The Villain

Memories of childhood were the dreams that stayed with you after you woke.

~Julian Barnes.

KATE.

New York was meant for the rich. Only the wealthy people could survive here and ironically , I ,one of the poorest people on planet earth lived here. The fact that I could eat everyday was a small miracle, the fact that I found a place to stay - even though it was a tiny shoebox apartment - was an even bigger miracle.

But I tried not to be pessimistic. Today I had an interview at Rutledge Towers and I couldn't be happier. I was optimistic to my very bones and I was determined that I wasn't going to let anything spoil my day.

My white long-sleeved button down shirt was crisp and smooth and my pencil skirt was well ironed - I had even managed to tame the disaster that was my hair.

While my bank account said I was poor -excluding the money my Dad had left behind for me which I refused to touch-, my clothes said a different thing about me totally because I still had the clothes and shoes from my former life. I hadn't changed much in size so I just bought new thrift store clothes whenever my budget would let me.

I stepped into the lobby of Rutledge Towers and tried not to gawk at the luxuriousity of the place. Rutledge Towers was one of the biggest buildings in New York and had other branches in several other countries .

Landing a job here would really help considering the bills I got piling up at home.

I met the receptionist and gave her the name of the woman who I had an appointment with and she asked me to go to the sixteenth floor. Mind you, the building had sixty floors.

I got in the elevator and pushed the button for floor sixteen and as the elevator ascended, I took time to stare at my reflection in the elevator walls. I looked clean and smart. Good. I needed to impress the woman.

When the elevator doors opened, I stepped out and asked for directions until I got to an office around the corner with a name crested in black on the door. Sue Montgomery. She was the person I was supposed to be seeing.

Taking a deep breath and hoping for the best, I knocked on her door and waited before I heard a flat " Come in "

I opened the door, stepped in and closed it behind me facing her in the right manner and stood waiting for her to ask me to take a seat before sitting. I was not going to fuck this up.

'Sit down' She said without looking up from the document she was staring at.

I took the seat, which was placed directly in front of her and sat down. Sue Montgomery was a thin woman with fox-like feautures and blue eyes. She had an air about her that said she didn't take bullshit. If there was ever a picture of a disciplinarian, she would be it.

She finally looked up, placing the document on the desk next to her laptop. She laced her hands in front of her.

"Why should we hire you?" She asked.

Because you're hiring. The sarcastic in me thought but I kept her zipped and thrown in a basement. She was not going to be causing trouble for me today.

"I feel I'm the perfect person for the job." I said, my voice even.

She raised a brow then leaned back in her chair, air of authority and all.

"How so?" She asked.

"I'm hardworking , strong-willed, independent and above all I need this job too much to take it for granted." I exhaled.

She leaned forward, "You start work tomorrow. Now I would usually give you a day or two to prepare but we need a person for this post like yesterday." She said, her eyes on the document. "Can you meet up?"

Were my ears playing tricks on me or did I hear her right?

"I got the job?" I croaked, my eyes bulging out of their sockets.

"Yeah, that's what I said. I saw your certificate everything looks good. You should be okay." she got up from her seat and walked around her desk to lean on it next to me, "I expect you to start tomorrow, everything's pretty basic but I'll give you a rundown of whatever you need to know tomorrow." she said, extending her hand for a handshake .

I got up and shook her hand ,my heart pounding in my ears. I freaking got the job . I couldn't believe it. I mean I came in here optimistic as hell but she barely asked two questions before she accepted me.

" I will not let you down. " I said to her, unable to stop the smile pulling at my lips.

"Here's to hoping you don't" She returned to her seat with a small smile, "See you tomorrow." She said.

I turned around and left, keeping my face blank while inside my head I was doing cartwheels and waving pom-poms in the air.

Guess who just got a job paying five figures?

••••••••

That night, I couldn't sleep a wink. I got up super early the next morning, took my much needed coffee and ate breakfast.

I'd already laid out a well ironed pantsuit and hung it up so it wouldn't get wrinkled. I hadn't bothered to do anything overly stylish with my hair since it would always bounce back to its natural ringlet form so I'd just put it in a ponytail.

In less than an hour time, I was dressed and ready to conquer the world -at least in my head.

I stared at my reflection in the mirror. I'd inherited Dad's grey eyes but that's where our similarities ended. Everything else I got from my grandmother. Or so I was told. She died before I could ever meet her.

I was 5"5, tan skin with a modest cleavage. Although what I lacked in the front, I made up for in the back. Mom said I'd gotten my wide ass and hips from my Grandmother, along with my hair. The only trait I got from Mom was her short temper.

It was still strange to me though. Going from having everything to nothing in the span of three years.

Mom and Dad died in a fatal car crash, crushed into tiny pieces- at least that was what the report said. There was no body to bury.

Apparently, Dad had left behind an unpaid debt so our house had been collected as payment.

I had to move out and find my own place with my meagre savings and start a life. Before I landed this job as assistant to the head of HR, I'd been a waitress at a local restaurant downtown. Unfortunately, I had to resign because my boss was was a disgusting manwhore.

When he'd begun making unprofessional remarks about how I looked in my work uniform, I'd confided in my coworker and I was told that was how it was around there and that if I wanted to keep my job, I'd let him have his way.

I was horrified, but being the optimistic person I was, I'd believed that I could reason with him to see that it created a bad atmosphere at work. Until he'd "accidentally" grabbed my ass and I'd quit.

I blinked, bringing myself back to the present. Suffice to say, I looked smart and ready and I was going to have a great day.

I arrived at work by train and still made it ten minutes early. I waved the receptionist with a small smile on my face.

" Hey." She beamed, "How are you?"

"Splendid. You?"

"I'm great. Have a nice day." She clipped as I passed her, entering the elevator.

There was one other person in the elevator with me, a man maybe in his late forties or early fifties.

He regarded me with a warm smile.

"First day?"

I blinked, taken aback, "Yeah, how did you know? "

He waved a hand dismissively, "I know almost everyone who works here. Besides I'm not sure I'd forget you if I ever saw you." He said.

Wasn't he a little too old to be hitting on me? "Um."

His smile widened "Don't worry I'm married." he flashed his ring, " I meant your hair." he gestured with his hands, "It's unusual."

Realization dawned on me, "Oh." I fingered it, "Yeah, everyone says that."

The elevator stopped at my floor and I got out.

"Have a nice day. " I said to the man.

" You too." he waved as the elevator's doors closed.

I moved around the floor saying hi to everyone I came across when Sue Montgomery came in, looking smart in a blazer and a button-down. I walked over to her.

" Good- "

" I'm so sorry I didn't show you to your office yesterday," she cut me off, "it totally escaped me."

"Oh, it's okay. I just came in anyway." I waved it off.

" This way." She led me in the direction of her office and continued on until we came across the last office . She opened the door for me with the hand that wasn't holding her bag.

I stepped in. The room was big, spacious with a single wooden desk and an office chair at the centre and a couch by the left corner. It had a glass window that gave a beautiful view of the city and a painting on the wall. Suffice to say, it was nice.

"What do you think?" She raised a brow.

I smiled "It's lovely. Thank you."

"I'll see you later." she said turning away with a throwaway 'get settled in'

" Count on it. " I yelled after her.

Thirty minutes later, I got a laptop and a little notebook, compliment of the company. My boss gave me the rundown on things and I got into work.

Drew.

" On your knees. " he said, his back to me.

I gulped. Mom and Dad weren't home and my nanny , Ms Sterling, was nowhere to be found. There was no one to help me. Not that I could tell anybody anyway.

I dropped to my knees, every fiber of my being fighting this. I wanted to fight him, but the last time I did, it had only made him more excited.

He turned toward me with a smile. His grey eyes lighting up in the way that made me sick.

"I'll make you love this as much as I do." he drawled, making his way to me with measured steps. "Open up".

I sat up on the bed, dripping sweat. I dragged my hand down my face and checked the time, 3am.

I got up and searched my medicine cabinet for some pills. I rarely slept without having nightmares, that's why I hated sleep so much. They took me back to a time I wanted to forget - when I was weak, helpless and used. A part of my life no one knew about.

I went to the kitchen to make myself coffee how I liked it. Black. I sipped, shaking the remnants of my nightmare away.

The source of my nightmare was dead. Killed years ago by yours truly yet the man still haunted me from his grave- not that he had one anyway. He was exactly where he should be - in the fucking mud in the middle of nowhere.

The difference between me and every other person on this planet was that everybody needed somebody. I, on the other hand, did not need anybody. I was perfectly fine on my own.

No one took the fall for you when you were in deep shit, no one took your shots for you at the hospital and no one could experience the demons that tormented you. No one could fucking fight them. No one but you. So if you need to know who got your back then go look in the mirror.

I took a seat by my kitchen island, appreciating the view my penthouse gave me of the city. I saw New York in all its glory.

I finished my coffee and poured a new one, taking it with me inside my home office.

I rarely had time for anything else in my life other than work and I liked it just fine. Being the CEO of Rutledge Towers, a business chain that had branches in four other countries, demanded almost all of my time and seeing that I had little else to do, why not work?

I'd had two major things I wanted.

#1 Kill the bane of my existence .

#2 Become CEO of Rutledge Towers .

After successfully dropping the source of my nightmares, I'd given it a month then gone after my father who'd been less than willing to hand over the company to me. I had to blackmail him of course .

My pathetic excuse for a father was a walking pile of bad decisions and I didn't need him running my company into the ground and leaving me with dust so I'd had to take matters into my hands forcefully .

I booted my computer and dove into work, I knew I couldn't go back to sleep anymore since I usually woke up by five anyway.

An early day never killed anybody. At least that's what I thought.

Now most people might say I lead a pathetic life. I rarely visited my parents, had no friends to speak of, other than my lawyer who I shared drinks with whenever I had the luxury, and had no girlfriend.

Well, people could go fuck themselves because they didn't know me. All they knew about me was what was written in the Times and just a few of them were true.

I was a very impatient person and I didn't see myself making any friends with this trait - not that I needed one.

My parents were a different case altogether. Their marriage was one of convenience, it wasn't honored. My mom was seventy five percent plastic, updating herself to whatever newest version my dad seemed to like and for some reason she liked my presence although this was due to the fact that dad was always MIA no doubt plowing his way through every hooker hole in Manhattan. Seemed to me the man was enthusiastic about catching an STD.

I took a sip of my coffee and buried myself in work, pushing away any lingering disturbing thoughts from my mind.

Kate.

Time flew fast and before I knew, it was my third week of work. Coincidentally, it was the week for the company dinner.

The company dinner was hosted once a year and it was a way of meeting all the workers and shareholders in the company. Due to the fact that the company was huge and every floor was focused on a particular aspect of work, people rarely saw each other.

What put a damper on my mood was getting a dress for the event. It was a formal event, lots of people would be coming and how we presented ourselves on that day would more or less describe the company. I did not want to mess it up.

I was seated at my desk in my office rearranging my boss's files alphabetically. I'd also rescheduled her calendar since I noticed that some of her meetings clashed. It was 5pm already and I had one hour left before I closed for the day.

I finished in record time, turned off the computer and office light then got out off my office headed for my boss'.

I knocked on her door.

"Come in. " She said.

I opened the door and peeked my head in. She was writing on a piece of paper.

"What's up?"

"I rearranged your files for you and also your calendar, I fixed the mix-ups."

She smiled, exhaling, "Oh my God. " she massaged her temple, " It's been giving me a headache."

" Yeah, I figured." I told her, a small smile on my face

"You're a lifesaver, Kate. " she said.

I shrugged. It's not like I was going to be paid for sitting down doing nothing all day.

"I wanted to let you know I'm heading out. "

She frowned, checking for the time on her wristwatch "Oh, it's 6 already. " She got up from her chair and stretched subtely, keeping her things in the drawers.

"You're leaving too?" I asked her.

"We are leaving" she replied.

I frowned at her word choice "We? "

She shrugged on her suit jacket and pushed me outside her office, closing the door behind her.

"Where are we going?" I tried again.

"To a boutique." She said walking ahead of me to the elevators.

"Why?" Apparently my brain was working slowly.

"The dinner party is on Friday. " I blinked. She frowned, " Don't tell me you forgot about it," she huffed, "everyone's been anticipating it."

The elevator's closed. "No. I didn't forget" I said, still confused, " I mean why are we going to the boutique? "

Blue eyes landed on me. "To get a dress of course. Do you have one already? "

"No -"

"Then there's no problem. " she said cutting me off.

The doors opened and we stepped out, saying hi to the receptionist, who was about leaving, as we passed .

Why were we going to the boutique together?

Was that how things were around here?

Was there a particular boutique that my company shopped at?

I had so much in my head as we got into a taxi. The distress must have shown on my face because she spoke immediately we started moving.

"Why do I feel like I'm forcing you? "

"You're not. It's just " I sighed, nibbling on my lower lip, "You probably shop somewhere expensive , I wouldn't be able to afford it." My cheeks reddened as I looked away, too embarrassed to face her.

"Oh. You don't have to worry about that at all " she assured me, "It's on me."

My head whipped around, my mouth slack, "For real? "

She chuckled "Totally. I want to do something nice for you. "

"Why though? " I asked, curious. I knew I should be thanking her instead of asking questions but I'd had to work to earn every single thing I had in my life. I never had things given freely to me.

"Are you kidding? " she threw her hands in the air, "You've done more here in two weeks than some employees do in a year. "

I frowned. Still. "Isn't that what I'm paid for? "

She sighed "Say thank you, Kate. "

I couldn't help but laugh at how exasperated she was "Thank you, Mrs Montgomery. I really appreciate it. " and I meant it, this took a whole lot of load off my shoulders.

We got to a boutique that had a CLOSED sign on the door. My boss made a call and we were immediately ushered in by a woman, no doubt the owner of the place. Drinks were shoved in our hands as several designer dresses were held in front of us.

My boss kept shaking her head no until a particular red number was brought for me to try out.

One of the girls helped me into it and I gaped at my reflection in the mirror. It was absolutely beautiful!

"This is definitely your dress. " my boss smiled, taking a sip of her wine. I agreed.

When I heard the amount, I nearly passed out.

"Surely, I can't take it." I said, already taking the gown off

"You can and you must." She said, picking out a dress for herself.

"But the price!" I cried.

"You're taking the gown, Kate." and it was final.

While the price was outrageous, the gown was totally worth it though. It had an open back that stopped just above my ass and a slit that ran up the side of my right leg.

Silver shoes and a clutch were packaged for me, alongside the gown.

Mrs. Montgomery finally settled on a royal blue cocktail gown that made her eyes pop.

I kept on thanking my boss even though she'd repeatedly told me not to bother.

"See you tomorrow." she waved as we went our separate ways.

When I got home, I carefully hung up my gown in my wardrobe. I found myself getting excited for Friday.