CHAPTER SIX

"I'm sorry sir. I have absolutely no idea what you are talking about." Lisa replied after a brief pause. This was not how she expected her morning to play out. She had thought that the matter would end in his office the day before, so she almost let out a surprised expression when her boss brought it up the moment she walked in.

"I am giving you one last chance to come clean, secretary. Did you or did you not give that document to me yesterday?" He asked defiantly, with his arms crossed.

It had become a matter of survival. Lisa knew her boss wouldn't easily let this go, having sensed his lingering doubts yesterday. She realised telling the truth would seal her fate, leading to her dismissal. Determined to see it through, Lisa steeled herself to maintain the lie she had initially told.

"Secretary Lisa?" Her boss called, his impatience noticeable. Lisa snapped back to attention.

"I definitely gave them to you sir," she replied, with her chin held high.

"So you're maintaining that you gave them to me right?" He leaned forward, narrowing his eyes, as if ready to reveal a bombshell.

Lisa's panic was instantaneous. 'What if he had evidence?' she thought, her mind racing. Should she revoke her stance while she still could?

She met her boss’s piercing gaze, her throat clearing silently. "Sir," she began, her voice measured.

"The thing is..."

Her boss rose abruptly from his seat, his movements cutting her off.

"Okay, since you insist you handed the documents to me, then..."

"I didn't give them to you sir," Lisa blurted out immediately.

"You didn't what?" Her boss asked in a surprisingly calm tone which terribly scared Lisa.

"Sir," she began, unsure of what to say.

"So, you're admitting to withholding the documents?" Her boss asked instead.

"No, sir, it's not that.... I..." She stammered as she couldn't make out any tangible statement to defend herself.

He nodded with a faint smirk on his face.

"Interesting! Let's discuss this further. Come with me to my office," he ordered and walked towards the door.

"Right now," he added, when he saw that Lisa made no attempt to follow him.

"Yes sir," she hanged her head down and replied almost in a whisper.

They walked silently, tension building, until they reached his office door. Mr. Kim turned the knob, and they stepped inside.

"Congratulations, Secretary Kim!" Mr. Fred exclaimed, his face beaming. He popped the party popper in his hand, the sudden burst making Lisa jump.

Lisa leaped back, her heart racing, as she struggled to process the unexpected celebration.

Loud cheers and applause erupted from the employees packed into Mr. Kim's office.

"By the way, you're one terrible liar, secretary," Mr. Fred whispered, his voice barely audible over the commotion.

Lisa's confusion deepened. She scanned the room, her gaze darting from one beaming colleague to another, searching for answers.

"Enough, everyone," Mr. Kim said, raising his hands to quiet the crowd.

"Let's get to the reason for this celebration."

"As I had mentioned earlier this morning, Secretary Lisa's quick thinking, just saved this company from bankruptcy by withholding an illegal contract document and stopping it from getting to my table. Congratulations once again secretary!" he beamed, extending his hands for a handshake.

"You've been with us for only three days, yet you have achieved a remarkable milestone. Please accept this little token on behalf of the company," he said presenting her with a prestigious award and an elegantly wrapped gift.

Everyone clapped once again to cheer Lisa on.

"To express my happiness and gratitude, we would have a team dinner tonight. You can order as many food and drinks as you like." Mr. Kim announced.

There was another round of jubilation as the staff were thrilled by the rare opportunity to hang out with their typically reserved boss. Once the staff had thanked him enough, they walked out of the office one after the other, until it remained Lisa and Mr Fred.

"Stop there secretary," Mr Kim ordered.

Lisa rolled her eyes impatiently. 'Isn't everything over?' She asked herself as she turned to face her boss.

"Surely you would like to know how I found out that you lied," he asked.

"Actually it was for the benefit of our company that I did what I did. You don't really have to put it that way, sir," Lisa smiled sheepishly.

"But you lied either way," Mr. Fred chipped in.

"Yes sir, I lied," she replied in defeat.

"So that was the reason you wore sunglasses, during your interview," her boss nodded thoughtfully.

"And that was why you asked me that question that day too," his PA added.

"Sorry, I'm lost," Lisa uttered, glancing between her boss and his PA.

"How long have you been seeing into the future?" Her boss leaned forward, his eyes fixed on hers.

"How long have I been seeing into the future? What future? I don't see anything," Lisa responded quickly. 'What does he know?' her mind raced.

"Pfft!" Her boss scoffed.

"Lying seems to be your habit, but you're not very good at it."

Lisa heaved a sigh. Lying was something she totally avoided unless she had no choice.

"You asked me about someone seeing the fate of a person just by looking at them, remember? Your first day here?" Mr. Fred reminded her.

"That's part of how we figured you saw this ahead of time."

Lisa laughed nervously before she replied. "But I don't remember telling you that I was the person in question."

"Right, you didn't say that you were the person in question," he affirmed.

"So, we can call it an assumption right?" Lisa pressed. "You're not sure I'm the one; you just assumed, based on my question." Lisa said.

"No," her boss said flatly.

She turned to face him with curiosity. "May I ask why, sir?"

"Because I also saw everything that happened," he replied, his gaze steady.

Lisa's eyes widened.

"Mhm?" She asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Yes. I saw everything — from the fake contract's planning to her coming to you, to your discovery, to your conversation with your best friend, to yesterday's denial," he replied.

Lisa's voice escaped as a squeal before she composed herself. "You see things too?"

Mr. Kim nodded, his eyes downcast. "Mhm. But only past events, and only when there is nothing or almost nothing that can be done."

Mr. Fred smiled wistfully. "Wow, I've met two extraordinary people now. One who sees the future by looking into someone's eyes and the other who sees the past in the dream. When will I have my own power?" He asked rhetorically.

Mr. Kim rose from his chair with a resolute expression. "I believe there are rough times ahead. Let's work together, now and in the future to bring justice where it is needed," he offered his hand to Lisa for a handshake.

"Okay sir." Lisa replied happily. She was glad that she had met someone who was similar to her.

"I think Mr. Kim has just gained his second close friend," Mr. Fred remarked.

"And who is the first?" Mr. Kim asked, amused.

"Me, of course," Mr. Fred replied, grinning proudly.

"You can return to your office now," Mr. Kim said, dismissing Lisa.

"Thank you sir," Lisa bowed and hurried out.

"So what are we going to do with Accountant Azi?" Mr. Fred asked, immediately Lisa left the office.

"What else are we going to do? I've emailed her sack letter to her. She will drop by this evening to hand over the company's financial records that are still in her possession. I will wire her last pay to her account after everything is settled."

"I can't believe she had the effrontery to even think of a thing like that." Mr. Fred shook his head.

"It is what it is," Mr. Kim sighed. "Our CFO will have to handle everything temporarily, until we find a new accountant."

"I'll start reaching out," Mr. Fred replied.

"Remember, interviews are by recommendations only," Mr. Kim reminded him. "No online applications will be accepted."

"Understood. I'll only accept recommendations from high-profile and trusted associates. I'll thoroughly vet the candidates profiles too."

"Good." Mr. Kim approved. "Also conduct thorough background checks on Accountant Azi's accomplices, it's very important."

"Ok. What do you intend to use it for anyway?"

"You'll find out very soon," Mr. Kim replied mysteriously. "She doesn't even know the real reason for her termination, I just made up something else for now. I need concrete evidence before I pursue this matter further." Mr. Kim explained.

"No problem," Mr. Fred sighed and walked over to his table.

After a productive day, Mr. Kim treated his employees to an exquisite dinner as promised. Despite his reserved nature, he ensured a warm and jovial atmosphere, allowing everyone to unwind and enjoy good food and company.

The team's laughter and chatter filled the evening air, as Mr. Kim shared some interesting life experiences with them during the dinner. When everyone had eaten to their satisfaction, Mr. Kim paid for their food and dismissed them.

Despite the early hour of the evening, Lisa already felt exhausted. She hailed a taxi and settled into the back seat, greeting the driver warmly before giving her address.

Leaning back, she let her head rest, trying to ease the throbbing headache as her mind wandered aimlessly. Drowsiness washed over her, as she drifted in and out of sleep, briefly waking with each jolt of the taxi.

"Would you like me to roll up the windows?" The driver asked, glancing at her in the rearview mirror.

She sat up to adjust her dress a little, feeling the evening breeze grow cooler. "No, it's fine," she replied, settling back into the seat.

Her gaze drifted out the window, captivated by the city's twinkling lights and tall buildings. The landscape's aesthetics momentarily distracted her from her fatigue.

Lisa closed her eyes, letting the loud music blasting from passing shops wash over her as she hummed along to familiar tunes.

Suddenly she snapped her eyes open, thinking she had heard her phone buzz. Confirming her suspicion, she picked up her phone to find tons of text messages from her boss, pouring in one after the other. Curious as to what the reason of his numerous texts could be, she tapped on the first message to read them.

"Secretary Lisa, where are you?" The first message read. She scrolled up to the second message, "I can't explain everything to you on the phone right now, but by any chance if you're in a taxi already, can you find a way to leave the vehicle?"

She glanced at the driver instinctively, and returned her gaze to her phone.

"Just look around and send me your location, we'll come to get you now," the third message read. Desperate for clarity, Lisa scrolled to the next message. "The person driving that taxi right now is not a taxi driver. He's a paid assassin and you're his target," her boss' words sent shivers down her spine.

"If you've read this by any chance, please notify me so I'll find a way out," the final message read. Lisa's thumb flew across the screen to respond, when the driver who had begun to sense something amiss suddenly took a sharp turn to the right.

Lisa's eyes widened in terror. "Excuse me sir, that's not the way to my house!" Lisa protested immediately but the driver completely ignored her and fixed his gaze on the road with an unreadable expression.

As she tried to resist, he rolled up the windows, locked the doors, and sped away rapidly. The car surged forward, throwing Lisa back to her seat. Her phone beeped again, "Are you there, secretary?" her boss' message read. She quickly typed a reply with shaky hands, but the "no service" notification stared back at her from the screen.

She glanced at the network signal bar, now completely blank and then it dawned on her, the supposed driver, had cut off the signal with a cell signal jammer. She bit her lip in frustration at her sudden realisation.

But that was just the beginning. Her panic deepened when she spotted a separate device on the dashboard, it's LED lights flashing ominously. He had also carried a GPS jammer with him.

She nodded resignedly, and managed a faint, desperate smile. Realising shouting was futile, she shifted her focus to escape.

Adrenaline rushed through her veins, but she fought to remain calm and calculated. Gazing out the window at the bustling street, Lisa waited for the slightest opening to make her move.

And as luck would have it, they soon hit a traffic jam. Lisa seized the opportunity. The taxi inched forward, gradually coming to a halt amidst the stagnant fleet of vehicles. The moment it came to a standstill, Lisa sprang into action.

With lightning speed, she pounced on the driver, targeting the vulnerable spot on the side of his neck. Her precise strike sent him unconscious, buying her precious seconds.

"I didn't study Biology in secondary school for nothing," Lisa exhaled, relieved by the temporary turn of events. She swiftly searched the driver's pockets for any clues about his sender. Finding nothing, she turned her attention to the car.

As she rummaged through the vehicle, she failed to notice the traffic starting to move. It wasn't until the drivers behind her began honking their horns impatiently that she realized she was holding up the traffic.

Lisa hissed in frustration, unlocking the car door. As she prepared to step out, a sudden thought struck her. She swiftly dragged the driver from his seat, took his place, and started the engine.

Rather than leave him in the middle of the road, potentially raising suspicion, Lisa decided to park the car at the corner. She maneuvered the vehicle into position, turned off the engine, and was about to make a hasty exit when the unmistakable click of a gun cocking froze her.