Unorthodox Therapy (45 page)

I cleared my throat after I gave them a few minutes to assimilate the information. James looked absolutely crestfallen and stared at me with almost pleading eyes. It was kind of cute how he thought there would be any mercy for him.

“So, gentlemen...” The last word was laced with sarcasm and I drawled as much as I could. “Do you still believe my personal pictures are the biggest threat to this company? I won't insult your intelligence by clarifying that these are just copies.” I pointed to the images on the table.

Williams finally found his voice. Funny, he’d never struck me as the most intelligent individual. However, his natural pragmatism made him see where things were going.

“Perhaps we started on the wrong foot. After all, who are we to hold some innocent fun against you, boss?”

Ah, now you see who is boss, you spineless worm!

My grin became wider and I raised myself from the chair. My perfect fuck-me-heels clicked on the floor just like the nails I would stick in their coffins. Maybe not today, but they had to go and keep their old school ways in the past.

“Quite correct, Mr. Williams. For the record, I have a little something for all of you.” I walked around the table tapping my shoes until I developed a rhythm. Sometimes when we were in the dungeon, Thomas would use such repetitive noises...
No! No time to think of him right now. Strength! Focus!

“I dug up some dirt on all of you over the past two years, but guess what? It's been lying dormant in my safety box.”

James nearly jumped when he felt the tips of my nails against his neck. He squirmed desperately and writhed in place as I hovered over him with a cruel smile. “Because I respect your private lives and wouldn't hold it against you unless I was forced. You should know I have no qualms about destroying you if you make the first move. Do you follow, kind sirs?”

“But, the clients,” Smith uttered, still staring down at the pictures of his own disgrace.

“I know how to handle the clients. If you don't send me into exile, that is.”

“You can't blackmail your way out with them, Lina.” James held his breath when I withdrew my hands from him. Did he really think I'd touch his sweaty skin? Pathetic. For a brief moment, I wondered if he was picking on me in the vain hope I’d dominate him as a tough Mistress? Judging by how the hair on his neck raised when I drummed with my spiked heel, the answer was most likely yes.

Sorry, pig, you're not my type.

“Maybe, but there could be a very large plunge in the shares of ChaosTech Solutions if you prefer to play the morality police.” I moved back and headed for my seat with a dance-like walk. The only sound was the clicking of my heels. “So, what will it be? Do you still want to vote against me?”

“I believe you were pretty... persuasive in your arguments, Lina. I just hope this unpleasant incident with Cynthia will remain forgotten.” Williams grinned officiously and was soon followed by the rest of the board members. They nodded and whispered among themselves before they announced their decision out loud. Even James muttered with a weak voice that it would be bad for business if they let go of me over such an insignificant issue. He hurried to announce the meeting as finished.

I felt no pleasure when I pulled out my last trump card, but when you have a rat in your house, you don't let it get away just because you’ve got him scared.

“Not so quickly, Mr. Douglas. Since we are gathered here today, shouldn’t we go over the financial reports? You've embezzled a fairly large amount of money from this company. I'm not sure we can drop this matter so easily.”

“You fucking bitch,” he hissed and leaned over the table with anger in his small eyes. “You won't get away with this.”

I gave him my most polite smile and took my seat, not even trembling when he threatened me.

“If I were you I'd be careful with my attitude, James.” My voice was sickeningly sweet. “You should be grateful we haven't decided to press charges against you. Prison isn't an ideal place for a white collar softie like you.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Lina

The bravado I exuded in the boardroom was a true work of art. It wasn't my first negotiation and certainly not my best performance, but I never felt so powerful, so much in control of the situation. The vodka and Katie's makeup skills also helped with my confidence boost. For the most part, I was back in my element. Gone was the weak, scared creature lying on the couch and praying to die.

Things couldn't have turned out better for me. It didn't take a long time to get the other members on my side. They were less than amused with James’s money stealing, even if any of them would have done the same given the chance.

James agreed to resign and we agreed not to take the matter to the authorities. I was generous enough to buy his shares and wished him good luck in finding a new job. When he left the hall, he looked ready to strangle me. To his credit, he chose to walk away with dignity.

Victory was mine. However, on my way back to the office, the temporary confidence melted and left me with the same quiet despair that had been torturing me over the past few days. Sure, I’d persuaded the board members not to fire me, but there was so much more to be done. And it was still not clear who Thomas had been working for. Of course, he may have simply exposed me for the sake of a cheap power play.

Melancholy hit me straight in the face and I stopped, fighting the tears that threatened to spill at any moment. Last Friday I was happy, planning two wonderful days of sex and total submission with my boyfriend. And suddenly, less than a week later, all I’d shared with him was gone. It was impossible to forget it all just because of the knowledge that Thomas had betrayed me.

Perhaps the best course of action was to make an early evening, get drunk, and cry my eyes out once my inhibitions fell. I could be free of the pain if all the poison leaked out of my system.

It was another lie. How could I get rid of this anguish when I no longer knew who I was? Peace came with acceptance and continuing on your way. Where was mine? Submission had been one of the best experiences of my life, but after this brutal abuse of my trust, it seemed unlikely I would allow anyone to control me again. However, going back to my old life of fake orgasms and even more fake relationships was unthinkable. So where did that leave me?

I finally took control of my tears and continued walking to my office. There were people passing me by but their faces were hard to distinguish in my highly emotional state. I was so lost in thought I nearly missed the welcoming party at Katie's reception desk.

“Hey, Lina, what happened?” Her worried voice made me raise my gaze from a spot on the floor. She and the rest of the team members were gathered and gave me looks filled with anxiety. It was touching that they worried so much. When the e-mail bomb was sent I was convinced my employees would never respect me again. Seth was there, hovering over everyone with his formidable height. Several other developers and designers who had been with ChaosTech Solutions since its first days were there, too. As my gaze slid to the rest of them, I saw some of the newest recruits and once again smiled reluctantly.

Why wasn't I happier?

“If you hoped you'd get rid of me so easily you'll have to wait a long time. I'm still your boss.” The strain in my voice was easy to feel, but the good news must have overruled it. Katie exclaimed, raised her fist in the air and hugged me tight. Everyone else burst out in slow clapping and some called out “Way to go!”

When my personal assistant was done with her attempts to break my ribs, Seth did the unthinkable. For all the years we were co-eds, sort of friends and co-workers, he’d never touched more than my fingers during a handshake, but now he pulled me into a tight bear hug, nearly sweeping me off my feet.

“I'm so happy, Lina. They'd be crazy to fire you. You're the beating heart of this company.”

It warmed me to know how much they cared but I also felt like a total asshole. I'd just saved my job and received great support. So why wasn’t I happier?

Perhaps it was just fatigue. The idea of going home, chugging on some sleeping pills and staying in bed the entire weekend was so alluring. I'd be a new woman on Monday.

“Come on, we're taking you out,” Katie exclaimed. Clearly I wasn't so difficult to figure out. Every personal assistant I’d had was able to read my mind after some time had passed.

“I don't feel very well.”

“You could use a little celebration, Lina,” Seth said warmly, stroking my shoulder.

“Yes, exactly,” Katie piped in. “It's been a rough week for all of us. You need to let your hair down.”

“Maybe next week?” All my energy had been spent on the fight with the board members. “I'm very tired.”

“We won't take no for an answer.” Any other time I'd have thought Seth was touching me too intimately, but then I was tired and wanted it all to be over. “Just for an hour or so.”

“And you look too gorgeous to spend Friday night by yourself,” Katie whispered and winked at me.

Oh, well, how bad could a drink or two be? Maybe it would even help me sleep better.

Little did I know normal sleep would be a rare luxury over the next few months.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Thomas

Allie and I set up camp in my house while we searched relentlessly for the anonymous sender. My living room was a freaking mess of empty takeout cartons. The trash can was filled with empty
Monster
energy drinks cans she was addicted to, just as she was to absolutely anything containing caffeine. A few years earlier when the therapy with my then girlfriend had been successful, half as a joke, half seriously, I’d offered to help Allie as well. The look she threw at me with her formidable dark eyes was enough to slap me into submission.

We’d taken turns to get a few hours sleep over the past few days while the other continued searching. At some point, I felt we were wasting our time on a wild goose chase. If it were just me, I'd have given up long ago and tried a different approach, but Allie was relentless in her hunt. At times, I was sure she was intensely turned on by it. Either way, we sustained ourselves on junk food, coffee, and enthusiasm. Every now and then I'd try to get in touch with Lina, just to make sure she was okay and to find out if there was any clarity about her position. Of course, she always rejected my calls.

“Don't waste your time, Tommy boy,” Allie muttered and took another bite of her Chinese, staring at the computer screen. I was sitting at the coffee table with the small laptop in front of me. “At this point, she hates you too much. I can't say I blame her, but if she picks up, you'd better be ready with some evidence.”

“Yeah, I know.” I took my glasses off and rubbed my eyelids when she gave me another pearl of wisdom. “I just wish she wasn't taking the blow all by herself. I should have done a better job of protecting my pet.”

Allie turned around and set the cardboard aside. She stretched out her arms and gave me the closest thing to a tender smile she was capable of.

“You're doing something more important, silly. We are tracking down the snake in her home and possibly uprooting even greater danger. Quite frankly, I don't think you'd do her any service if you were there with her.” Allie turned back to the console blinking in front of her. “She'd be accused of both indecent behavior and an affair with an employee.”

“You're right. I'm being stupid.” I stared at her for a moment before putting my glasses back on. My eyes were sore and red. “You're truly the best, Allie.”

“Yeah, I know. Now shut up and keep looking at the traffic.”

We'd been going through my traffic for the last six months to track the suspicious IPs, which weren't part of my normal communication. It was a cumbersome task since I was an active Internet user and online most of the time. It'd been a long and tedious process but two sets of eyes were better than one. Allie checked every one of our suspects and did some hacking of her own.

Watching her work made me thank my lucky stars she was by my side.

Finally, after days of empty searching and quiet despair, Allie cried out victoriously.

“Fuck, yes! I think we got him.”

I nearly broke an ankle as I rushed to her side. She pointed at a string of numbers on the screen with a proud look on her face.

“This buddy here copied some pretty big files out of your computer exactly two months ago. I tracked him down. It turns out he or she used it at a storage unit on Jerrold Avenue. I also got the exact unit number.” She licked her lips and her fingers kept flying over the keyboard. “I'm going to check the storage unit's web system. Luckily, they use some laughable app. Breaking into it would be child's play,” she said in a sing-song voice and winked at me. “Hold on, Thomas. We may have the bastard soon.”

It took her less than half an hour to break through the security of the storage place. She got to the database table with the name of the man who rented that specific unit and her smile instantly faded. She stared at the computer screen and it was the first time in days she’d showed any sign of insecurity.

“Allie? What is wrong?” I asked with growing concern. “Allie, please, talk to me.”