A surge of panic flooded my chest. Oh no. I was screwed. What would I even say to him? I opened my mouth to speak, trembling. "I'm sorry, sir, I was—"
But he cut me off sharply. "There's no need," he said coldly, his voice unwavering. "We were just about to conclude. You can meet your colleagues..." He paused, taking a deep, heavy breath. "As former colleagues for the rest of the details..."
I blinked twice, my mind refusing to process what I'd just heard. What did he mean by ex-colleagues? My heart pounded loudly in my ears. I shook my head violently, desperate to wake up from this nightmare. Maybe if I shook myself hard enough, I'd wake up and find this was all a bad dream.
Leonardo's words cut through my thoughts like a blade. "The company needed to lay off some people due to recent struggles. You're fired, Novaria Santiago."
What did he mean by I was fired? How the hell could that be possible? There had to be some mistake. This couldn't be real. It was impossible.
Before I even realized it, I found myself standing abruptly, my hands trembling as I slammed them down on the table. "WHAT?!" I shouted, voice cracking with shock and disbelief. My heart pounded so loudly I thought it might burst out of my chest. Not today. This couldn't be happening. My world was falling apart in a single instant.
Leonardo, the CEO of Ember Corp—the company where I had poured eight years of my blood, sweat, and tears—lifted his gaze from the paper in his hands. His expression was stern, commanding. He looked directly at me, his eyes narrowing slightly, and he motioned for me to sit back down. "Sit down, Miss Santiago," he ordered, his tone firm but not unkind.
I refused to move. Despite my admiration and respect for Leonardo, I knew this was a mistake—something had to be wrong. I clenched my fists, my voice steady but urgent. "With all due respect, sir, there has to be some kind of mistake—"
But he cut me off sharply, his patience visibly thinning. "Are you suggesting that Larry didn't assess your performance correctly?" he interjected, his tone laced with annoyance.
My gaze instinctively shifted to Larry Thrush, standing behind Leonardo. His usual grin was plastered across his face, a smug expression that made my stomach churn. His eyes flicked lazily over my face, as if silently mocking me, saying, "I won, bitch."
Larry Thrush—the head of human resources at Ember Corp—had always been my worst nightmare. His obsession with sleeping with me and the way he fixated on me made every encounter tense. Now, I saw that same menacing gleam in his eyes, and I knew—deep down—that he was part of this whole nightmare.
Ten times. He had tried—and failed—to sleep with me into his bed and even in his office. I had made it clear, unequivocally, that I would not be swayed. But he hadn't taken no for an answer. Instead, he escalated his threats.
After countless dismissals and refusals, Larry finally decided to threaten my position at Ember Corp. His voice had turned cold and menacing as he warned, "If you keep this up, your days in this company are numbered." Those words echoed in my mind like a thunderclap, reverberating with dread and rage.
I muttered a curse beneath my breath, a silent explosion of anger and frustration. "YOU. FUCKING. PIECE. OF. SHIT." I hissed, barely controlling my fury.
Desperate to save what little I had left—my career, my dignity—I focused back on Leonardo. "Sir, please," I implored, voice trembling. "I've dedicated my whole life to this company. You have to understand—"
Inside, I was pleading silently, my thoughts racing: 'This job is the only thing keeping me sane. I've lost my fiancé, severed all ties with my family, and this'— I hesitated, breath shaky, '—is all I have left.'
But before I could continue, I was interrupted—by the last person I wanted to see right now, after Hunter.
Larry's voice cut through the tense air sharply. "You can see me after this meeting if you have any complaints, Miss Santiago. For now, please sit down," he commanded, his daunting eyes flickering with a cruel amusement as they toyed with my furious green ones.
Feeling defeated, I sank back into my chair, trying to still the violent tremors running through my body and the quivering of my lips. The room seemed to spin around me, a surreal haze blurring the edges of everything.
The remainder of the meeting went by in a disorienting blur. My focus narrowed solely on one thing: ten ways to castrate Larry once this was over—and to extend that same wrath to Hunter. My mind was consumed with dark, vengeful thoughts, each more vivid than the last.
As Leonardo rose to leave the boardroom, I hastily pushed to my feet, desperate to catch him. "Sir, please," I called out, voice trembling with urgency. "Give me a chance to—"
But he was already turning away, his tone dismissive. "You heard Larry. If there's anything you need, be sure to meet him," Leonardo threw over his shoulder, not sparing me another glance, leaving me standing there, frustrated and helpless.
I slowly turned back to face Larry, my gaze icy and unyielding as I approached him. "You fucking pig," I spat, voice trembling with restrained anger.
His eyes lingered on mine, a mocking glint dancing within them as he leisurely surveyed my face. He scoffed dismissively. "Don't act so surprised. You certainly knew this was coming for you," he retorted, glancing over my shoulder as if dismissing me altogether.
"All this because I wouldn't let you fuck me?" I challenged, voice rising with frustration and contempt.
Larry burst out laughing, a harsh, mirthless sound, and then, to my shock, he tapped my shoulder supportively as if sharing a joke. The gesture made my stomach tighten with disgust.
A surge of rage bubbled up inside me, but I clenched my fists, fighting the impulse to lash out. The thought of physically harming him flickered through my mind—an impulsive, reckless desire to chop his hand and shove it in his mouth but I knew that would only make things worse. An assault charge would be the least of my problems.
Larry leaned in closer, his breath hot against my skin. "Don't flatter yourself, Miss Santiago. I can get a good fuck anywhere," he whispered cruelly into my left ear. His voice was a low, mocking tone that sent a shiver down my spine. "This is just a reminder that you thought you were different. But you're like every other woman out there. Now, you're just like every jobless woman out there." The way he emphasized the word 'jobless' made my jaw tighten, my eyes narrowing with defiance and fury.
No matter how I looked at it, he had the upper hand—the kind of power I couldn't easily fight against.
He straightened up, adjusting his suit, and shook his head with a dismissive chuckle. "You have just ten minutes to exit this building, Miss Santiago. Make it count."
I stood there, dazed and trembling. Tears threatened to overflow, burning behind my eyelids as my knees buckled beneath me. Eight years of dedication, of hard work, felt like it was ripped away in an instant. Everything I had ever fought for, everything I had built, was now slipping through my fingers—and Larry was walking out of the room with it, leaving me broken and defeated.
Beads of sweat traced cold lines down my face as confusion and rage swirled within me. How could Ember Corp throw away eight years of my hard work and unwavering dedication? Did all my sacrifices—every late night, every early morning—mean nothing to them? Did anything I did matter at all?
My mind spiraled further—my family, Hunter, Ember Corp. Eight years of giving everything I had to this company, and in a heartbeat, it was all gone. The weight of it pressed down on my chest, making it hard to breathe.
And Hunter. His face flashed through my mind, and I couldn't hold back the tears that welled up. I had been with him for more than half my life, from friends to lovers, sharing everything. Yet, even he hadn't hesitated—snatching the opportunity to break my heart into a thousand pieces. The pain was suffocating.
Then, I remembered Suzette's words from this morning, her voice echoing softly in my mind. "Your modesty insults me, Nova. You know that promotion is rightfully yours! You've given that company all your late nights and early mornings. They'd be nuts not to give you that promotion."
Suzette was the only person I could turn to—my best friend, my confidante. Her words had reassured me, given me hope. She believed in me, and I needed that now more than ever.
With that thought, I grasped my bag tightly, clutching what little dignity I had left. Without a second glance, I turned and hurried out of the conference room, out of the building, sprinting into the unknown—leaving behind the wreckage of what was supposed to be my future.