When the time comes, we shall deal with it. But Ken is not a threat, he is just a victim of circumstances, someone caught in a life he never wished to be.” Reginah said. It scared me how much she could be knowing but I did not bother asking her much more.

============

“Honey, I want us to discuss something.” I told Sally when we were seated in the house that evening together.

“Tell me, I am listening.” She told me.

“It is about Irene. I met one of the police officers who arrested her and they are concerned Irene is out. She thinks Irene might pose a threat to us and so she wanted we organize a holiday to Amboseli or Masai Mara. She will teach us how to use a gun and give us a pistol.” When I told Sally that, she smiled. She knew how to use guns but it was between us.

“I was thinking of engaging my cousin to get one too. Did you see how Irene tried to shoot me?” Sally said. 

We discussed a lot about our individual concerns, and even agreed that Saturday we shall go to Amboseli. We were to engage Ken with his Safaris Landcruiser to take us there. 

As we went to sleep, I told Sally, “Remember there is a little being we need to protect in there.” I told her pointing to her abdomen. She smiled.

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“Wake up honey, we have a lot of work to do.” I told Sally in the morning, noting that she was still so sleepy.

“Honey, I feel so tired this morning. I feel like not waking up.” Sally told me.

“Ok, rest for a while let me prepare breakfast.” I told Sally.

I went to the kitchen, prepared some eggs and bread for breakfast with our favorite chocolate. Sally was still sleeping when I finished preparing breakfast. I decided to surprise her.

I took the breakfast to her in bed. She was soundly sleeping when I took a drop of very cold water and dropped it on her neck. She bolted up startled.

“Honey, did you have to do that?” She asked. I laughed. 

“You need to wake up we are getting late.” I told her. 

“Wait for your turn, I will get you soon; I will pour a whole bucket of water on your face!” Sally threatened as she sat at the edge of our 5 by 6 bed to take her breakfast.

She washed the dishes as I was having shower.

As we were about to leave, Sally told me, “Stop, you have not done your tie will.” 

“But I just looked myself in the mirror.” I told Sally, but I stopped. She came and stood in front of me, adjusted my tie which I was sure it was all right but before she finished, she held me by my neck, pulled me and planted a kiss on my lips.

“You had not kissed me since we woke up. All I wanted was a kiss! I got you!” Sally told me and laughed.

“You are so funny!” I told her as I patted her butt as we locked our door to leave.

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We got to Office and found Cynthia and Celestine working together to clean the place. Celestine was looking haggard and sickly. 

Immediately Sally got into her office, she summoned Celestine to follow her. Celestine followed and they closed the door.

I went to my office and continued with my day’s work. Ken was to come that day to give us a brief on how far he had gone with his design, as we would also make some suggestions so I knew it would be perfect to discuss our plans to go to Amboseli on Saturday. 

Ken came and updated on his progress as we also discussed on our plans to go to Amboseli on Saturday; he was willing to take us there but he sounded not comfortable having a police woman accompany us. But I told him not to worry, it was a personal trip.

Immediately Ken left Cornelius came to Sally’s office.

“Excuse me madam, there is a lady who wants to come and see you.” He said.

“Let her in.” Sally said casually. 

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We heard a gentle knock at the door and Sally told whoever to come in and to our surprise, it was none other than Irene.

We both looked at her, not knowing what to tell her. I scanned her to establish whether she was a threat but judging by her body language, I did not perceive her as a threat. 

She just stood there looking at us as if we were ghosts, and we were not sure whether she was a ghost.

“Irene, what brings you here?” I asked Irene casually, my heart beating faster now.

As I noticed she was still standing, I motioned her to sit down and she sat, legs crossed.

“Sally, please forgive me for everything that I did. I know you will find it hard to believe me but I am going through serious problems in my life now. I have lost everything I ever worked for. I am jobless, I am broke, I am homeless and all my bank accounts are frozen. I even lost a lot of money I withdrew thinking I could use it but I don’t know where it went. Satan has really conspired against my life and it is becoming so difficult for me.” She paused. Tears were welling from her eyes.

She continued, “My car was confiscated by the bank as I still owed them money and I am unable to repay them now. They took all my property and I was kicked out of my house since I am unable to continue paying it. Please Sally, I beg you, plead on my behalf to directors to offer me a joy, any job including a cleaner I will take it.”

We remained silent, not knowing what to tell her.

“Irene, I am not responsible for recruitment; any person employed here follows due process and you too know that. I cannot help you.” Sally told Irene.

“Sally, I am begging you as a fellow woman. I know I really hurt you in the past but I am begging for your forgiveness, please Sally, you have the power to plead on my behalf please just do it. Please Sally forgive me. It is Satan who came over me.” Irene continued to beg Sally for some time but Sally kept telling her she is forgiven even though she was unable to assist her.

Sally called Zuhura and ordered her to bring us tea at Sally’s office since we could not go for tea break.

When Zuhura came, she was genuinely surprised to see Irene there. She greeted Irene with fear in her. She served all of us some tea and left.

After she left, Sally looked at Irene and asked her, “Irene, why did you try to kill me twice that day?” 

After that question, Irene was so shocked until she dropped her cup of tea. We called Celestine who cleaned the spilled tea and told her to go and bring for her another cup. She was shocked indeed.

“Sally, I wish to tell you the truth, I tried only once, with the gun. I don’t know what you are talking about. But I want to tell you even more and please you must believe me.” Irene told Sally looking at us.

“Ok, tell me, I am listening.” Sally told her leaning forward to listen. I had activated my phone to record everything, and I was sure none of the two realized that as soon as Irene got into the room.

“Angeline was responsible for the greatest theft in the company, amounting to billions of Kshs. She knew if you expose her she will be in trouble so she had planned to kill you using the mineral water that you were to drink. She planned that with Delilah. However, she had told me that Tony had some compromising photos and videos of hers that she did not want to leak to the public so she wanted to poison both of you to drink and die that day.

I was shocked to see Angeline perhaps by mistake drank the water. I don’t know whether she committed suicide or it was accidental, but she did not die of a heart attack, it was the poison that killed her.”

We were so shocked by those revelations. So, our boss tried to kill us? Those were damning revelations. Was the boss part of the criminal gang that Irene belonged to? I had so many questions in my head.

“How did you know she drank the water?” I asked Irene.

“I saw the bottle, it was besides her when she died. The poison is so lethal it can kill you within minutes and it will seem like you died a natural death.” I was nearly freaking out. What the hell??!

What else did Irene know?

“And you tried to shoot Sally. Why?” I asked Irene.

“I am sorry. I never intended to shoot her I wanted to scare her. The pistol fired by mistake, please believe me I cannot kill anyone.” Irene said with tears welling from her eyes.

Sally got really angry and stood up.

“IRENE! I do not want to see you here anymore. Get out of my office. I have heard enough from you! Too much for today already!!” Sally said clearly overcame by emotions. I really would have wished she remain calm as Irene spilled more beans to us. But it was impossible to calm Sally.

“Sally, calm down, let her tell us more.” I told her. Sally sat down for a while.

“Irene, if you will not have gotten out of this office within 5 minutes, I will just call the security man to hand kick you out.” Sally threatened.

Irene did the unthinkable, got on her knees and instead of looking at Sally looked at me.

“Tony, please, plead on my behalf.” She told me.

“I am not the boss here; she is.” I told Irene and pointed to Sally. Sally smiled.

But Irene continued nearly crying, crawling on her knees.

“Tony, please I beg you, please, it is not for my sake, but for our sake.” Irene said.

The term “our” startled me and I asked her, “What do you mean by “our” Irene”?

She looked at me tears streaming down.

“Tony, for the sake of me and our child. I am pregnant with your child, Tony, I am carrying your baby, our baby, Tony…” Irene said almost whispering but she was audible enough such that all of us heard what she just said.

>>>To be continued>>>

NARRATION BY Dr. Love.