Destroyed For All Others

Chapter 35 - Painting

This body of work is available exclusively on Wattpad. If you're viewing it on a different website or under a different username, it has been illegally stolen, and you may be at risk of malware. Please do not support these sites, as writing a book takes long hours of hard work and effort. Head over to Wattpad and let me, the original author, know if you encounter this situation by finding me @greenwitchwrites.

Niklaus

"Niklaus?" Shelley directly addressing me pulls my attention from the message I received minutes ago, which had successfully distracted me from the boardroom meeting I was currently chairing.

"Sorry. Something urgent has come up. Let's reschedule for sometime next week. Sylvia will send out the minutes and get you the signed contract Shelley," I say, not sticking around to see the surprised looks on everyone's faces. Ade especially. My distracted behavior was unusual. Work always came first. That was until a gorgeous brown-haired angel with sad eyes walked into my life. Now every minute was spent obsessing over her.

I enter my office, slamming the door shut before I hit dial on my phone. As usual, I am met with an engaged tone. The same tone for three weeks now. Since our last conversation on the jet, before I was taken away by the police, all contact with Allegra has been a few short messages and numerous unsuccessful calls from my side.

As soon as I was released from jail, which was mere hours later when Kraven suddenly withdrew the changes, I tried calling her. Since then, I have struggled to get hold of her. The whole situation seemed bizarre, from Kraven dropping the charges to Allegra going radio silent. But I couldn't piece the two together. I couldn't find a connection and even went so far as to call Kraven and ask him why he dropped the charges. He told me he had changed his mind and then laughed, his parting word still confusing me. Jail is not the worst thing that can happen to you. He said that, continued laughing, and then put the phone down. I assume he has something else up his sleeve, but what, I am not sure. Extra precaution is being taken with the mole in the business still not identified, with Shelley handling all major deals and top management involvement limited to only those we explicitly trust. So Kraven shouldn't have any further openings to sabotage Rosi International in the near future until we can find the spy.

"Fuck," I say out loud, just as the door to my office opens. Only Ade would come in without knocking.

"She still isn't answering?" Ade asks, taking a seat on the large couch in my office, one I have often slept on when pulling an all-nighter.

"No. She sent me this," I say, throwing my phone on the coffee table so it slides to the other side.

Ade picks it up, reading the message out loud.

"Please don't call me anymore, Niklaus. I had a great time, but I need to focus on work. You deserve someone who can give you their time. At the moment, I have no room in my life for romantic distractions. I'm sorry."

"Mmm, Aashiv has been receiving similar responses when trying to get hold of her. Maybe she really is just busy with work," Ade says, trying to make me feel better though even he sounds unsure.

"I wanted to give her space, but after this message, I can see that if I don't do something, the beginning of something great will end before it's been given a proper chance. I just can't figure out why she is pushing me away. We had an amazing time on Rosi Island. She even admitted to me that it was her best time in years. Then I get this shit," I say to Ade, pointing to my cell lying discarded on the table.

"You know she is the girl from the ball four years ago," I say, massaging my temples as a headache start forming.

"Really!" Ade says, sitting up straight, a huge smile forming. "Geezus Niklaus, that's awesome. I know how long you searched for her."