Chapter 3: His Wrath
"Laura, are you okay? You look like you're about to collapse."
Jane's voice seemed to come from far away as Laura stepped out of the interview room and into the marble hallway. Laura's legs felt unsteady beneath her, and she had to grip the wall for support. The air felt too thick, too heavy, and she couldn't seem to draw a full breath no matter how hard she tried.
"I'm fine," Laura managed to whisper, though she was anything but fine. Her heart was pounding so hard she was sure Jane could hear it echoing off the pristine walls around them.
Jane studied her with obvious concern, her earlier nervousness replaced by worry for her new friend. "You don't look fine. You're white as a sheet."
Laura forced herself to stand straighter, though her hands were still shaking. The hallway stretched endlessly in both directions, filled with employees in expensive suits walking purposefully between meetings. Everyone looked so confident, so at home in this world of power and success. Laura had never felt more out of place in her life.
"That was..." Jane shook her head, still looking stunned by what had happened in the interview room. "I've never seen anything like that before. Do you know who that man is? Mr. Conti, I mean?"
Laura's stomach clenched. She could still feel Leonard's cold eyes on her, could still hear the venom in his voice as he'd torn apart every answer she'd tried to give. The way he'd looked at her… like she was something disgusting he'd found on the bottom of his shoe.
"No," Laura lied, surprised by how steady her voice sounded. "This is my first time seeing him."
"Really?" Jane's eyebrows rose. "Because it seemed like... I don't know, like he had some kind of personal problem with you. The way he was asking those questions, cutting you off like that. I mean, he was practically attacking you."
Laura closed her eyes for a moment, trying to block out the memory of Leonard's face as he'd asked her about disappointing people who trusted her. He'd known exactly what he was doing, had been deliberately trying to humiliate her in front of strangers.
"Maybe he was just having a bad day," Laura said weakly.
"A bad day?" Jane's voice rose incredulously. "Laura, that wasn't a bad day. That was... that was cruel. And the other interviewers noticed it too. Did you see their faces? They looked horrified."
Laura had noticed. Mrs. Patterson's uncomfortable clearing of her throat, Mr. Davies trying to intervene, the way they'd all exchanged worried glances when Leonard's questions became increasingly personal and cutting. It should have made her feel better, knowing that Leonard's behavior had been obviously unprofessional, but somehow it only made everything worse.
"I need to use the restroom," Laura said suddenly, desperate to get away from Jane's probing questions before she broke down completely.
"Of course." Jane's expression softened with sympathy. "Do you want me to wait for you? We could grab coffee afterward, talk about what just happened."
"No, that's okay. You should go home and celebrate. You did great in there." Laura managed a weak smile. "He barely asked you anything, which means you made a good impression."
Jane looked like she wanted to argue, but Laura was already walking away, scanning the hallway for someone who could give her directions. She spotted a young woman in a navy blue suit carrying a steaming cup of coffee, walking briskly toward what looked like an elevator bank.
"Excuse me," Laura called out, hurrying to catch up with her.
The woman turned, revealing a friendly face framed by short auburn hair. Her badge identified her as Sarah Chen from the Marketing department.
"Yes?" Sarah smiled politely.
"Could you tell me where the restroom is? I'm sorry, I'm new here and…"
"Oh, you must be one of the interview candidates," Sarah said kindly. "The restroom is just down this hall, third door on your right. You can't miss it."
"Thank you so much." Laura was already backing away, desperate for a few minutes alone to collect herself.
She walked quickly down the indicated hallway, her heels clicking against the marble floor. The corridor was quieter here, away from the main flow of foot traffic. Oil paintings hung at regular intervals along the walls, depicting scenes of corporate triumph and success that made Laura feel even smaller than she already did.
The restroom door was exactly where Sarah had said it would be, marked with a discrete brass plaque. Laura reached for the handle, already imagining the blessed relief of cold water on her face, a few minutes of privacy to process what had just happened.
But as her hand touched the metal handle, another hand closed over hers, yanking it back with surprising force.
"How do you feel seeing me again, you whore?"
Leonard's voice sliced through the air like a blade, low and deadly. He was standing so close behind her that she could feel the heat radiating from his body, could smell the expensive cologne that had once made her feel safe and loved. Now it made her stomach turn.
Laura froze, her entire body going rigid with shock and terror. Her throat felt like it had closed completely, and for a moment she couldn't breathe at all. The hallway around them was empty, the sounds of the busy office seeming suddenly very far away.
Slowly, she turned to face him. He was even more intimidating up close than he had been across the interview table. His green eyes were cold as winter ice, his jaw set in a hard line that spoke of barely controlled rage. The expensive suit couldn't hide the tension in his shoulders, the way his hands were clenched into fists at his sides.
"How do you expect me to feel?" Laura whispered, her nerves betraying her as her voice came out weak and shaky.
Leonard's lips curved into something that might have been called a smile if there had been any warmth in it at all. Instead, it was predatory, satisfied, like a cat that had cornered a mouse.
"I expect you to feel exactly like you do right now," he said softly, his voice carrying a threat that made Laura's blood run cold. "Scared. Helpless. Like the pathetic little girl who thought she could play games with people's hearts and get away with it."
Laura tried to step back, but the restroom door was directly behind her, trapping her between the solid wood and Leonard's imposing presence. He moved closer, not quite touching her but close enough that she had to tilt her head back to meet his eyes.
"Four years," he continued, his voice dropping to barely above a whisper. "Four years I've wondered what I would say to you if I ever saw you again. Four years of imagining this moment."
"Leonard, please…"
"It's Mr. Conti to you," he cut her off sharply. "You lost the right to use my first name the night you decided to stick your tongue down my best friend's throat."
The words hit Laura like physical blows. She could see that night reflected in his eyes… the hurt, the betrayal, the way his world had collapsed when he'd found her with Mike. The memory of his face when he'd discovered them still haunted her dreams.
"I never meant for that to happen," she whispered.
"Oh, but I'm glad I did." Leonard's cold smirk deepened, and Laura could see genuine hatred burning in his green eyes. "Because it showed me exactly who you really are. A lying, cheating whore who would sell out anyone for a few minutes of attention."
Each word was carefully chosen to wound, delivered with surgical precision. Laura felt tears burning behind her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. She wouldn't give him that satisfaction.
"What do you want from me?" she asked, proud that her voice came out steadier than she felt.
Leonard studied her for a long moment, his head tilted slightly to one side like he was considering his options. When he spoke again, his voice was deceptively calm, almost conversational.
"Here's my advice," he said, leaning even closer until his breath was warm against her ear. "Leave this company now. Walk out those doors and never come back. Forget you ever applied here, forget you ever met me again."
He pulled back just enough to look directly into her eyes, and Laura saw something there that terrified her more than his anger had… a cold, calculating intelligence that promised retribution.
"Or stay," he continued, his smile turning genuinely vicious, "and face my wrath."
The threat hung in the air between them like a loaded weapon. Laura could hear her own heartbeat pounding in her ears, could feel the walls of the hallway closing in around her. Leonard stood perfectly still, waiting for her response, and she realized with growing horror that her entire future had just been reduced to this single, impossible choice.