Threatened to sign
Irene looked up, glaring at Bryce, with a dark face. The woman’s eyebrows met and she pressed her lips together. “Damn! Did you just throw me away like a rag doll?!” she yelled.
Bryce raised his hand and slapped Irene’s cheek, hard. The woman’s face turned to the left and a reddish handprint appeared on her cheek. Irene drew a breath and looked wide-eyed at the man standing in front of her. “W-Why did you slap me?” she asked, trembling. There were tears in the corners of her eyes.
Jenica frowned, displeased at what she saw. “Mr. Desmana, even though that woman slept with your mortal enemy, she’s still your fiancee and a woman. Your hand is too heavy for her.”
Bryce took a deep breath and turned around. “I don’t want to see your face. Leave!” he shouted.
Irene quickly stood and ran towards the door. The woman left the room and Jenica raised her eyebrows. “Aren’t you afraid that your employee will see what your fiancee looks like, Mr. Desmana?”
Bryce sneered. “My people will escort her straight to the basement. You don’t have to worry about my reputation. I’m not a kind-hearted man who will eat a loss.”
Jenica looked around inside and noticed the hidden camera in the corner of the room. She knew that it was Bryce who installed it so she didn’t bother to ask him.
After a few seconds of silence, she turned her gaze back to him. She was surprised to see Bryce’s eyes watering. He’s crying?
“Damn!” he cursed and messed up his hair. “I should’ve let my men investigate that damned Antonete!”
Jenica was at a loss for words. Seeing him cry like this, she got reminded by her child who always throws tantrums if he’s aggrieved.
‘Sham,’ she said in her mind and looked away. Sadness crossed her eyes but immediately disappeared when Bryce turned to her.
“Code X, how did you know all of that?” he asked.
Jenica raised a brow. “Don’t you know who I am?”
Just then Bryce laughed. His laugh was full of bitterness and Jenica didn’t talk until some time. She coughed a bit. “Now that you’ve known what those unfaithful couple did, it’s time to use them to shake Antonete Enterprise to the core.”
Bryce squinted. “What are you planning?”
“Seriously? I thought you didn’t care about Irene Mondragon?” She narrowed her eyes when she heard reluctance in his voice, and looked at him from head to toe. “If you’re uncomfortable smearing dirt on her reputation, then we’ll not do it.”
“Reluctant?” The corner of his lips twitched. “I am not! Let’s proceed with your plan!”
…
Desmana Mansion.
The sunlight had just entered the open window when there was a commotion inside the big mansion. All the maids looked at their phone in hand. From time to time they would whisper to each other and laughed together.
That was the scene that Jenica saw in the kitchen. When the servants saw her, they did not even greet her and continued to gossip.
“Great, Miss Irene is really sexy, isn’t she? The fairness of her skin,” whispered one of the maids.
“Yes. Then look at that man, the size of his muscles. It must feel good to experience a headlock from him!”
They laughed again.
The corner of Jenica’s lips rose and quietly brewed coffee on the side. After a while, she heard quick footsteps in the living room and suddenly the inside of the mansion became silent.
“Bryce! Bryce! Look at this photo! Irene’s cheating on you with that Antonete man!” shouted a woman, and Jenica recognized it as one of Bryce’s cousins.
“I know! I saw that photo!” Bryce snorted angrily.
“Ah! That’s why that girl didn’t come home last night! Maybe she slept in Joseph Antonete’s bed!”
“Shut up!” said Bryce.
“What? No! Grandma needs to know this!” The woman ignored Bryce’s mad words, and Jenica just heard quick footsteps going up the stairs. The woman maybe going to the old madam’s room.
Jenica raised her cup of steaming coffee and took a sip. Because she was an agent, she could hear the conversation in the living room even though the kitchen was a little far away. She had no plans to show her face to the Desmanas while they were in trouble because they would surely blame her.
When she went up the stairs after some time, a servant called her. “Miss Jane, Señora is calling you.”
Jenica sighed and followed the maid. She took her to the dining area where the members of the Desmanas were currently sitting at a long table. She saw Bryce on the other end with silent and dark face. Jenica’s face also darkened.
“Please have a sit,” the old woman sitting at the front of the table said in a serious tone. She was sure it was Bryce’s grandmother.
Jenica sat in the empty seat and looked up at the old woman. “What do you need from me?” she asked.
“Bryce told us that it’s you who found those photos of Irene and Joseph Antonete.” The old woman’s face soured but continued to speak. “You have skills to help my grandson solve his problems.”
“It’s my job to help him.”
The old woman smiled at her words. “If that’s the case, please sign this paper.” This prompted a maid to immediately approach Jenica to hand over a document. “This is a confidential agreement that you need to sign if you want to work for my grandson,” the old woman added.
Jenica raised her eyebrows and stared down at the paper she was holding. It was indeed a confidentiality agreement between her and Desmana Group. There was no problem if she sign a confidentiality agreement because it was indeed important in the nature of her job, bu there was a term inserted in the paper that made her raise a brow.
She looked back at the old woman. “You want me to dedicate my life to serve Desmana Group?” she asked with a smile.
When Bryce heard her words, he looked at the old woman wide-eyed. “Grandma, what’s this?” he asked.
“Young man, we should never let go of the people like Miss Jane Lau. She’s a great asset to the company that will help us reach great heights!” the old woman reasoned merrily.
Jenica looked deeper at the old woman and the smile on her lips did not diminish at all. “I can’t sign this agreement,” she said then threw the paper on the table.
The women gasped and the men frowned at what she did. The old woman’s expression didn’t even change as if she was expecting Jenica’s behavior. The smile on the old woman’s lips widened instead.
After a while, eight men wearing butler uniforms entered. They stood around Jenica with no expression on their faces. When the Desmanas saw the eight burly men sorrounding her, they all giggled and gloated on her misfortune of going against the old madam.
The corner of Jenica’s lips curled as she looked coldly at the old woman. “You want to force my hand to sign that paper?” she asked.
“They won’t force you if you’ll do it willingly,” said the old woman. “Even though my aides couldn’t find the details of your person, Miss Jane, but I believe you can’t win against the eight masters. They will not act against you if you sign the papers now.”
Jenica looked around the eight men surrounding her and she sneered. Bryce’s facial expression darkened and he looked at the old madam. “Grandma, stop this bullsh*t. Jane won’t sign anything!”
The old woman’s sharp gaze turned to Bryce. “You think I don’t know the current state of the Desmana Group? You are the President but you can’t make any decision without the approval of those old geezers!”
“Grandma,” the daughter-in-law of the Desmanas called softly. “Don’t blame Bryce. Afterall, we can’t force someone to sign those papers even if we are desperate to have a suitable person to handle those men.”
Jenica’s eyes narrowed and looked at the daughter-in-law who suddenly joined the conversation. At first, the woman seemed like speaking up for her, but for someone whose really desperate to pin her onto Desmana’s door, it’s an instigation. As expected, the wrinkles on the old wpman’s forehead deepened and she looked at Jenica greedily.
“Miss Jane, forgive us but you need to sign that agreement! I will not let you take a step outside that door unless you sign it!” yelled the old woman in a stern tone.
Jenica lazily looked at the Desmanas presently sitting around the table, but not a single one wanted to speak up for her. Even that daughter-in-law was smiling while talking to Bryce whose face was dark.
Ah. What a bunch of ingrates and hypocrites.
One thing she hated was forcing her to do something she doesn’t want to do. And these people have the guts to threaten her! Jenica’s jaw clenched.
She peered down at the papers on the table. She just needs to blink and that paper will be torn into pieces in her hands. But she still needs something from the Desmana Group, that’s why she couldn’t tear their faces now.
But soon… soon she’ll make them pay!
“Miss Jane,” Bryce suddenly called. Jenica looked at him and saw that he was still hesitant, but eventually spoke. “After our cooperation, I’ll let you go. I promise,” he said.
Jenica smiled gently. How could she forget the fact that Jane Lau was not her real name? And Bryce knew it from the start that’s why he didn’t oppose his grandmother’s scheme.
But so what? The mere fact that these bastards dare to threaten her to sign those damn papers was something unforgivable!This belongs to NôvelDrama.Org - ©.
Smiling a little, Jenica lifted the fountain pen beside the paper and signed the lower left of the agreement before giving it to the man beside her. Then she stood and took big steps to leave the dining table without a single bit of reluctance.
“Madam Desmana, here’s the agreement,” the man said politely and gave to the old woman the signed papers.
The old woman accepted the paper with a smile and looked at Jane Lau’s signature. But her smile disappeared from her lips and her eyes widened.
“Grandma, what’s wrong?” Bryce asked.
The old woman threw the paper in Bryce’s face and angrily left the dining table. Bryce frowned and peered down at the paper only for the corner of his lips twitched.
On the lower left of the paper where the signature should have been placed, it was written in large letters: DAMN YOU.