The Sugar Slump #OnceUponNow

Chapter 3

Christmas Eve was not a day that I intended to be at the office.

It was ludicrous, expecting the CEO to drop any potential plans to come in for an emergency board meeting that simply couldn't wait. But that was exactly what happened today.

I grumbled into my cup of coffee. Lisa, being the organized and helpful person that she was — had sent a car that should be at my apartment anytime now. Meanwhile, I was "enjoying" my last bit of freedom before the nightmare that was sure to come.

A few minutes later, I received a text from an unknown number, letting me know that they were out front and waiting. Great.

I made my way downstairs, out the door, and into the backseat of the limo without a glance at the driver, "Make it snappy," I muttered.

The car veered out of the circle and into traffic. The driver didn't say a word, and neither did I. Instead, I looked down at my phone, answering various emails to pass the time.

When I finally looked up, Sugar Sweet Dreams was in sight on the right hand side. I gathered my things and waited for the driver to get into the right lane so he could get there.

He never did.

The company building was approaching, and fast. If he didn't go now, we'd miss it entirely. I reached up front and tapped him on the shoulder, patiently saying, "You need to cross over."

He turned slightly, his unfamiliar grey eyes looking at me with something akin to disdain. It was a look that no employee of my company would ever dare to give me, unless they had an unemployment wish.

Then — it hit me.

"We're not going to my company building...are we?" It wasn't a question.

His utter silence, accompanied by a small smirk — told me everything I needed to know.

My heart began pounding inside my chest. I leaned back in my seat, trying to keep calm.

I kept my eyes on the young driver, who was now watching me carefully in the rear view mirror. Meanwhile, my hand reached for my phone. All I needed was a few seconds, maybe a minute and nothing more, and I would be fine.

No sooner than I dialed the police and raised the phone towards my ear, my wrist was in a vice-like grip, and the phone was flung forward, hitting the windshield with enough force to break it. A scream left my lips, but his hand reached forward to cover my mouth, silencing me.

"Calm down," He said in a voice that sounded close to panicked, "I'm not going to hurt you."

He released his grip on me, and I instantly shot away from him. The car swerved, and we nearly ran headfirst into a car on the opposite side of the road.

I screamed.

He was able to gain control of the car just in time, sending us back into the right lane with a symphony of honks following us. Wide-eyed, I could only stare.

The driver's shoulders were tense, and he was hunched over the steering wheel, taking labored breaths. The car had slowed considerably, in fact, it was slow enough that I could step out and not get seriously hurt.

Slowly, I reached for the door and —

His head whipped around, eyes locked on mine. My hand was just inches from the door, but I was frozen in place.

His eyes widened, "Don't get out, okay? I was serious about what I said before: I'm not going to hurt you."

"Then what are you doing?" I asked.

What he said next left me speechless:

"Mr. Claus asked me to pick you up. He wants a word with you. But now he's going to kill me for nearly getting you hurt," He groaned.

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