by Lang, Alice
But what she had with Patrick was different, wasn’t it? Not just some inner-office scandal to dirty the tabloid. Right?
“Yes, Ms. Blake. Your romance with Mr. Greenburg has been brought to my attention and, as you can imagine, there is some concern.”
“Would you please point to a policy forbidding such a relationship?” Sarah asked. She had read through each chapter of the firm policy book and knew there wasn’t one.
Suzanna had the grace to look embarrassed. “There isn’t such a policy. However, it’s become apparent that Mr. Greenburg has been, uh, distracted and his billable hours have decreased significantly. As you can imagine, the senior partners aren’t pleased.”
That’s what it came down to… money. Was that all these executives and seniors directors thought about? Something that could thicken their fat pocket. But it’s a liberal world. You get what you could sow; even if it ruins the lives of other people.
“We decided the best alternative is to concede to Patrick’s request and have you transferred back to your former position.”
“And if I refuse to transfer, then what?” Sarah asked.
Susanna narrowed her eyes before saying, “Then your position with the firm will be terminated. I expect loyalty, and I expect our team members to comply with my directions. Is that understood?”
“Is there anything I can do to change your mind?” Sarah’s voiced cracked. She felt defeated. Something she hadn’t felt for a long time. She almost had forgotten what it felt like, and being reminded of it told her how much she despised it.
She couldn’t look at Susanna in the eye, or say another word. Deep down, Sarah knew the answer to her question but it didn’t stop her from using her last resort: Begging. Her usually quick brain seemed to have shut down. Simply quit working. Her boss had played judge and jury, and Sarah had been handed down the sentence… life without Patrick. She was being forced to choose between her career, her career life and her love life when she could have grasped both in her hands.
Susanna shook her head and thanked Sarah from coming and asked her to leave the room. Sarah nodded courtly and walked away with her stiff legs.
She had just started her life here. She was about to make her name with her first high profile case. She just made friends with Diana and Henry and had just started a beautiful and complicated relationship with Patrick. This was supposed a happy time of her life. And this woman was trying to take it away so easily.
As she walked down the hall and to the elevator, she thought she heard something from a distance. In her mind, it sounded like an alarm clock, trying to wake her from the nightmare that had overtaken her emotions.
She leaned her head against the steel wall of the elevator and imagined another sound … the wings of her bluebird flying away.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
He was late! And couldn’t care less. The Patrick Greenburg wasn’t in his office before everyone else. He strode from the elevator a full half hour behind schedule, proudly carrying a box of dark chocolate truffles for Sarah.
He could have been on time, but the pastry shop owner was running late himself. Normally this would have irritated Patrick beyond belief. But today, he didn’t care. He wanted to do this for Sarah, a special treat from him.
As he walked down the hallway with Sarah’s goodies, he was surprised by the rush of concern from others in his department. Adewale asked if he was okay; it appears everyone thought he was sick.
Clearly he wasn’t, so he just pointed to the box. Everyone gave him a confused look, so he explained the events of the morning.
“You got that for Sarah? I think you just missed her. I don’t know what happened, but she’s already left.”
Patrick’s first thought was that Adewale was kidding. He walked quickly to the office and opened the door, but Sarah’s desk was indeed empty. There wasn’t any sign of her having even been there. The paper remained untouched; there were no signs of her bags or her coffee. Sarah wasn’t the kind of person who left the office early. Something must have happened.
“Sorry Nick, I need to go find her. I need to know what happened.” Patrick wasn’t just worried; he was terrified that something bad was going to happen to her. Was it a family emergency? If that happened, he needed to be there for her.
Patrick made it to Sarah’s apartment with a time breaking record of seven minutes and eighteen seconds, half of his normal time. His hair was a mess, and so were his clothes which were now slightly damp and wrinkled from his run. His tie was undone, and his shirt had slipped from his trousers. His bag was about to fall from his shoulders, but the chocolate box was still clutched tightly in his grasp. He tried to call Sarah several times on his way to her apartment, but he received no answer. Perhaps she was too emotional for phone talk, Patrick thought.
The first few knock on her doors did nothing. There was no sound or footstep behind the doors. Patrick tried calling her again which only resulted in the same thing.
He knocked again, then pounded. He shouted her name as loud as he could. He didn’t care if he disturbed the neighbors; his panic was so great.
He considered breaking down the door and was testing its strength when he finally heard a small sound. He pressed his ear to the door again, listening hard. He heard it again, ruffling.
“Sarah?” he called to her again, voice beckoning softly. “Please open up. I don’t know what’s wrong but please let me in so that I can help.”
He waited, and the sounds grew louder. Soon, Sarah was opening the door.
Sarah was still in her office attire, but it wasn’t as neat as it should be. In fact, both of them were in the same state. Her hair was let down and uncombed. Patrick could notice a trail of tears on her face that still glistened from the moisture. Her make-up was washed off, her eyes were bright red but as she opened the door she tried to smile, her lips quivering with the effort.
“Hi Patrick, did you come for a visit?” Her voice was dangerously calm and steady, a stark contrast to her appearance. It made Patrick grow even more uneasy. What on earth was going on?
“Everyone said you left early and I just wanted to make sure you’re okay or if you needed something.”
“Oh, thank you, but I think that the last thing I need right now is someone seeing me like this.” Sarah gave him a forced smile and a bitter laugh, “In fact, you’re the last person I want to see right now, Patrick.”
Patrick was stunned, and his mind flashed back over the past few days. It was apparent he had done something stupid, but for the life of him he couldn’t figure out what it was. He shook his head in confusion and desperation. Just what did he do to make Sarah so angry with him?
“Sarah, what happened?” He let go of his bag and the chocolate box and tried to grab her hands. But she pulled away from his, as if his touch would burn her. Betrayal roared in her eyes.
“What happened?” she asked bitterly. “I thought you knew Patrick. Since you are the one who wrote the letter requesting for me to be transferred!”
A flash of images played across his mind. He did send the letter weeks ago. He remembered his fingers slowly typing that the torturous memo, the soft tap of his finger on the mouse as he hit the ‘send’ button on the screen.
The past always came back to haunt Patrick, whether it was the memory of his parent’s divorce or his hard time supporting his mother. The memory of losing Sarah was about to be added to that list. It was as if the veil of illusion had been lifted off, and Patrick was seeing the aftermath of his careless actions. He thought he had caught the bluebird; happiness seemed to be in his hands for just a second. Patrick had just forgotten. No bird would want to stay in these soiled hands. They seemed to destroy everything that he loved.
“Sarah… I’m so sorry. I can fix this- no, I am going to fix this. That was weeks ago; I’d even forgotten I’d written that horrible letter.” He tried to sound strong, but his voice came out with a tremor. His heart was leaping, and his hands wouldn’t stop shaking. He had broken Sar
ah’s trust, just as his father had broken his. He knew how much Sarah hated him right now because he knew what it was like to be betrayed.
“It’s not just that. They feel I’ve been a distraction to you and that your billable hours have decreased. I either must transfer back or be fired. But, they’re using your letter as legal rights for the transfer. I have no choice.”
“I can’t believe this. I judged you before I even knew you. I shouldn’t have done that and now that I know who you really are, I’m going to do everything in my power to fix this.”
If only the desperation in his voice could reach the icy wall that Sarah had over her heart right now, Patrick would do anything. But Sarah only stood still, guarding the door.
“Could you, Patrick? Could you change what you really are? Everyone is so convinced that you won’t be able to change.”
“I made a mistake!” he admitted. Patrick stripped away the last layer of his pride for Sarah, in hope that he could do something to convince her.
“I know. I did too,” by trusting you, she wanted to add. It was the last word Sarah offered to him before she closed the door in her face. Time, she needed time. He would give it to her while he cleared everything up.
Patrick could only stare at the wooden door, hoping for a second it would open again. He picked up his bag and the chocolate box before forcing himself to walk away from that door. He couldn’t look back at it because he could hear Sarah’s sobs echoing from the room.
He made a mistake. As a perfectionist, Patrick despised mistakes. This one would haunt him forever, just like the words of his father. But he could fix this, would fix this.
The chocolate in his hand was long forgotten as he discarded it to the nearest bin and raked a hand through his hair. He needed time to think. He could march into the battlefield unarmed, but he also knew that he was running out of time.
Taking a deep breathe, Patrick suddenly knew what he needed to do. Pulling his phone from his pocket, he did something he’d never done in his adult life. He called for help.
CHAPTER FiFTEEN
Sarah did not come to the office the next day as Patrick expected, but instead called in sick. Patrick wasn’t sure of the welcome he would receive by the staff, what he received wasn’t at all expected. The entire floor was in an uproar, upset over what had transpired.
Patrick hated walking into his office, detested how empty it felt without Sarah there. He couldn’t fathom being here day in and day out, minus the warm glow of her presence.
Everyone in the office walked on tiptoes around him, just as they did before his personal transformation. Rumor had spread that Sarah’s leaving was his fault. He had to agree even; he was only a part of the problem
Only Adewale and Nick asked him what had happened. They were the only two people who didn’t give him the cold shoulder and Patrick was so glad that at least someone aside from Henry gave him a chance.
“I was stupid,” he explained and told them about the letter. They then discussed the billable hour dilemma and how unfair he felt it was.
“I’ve worked my ass off for this company,” he raged. “I’ve billed more than anyone else since the day I first walked in this building. And because of a slight, and I mean slight, decrease in hours, they want to rip my life apart?
“I’ll fix this,” he told them… or actually himself.
“We know you will. Go do what needs doing.” Both of them gave him a quick pat on the back and sent him back to his office. Patrick felt something inside him warm up. Even if the whole building saw him as a backstabber or a cold, emotionless person, at least these two new friends would stand by him. This was another thing Sarah taught him.
Patrick looked at the empty desk again. The room was so quiet without her. His life was quiet without her. Sarah was that bird that flew into his life and breathed fresh air into it. She changed his life for the better. But he changed her life for the worse. He wished that he could say sorry to her again, but he knew that this wasn’t the time to try and apologize. He must get things done first.
The 24h floor was like the mini-trial court of the building. A lot of things happened on that floor. He visited it quite a few times himself. The first time was to talk with Susanna about his problem with partners. If there was anyone Patrick Greenburg was more cautious of than Jane Hunt, it would be Susanna.
He didn’t call Susanne or message her for an appointment. He was in no mood of protocol and, in fact, Patrick’s head screamed, “Screw protocol” loudly as he was walking towards her office.
His life was more than just his fame and his job now. He had Sarah, and if he could keep that part with him, he would rather not have the other two at all. Sarah had become the core puzzle piece in his life, and he would not part with it.
He knocked on her door and entered before she even could say ‘come in.' Susanna’s face reflected her surprise as he walked through the door.
“I didn’t receive any message about your appointment,” she said and Patrick took a deep breath. There was no way out of this now that he was in the room, not that he planned to back out in the first place.
“That was because I didn’t send any. It’s more of an urgent matter.”
Patrick glanced around her office, noting the piles of papers neatly arranged. It was an organized mess, much like his life felt at this moment. He always thought that he had a control over his life as long as he kept his head clear and made the right decisions. What an overestimation.
“Be quick with it then.” She pointedly looked at her watch.
There wasn’t a way to sugar coat things with this; Patrick realized. He couldn’t lie or make excuse in front of Susanna because, just like Jane, she could read him perfectly. He needed to plead his case and move on.
“I want you to withdraw the transfer of Sarah Blake. I want her to stay,” he said it plainly. Susanna’s face was still, offering no reaction to his request. He waited to see what would happen next.
“The transfer is already in process. You asked for me to move her, and I did. I don’t appreciate you barging in here. What is going on, Greenburg?” There was a firm sternness in her voice. He heard it before when she once came down to his floor to speak to one of the lawyers. The poor bastard was later fired. Now he could face the same thing too.
“The letter was written before I gave our partnership a chance. I was too hasty in my decision. My poor judgment should not cost the firm a high potential lawyer.”
“We are not losing her. I moved her, but she will still be a part of the firm. What point are you trying to make Greenburg?” Susanna’s eyes narrowed like a hawk’s gaze leering on its prey. Patrick never felt so small in the presence of another human being.
“I’m saying that I don’t want her to be moved. I stated in that letter that Sarah and I couldn’t make any good progress together which is a totally false accusation. You saw the report of our cases. You know how well we work together. Anyone can see that. He knew that he was letting on more than he intended to, but with Susanna; it would take more than a little logic to win her favor. However, from the look on her face, he knew that his words were still ineffective.
“Say, if what you said is true and I did what you asked, why should Sarah receive this special treatment? What about the others I moved because of you? For all I know, they could also be high potential lawyer just like you said. They could end up being highly compatible with you and yet, I moved them. Because of your request.” Patrick felt something tugging at his sleeves. Everything he did always came back to haunt him and bit him in the ass. There wasn’t a single excuse he could think of to counter that argument.
“Sarah is different.”
“Everyone is different, Greenburg. Are you done?” The door to his redemption was about to close. He knew the moment she said that. Patrick told himself to think fast and think hard. Time was something he couldn’t have. Even with years of experience in the court and almost perfect record, Patrick Greenburg was struggling to hold on to h
is promise.
“Wait,” he breathed out and said with a very uncertain voice, “I’m not done yet.”
Susanna knew he was finished. In her mind there wasn’t a single thing he could say to change her mind. But Patrick knew better. Sarah had told him often enough that he wasn’t always right. No one was. Patrick was certain that Suzanna wasn’t always correct either. He would take that leap of faith and gamble himself just like Sarah did.
“What about the Terres case?” Patrick asked. “Are you going to jeopardize that high profile case in such a way? Both Sarah and I have made frequent appearances in the media. It’s important we stand solid as a team.”
Suzanna’s jaw clenched. A good sign, he thought, so he continued.
“Think about this, the moment you replace Sarah for someone else, the press will notice. And then rumors will start flying, and unneeded attention will be turned your way. Is that what you want?”
“And I was also serious when I said I made the wrong decision. Sarah doesn’t deserve to be moved because of my mistake. And if you are worried that I’m being insolent and disrespectful, I will gladly resign if you see fit.”
Patrick knew that even if Susanna hated him, she wouldn’t want her best lawyer to resign. With his fame, he was the main attraction for the clients of this firm. Susanna wouldn’t let this opportunity slip by.
She waved her hands for him to leave and said nothing. Patrick bowed his head in respect before leaving the room, but not before he heard Susanna speak to him for the last time.
“I hope you are doing the right thing, Greenburg. I could see that the firm’s best interest isn’t your real intention. But for the sake of the case, I will do this. Never step a foot in here again. I am done with you and your partner complex.”
