“I’m sorry, Ma’am, but if I were to call Mr. White every time someone came to the building I could easily be taking up all of his time and he may as well be sitting here himself.” He argued.
“Fine. May I use your phone to call a cab?” I asked with a hint of anger.
“Of course, if you would please follow me,” he led me to the desk and told the guard to let me use the phone. The guard behind the desk stood and placed the phone within reach.
I immediately dialed the satellite phone. It only rang twice and then Red answered.
“Yes?” He sounded edgy.
“Red? This is Grey,” I was about to tell him I was at the office but he cut me off.
“Where are you?” He yelled at me and didn’t wait for me to answer because he was telling someone in the background who he was speaking to. I heard him say, “It’s her. I don’t know. She hasn’t told me yet. Obviously it’s someplace with a phone.” Then he turned his attention back to me. “Where the hell are you?” He repeated the sentence vehemently. Again I didn’t get a chance to answer because he interrupted me again with, “Fine. Here...” I could tell the phone was handed off and the next voice I heard was White.
“Ms. Grey?” His voice was much more even and calculating.
“Yes.” I was getting fed up.
“Where are you? We will come pick you up.”
“I’m at the office and I can’t get up to my damn apartment!” My frustrations came flooding out and there was a quiver in my voice. Not only was I tired beyond reason, I was still upset about being treated like a child and to add insult to injury, I was now being treated like a criminal by this person I had never seen before.
“Good, please hand the phone to Phil, I will take care of things.”
“Which one of you is Phil?” I asked snottily, holding the phone out for someone to take.
The guard who had been so rude and had escorted me to the phone took it from me.
“Yes? Yes sir.” His voice became crisp after he realized whom he was speaking to. Hmmmph, I thought, serves you right. The conversation was one sided but I could imagine White chewing this guy out for not letting me in. There were several ‘yes sir’s’ and a few ‘of course’s’ then finally a ‘you can count on me sir’ before he finally hung up the phone.
He turned to the guard at the desk and said, “That was White. We need to call in two extra guards. Please do that and when they arrive have one take my place down here and send the other up to the apartment on twelve.” Next he turned to me. “Come with me Ms. Grey.”
He reached for my arm but I jerked it away and said, “I know my way.”
“As you wish.” Then he followed me into the elevator.
“I said I know the way. Just leave me alone.” I ordered by pointing the way out of the elevator.
“I’m afraid I can’t do that, Ms. Grey.”
“I just want to go to my apartment, shower and go to bed.”
“That is fine with me but I am coming with you. I have my orders and I will follow them.”
“Can things get any worse?” I complained.
Phil, the guard, and I stepped off the elevator at my floor. When we got into the apartment I headed toward the bathroom and Phil stopped me.
“Excuse me, Ms. Grey.” He brushed past me and did a sweep of the bathroom.
“I suppose you want to hop right on in with me while I shower.” I was in a foul mood. I had expected a snide remark or some sort of emotion to show on his face when I said this but he replied with a straight face.
“Of course not, Ma’am. I will check the rest of the apartment while you shower.” He was standing outside the bathroom with his hands clasped behind him looking straight ahead, waiting for me to either reply or leave him to his task.
I decided to do the latter. I stepped into the bathroom and shut the door behind me. I was thankful to be able to take off my horribly dirty clothes and stand under the hot water. I started to feel guilty again for leaving the men behind and making them worry. Red was obviously more than a little disturbed when I had spoken to him. My guilt carried over to poor Phil who was just doing his job and clearly doing it well. If he was to be our security guy I really should make friends. I finished my shower and as I was drying off I noticed I didn’t have any clean clothes or a robe to cover me as I stepped from the bathroom to my bedroom.
I opened the door a crack wearing only my towel.
“Phil?”
“Yes Ma’am?” He replied.
“Would you please do me a favor and get me my robe from my bedroom and bring it here?”
“I’m sorry Ma’am, I’m not comfortable rifling through your things.” His voice did have a little emotion in it this time. He was enjoying this.
“Okay, thank you Phil.” I shut the door to the bathroom. Now I was angry all over again. I suppose I did have it coming with the way I treated him. I could always put the dirty clothes back on, but then what was the purpose of the shower? I chose to get to my room as quickly as I could in only my towel. If he wanted to see it, then he’d see it, but then he’d regret it, somehow.
I reluctantly opened the door to the bathroom and stepped out wearing only my towel around me. I was so nervous I could barely make myself take the first step out into the main part of the apartment. If I ran I could make it in about three steps but I didn’t want to project that type of an attitude. I wanted him to know I was in control even if I wasn’t. I made myself walk calmly yet deliberately to my bedroom. I thought of avoiding all eye contact but decided against it. He was near the front door and so was another man I had never seen before either. I should have known. He had back up so he was showing off. I gave both of them the most disapproving look I could muster and stepped into my room and shut the door.
I immediately collapsed onto my bed in shame. I laid there for a short while thinking about what I had just done. It would have been best for me to have stayed in the bathroom or put the dirty clothes back on. However, I had dresses that showed more skin than only wearing that towel. And to think I was just about to apologize to the creep.
I got dressed and put my hair back. I didn’t like putting my hair back when it was still wet but the circumstances required it. He was leaving even if I had to make him leave. I stepped out of my bedroom and walked straight to Phil who was now alone at my front door.
“Where did the other guy go?” I asked nicely.
“He’s standing guard just on the other side of this door Ma’am.”
“What I don’t understand is why you even bother with the ‘Ma’am.’ You obviously have no respect for me, why pretend?” To this he had no answer.
“You know, Phil. While I was in the shower I was feeling horrible for the way I treated you when I first came in. I even told myself how well you were doing your job and I vowed to apologize at my nearest convenience and right now is as good a time as any. I apologize for treating you so badly when I first came into the office building. I have no excuse other than I had a horrible day, but that is not your fault. Please forgive me for treating you badly.” He had been standing staring straight ahead but now he looked down at me with a strange look on his face, a bit like some shame of his own.
“Yes Ma’am.” He looked like he were about to say more but I cut him off.
“However, I have had a really bad day. Did White explain any of that to you?”
“No Ma’am.” Now he was staring straight ahead and at full attention.
“Then let me do that for you. My day started a little after midnight. I spent several hours jogging and my estimate is that I ran over twenty miles, then I had to catch a ride to an airport in some city I have never been to. That is just to sum it up for you. I am very tired and not in the mood to play games. Now onto you not getting me a robe so I could have some privacy in my own apartment. That is unacceptable.”
“Yes Ma’am.” It was crisp and I was certain I had made him feel quite bad about what he did.
“I am a full partner
in this company. I don’t know what your relationship is with White but I don’t care. If I ask you or tell you to do something while you are in my apartment it better get done. Am I understood?”
“Yes Ma’am,” again it was crisp and full of feeling.
“Because of the disrespect you showed me and the obvious infringement upon my privacy I am going to ask you nicely to leave.”
“Yes, Ma’am. But I can’t, I’m under orders from White.” He was truly torn now.
“Let me put it to you this way. You leave my apartment now or I will escort you out.” I knew this was going to be a challenge because he had undeniably been trained well. I didn’t want to hurt him, I just wanted him out and I didn’t know if I could manage it.
“Ma’am, please. White should be back to the building within the hour. If you could see fit to allow me to follow his orders until his return it would be immensely appreciated.”
“White knows I’m a pain in the ass and nobody wants to deal with my little tantrums so I think you will be forgiven this time.” My voice was sarcastic.
“No Ma’am. I was given specific orders to not let you out of my sight. I’ve already broken them by allowing you to shower with the door shut.”
“I am so sick of this. I’m just going to go back to the guesthouse.” I turned to go back to my room to get my things and he reached for me. It was pure instinct; I grabbed his hand and pushed it back. This made him fall to his knees. I kept control and didn’t allow myself to add enough pressure to break his wrist but now I had him. I could easily make him get out now.
“Ma’am, please. I’m just trying to do my job.”
He was right and I released my grip. I was too tired to fight anymore.
“I’m sorry. Habit.”
“I understand Ma’am. May I stay?”
“Yes. I’m going to bed. Please wake me as soon as White returns.”
“Yes Ma’am.” His attitude and mine had totally changed. He was treating me with some respect and I had entirely given up. I went to my room and lay down on my bed. I didn’t even attempt to shut the door.
The next thing I knew he was gently shaking me.
“Ms. Grey, the chopper is just now landing.”
“Thank you Phil. Please accept my apology for earlier.”
“Of course. Please accept mine as well.”
“Thank you. Shall we go meet them?”
“No Ma’am I think that would be highly detrimental. We should stay right here.”
“More orders?”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
“I don’t know about you but I’m tired of being ordered around all the time.” I rolled my eyes.
“Yes, Ma’am, but it is in your best interest to follow orders most of the time.”
“The keyword in that sentence is MOST, Phil. Keep that in mind.”
Phil went to the front door and told the other guy to expect White any minute. My door guard adjusted himself and stood a little straighter before Phil shut my door again. I was already standing at attention waiting for my judges to show up when Phil joined me. I knew I was going to be in trouble. The nap had done my thought process a lot of good. I had been irrational before, my judgment clouded by my feelings for these men. If they didn’t consider me an equal there had to be a reason for it and my taking off like that more than likely didn’t help the problem.
White walked in alone moments later.
“Thank you soldier, you are dismissed to carry out other duties.”
“Yes, sir. Thank you, sir.” With that Phil turned to me and saluted. I was taken aback by this show and so was White. “Ma’am, it’s been a pleasure,” then he walked out.
After he left, White said, “What was that all about?”
“I’m not sure, sir.”
“Okay, that’s enough. I came because I’m concerned about you but if you would rather talk to someone else give me their name and I’ll send for them.”
I relaxed my stance and said, “I didn’t feel like getting ditched.”
“What are you talking about?” I could tell by his voice that he already knew.
“I heard you talking downstairs last night. I would have stayed at the cabin if you had asked me. It might have taken some explaining but I would have stayed all the same.”
“That still doesn’t explain why you left. You could have confronted us with it last night or this morning.” I didn’t want to admit to being irrational and I didn’t want to admit they had hurt my feelings but I could see no way out.
“I don’t think I was treated fairly by not being told there was a contract with my name on it and I felt the same way with being tricked at the cabin. I’d had enough and my feelings were hurt. I think I’ve done more than enough to prove myself to all of you.” I felt the tears start to well up so I took a breath and held it for a few seconds and after I had it under control I continued. “I needed to be away from you men for a while.”
“I can understand that and I will apologize on behalf of everyone. We were just trying to keep you safe and we didn’t want to piss you off.” He paused then added with a grin, “How did you get here so quickly?”
I was relieved at least White wasn’t going to take this too hard. I was still tired and the quick change in his demeanor caught me off guard.
“I just made my way east until I saw city lights. Then I caught a break and got a ride to the airport.”
“I can’t believe you made it all the way to the city on foot.” He shook his head.
“Actually I didn’t. I caught the ride in the housing development above the city.”
“Still. Anyway, I’m sure the other men would like to be sure you are out of harms way, we should go down and meet them in the office.”
In the elevator he informed me that Red was sure I had been kidnapped again and had Brown believing it but Green thought I was playing a joke and hiding around the cabin somewhere. Black thought I might have gone off on a hike alone. Blue was afraid I might have gone to the cave alone. White said he had no idea where I was and was concerned but he knew I could take care of myself. Out of all of the idea’s he didn’t believe Red’s because the cabin is listed as government property and it was a crew on loan from my father who had built it. That being the case, no one could connect White and Associates with the cabin. That was why it was so safe.
We reached the office much sooner than I had hoped. I wasn’t looking forward to all the disappointed looks I was sure to get but upon walking into the office I was surprised to see looks of relief and glee instead.
They each had something to say about my leaving the cabin under those circumstances, but soon it all changed to questions about how I reached the office alone and on foot.
“I think we’ve all had our share of excitement for the day.” Red interrupted everyone’s questions. “White, if you could call in the new security to familiarize him with the rest of us. I understand Ms. Grey had trouble entering the building without a scheduled appointment and I don’t think any of us want to be denied any of our freedoms of coming and going when we please.”
At that point White retrieved Phil and introduced him to each man and once again I was introduced to him but under better conditions. He was told of Gabriella but no one else was to be allowed access without direct confirmation or a scheduled appointment. All deliveries had to made to the desk in the lobby and we could either pick it up ourselves or the guards could deliver it if there was sufficient back up to allow them to leave their posts. The instructions were given out and then we all dispersed. I went to my apartment for a much needed nap.
*****
Chapter Fifteen
Early that afternoon the phone rang and I pulled myself out of bed. It was Red telling me to come down to the office.
I don’t know why, but I expected to see all the men in the office and was a little surprised it was just Red. I took a seat across from his desk.
“Here’s the deal, Ms. Grey,” he began. “We have been unable to find t
he source of the threat to you. I’ve sent White to speak with your father and I’ve paired Green and Blue together and Black and Brown together. They have started investigating this from the street. That just leaves you and me. I am going to start speaking with some of my contacts in the N.S.A. about possible threats from the past.
We are not giving up on acquiring more information about Strom but I am still quite keen on the Penumbra angle and don’t want to expose you to any further danger so I’m going to put you on researching both of them. Any and all information you can dig up could be helpful. Keep in mind we are trying to find a possible link to you or this company. I think this is something you should be able to handle from your apartment or C.I.C. if necessary. Do you have any questions?”
“No sir. I’ll get right on it.” I stood to leave.
“One more thing, Ms. Grey,” he continued. “I know I said something earlier, but I want you to understand we were all concerned about you today. What you did was irresponsible and dangerous. You need to understand this company runs itself a lot like the military. However, there are differences. All of us are equal but we must follow orders. If White, or I, or even you issues an order to any of the partners we must follow it unless two or more disagree and then we will have a discussion. I hope nothing like this happens again without you speaking to someone.”
“It won’t if you treat me like an equal and don’t try to hide things from me.” I replied.
“Please sit down. You and I need to have a talk.” He motioned to the chair I had just been sitting in. I sat and he continued. “I’m interested to know what spurned your leaving the cabin alone.”
“I don’t like decisions being made for my welfare without any chance of adding my own input.”
“So that’s what sparked it ‘eh? You over heard us talking last night?” He raised his eyebrows.
“Yes.”
“I am sorry about that. We thought it would be easier if we didn’t have an argument.” He explained it away.
Shades of Grey: Book Two of the Alexis Stanton Chronicles Page 15
