Chelsy stood there, looking so frightened. She felt as if her heart would jump out of her chest. Sweat, bearded down Chelsy's forehead, as she tried to control her shaking hands. Her heart could be heard thudding in her chest as blood pounded in her ears. She found it hard to breathe as if a vice was gripping on her. She could feel the tears trying to roll down from her eyes, but she pushed them back.
''How did Nicole know so much about my life in Wolverton? How did she have access to those pictures?'' She mumbled to herself.
Her mind was unable to grasp what had just transpired between her and Nicole. She couldn't comprehend what was triggering this panic attack. Was it fear of Daniel knowing about her past in Wolverton or was it the fear of Hank finding out about her past in Wolverton?
She looked at herself in the mirror and took a deep breath in and breath out. She closed her eyes and had some thoughts running through her mind.
When she opened her eyes, she stared at herself in the mirror and said, ''But I did nothing wrong. So why should I be afraid of Nicole's threat? If she shows Mister Rivers those pictures, I could always defend myself if he should ask me. And if he doesn't believe me, there is nothing I can do about it. The worst thing that can happen, is he getting me fired from my job.''
Chelsy clenched her fists and continued, ''l will never let anyone bully me, ever again. I don't care who it is. Be it Nicole, Daniel or Gancarnagh. I did nothing wrong, and so, I shouldn't be scared of anything or anyone.''
She splashed some water on her face and went back to their work space. When she got there, she walked up to Nicole's desk with eyes spitting firmness and determination.
When Nicole saw Chelsy, she gave a sarcastic smile and said, ''I am sure what I told you must have resonated with you.''
Chelsy gave a wicked stare and said, ''Nicole, I am certain you are not aware of what I am capable of doing. I hope you do have proof that I did all those things that I was accused of. I don't know how you were able to lay your hands on these pictures. Make sure you do have your facts right. Because if you don't, and go ahead to spew nonsense and spread fake news, you and your source should be ready to bear the consequences. He who plays the music of the dead, should be ready to dance to the tune of the spirits.''
Chelsy bent down and whispered into Nicole's ears, ''I am certain you heard what happened to Kyle Hastings. If you don't want to end up like him, you shouldn't step on my toes. I am one person you shouldn't mess with.''
Chelsy gave a wicked smile and walked away from Nicole.
As she was walking back to her seat, her heart was thumping, as she couldn't believe she had just said all that to Nicole. She was cussing herself in her mind. Chelsy, what have you done? How could you use such dirty tricks on Nicole? What if she goes ahead and publishes those pictures? And then Daniel gets you fired? You will be totally and completely screwed. You are a complete idiot. She thought to herself.
Using this reverse psychology on Nicole was a strategy that Chelsy used without even thinking.
Nicole sat down at her desk, looking stunned, and was completely speechless. Her heart was thumping as if she had run a marathon.
She couldn't believe Chelsy had such an influence on having Kyle Hastings repudiated from the major corporate jobs in London. Even Daniel Rivers didn't have such powers to do that.''
''Who is this Chelsy? And which influential personality is behind her, giving her such wings?'' She gnashed her teeth and spoke under her breath. ''Chelsy, I will make sure I find out who is giving you such wings to fly higher than your height.'' She gave one more evil look at Chelsy, and turned to her phone.
She sent a quick message to a number, and the message read, ''I want you to find out every detail about this person called Chelsy Powers. I want to know who she meets, who she talks to and who she hangs out with. Don't leave any details out.'' She dropped her phone, and turned back to her laptop.
It was the end of the day, and Chelsy had returned home. She was truly exhausted from the bulk of work she had done in the office. She went in and took a warm shower, and had dinner.
She decided to pass her time by watching a documentary before sleeping.
Suddenly, her phone chimed. When she picked it up to see who had sent her a message, her heart skipped a beat when she saw that it was from Hank. ''Hey mountain fairy. Hope you have been well. I am so sorry that I haven't had the time to check on you all this while, and didn't reply to your message. It's been a rough couple of days, having meetings in different towns. Hope you are taking proper care of yourself.''
When Chelsy read his message, her heart softened as she had decided not to write to him ever again. She didn't know when she had quickly replied to his message. ''Hey. I am sorry to hear that. Hope you are doing well too.''
Hank, on the other hand, had a smile on his face when he wrote back, ''Please can I call you now if you don't mind?''
Hank was anxiously waiting for Chelsy's reply, like a dog waiting for a treat from its owner.
It took about three minutes before Chelsy could reply with, ''Sure. You can.''
Hank was overjoyed, and quickly dialed Chelsy's number. It rang for a few seconds, and Chelsy's soft and timid voice sounded. ''Hey gancarnagh.''
Hank could not erase the broad smile that was plastered on his face. He was sitting on the sofa in his hotel room, still in his well-tailored gray suit. His hair, which had always been well trimmed and properly styled, was a little disheveled, and he had a tired look on his face. With the little eye bags forming under his eyes, one could tell he had not had a proper sleep in days.
He spoke with a hoarse voice instead of his usual seductive husky voice. ''Hey mountain fairy. It's so nice to hear your voice once again. How was your day today?''
Chelsy, at the other end of the line, responded. ''It's nice hearing your voice too. Work was okay. You sound exhausted. It shows you have been working hard too. Are you okay?''
Hank gave a little chuckle and said, ''Don't worry Chelsy. It's not something I cannot handle. At least, hearing your voice again after a whole year, is quite refreshing.''
Chelsy's face turned red, and she blushed after hearing what Hank had said. They chatted for a few more minutes and Chelsy asked, ''Gancarnagh, what is your real name? You know my name already. But I don't know anything about you, not even your name. Aren't you upset that I call you gancarnagh all the time?''
The corner of Hank's mouth tilted upwards into a smile, and he responded. ''My dear Chelsy, I guess we should keep it a mystery until I get back. I think it will be exciting, don't you think so?
Chelsy furrowed her brows and spoke with a voice that sounded sullen. ''But that isn't fair. I am certain you already know all there is to know about me. But I am still lurking in the dark when it comes to you. Or are you a drug lord, or a cartel leader?''
Hank gave a gentle smoky laugh, and replied in a smoky voice. ''Oh, my dear little fairy. You are still the same, just like in the mountains. You are so cute though. Like I said before, I am not a bad guy. I am sure you will get to like me when you get to know me. Anyway, it's been a long day. Let me let you go to sleep, so you can have a proper rest before you leave for work tomorrow. Thank you for accepting to speak with me.''
Chelsy, on the other hand, replied, ''Good night then.''
The call ended, and Chelsy felt as if she was on cloud nine. She couldn't erase the smile that was on her face. She couldn't understand why she felt so safe and comfortable with Hank. Was she falling in love with him?
A few weeks had passed. Hank and Chelsy kept communicating through text messages and phone calls when he was less busy. They both enjoyed talking with each other. Chelsy would often tell him how her day had gone and the things she did.
They would both laugh at her silly jokes and sometimes even sleep while the phone was still on.
Chelsy's alarm went off, and she woke up, and didn't realize her phone was still on. She stretched herself, and was preparing to go take a shower when she heard a familiar voice over the phone. ''You are finally awake sleepy head. Hope you slept well little fairy.''
Chelsy jolted from her bed and shouted, ''Jesus Christ.''
Hank gave a little laughter and replied, ''He is all the way in heaven.''
Chelsy was a little surprised, and said, ''Oh my goodness. I slept off while we were still talking. I am so sorry.''
Hank, who was already awake, and preparing to step out, said with a little smile tugged at the corner of his lips, ''At least I was able to hear you snoring.''
Chelsy closed her hands over her mouth and felt a flash of embarrassment rush through her red face, ''Did I really snore?''
Hank gave a little chuckle and replied, ''Does it matter if you snore? It is normal to snore if you are tired.'' He gave another chuckle and said. ''No you didn't. I was just pulling your legs. Anyway, I have to go now. Have an amazing day at work, okay?'' He ended the call. There was a smile plastered on Chelsy's face, as she prepared to leave for work.
A few days had passed, and it was Chelsy's twenty-fifth birthday. She was quite excited and sad at the same time.
That morning, she had received birthday messages and calls from her brother Leonel and Melinda. She felt really sad because this was the first time she would be spending her birthday far away from her family and best friend.
On her way to work, Rachel had called her and cheered her up. She got to the office feeling much better. While working on her task of the day, she received a call from the CEO's secretary. ''Miss Powers, Mister Rivers has requested your audience. He wants you to come over to his office.''
Chelsy said okay, she was on her way.
Since the day for the Robotics annual summit event was fast approaching, the two teams were so busy, and didn't have the time to ask Chelsy where she was heading to.
Everyone, including Nicole, focused on their task and didn't even notice that Chelsy had been summoned by the CEO.
When Chelsy got to Daniel's office, he was sitting in front of his computer. When he saw her, he gave a warm smile and said, ''Oh Chelsy. You are here.''
Chelsy reciprocated his smile and said, ''Greetings Sir Rivers. You asked me to come see you. Hope all is well.''
Daniel nodded and asked her to sit down. When Chelsy sat down, Daniel brought out a beautifully wrapped box and presented it to her. ''Happy birthday Chelsy Powers.''
Chelsy was shocked and surprised at the same time. She stuttered on her words and said, ''Thank you, Sir Rivers. But how did you know today is my birthday? I am sorry, I cannot accept such a gesture. It is inappropriate for me to receive gifts from my boss.''
Daniel had a warm smile on his face, and looked up at Chelsy. ''Chelsy, have you forgotten I have your resume, and your details including your birthday are boldly written on it? I know you might think I have ulterior motives for doing this. But trust me, this is a harmless gesture, okay? I know what Kyle Hastings did to you, and the gifts he presented to you. This is different, okay? So please don't say no.''
Chelsy felt the genuineness coming from his words. She gave a deep sigh and took the gift box from him.
When she opened the box, it was full of all sorts of exotic chocolates. Chelsy's eyes glistened with joy when she saw them. ''Oh my goodness. Thank you, Sir Rivers. Chocolates are my favorite.''
The excitement on her face suddenly faded. When Daniel saw this, he lifted his eyebrows and asked, ''Chelsy, are you okay? Why did your face suddenly turn gloomy?''
Chelsy replied and said, ''Sir Rivers, I don't know how I will walk into my office holding this box of chocolates. My teammates will see this, and then start having false thoughts about this, and I wouldn't want that.''
Daniel gave a little laugh and said, ''Chelsy, you are really cute when you look this frightened. It's not as if you did anything wrong. Anyway, don't worry. You can leave it here, and I will ask someone to bring it to you.''
Chelsy just smiled, and walked out of Daniel's office. Daniel placed a call to Rebecca Anderson, and asked her to help him with something.
Chelsy returned to her office and acted as though nothing had happened. The team had gone for lunch, and Rebecca had gone to Chelsy's desk, and placed the box of chocolate. She left a little note on it saying, ''Happy birthday Chelsy. From Becky.''
When the team had returned from their lunch break, and saw the box of chocolate on Chelsy's desk, Cleopatra, the nosey Parker, squealed and said, ''OMG Chelsy. And who sent you these exotic chocolates? Do you have another secret admirer?''
Chelsy walked over to her desk and saw the note that Rebecca had left. A gush of cool breeze blew through her body and she replied with a smile, ''No Cleopatra. Today is actually my birthday, and these came from Becky.''
They all wished her a happy birthday, and she shared the chocolates with all of them. When she went to Nicole's desk to share some of her birthday chocolate with her, Nicole gave her a dead stare. The kind of stare that spoke a million words in one. The kind of stare that said, ''If you take another step, you are dead.''
Chelsy cleared her throat and said, ''Hey Nicole, it's my birthday, and please share these chocolates with me.''
Nicole gave a humph and replied. ''I don't want to share your poison with you. Chelsy, better stay off my lane. And don't think I still don't have those pictures. A time will come when I will publish them.'' She spoke and turned back to her computer.
Chelsy stood there feeling so embarrassed, and cussed herself internally for even walking up to Nicole in the first place.
She returned to her seat, and acted as if nothing had happened.
Shortly after that, a delivery man walked in and asked to see Miss Chelsy Powers. Every one in the office was stunned when they saw what he was holding.