Chapter 80

Jesse

Jesse was awoken by the sound of the alarm on her phone and blinked hazily as she reached over to turn it off. She sat up on the side of her bed and stretched her arms over her head with a yawn.

The clock read seven o’clock, and Jesse’s stomach fluttered with a mix of nervousness and excitement as she realized that in about two hours she would be walking into an interview for a new job.

First, though, Jesse knew that she had her whole morning routine to get through. So, without too much preamble, Jesse put on some yoga pants and a tank top, gathered up her keys and went out for her morning run.

From there on out, Jesse’s morning routine unfolded without a hitch. She got back to her apartment, showered, and dressed, and she was out of the house by eight-fifteen. She opened up the information about her interview on her phone and was pleased to note that the office was not very far from her apartment at all. In fact, it was a little closer than where she had worked before with Elaine.

Jesse took her time walking over, and she even stepped into her favorite shop to fetch herself some coffee. She was a little tense at first but relaxed as soon as she realized that everyone was on their phones and had no interest in who she was at all.

Once she collected her drink, Jesse moved out of the shop and headed toward the office where the interview would be held. She stepped into the building at eight-forty and headed straight to the receptionist’s desk.

Jesse stood in front of the desk, and a young man, likely around her age, looked up at her. His nametag identified him as ‘Scott’.

“Good morning,” he said pleasantly. “How can I help you?”

“Good morning,” Jesse said with a smile, “I have an interview for a journalist position at nine o’clock.”

“Wonderful.” The man smiled. “Your name?”

“Jesse Clarke,” Jesse responded, and Scott proceeded to type her name into his computer.

“Alright,” he said, “you’ll need to go to the top floor. The receptionist there will take it from there.”

“Thank you.” Jesse gave him a nod and looked around the room to find the elevators, which she then strode toward.

Jesse stepped into the elevator and pressed the button on the top floor. The doors to the elevator closed and then began to take her up to the top floor. People filtered in and out along the way, but finally the doors opened to allow Jesse to step out and find the desk of the new receptionist she needed to meet with.

Jesse moved toward the desk, and this time a young woman looked up to greet her.

“How may I help you?” She smiled at Jesse, and Jesse returned the smile.

“I’m here for an interview for a journalist’s position,” Jesse said. “My name is Jesse Clarke.”

The receptionist looked down at a list or a moment and then glanced back up at Jesse with a smile.

“You’re a little early,” the receptionist noticed. “You can take a seat right over there, and I’ll go check to see if you can go ahead in.”

“Alright, thank you,” Jesse said with a nod.

Jesse moved over to the small waiting area that the receptionist had indicated. She watched the other woman step into the office that she had indicated earlier.

Jesse felt a little bit of nerves as she eagerly waited for the woman to return. Jesse knew very well that she had been through all this before many times. For now, she just sat quietly, keeping herself collected.

Jesse kept her eyes fixed on the door of the office, and it was not very long before the receptionist came out, smiling broadly at Jesse.

“You can go ahead and come on in,” she said, holding the door open just a little bit as she spoke.

Jesse felt a lurch in her stomach as she stood. She adjusted her bag on her shoulder as she strode toward the door.

“Thank you.” She nodded at the receptionist, who stood holding the door open for her.

“Good luck,” the other young woman whispered back as she allowed Jesse to step into the room. Jesse couldn’t help feeling reassured.

The door closed behind Jesse, and she advanced further into the room and looked around for whoever it was that she was supposed to be having this interview with. Finally, she spotted the silhouette of a woman against the window.

Jesse watched the figure nervously, not quite sure what she should do.

“Oh, come now,” the figure spoke, and Jesse felt herself stiffen involuntarily as she recognized the voice. “Don’t you think we’ve moved past all these formal rituals?”

The figure turned around, and Jesse felt her stomach sink as she recognized the sharp features of her former boss. Now, they were made even more fierce by the cruel smile that was stretched across her lips.

Jesse not only felt bewildered but suddenly very tired and defeated. More than that, she felt as though she’d been had. She should have somehow known that Elaine was behind all this, though how she could have possibly known that still escaped her.

Nevertheless, Elaine stared her down pompously from across the room, and Jesse knew that it was her turn to make a move. She wished she had not been taken off guard, so she would have been prepared for this, rather than the interview she had planned for.

Mostly, Jesse was confused at why Elaine was here and not at The Edge.

“What are you doing here?” Jesse finally spoke. She was a little annoyed that the first words out of her mouth in this situation were so mundane, but she felt that she needed to know just how she had fallen into this trap and why Elaine was there.

“Oh.” Elaine laughed and strode toward the desk, where she sat down in the chair behind it. “I thought you might have caught on by now, but this is one of the little … subsidiary projects of mine. It’s definitely not as mainstream as The Edge, but it caters to a different audience and ultimately makes me money. Granted, I don’t spend very much time here because I oversee a highly competent staff.”

Jesse listened to the woman speak and felt herself descend into a little bit of misery. She should have researched the blog better, and it would have been easy to see that Elaine was the forerunner of the company. Even so, she had not, and now she was in one of the most awkward and miserable situations of her life.

“Naturally,” Elaine continued, “I oversee who is hired and fired here. I can’t have just anyone putting material out there for me. Every position here, from columnist to receptionist, is first approved by me.”

Jesse shifted on her feet, and she came to the bitter realization that this had all been a ruse and some kind of mind game that Elaine obviously enjoyed, but she did not.

“Imagine my surprise,” Elain purred out, “when I saw your name on the list of applicants. At first, I didn’t believe it. But after I looked through your resume and your portfolio, I recognized your work immediately. Usually, I don’t involve myself in this part of the process. Interviews, as I’ve told you before, really tend to bore me.”

Jesse nearly rolled her eyes in annoyance.

“Well, I’m sorry to have wasted your time,” Jesse said, trying to be as polite as possible. “I’ll see myself out.”

“Nonsense!” Elaine protested, smiling devilishly up at Jesse. “Come have a seat. There are some things I’d like to discuss with you.”

Jesse stiffened and narrowed her eyes as she glared across the room at Elaine. A part of her wanted to simply spit in the woman’s face and be done with it. Another part of her, still taken a little aback by the strangeness of her situation, was curious as to why Elaine had bothered to come meet with her. Especially after the way they had parted.

After a moment of consideration, Jesse slowly crossed the room and sat down in one of the large chairs opposite the desk. Jesse couldn’t help feeling a little anxiety. She felt like she had been in this place more times than she was comfortable with and shifted a little in her chair. She was sure Elaine was enjoying every bit of her discomfort, as her catlike smile seemed to widen.

“Now,” Elaine clapped her hands together, and Jesse nearly flinched at the sound. “I know that the last time we spoke it wasn’t under the best circumstances.”

Jesse nearly scoffed. That was the understatement of the year.

“And I don’t do this often,” Elaine said, holding up a finger. “But I have to admit that everything you said to me, while bold, was correct.”

Jesse blinked, taken aback by Elaine’s confession.

“You are a fine young journalist,” Elaine said. “I’ve always recognized that. But you know how it is as a superior when your subordinates try to put you in a compromising position. Really, most of what happened between us was just so I could assert myself. I tried to call your bluff but you actually had the guts to go through with it. Honestly, it caught me off guard. And I applaud you. It’s much like something I would have done in your position.”

Jesse offered Elaine a stiff nod, wondering where on earth Elaine was going with any of this. She was certain that the older woman had not brought her in to reminisce about the conflict between them. However, she was not at all interested in leading the conversation between them, so she simply waited in the hopes that Elaine would eventually circle back around to some sort of point.

“I would be happy to extend a job offer to you,” Elaine said, and Jesse felt a rush of surprise. “Back at The Edge. A promotion, if you will. I would give you a raise, and a lot more freedom with your hours, as well as the topics you choose to write on, and you could even work from home. I know you weren’t interested in writing comedic strips for the rest of your life. Now I’m giving you a window to get out of that.”

Jesse was taken aback by the offer, and while the idea sounded good at first, Jesse knew Elaine, and she knew that none of this was as cut and dry as Elaine was making it sound. Still, it was too good an offer to just refuse without at least inquiring into what would be required of her to attain it.

“It sounds like a great offer,” Jesse admitted drily. “So what’s the catch?”

Elaine bared her white teeth in a predatory smile, and Jesse’s stomach clenched a little in anxiety.

“Always so smart.” Elaine chuckled softly. “There is only one condition you must meet if you want to accept the position. A non-negotiable condition.”

“And what might that be?” Jesse asked, more out of courtesy than actual curiosity.

Elaine turned to face Jesse, her usually relaxed and cocky expression transformed into one of absolute seriousness. It only served to make Jesse even more suspicious than she already was.

“All that I want from you,” Elaine said, “is the Hal Roberts article that I assigned to you in the first place.”

Jesse felt her blood begin to boil, and she stood up from her chair, intent on leaving this entire situation behind.