Lines of Truth

Chapter Two

Mel's POV:

I walked to the black elevator which had no buttons on the inside, only a card reader. I scanned the card that Kenzie gave me, the doors automatically closed, and the steel box started moving upwards. I fiddle with the strap of my bag and chew on my bottom lip out of nervousness. I wasn't sure what to expect out of this whole experience and this elevator ride was only amping up the nerves.

Once the doors open on the fifteenth floor, I walk to the only desk on the entire floor that wasn't inside an office. Behind the desk sat a woman typing away on a laptop who had shiny blonde hair. Her face was screwed up to look like she had sucked on one too many lemons and eyebrows that were poorly drawn on. I approached her desk with as much confidence as I could muster and read the nameplate that said, "Julie Littleton- Personal Assistant to Mr. Curtis".

"Hello! I am here to meet with Mr. Curtis. I have an appointment at 8:30 am for the opening of Mr. Martin's Personal Assistant," I said with my head held high. Julie looked me up and down with a look of distaste and rolled her eyes while muttering, "great, another one?" under her breath. She got up from her desk and walked away while asking me to follow her.

I followed her down a short hallway, past many offices and to a set of double doors. The doors were all black with shiny silver doorknobs making me feel as if I wasn't worthy to enter them. Julie knocked briefly before entering and introducing his next "client" because she hadn't bothered to ask my name or listen to the real reason as to why I was here.

"Thank you, Julie. Send them in," a rich voice answered. She turned and briefly glared in my direction before walking back to her desk. I think I found my new best friend! I walked into what I now realized was a conference room and my anxiety skyrocketed. I was almost comforted by the kind smile that the gentleman gave me when I turned from closing the door.

Mr. Curtis was a middle-aged man probably in his late fifties, early sixties with gray hair slicked back in a modern hairstyle. He was tall and very lean with a kind smile that almost instantly relaxed me. He came around the table with his right arm outstretched to shake my hand and we introduced ourselves to one another.

"Well, Ms. Loxner, it is a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for coming in on such sudden notice but we like to get open positions filled as soon as possible to avoid any issues within the company. I will tell you that we record all first interviews to be able to protect both parties in the process and to also use it as reference later if needed. Sometimes, Mr. Martin likes to watch the interviews as they are taking place to expedite things. Are you okay with being recorded?"

"Oh, yes, sir! That is perfectly fine with me."

"Great! Please have a seat and we will get started!" he said with a kind smile that reached his eyes, which I returned. I handed him my almost microscopic resume and took a seat across from him. "Tell me about yourself!"

"Yes, sir. I am twenty-four and just graduated college with a bachelor's in business. I have never worked in the business aspect of a business, but I worked really hard at a diner as a waitress to put myself through college. I am eager to work in a business such as this to be able to grow and expand my knowledge of the business world."

"What made you choose Martin Inc.?"

"You want the honest truth?" He nodded his head. "I've been looking for a month ever since I graduated with no luck. Yesterday, I was sitting at a coffee shop to start looking at other opportunities when a woman sat next to me talking loudly on the phone."

I then repeated everything that happened yesterday and how I had come to the business in hopes of finding any open position. He had a look of amusement on his face the whole time I told my story and never once interrupted me. As I wrapped up the story, his phone rang and he stepped out to take it. When he came back, he looked at me with a look of hesitation. I sat patiently and waited for him to ask me more questions.

"I'm sorry to cut this interview short Ms. Loxner," my stomach dropped because I just knew they were rejecting me before even giving me a chance, "but, Mr. Martin would like me to escort you to his office to continue this interview."

I was shocked. I stood and followed him to the black elevator and swiped a key card over the sensor and we traveled up to the sixteenth floor. The whole floor was eerily quiet, and I realized that there were no offices on this floor except two. I assumed that one was Mr. Martin's and the other was for his assistant since it was connected to the other.

I followed Mr. Curtis over to a set of identical black double doors to the ones downstairs and he knocked. He waited until he heard a faint "come in" before opening the door and introducing me. Once I stepped in and got a good look at Mr. Martin, I felt the blood drain from my face and my hands started to shake. I know this man, and this is NOT good.

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Kellan's POV:

I woke up to my alarm at 5:30 am just like every morning. I headed downstairs to the kitchen and made my pre-workout shake and drank it on my way to my home gym in the basement. I work on my cardio for about 30 minutes and then work on my strengthening exercises. After an hour and a half of doing my workout routine, I go back up to my room to shower.

After my shower, I went down to drink my after work out protein shake and headed out the door to go to the office. Once there, I decided to talk to Kenzie for a few minutes.

"Hey, Kenz. Did you get the invitation?" I ask.

"Of course, I did. I did help with the fundraiser after all," she says with a gentle smile.

"Wanna go with me? I'm sure you need a ride," I said, giving her a wink.

"Sure. Betty is still in the shop anyway. It might be time for a new car." Poor girl had the worst luck with cars. We said our goodbyes and I went up to my office. There was supposed to be an interview today that I wanted to look in on. I have to have a new assistant ASAP. I cannot work without one so if this interview has any promise, I was going to take my chances.

I fire up my laptop and get it ready to look in on the interview which should have started five minutes ago. I get everything set up and start listening to Mr. Curtis asking questions while going through some paperwork. I hear the applicant respond and her voice is so melodic that I have to look up at the screen. I realize I know this girl. I would recognize her in a heartbeat. Time to meet my new assistant.