by Emma Vikes
She sat down and greeted me cautiously, “Hello.”
Layla seemed like she was ready to bolt any minute, so I needed to ease her into the interview. “Manuel said that you were Julija’s secretary?”
She nodded her head. “I was. But Miss Julija resigned.” She left it at that and didn’t elaborate any further.
“How long did you work as Miss Burrows’ secretary?”
Layla fidgeted with her hands. “Miss Julija was hired a year before the company hired me. Because of my background in accountancy, it was better if I became her secretary. That was five years ago. I’ve worked with her for five years while she had been here for six.”
Julija’s duration in the company had already been mentioned in documents about her but I still wrote it down. “And how would you describe working as Miss Julija’s secretary?”
Layla went quiet for a while, thinking of an answer.
I watched her carefully. In the years that I’d been practicing, I’d come to conclude that a person’s silence always spoke the loudest.
“Miss Julija wasn’t hard to work with. She trained me to well enough to fit a standard she approved of. Things were easy with her.”
“And how would you describe your relationship with her?”
She chewed on her bottom lip. “She was my boss and I was her secretary. It wasn’t a line to cross. Miss Julija was a good boss but she made it clear what she was to me and what I was to her. She—she never treated me like an equal.”
Nodding, I noted this statement as well. “Before she filed her resignation, was there anything you noticed about her?”
Layla took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Miss Julija often had lunch with her friends every Wednesday and would often gush about Mr. Crewe. Her friends were already jealous that she got to work for Mr. Crewe and I think Miss Julija liked the attention. She liked it even more when Mr. Crewe truly began giving her attention.”
I sat straighter— this was what I’d been waiting to hear all morning. “And what did she say about him?”
Layla looked afraid for a moment.
I knew she felt uneasy exposing her previous boss, so I reached out and placed a hand over hers, flashing her a small smile to ease her. “It’s okay, Miss. Summers. You’re protected by law and this interview has strict confidentiality. Whatever you say will remain within these walls.”
Nodding at me but still with fear in her eyes, she slowly began to recount to me things Julija had said about Logan Crewe, “When Mr. Crewe started to notice her, Miss Julija made sure that she acquired his full attention. I’m not sure what happened between them but I’m certain that something did. But she wasn’t the only woman in the company Mr. Crewe had been with.”
I pursed my lips at the last statement. Of course, even his employees were prey to a predator like Logan. But I didn’t want to interject in Layla’s statements. It’d been difficult so far to get her to truly speak about her boss. I think because Julija made her feel less and made it clear that she wasn’t important on a personal level that Layla felt it was a sin to speak against her previous boss.
Her voice still sounded unsteady as she continued to speak, “But I don’t think Miss Julija was aware of his um… dating other women and even if she was, she chose not to be. I think to her, she was the only woman that Mr. Crewe wanted to be with despite how there didn’t seem to be any special attention given to her. I think she painted a delusion for her friends to believe but ultimately, believed it more herself.”
“So are you trying to say that Julija Burrows fell in love with Mr. Crewe?”
Layla flashed me a wry smile. “Obsession would be a better word to use, Ms. Attorney. She was under the impression that Mr. Crewe was going to marry her. Although I do know there were certain events Mr. Crewe invited her to, but I don’t think she was ever invited as a date.”
I noted this statement too. If there were certain events she was invited into, Clara would’ve known if Julija was there as Logan’s date or as simply someone who worked for him. If Layla’s claims were true, then we needed further evidence to support her statements. “Regarding your statements about your previous boss, why do you think she resigned?”
Layla chewed on her bottom lip and fidgeted with her hands again. “I’m not entirely sure. But I overheard her on the phone once. I think she was talking to a friend and gushing about how she would be having dinner at Mr. Crewe’s house. I overheard her say that she was certain he was going to ask her to marry him. The next day, she didn’t show up to work.”
I tilted my head to the side. The last statement had been mentioned by other staff numerous times. One day, Julija didn’t show up to work and was absent without leave for nearly a week. When she did came back, she had a letter of resignation in hand and then left her post soon after. She didn’t even wait until they hired a replacement for her. “Did she ever say anything to you?”
“I asked her why everything was so abrupt,” Layla quietly told me, “and she said that love was a bitch but so was karma. Soon after she left, the scandal against Mr. Crewe surfaced.”
“Do you think that she might have something to do with it?”
Layla nodded her head slowly. “I’m aware she was the one who made the claim.”
“Do you think that she did it to get back at Mr. Crewe for breaking her heart?”
“It’s a probability.”
I closed the notebook. “I know that I told you that everything you say will be under confidentiality and stay in this room. But I need to find evidence to support your claims. Miss Burrows was in love with Mr. Crewe and was under the delusion that he wanted to marry her. When he broke her heart, she retaliated by causing the scandal. It’s likely that she made everything up to ruin him as her revenge. If I can’t find any evidence to support that, I might need you to testify against her in court.”
Layla inhaled sharply and her eyes darted around the room, like a victim caught off-guard. “I don’t think—I can’t—I have a little boy and I can’t lose my job…”
My heart softened for her. I reached out for her hand again to calm her down. “Miss Summers, you won’t lose your job. All you need is to testify in court as a witness. If you won’t, it’s more like your job would be on the line if we can’t fix the scandal Mr. Crewe is involved in.”
“But what if Miss Julija retaliates…”
I squeezed her hand and shook my head. “You’ll be under the protection of law. She can’t do anything against you.”
Layla looked at me with fear and anxiety clear in her eyes. She was contemplating what she should do.
I could only pray to any god listening for her to agree to it. If she did, we had better evidence against Julija. I could claim she was delusional and obsessed with Logan and that she made the claims against him because he broke her heart.
Taking a deep breath, Layla nodded her head slowly. “Okay, attorney.”
Relief surged through me and I felt like a huge weight had been lifted from me. I shook her hand and let her leave the room as I sank into the couch. I stayed in that position for five minutes, collecting myself and organizing my thoughts. Then I gathered my files and packed up. As I was about to leave, the thought of Logan storming off crossed my mind.
I felt bad. He was upset with me because of the assumptions I made about him. As his lawyer, I would defend him in court, and plead him however he wanted me to. If his crimes were true, then I could plead a shorter sentence for him. But Logan bluntly told me he was innocent and was upset because I refused to believe this.
My heart sank. Based on Layla’s statements, Julija might’ve schemed the whole thing to get back at him. Granted, he was still partially at fault for pushing her to do so by breaking her heart. It didn’t mean he was guilty of embezzlement though.
As I ducked out of his office, I looked around to try and find him. I crossed a line and I needed to apologize for that.
I just didn’t know which line crossed that I should apologize for.
Logan
She didn’t believe me.
It had been this simple truth that had sent me into a downward spiral for nearly a week. I regularly came to work but also left early. Right after I left, I would head to a gym or the boxing place I had recently signed up for. I would spend hours there, despite how tiring it was. Then head straight home and crash into bed.
I would spend all of my energy on work and boxing just, so I could stop myself from thinking about Olivia.
The way she made her assumption and how clear it was to me that she doubted my innocence bothered me to no end. Of all the people who knew me, she was the only one who had the privilege of knowing a side of me I’d always refused to show. Olivia was the only person in the world I had opened my heart to and I didn’t care if she delved through it over and over.
She could open my heart repeatedly and I wouldn’t care if it left me vulnerable. At least, not anymore.
Maybe the frustration I felt didn’t simply stem from the fact that Olivia didn’t believe me. Maybe I wasn’t merely hurt because she doubted my innocence. The answer was fairly simple and staring at me in the face. The whole reason was because it had been her. Had it been anyone else, I wouldn’t have mind.
The only person in the world who could live in my thoughts and make a house in my mind was her. She’d been the only one who could frustrate me to no end but I would still pull heaven and earth together for her if she asked. The fact that her hesitation bothered and frustrated me, I knew the real reason I was so upset, it had hurt me.
Because I wanted her to believe me. Because it wouldn’t matter if the rest of the world didn’t, as long as she did. Her opinion had always been important to me. She was the only one who used to matter to me. She was still the only one that did.
“I keep wondering where you run off to each time you check out of work early.”
I already knew the face of the person that voice belonged to.
“To be honest, I thought you’d be drinking yourself till morning in a private room in a club and have a random girl give you a blow-job.”
I scoffed as I slammed my sheathed fists into the punching bag. “Would you believe me if I say that I’m a changed man?”
Clara let out an amused laugh but then looked at me, her expression curious. “Would you believe if I say that there’s a part of me that does?”
Her response surprised me. I let the punching bag sway between us. “What do you mean?”
“There’s something different about you. It’s like…it’s like you’re a lot tamer than the first time I met you.”
“That’s a good thing, I suppose?”
Clara shrugged and didn’t add anything more. “I talked with your lawyer the other day. She mentioned that she got more information about Julija from one of the staff. The one who used to be Julija’s secretary. Miss Wilson also got her to agree to recount everything the staff said to her in court if needed.”
I knew Olivia was capable but the fact that everything seemed to be going in a steady pace‒quicker, actually, than I expected ‒bothered me. When we won the case against Julija and proved my innocence, it meant that Olivia wouldn’t be a part of my life anymore. With how things were going between us, I doubted she would like me to visit her. “Is that what you came here to discuss with me?”
“I’m your publicist, Logan, I’m here to tell you that the media found where you’ve been holing yourself up,” Clara answered in an annoyed tone. “I know you will hate it if I asked you to stay at home again.”
I scoffed. “It’s not as if staying at home helps. They’d camp in my front yard if it wasn’t a private neighbourhood.”
Clara nodded, mouth set in a grim line. “Hotels are out of the question too. I tried booking you a room but since I’m using the company credit card, it’ll be obvious that you’re hiding there.”
I sighed, removing my boxing gloves and throwing them to the side. Grabbing my water bottle, I doused myself with the cool water before drinking the rest of the contents. “I thought this would all blow over by now. We haven’t even released a court date but they’re still up my ass.”
Clara sighed and agreed with me. “I thought that same thing too. Considering that it’s been nearly a month since the scandal came out, it would be old news by now. But your name is still one of the most searched on Google, along with the word ‘scandal’, ‘stealing’, and ‘embezzlement’. The public is still interested about your case, Logan.”
She looked like she had more to say, so I waited for her to do so.
“Alongside with that, your dating history was looked up too. I think it’s the opposing team’s doing. Julija posted a cryptic post on social media. But Miss Wilson said not to worry because we could use the post against her.”
I looked at her curiously and pulled out my phone. I was barely on social media and rarely made any posts. If I did, I usually had Clara do it for me. Everything else about my life was already publicized by the media. It made no sense for me to do it on my own.
Clara took my phone from my hands and typed in Julija’s username on Instagram. She handed it back to me. “Look at the recent post.”
The picture was blurry but I could still make out Julija’s features. Beside her was a guy. His features were blurred even more than hers and he wasn’t even turning in the direction of the camera. His head was bowed down but he seemed to be laughing at something she was saying. The only notable thing about the guy was the ring on his pinky finger.
One that resembled my own.
Even when I didn’t have it on at the moment, I could feel its weight on my finger. I read the caption out loud, “My heart wasn’t the only thing you stole, apparently.”
The public knew that a personal accountant of mine had made the claims of my apparent embezzlement. According to the media, the accountant had to tell the truth which was why she exposed me for stealing. In protection of her privacy and of confidentiality, her name wasn’t dropped.
The only reason her post could cause such an uproar was because she was an Instagram model too. She had a lot of followers and even when she was still working with me, had teased them that she was seeing someone. Apparently, that someone had been me and I didn’t even know about it either.
Because of the number of followers she had and being an Instagram model, she evidently became a social media influencer too. As usual, her followers and supporters would look her up and most of them were aware that she worked as a personal accountant to a billionaire. None of them knew it was me though.
Although, I was certain that was no longer the case.
“Fans put two and two together. The ring on your pinky finger was already a dead giveaway. They’ve always suspected she worked for you but this post basically answered their questions.”
I ran a hand through my sweaty hair. “So basically, she made matters even worse, right?”
Clara nodded her head, the annoyance clear in her eyes. “There’s a circus outside. I barely got in here and that’s why I did, because we need to get you out. But even if we drive you to your place, I can’t guarantee your privacy there. Out of town hotels and even flights would be tricky too. You can’t leave easily without the media running after you, Logan.”
I pursed my lips and let out a long sigh. “So what am I supposed to do?”
“If there’s anyone in your life that the media doesn’t know of, that hasn’t been exposed, maybe you can stay with that person even just for a while.”
I looked down, eyebrows furrowed, trying to think of someone in my life that wasn’t in the spotlight. Most of the people I chose to acquaint myself with ran big companies, were celebrities, or were still somehow in the spotlight. I always made sure that the people I surrounded myself with lived the same luxurious life as I did. It made things easier.
But it also meant that none of them truly cared. With a sinking feeling, I came to a realization that no one in the social groups I belonged in would truly help me. Mitch
was a good friend but I wasn’t sure how it would seem if I stayed with him for a while, given how he was also involved with the scandal. I also wasn’t sure if Viviane‒his wife‒would be thrilled to have me around.
There was only one person who came to mind that could come to my rescue but I wasn’t entirely sure if she was up to it. “How can you get me out of here?” I asked Clara.
Clara tilted her head to the side. “Do you have anyone who could take you in for a couple of days until I sort this all out?”
“I just need you to take me to the law firm. I’ll figure the rest out.”
She looked suspicious but led me to the way she came in. It was the back exit and she had me change clothes before we ducked out. Most of my face was covered and she already had a car waiting right at the back for us. It wasn’t one of my cars either.
“It’s my Dad’s old car,” Clara began as she put on her seatbelt. “I’ll leave this car to you. You can head to the firm on your own. Just drop me off at the office street.”
I did as she asked and before she went her way, she turned to me with a serious expression. “You better make sure the person you’re going to ask for help is trustworthy, Logan.”
For a moment, I wondered if she was going to ask who it was but when she didn’t, I didn’t bother telling her. My guess was that it might be better if she had no clue where I was, as long as I was alive and keeping out of the public’s eyes. I didn’t remove the baseball cap and glasses that Clara had me put on. Instead, I pulled on the black turtleneck to cover half of my face when I arrived at the firm.
People wouldn’t stop looking at me when I came in. They might’ve been thinking I was a bad guy, so I had to lower the turtleneck when, hoping no one would notice me. I took the elevator to Olivia’s floor and looked around. “Where’s Olivia Wilson’s office?” I asked when I reached the receptionist desk.
She pointed to the one in the corner. “Do you have an appointment?” She stared at me curiously