020 I refuse

"Eden we need to talk," Fredrick Marshall said glaring down at his daughter. Eden found she recognized that expression, he had worn it the night of his retirement party but she had mistaken it as displeasure at the decorations.

Now she understood it was displeasure at her entire existence.

"Can we do it tomorrow, I'm exhausted," Eden said already on her way up the stairs to get to her room while she still had it.

Fredrick narrowed his eyes at her request how dare she? Previously Eden would have jumped at the chance to speak to him but now the girl walking up the stairs could not care less what he wanted to say.

"It's important," Fredrick said with a tone of finality.

Eden's brown eyes shot him a tired and annoyed glance that Fredrick had never seen before in all his years of knowing her. It gave him pause. He sobered up and gestured toward his study.

"You never let me in there," Eden said.

"Well this is genuinely important," he said, once again gesturing to his study but a bit more impatiently.

Eden shrugged and went into the large room reserved only for her father and Lily when she wanted to ask for something while in the study.

Fredrick's study was a large room comprised entirely out of dark wood furniture. It had a desk in front of a bay window and golden curtains that currently covered up the glass.

Two polished wood bookshelves lined either side of the room but Eden could see the visible dust staining the back of the various novels and textbooks that lined the shelves. Her father wasn't much of a reader.

But that didn't mean he would let Eden read even one of the family's collected volumes.

Her father took a seat behind his desk, while Eden sat on the plush chair set out for her father's visitors. She rested her arms on the curled armrests, thinking back to how long ago she wanted to sit in this chair and have meetings with her father.

'It's not as comfortable as I thought it would be,' Eden thought.

Fredrick looked at her like she had grown a second head, Eden could tell he wanted to say something about her sitting in the chair but there was no way she would listen to him standing. And if he wanted her to stand, she would simply leave the room.

"It concerns your position as CEO of the company,"

"A position I have yet to accept," Eden corrected.

Fredrick exhaled, leaning back into his chair and rubbing his eyes. Piles of papers were scattered around the desk.

Eden quickly glanced through some of them, trying to see what had her father so stressed out these past few days.

She saw outstanding bills from various sources. Suppliers, the power company, craftsmen, and the like. Marshall Toys had been drowning in outstanding payments while Fredrick had been giving Lily money to gallivant around town.

Workers were going unpaid while she was checking into country clubs and five star spas. All the while Eden's suggestions to cut back had been ignored and belittled.

"Oh no, are your decisions coming back to bite you?" Eden asked picking up one of the bills from the power company. They owed 3000KRV just for March's bill. She winced.

"Better keep those jokes to yourself,"

"Better talk before I fall asleep on this chair and miss everything you say," Eden shot back.

Once again Fredrick was surprised by the audacity of his eldest daughter, but Eden only gave him an expectant look. Like speaking to him was a waste of time. He balled his fist, trying to contain his fury.

"The company is entering some serious monetary issues, we've hit a tough spot. Harder than we've ever been in before,"

"And yet Lily was at Jovaes yesterday? The monthly payment of 10,000KRV for the country club isn't something you think you should cancel?"

"She needs that time at the county club," Fredrick said with a tone of finality.

"Well my work is done here," Eden said getting up with flourish.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" Fredrick asked, slamming his fist on the table in anger. He gritted his teeth and watched her walk towards the door.

"With 10,000KRV a month you could clear three of those outstanding power bills but no, what you want is a miracle that will somehow generate money for the company while keeping such useless and extravagant expenditures,"

"Of course, you think they're useless, that's why you're as ugly as you are," Fredrick retorted with a smirk Eden remained unfazed.

"Have fun with your failing company, I give it a year or two tops," Eden chirped, once again reminding Fredrick that he wanted to talk to her, not the other way around.

Eden pulled open the door ready to leave.

"I'm sorry I don't know what came over me," Fredrick tried but Eden was already outside of the room.

"Not good enough," Eden said slamming the door behind her.

Fredrick slammed his fist on the table again.

His insults at Eden didn't sting the way it used it, previously her face would sink, falling at the hurtful things he would say. Now Eden only shot him an expression that reminded her of her words that morning.

"Okay and?"

There was no way he would admit that Lily was unfit to run the company, not to mention he had already told the lawyers to put all of the assets and ownership of the company in Lily's name! Without Eden's ideas that meant debt would keep piling up until it would swallow them whole.

"I don't know why that brat is being so stubborn, she loves the company, doesn't it? Now it needs help and she's abandoning us?" Fredrick hissed.

"As usual he had nothing but insults for me, and Jovaes' prices are only going to keep rising, I want none of that trash fire. I bet he's already worked out everything with the lawyers and put her name on the documents," Eden said walking over to her desk to search for something.