Pushing open the door leading her outside of the office, the clacking of her heels punctuating her exit. Laia was glad to see glasses guy greeting her. The emotion wasn’t directed towards the person himself, rather the expression on his face. She was sure he was trying his best to school his expression into one of calm.

Unfortunately, one eye was twitching.

She didn’t even think that could happen outside of cartoons.

“Madam, how did it go?” He asked her as Alissa appeared.

His eyes flickered between the two. Laia sighed.

“Look,” she said, “Kid– what’s your name?”

“Uh, it’s Aidan.”

“Okay, Aidan. If you want to keep something under wraps, stop drawing attention onto it. Just breeze through, don’t ask for any questions or follow-ups,” she patted his shoulder. “Don’t worry. I’ll let today pass, alright?”

He understood that she knew immediately. “Thank you, madam.”

Laia wasn’t at all trying to be a good person. The fact that he was even allowed clearance on this floor at all meant that he could be useful. She needed someone on the inside to be indebted to her somehow.

“I’ll be taking this with me,” she waved a folder with the numbers 871 printed on it; making a beeline towards the elevator. Alissa followed after. “Find someone else to be your boss’ secretary. She’s not applying here anymore,” Laia said.

Aidan opened his mouth, but at a raised eyebrow from her, he quickly closed it.

Good enough.

She subtly turned her head towards Alissa’s direction as she pressed the button for the ground floor. “You’re not going to say goodbye?” She asked.

There was a pause.

“I…,” Alissa couldn’t answer, choosing to look away. Guilt lowered her brows.

Laia noted this as the beginning of romantic discourse between the female lead and her miscellaneous suitors. Ah, the typical aversion to confrontation and eventual cultivation of misunderstandings. The bread and butter of romance novels and extending their word counts.

Being able to see it with her own two eyes?

It was free entertainment.

A ding, a descent, and a Dodge Challenger later, the two of them were on the road. Saffron was safely tucked into a cat car seat. There were at least two SUV’s flanking each side of the automobile; eight in total.

Inside, Laia knew there were men and women towering at least six foot five; each armed to the teeth. To live the life of the rich meant some sacrifices needed to be made. In this case, it was privacy. Unless she was at home, she never had a moment alone even if it seemed that way.

She was surprised she was even allowed to drive a car on her own.

“Miss Raine?” Alissa’s voice broke the silence on a red light.

Laia quirked a brow, “Hmm?”

“Why me? Why’d you get me? There are so many people more qualified–I don’t even have a degree. I wouldn’t even be able to get to the final round of interviews if Aidan didn’t… intervene,” she rushed her words in a single breath.

It wasn’t easy to answer, because she had a point. Obviously, Laia couldn’t say that the reason she’d been hired was because she had the protagonist halo, now could she?

She settled with an answer that suited her.

“Why not?” It was a classic response that would make the asker want to skewer the askee with a stick. Silence settled in the car after that. It was a rather awkward one, causing Laia to sigh.

“How about this,” she wanted to gag at what she was about to say, “There’s no rationale or logic behind my decision. Let’s just say that I had a gut feeling that you would be the right person.” Cheesy line out of the way; she turned the wheel as a robotic GPS voice chimed into the conversation.

Laia finally pulled up to their destination; a street with stores sitting shoulder to shoulder. In large, metallic letters that caught the glare of the sun were rows and rows of designer brand names.

Leaving the car to the valet; bodyguards began to flank them left and right. Saffron was once again placed in her handbag– not that he minded it very much. He seemed to be enjoying cat life just fine; simply eating, sleeping, crawling into small spaces, and sleeping again.

It was an existence worthy of envy.

“Is this where I’ll be working?” Alissa asked as they walked into a building three stories high– all dedicated to a single brand. The ambiance was one of sophistication; with everyone inside, customers and staff alike were dressed to the nines.

Laia wasn’t particularly familiar with things related to fashion and the like. She only went into this boutique because its name was scrawled onto the tag on the fitted maroon suit she was currently wearing.

“Mrs. Norton!” A bubbly red-headed girl jumped at the sight of her. She was a very beautiful girl; dressed in a dark green blouse, with tan dress pants to accentuate her long legs. A little name tag was pinned onto her chest. ‘Finn,’ it read.

Laia blinked for a little while before responding to her married name.

“Oh, yeah?” she could only assume that this person had been Raine’s shopping assistant.

“I haven’t seen you in a while! I hope all is well with you. Would you like to check out our latest releases?” Finn asked, already gesturing towards the upper levels of the store.

“No,” Laia shook her head, “Finn, could you take care of Alissa over here? I need a week’s worth of suits, skirts, blouses, and a formal dress for functions. Get some accessories in there too, please.”

Finn nodded, but Alissa looked at her confused.

“Go. This is your mandatory makeover montage. You’re one of my people now. I can’t have you embarrassing me, now can I?” Laia waved her away; her phone clutched in her hands. The other girl still looked shocked, but obediently followed Finn into the fitting rooms.

Tapping on her phone screen, she dialed a number that she had become familiar with in the past few days.

A click came from her speaker.

“Is he at their apartment?” she asked.

“Yes, Young Miss. We’ve surrounded the house. We’re all on standby waiting for your arrival,” a feminine voice replied.

Laia nodded, “Good. How about records of Alissa from the office?”

“Tapes and documents wiped. The replacements have been made and we ensured no witnesses besides Aiden Weaver.”

“Excellent. Expect us in an hour or two. Thank you for your work, diana.”

“You’re welcome, Young Miss.” Another click signaled the end of the call.

Finn was very efficient in her job. In about an hour, Alissa had the clothes, shoes, and miscellaneous items she needed. “Good to go?” Laia asked.

“Yes,” Alissa bobbed her head, “Thank you, again.” She eyed all the bags the bodyguards held. “Isn’t this too much, though?”

Laia waved her hand, “I’ve already paid for it. Consider it company expenses.”

A week with the Hastings had been the biggest bout of socio-economic shock that anyone could have. She was pretty sure that with every second she was breathing, her net worth was increasing. It made her less stingy with money.

“Thank you again,” Alissa looked to the floor. Seeing her do so made Laia want to sigh. With the position she’d be holding, they’d need to knock those conservative mannerisms out of her. She had already shown that she was capable of holding her own earlier, so why had that attribute disappear now?

Back on the road, Alissa couldn’t help but find the surroundings familiar. She turned to Laia, not knowing why this heiress was driving towards the worst parts of town.

They arrived in front of a decrepit apartment building. The walls were stained with dirt and duck tape was stuck haphazardly all over random windows. Unlike a usual weekend, there were no smokers or roughhousing men sitting outside.

“Miss?” This was her place.

“No lingering attachments?” Laia asked.

Alissa furrowed her brows, “What?”

“To your father. Are there any more lingering attachments between you and your father?” she clarified.

It wasn’t hard for Alissa to answer. “None.”

Laia nodded; shutting off the Dodge’s motor. She handed the female lead the keys. “There are about eight bodyguards at your disposal here. Whatever you choose to do will be kept under wraps. If you want a soundproof room, tools, or anything just ask. When you’re done, they’ll escort you to a safer residence,” she opened the door.

Alissa was dumbfounded; the keys in her palm suddenly bearing an unprecedented weight.

“Miss?” she forced out.

“Oh,” Laia hit the side of the vehicle, “Don’t worry about this thing. It’s a peasant car. Ew, right?” A wicked smile appeared on her face, “Report at the Amity Tower on Monday, 10am. 78th floor.”

Without waiting for her to reply, Laia left the girl with an addled look on her face.

Saffron peered up from her hand bag; watching as she approached a muscular woman, diana, and entered a car that had been prepared for her. “You know, Lady Laia,” he said when they were alone, “On occasion, you are quite nice.”

Laia pulled a face. It was worrisome how low his standards must be to think that what she had done was nice. “Nah,” she snorted.

She just thought that it would be interesting to see if the heroine would be able to turn the other cheek, or if she would choose a different approach–a more brutal one– entirely.