Bianca, sensing the tension, didn’t press for more details. Instead, she smoothly changed the subject, steering the conversation toward the uing celebration dinner.
Only then did Seth remember the dress. He quickly told her he’d already arranged for it in advance.
“Really? Where is it? Let me see!” Bianca’s eyes sparkled with excitement. Without thinking, Seth replied, “I had Secretary Gilmore pick it up.”
He paused before adding, “But she’s already left for the day.”
“I’ll ask Sophia. She probably knows where it is.” Bianca was clearly eager to see the dress.
Seth gave his tacit approval.
Before leaving the office, Bianca happened to notice Seth sliding Noreen’s resignation letter into the drawer on his right. If she wasn’t mistaken, there were several more resignation letters in there as well.
Which could only mean one thing: Noreen had tried to resign some time ago, but Seth had never approved it.
The discovery left Bianca with a prickle of difort and a creeping sense of threat.
She couldn’t tell whether Seth was reluctant to let Noreen go because he valued her as a person, or because he simply depended on her work and didn’t want the hassle of recing someone so capable. Either way, it was a wild card Bianca couldn’t tolerate.
Getting Seth to ept Noreen’s resignation would be easy–she just had to say the word, and he’d agree. But to her, that would be letting Noreen off far too lightly.
Resignation and being fired were two very different things.
L:1/3
14-26
Bianca wanted Noreen to be cklisted, to make sure she’d never find a foothold in Rivercrest City again. She wanted a wedge driven between Noreen and Seth, wanted Noreen gone from his world for good.
Noreen was uneasy from the moment she arrived at work the next morning, haunted by the sense that something bad was about to happen. Seth was out of the office for the morning, and Noreen had just begun to appreciate the rare quiet when Sophia burst in, her face stricken and her hands trembling.
“Noreen, it’s bad! Something’s happened!”
Sophia looked so pale, she seemed ready to faint.
“What is it? Slow down, tell me what’s wrong,” Noreen said, concern sharpening her tone.
“The dress you picked up from Myriad Atelier the other day–the one for Bianca–it has a huge tear in it!” Sophia’s voice shook.
Noreen’s heart skipped a beat. “A tear? How did that happen?”
She remembered steaming the dress herself and hanging it carefully in the wardrobe. How could it possibly be ruined?
“I don’t know,” Sophia stammered, nearly sobbing. “Director Lowell wanted to try it on just now, but when we took it out, there was this big hole. She asked me what happened, but I couldn’t exin.” Tears streamed down Sophia’s cheeks. “Noreen, what do we do? Director Lowell said the dress was really expensive…”
“I’ll take a look. Don’t panic,” Noreen said, hurrying to the storage room.
Bianca was already there. When she saw Noreen enter, she arched an eyebrow and said coolly, “I was just about toe find you, Secretary Gilmore. You picked up this dress, didn’t you?”
Noreen answered calmly, “Yes. I also steamed it myself and hung it in the
E2/2
14.26 :
wardrobe. The dress was in perfect condition when I left it.”
“Then what’s the meaning of this?” Bianca’s tone sharpened, full of the cold authority of someone used to getting her way. “Care to exin?”
Noreen knelt to inspect the damage. The tear was jagged, as if pulled by force, right at the front of the waist. There was no way this could be repaired.
“This dress was custom–made for me by Seth a month in advance at Myriad Atelier,” Bianca said, her voice growing icy. “Never mind the price–tomorrow is the celebration dinner. I was supposed to wear it, and now it’s ruined. Who’s going to take responsibility for this?”
Bianca’s presence was so overwhelming that Sophia stood frozen, hardly daring to breathe.
“After I brought the dress back, did anyone else handle it?” Noreen asked, turning <i>to </i>Sophia.
No <bwork avable </b>now. <b>Please check </b>yourwork.