Chapter 4
After the troublesome relatives finally left, Ella and Sophia started tidying up the house.
Sophia glanced at the empty plate of king crab and turned to Ella, apologizing, "I'm sorry you had to spend so much. Mom just wanted to make sure we didn't owe them anything for the last meal."
"It's okay, it was free," Ella said, rubbing Sophia's shoulder and coaxing her to rest.
Sophia was surprised and questioned, "Free? How did you manage that?"
"Of course, your daughter has her ways," Ella replied, not going into details.
Once the house was clean, Ella felt a weight lift off her shoulders. As long as Sophia didn't keep bending over backward for their relatives, the future would be much easier.
Ella opened her phone to continue looking for a new job and couldn't help but ask, "Mom, what made you finally decide to stand up to them?"
Sophia paused and looked at her, "Is something wrong with your job?"
Ella was taken aback and questioned, "How did you know?"
"I'm your mother, of course I know," Sophia said. Ella usually took a nap at that time, but she had answered a call, and the background noise wasn't the usual office sounds, so something was definitely up.
Ella felt a surge of unspoken emotion. Just as she was about to speak, she noticed a notification from the family group chat. It was Chase.
She didn't want to deal with him, but Chase tagged her directly in the group, "Got a great job opportunity for you. Want to switch? The salary is ten times what you're making now."
A new job? But coming from Chase, it couldn't be anything good.
Ella decided to ignore it.
On the other end, Chase was getting impatient with no response.
The big boss was losing his patience and said, "Can't even get a woman to meet up?"
Chase laughed nervously, "She's highly educated and very smart, so she's more cautious than others."
"Useless. Give me her information," the big boss rolled his eyes and glanced at the photo, his eyes filled with lewd intent.
Ella spent the night at home and planned to head to her rental the next day to figure things out.
But as soon as she arrived, she saw the landlord, whom she hadn't seen in a while.
"You need to move out within a week. I'm selling the place," the landlord said bluntly, without any pleasantries.
Ella was confused and asked, "Didn't we sign a one-year lease?"
The landlord was adamant and said, "I'll compensate you with a month's rent as per the contract. Just move out quickly."
No matter what she asked, the landlord wouldn't budge.
In just two days, Ella lost both her job and her place to live. She couldn't help but wonder if someone was out to get her.
She mechanically packed her things, her mind racing. She thought about the security company job from yesterday, which included room and board. If she could get that, it would solve everything.
But that HR person judged people by their looks. It wouldn't be a pleasant place to work.
Ella decided to consult her advisor to see if she could store her belongings in the school's storage room.
But her advisor replied, "I'm afraid not. We're moving the lab soon, and there's an out-of-town research trip next week. The new project funds have been released. Check your budget."
She opened the budget sheet her advisor sent, and the expensive materials made her wince.
There was a bigger problem. With the trip and the lab move, where would she store her things?
Her belongings included not just her daily necessities but also important experimental data.
Ella asked several of her fellow students, but none of them could help.
She had to keep looking for both a job and a place to live. By the end of the day, she was exhausted and had found nothing.
While refreshing a webpage, she got a call.
"Hello, is this Ms. Garcia?"
"Yes, speaking."
"You submitted a resume to our company..."
Ella sat up straight. She didn't remember applying, but as she listened, she searched for the company. It was a big company, located in a mall. She even checked their website to confirm the job opening and the contact number.
After confirming everything, she agreed to the interview.
The next day, Ella took a cab to the interview location, feeling unusually happy. The company offered room and board, and the salary was twice her previous job. It was a rare opportunity.
She was confident she could get the job.
But as the cab drove further, Ella started to feel uneasy and questioned, "Is this mall really this far?"
The cab driver nodded calmly and said, "It's in the new central area, so they picked a prime location."
He seemed unfazed, so Ella assumed many people went there and didn't think much of it.
When they arrived, she got out and saw an empty, dark building. She had a bad feeling and asked the driver, "Are you sure this is the right place?"
The driver had already driven off.
Ella felt a growing sense of dread. She stood at the entrance, hesitant to go in, and tried to call another cab.
Before she could get a clear signal, someone came out of the building, calling from a distance, "Ms. Garcia?"
Ella looked up and saw a friendly-looking girl about her age approaching.
Ella replied, "Yes, that's me."
"No wonder you're a PhD, so punctual," the girl said with a smile, "Just call me Raina."
"Raina, can we do the interview here or somewhere more open?" Ella, always straightforward, expressed her concerns.
Raina's eyes flickered briefly, but she smiled, "Don't worry, we're a legitimate company. I sent you the link. The outside may look shabby, but the inside is well-furnished. Once the mall is renovated, it won't look like this."
No matter how much Raina reassured her, Ella remained firm, "Let's do the interview somewhere else."
"Ms. Garcia, are you questioning us?" Raina seemed to get angry, "I understand your concerns, but we can only work with people who trust us."
Ella had heard this line too many times. She took a step back, ready to leave, "Then I guess we're not a good fit."
Raina suddenly lunged at her, pulling out a stun gun and shocking Ella in the stomach.
Ella's body went limp, but she fought to stay conscious and reach for her phone to call the police.
Before she could grab it, Raina kicked the phone away and pushed her inside, her earlier friendliness gone.
"Who gave you the nerve to act tough?" Raina's angry voice echoed in Ella's ears.
Ella tried to resist, but it was futile.
As the dark entrance loomed closer, Ella gathered her strength for a final struggle.
Out of nowhere, a figure appeared, kicking Raina away and lifting Ella, "Are you okay?"
Ella looked at him, dazed. For some reason, he seemed familiar.
"Great, I hope she's not seriously hurt, or Michael will kill me," the newcomer muttered.