It was another Monday morning. The beginning of a new working week.

Employees of TransGlobal filled the office, chatting heartily as they prepared for another five days of hard work. With coffee cups filled and laptops switched on, the good old busy day lay ahead.

Then the front door opened, and she walked in.

The buzz instantly froze, and everyone stared in astonishment as she gleefully belted out a loud greeting.

“Good morning, everyone! It’s so lovely to see all of you again!”

Looking as formal as could be, Asibi walked through the office, a bright and cheerful expression on her face as she flashed bright smile at the stunned faces around her. A few murmured polite responses, their eyes wide with disbelief. Others simply stared, unsure of how to react.

As far as they were concerned, she had been let go by the company, and plans were in place to hire a new project manager. So her sudden reappearance raised a lot of questions. The gossip mill would certainly be going into overdrive that week.

Asibi was totally unfazed, gliding past fellow workers with a saccharine and unbothered demeanour. She quickly made her way to the office of the CEO, ready to make her presence known to him.

When she approached Rosemary’s desk, the secretary’s hands paused over her keyboard. Her usually warm demeanor was replaced with a strained expression.

“Asibi,” Rosemary said, her voice careful. “I didn’t realize you were coming back.”

“Oh, yes!” Asibi said with a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Didn’t Mr. Doku tell you? He reached out to me last week and was so kind to bring me back on board. I couldn’t believe it myself. What an absolute gem of a boss we have, don’t you think? A real gentleman with a heart of gold.”

Rosemary’s lips pressed into a thin line, but she nodded. “Yeah, I agree,” she replied quietly. “He’s in his office, by the way. You can go in to see him.”

“Thank you, dear,” Asibi smiled, her tone syrupy as usual. She tilted her head slightly, studying Rosemary’s face. “Are you okay, by the way? You look a little tired. Or stressed, I should say. Is everything alright.”

Rosemary’s jaw tightened, but she forced a polite smile. “I’m fine. Nothing’s wrong.”

“Okay. But please, do take care of yourself, alright?”

Rosemary nodded stiffly. “Thank you. Please, go on in.”

Asibi winked and sauntered toward Willem’s office, her heels clicking with an annoying cheekiness. She didn’t bother knocking, pushing the door open with the same bold confidence that had carried her through the office.

As expected, Willem was seated behind his desk, his hands clasped tightly together. His face was a mask of cold disdain, and his jaw clenched tightly as he looked up at her. She didn’t have to be a mind reader to know that the man was absolutely seething that she was back.

Not that she cared an iota, though.

“Good morning, Mr. Willem Doku!” Asibi greeted brightly, closing the door behind her. “It’s so good to be back.”

He didn’t reply, his icy gaze following her as she took a seat across from him.

“Well, well, well,” she continued, folding her hands neatly in her lap as she kept her sweet smile plastered, “I can tell you’re just thrilled to see me again. Absolutely pumping!”

Willem’s expression didn’t change. The silence stretched between them like a taut wire.

“You know,” she said, her voice laced with mock concern, “your dear Rosemary isn’t her usual bright and bubbly self. I noticed it the moment I spoke to her. I sure hope she’s not pregnant.”

Willem’s hands curled into fists on his desk, but he kept his voice steady as he shook his head. “She’s still upset that I ended the affair.”

Asibi let out a sharp snigger, covering her mouth as if to stifle her amusement. “Oh, poor thing. She really loved the way you took her to Poundtown, didn’t she?” She tilted her head and gave Willem a smug look. “To be fair, if my man was blowing my mind like that, and he suddenly broke up with me… jeezoz, I’d be an emotional wreck! I’d probably need to be on suicide watch for about a month at least. But, you know, she shouldn’t worry. She’ll get over it. They always do. After all, heartbreak is very… character-building…”

“Enough, Asibi!” Willem snapped, his voice low but firm. “Enough of this nonsense! Look, you’ve got what you wanted, okay? You’re back. Great. But don’t forget, this is still my company!”

She raised an eyebrow, her smile fading into a sinister glare. “Oh, Willem,” she said softly, her tone condescending. “I’m sorry. I think you’re confused. You think you call the shots here? I’m sorry, but you’re dead wrong. With my return, I call the shots now. The balance of power still hangs in my favour, Mr. Doku. And the rules are simple, simple as can be. You don’t disturb me while I do my job, and in return, your little secrets remain… safe.”

Willem’s jaw tightened, but he didn’t respond.

“I did not want to come in here to let you know this, but… since you blurted it out, it’s only fair you know. And trust me, you know better than to say you’ve had enough of this. Unless of course, you’re on a downward spiral and just wanna destroy your life. So please, know your role, Mr. Willem Doku. And adjust accordingly.”

He glared at her, his frustration bubbling over. “How the hell did you do it? The hack. I want to know how you got into my systems. How you accessed my data, my cloud, my emails… I want to know!”

Her expression turned coy as she wagged a finger at him. “Oh, no, no, no, no, no, Mr. Doku. A magician never reveals her secrets. Let’s just say you underestimated me, and leave it at that.”

She stood to her feet, smoothing the nonexistent wrinkles on her skirt as her demeanour flipped back to the cheerful one she had worn all morning. “Well, this has been good, Willem. A truly fruitful catching up after so long. But, I have work to do. Don’t worry—I’ll be the model employee. Who knows? I might even help TransGlobal reach new heights now that I’m back. You’ll thank me later.”

She turned toward the door, pausing to glance back at him with a saccharine smile. “Oh, and Mr. Doku? Try not to look so moody. It doesn’t suit you at all. Besides, it’s Monday. Everyone loves Mondays! Or wait, is it Fridays? Well, whatever. See you!”

With that, she exited the office.

Willem placed his head on the table in agony.

At this point, he had come to the sad realization that all this was nothing but a show of petty revenge. As far as he could tell, Asibi was simply angry at him for relieving her of her duties, and had pulled all these strings just to punish him for daring to fire her.

But dear Lord, she wouldn’t have had a leg to stand on if he hadn’t provided her with one. If only he had resisted that urge to visit La Chambre Rouge. If only he had quenched those moments he got excited by Rosemary’s slender, delicious shape whenever she walked into his office. If only the Zenith Solutions debacle had never happened.

Now, because of them, here he was, getting strong-armed by Asibi Abugri. The unlikeliest of bullies.

And a damn cold-hearted and ruthless one at that.

“God,” he murmured, his voice barely audible. “Please, forgive me of my sins. And… deliver me from this employee from hell…”

THE END

Well, what a tale of manipulation that was! Asibi has to be one of the scariest people to deal with, that’s for sure. But then, Willem did hand her ammo, with all his discrepancies…

Thank you for reading, and as always, continue to enjoy yourself around the State!