Artifice of Love

Chapter 5

Celine stood in front of the tall building that housed Nathan Crisp Fashion Designs gazing at its reflective glass windows and silver exterior. The structure loomed over her, daunting and majestic, a symbol of  Nathan's status and success.

She could only hope to reach his level someday. But with Stacey's offer, such dreams didn;t seem so futile anymore. Like they were only an arm's reach away.

She felt strange as she entered the entered the crowded building, the familiar atmosphere now foreign after her time away. She felt detached as if she was stuck in a dream, everything moving in slow motion.

The people she had once looked up to now seemed insignificant; they were basically Nathan's slaves, working for him until they were fired or their use died away.

But with Stacey Callingher, celine would enjoy better luck. Her role model was known for valuing her employees and helping them reach new heights. She had never engaged in schemes of selfish greed.

Celine smiled and nodded at the colleagues she was aquantained with but quickened her pace so  she could catch Nathan at his office. She wondered whether it was a good idea to confront her boss as she pushed through the surge of employees and took the elevator up to his office.

She no longer needed her job back but she didn't want Nathan to think that she had left without a fight.

Nathan Crisp was a thin stylish man with a patronizing smile and what most considered a 'bad' temperament.

Heavily dyed hair and facial procedures did little to hide the fact that he was nearing his mid-fifties and this annoyed him to no end. He wore a loose-fitting striped shirt with finely stitched chino pants. A gray scarf hung around his neck despite the warm weather.

Nathan looked perplexed as to why Celine was sitting in his office.

"What are you doing?" he asked, his voice stone cold. "You're not supposed to be here."

Usually, she would have flinched at his tone, but it didn't faze her. "I never leaked your designs."

She had never been this direct to Nathan despite working for him for years. Now that she was leaving, he wasn't a role model to her. Just a sour middle-aged man that had nothing going for him except some mid-tier designs and a few splashes of fame.

Nathan gave her a devilish grin. "But the person who received them said you did."

"How about the police," Celine countered. "You could ask them to investigate."

"I can't let word out that my designs were leaked," Nathan murmured, twiddling a pen between his fingers. "Imagine the disgrace."

"What you're doing is illegal," Celine said. "It goes against employment regulations."

She knew Nathan didn't care about that. He believed himself to be above the law. 

"You could sue me," said Nathan. But I don't think you have the time or money to do that."

His too-white smile revealed sharp teeth that resembled fangs.

Celine shuddered. The man clearly had no conscience. But that didn't matter to her now.

"You could send me to jail," said Celine. "But you can't because there's not enough evidence to prove that I'm the one that did it."

When Nathan looked away, she knew she was right. There had been rumors of employees getting laid off in order to maximize company profit. Nathan had just wanted to fire her. He'd found a justification so was easier for him that way.