Tabitha's POV
My eyes slowly focused, and the first thing I saw was the collar of a crisp white shirt.
My gaze drifted up, settling on a man's strong jawline. Turned out it was Derek.
Just like that, any hope I had fizzled out.
Well, it made sense. Dad was still out cold in the hospital. How could he possibly show up here?
"Why were you bleeding from your nose earlier?" Derek's voice snapped me back to reality.
I didn't expect that of all things, he would start with that.
Just when I was pondering how to reply, I caught a whiff of some unfamiliar shower gel on him.
I couldn't help but think of what might have happened between him and Daphne last night. Feeling a tightness in my chest, I struggled out of his embrace.
"I bumped my nose before, and Holly hit it right on that old wound," I calmly replied.
Derek gazed at me, like he was trying to catch me in a lie.
I met his gaze head-on, asking, "What? You don't believe it? Didn't you say that I've always been in good health? What could possibly be wrong with me?"
"Fair point," Derek complied, a flicker of doubt in his eyes.
Clearly, he remembered the last check-up report that showed I was perfectly fine.
Just then, I realized that I wasn't in the Black Thorn Pack but in the new villa that Derek once took me to.
So this spat wasn't totally fruitless.
With Mark and Alpha Justin's pressuring him, Derek couldn't just shack up with me openly anymore.
"If you're all good, then come to work tomorrow. HR's got everything set up for you," Derek remarked in a stony voice.
"Okay," I replied flatly, "I'm fine on my own. You should head back, or the Suttons might get the wrong idea."
My remark seemed to have hit a nerve with Derek.
He snapped, his face darkening, "Is this what you really want?"
I answered, cool as ever, "Yep. I don't wanna be the wedge between you and Daphne. I've done plenty I'm not proud of, but I'm done living like that."
Derek darted me a cold look. "Hope you don't regret it."
With that, he stood up and left without a backward glance. The moment the door closed, I breathed a sigh of relief.
Shifting my gaze back to my phone, I saw Jasper had sent over some food pics and a frustrated emoji.
I hit the voice message button, "Sorry, Jasper. Got something to attend to, so I had to go. Thanks for today. Let me know what I owe you for the treatment. I'll transfer it to you."
He immediately replied, "Why are you being formal with me? If you really wanna pay me back, just treat me to a meal."
I could imagine his puppy eyes and bright smile just by listening to his voice.
"Deal. Say hello to Tucker for me, btw."
He ended the conversation with a bunch of emojis.
Then, I fished out another phone from my bag and dialed Lucian.
"Any progress?" I asked.
Lucian quickly answered, "Not much, but I did find something interesting."
"What is it?" I asked, pressing for an answer.
"Remember Albert, the guy you asked me to look into? He and Ethan graduated from the same school. And they were friends back then," he told me.
"I knew it!" I exclaimed. I once asked the nurse about who visited Dad the day he fell back into a coma. And she told me it was a tall guy.
Because of the photo in that email, I'd always assumed it was Rolf.
After Derek told me Rolf was there for a visit under his command, I realized I had been misguided.
Since Ethan was sent to harm me, Albert might be hired to hurt Dad. He was tall, too.
"And I also found that the companies registered by Albert are just fronts," Lucian went on.
He might've been a ploy to drive a wedge between me and Derek by telling me the truth on purpose.
"So, finding Albert could bring us closer to the mastermind," I analyzed.
"Exactly, I've got some leads Vilda as well. When I'm back, you can try to meet him. I'll help you nab him," suggested Lucian.
"Got it, thanks," I replied.
"Don't mention it. Remember, don't tip our hand before I get back," he warned before hanging up the phone.
The next day, Rolf arrived early in the morning to pick me up.
I put on some light makeup to look a bit livelier.
When I got to the company, Alvin was standing at the entrance waiting.
"Sorry, but I gotta explain to you about your job. Alpha Derek moved you to the Sales Department," he piped up after greeting me.
I frowned, asking, "But didn't he agree to let me be his personal assistant?"
Alvin coughed awkwardly, "He said since you wanted more experience, being a salesperson would be more suitable for you than a PA. He's looking out for you."
I knew it was just an excuse. He was just doing it to avoid provoking the Suttons.
Even though I orchestrated this outcome, when he actually chose to avoid me, I found myself not getting used to it as fast as I had imagined.
"Got it, thanks," I said.
"No problem. I have already informed the HR Department. Just head upstairs and go through the procedures," he remarked.
To avoid gossip, he left me at the elevator.
I came here to sniff out any rats around Derek, but before I could even start, I was demoted to the Sales Department.
I sighed, resigning myself to the situation.
When I reported in, the group leader, with the name Sonia Mendoza on her badge, gave me a once-over.
After introducing me to the co-workers, she added, "Oh, I forgot to tell you something. The Sales Department is also known as the pressure cooker. We've got a strict performance evaluation system. If the results aren't up to snuff..."
So, if our group's performance is still at the bottom by month's end, we're facing a reshuffle?" I raised my question.
She nodded, saying, "That's right. And as a newbie, you'll need to work extra hard to prove your worth."