QED

Chapter 20 - Joanne | Phoebe

The elevator shot upwards, like a rocket that has just launched. Her blood was boiling. All the anger from the past days rested on her shoulders, dominated by the fact that her beloved boss had just left her with her fangirls alone.

She could punch the air. Now, it was Joanne who felt responsible for Keira's rib fracture or Phoebe's cerebral concussion. She herself was gifted with a wrist fraction and several bruises at the shoulder. That wasn't even bothering her.

She spammed the button for floor 93 on repeat. As soon as she noticed that the elevator was slowing down, she enhanced the kinetic energy of the metallic box. The other employees in the skyscraper could use other elevators.

Or the staircase. Her case was definitely a priority.

Her hands were clenched to tight fists when the modern doors of the elevator parted. She hushed through the slim split, walking into a long corridor with several glass doors. It got illuminated by the bright sunlight, coming from all the windows the offices offered.

To her right side, a small reception appeared, with a woman sitting behind it. Joanne completely ignored the friendly 'Good afternoon' and passed her without a word, heading towards the end of the hallway.

The offices were filled with all the staff Alice had employed for Yoour Security, some familiar faces, some she had never seen before. Admittedly, as a manager, Joanne should know the people she dealt with...

Two white doors with milky glass were at the end of the hallway. Joanne turned up her nose at the welcoming sign at the door handle. Nobody was really welcomed if Alice was in her own office.

However, Joanne didn't really care. In fact, she even wanted to provoke her CEO. Her pulse was at an all-time high, her teeth gritted together. She needed to get rid of that pressure.

That was also the reason why she didn't even knock and immediately barged into Alice's office.

"Have you lost your mind?" Joanne yelled. The glassy door smashed against the perfect-painted wall, creating a small carve.

At first, the room seemed to be empty. The long panorama-window provided an amazing view on Manhattan and the Empire State Building. To her left, there was a small couch with a modern table and some artistic pictures. Joanne was sure she couldn't even afford one of them.

In front of her was Alice's neat and organized desk, decorated with an iMac, a MacBook and a fancy little statue. Yeah, she really lived an extravagant life...

Slowly, way too slowly, the black chef-armchair spun around, revealing a blond-haired woman in a grey suit. Although her appearance might have been a typical Alice thing, she didn't get distracted in any way.

Joanne barely became furious. Today, she made an exception.

"Good afternoon, Joanne," Alice said in a far too friendly way.

Joanne snorted. "Spare the greetings. I've better things to do than listening to your calm ass." She approached her boss in record speed, smashed her fist onto the fine table and glared at the woman.

Alice's smile dropped, probably because of Joanne's vulgar language. She stared back at her, the brown, piercing eyes looking right through her soul.

"Why are you here?" Her tone changed in less than a second. Now, her neutral and cold voice filled the room, matching with her iron expression. The tight bun made her face look even more morbid.
"Are you kidding me? You just sent me to hell, my dear." Joanne clenched her teeth and hissed. Her boss was still looking at her with an undefinable expression, no anger, no frustration, not even a hint of regret lying in her eyes.