Chapter 4 You Can't Escape

'I did a good job? They want me to continue?'

Viola blinked a couple of times and pinched her arm. "Chief, this is definitely a trick, right?"

Stephanie glanced at her coldly. "Do you think I'm joking? Or are you suspecting that Maynard Chu has some ulterior motives?"

Viola forced a smile and shook her head. "Of course not! I might be just thinking too much. Chief, you know that I'm a pretty clumsy person and I always make mistakes. Why don't you give this opportunity to someone else instead?"

She didn't really want to face that man. It was already difficult for her to escape last time. She couldn't even begin to imagine what would happen to her if he caught her again.

"Weren't you looking for an opportunity to make up for your previous faults?" Stephanie raised an eyebrow at her. "Now's your chance. I'm curious with how much luck you got to be able to interview him."

Viola's smile froze. "Chief, I'm afraid that I might screw this up and end up losing all my salary. Can you please assign this task to someone else?"

She pressed both her hands together and bowed down to beg.

Stephanie was at a loss for words. After a few seconds, her gaze gradually softened. "Okay. You wait here while I try to call and ask him."

Viola's face lit up once she heard the first half of her answer. However, her expression fell the moment she heard the latter part.

Stephanie was like an entirely different person the moment someone from the other line picked up. "Mr. Chu, it appears that Viola can't handle the interview well. I think that she's currently in a dilemma. Would you like me to replace her instead?"

Viola was trying to eavesdrop on the conversation and vaguely heard Maynard say, "Let her answer the phone." At that moment, all she wanted to do was dig a hole on the floor and hide inside it.

Stephanie handed the phone over to her while Viola kept a straight face and feigned ignorance.

"It's Mr. Chu. He wants to talk to you," Stephanie said. She pursed her lips and urged Viola to take the phone.

Viola slowly took the phone and stared at the screen. She tried her best to hide the horror on her face.

"Hurry up, Viola," Stephanie hissed.

Viola didn't have a choice. She took in a deep breath and placed the phone by her ear. In a dry voice, she said, "Good afternoon, Mr. Chu."

A voice that sounded evil and attractive at the same time rang in her ears. "Come over here if you want to continue living in Y City. I assure you that the consequences for not doing so are something you can't afford.

Woman, you won't be able to run away from me."

Viola immediately covered the speaker with her hand and looked at Stephanie with pleading eyes. "Please help me. My injury's pretty bad so I really can't take this job. What else can I do? I'm desperate as well."

Stephanie placed the phone on speaker mode and crossed her arms.

"Mr. Chu, Viola sprained her ankle. I'm afraid there's nothing we can do about it. Can you please allow us to give this chance to a newcomer from our company?"

Now that Stephanie spoke up for her, Viola nodded vigorously in agreement.

"Really? Then forget about the interview..."

"No problem, Mr. Chu! It's just a sprain. In fact, it's nothing serious at all! Don't worry. Viola will take care of it." Stephanie didn't even think twice upon hearing Maynard about to change his mind.

Viola watched as Stephanie changed her mind. It was the first time that Viola felt so desperate.

Viola gathered up all her courage the moment Stephanie hung up the phone. "Chief..."

She wanted to stay in the hospital for a few days.

"Alright, alright." Stephanie waved her hand. "You heard what I said. The decision's final."

Viola wasn't willing to give up. She pursed her lips and continued to plead, "Chief, listen to me. My foot's seriously injured. It won't do well for me to be walking around."

Her words didn't seem to affect Stephanie since the latter only gazed at her threateningly. "I don't care if you have to crawl over there. If you don't want to lose your job, you better do it."

Tears started to form in Viola's eyes and all she could do was nod.

Her shoulders were slumped as Viola walked out of the office with a heavy heart. Under the scorching heat of the sun, she stood in front of the company's steps and called her son.

"Mommy, we haven't seen each other for eight hours. I miss you already," the boy whined.

Viola felt the heaviness in her heart slowly disappearing upon hearing her son's voice. "Mommy also misses you very much."

"When will you be returning home, Mommy? I want to eat pudding. Please cook some for me."

Viola sighed deeply and frowned. "I'm not sure myself. I've just encountered a pervert who likes to cause trouble. He forced me to interview him. I had no choice but to agree, or else I would be fired." She felt so suffocated that she bitterly spat those words over the phone.

After a moment of silence, Viola suddenly got the feeling that she wouldn't be able to come back. "Baby, if I don't return, you have to take care of yourself well. Make sure that you eat properly and sleep on time, okay? Keep my bank card. The password is your birthday."

"Calm down, Mommy! Don't be scared. If worse comes to worst, we can go back to the countryside and live there."

A small smile slowly formed on her lips. Thanks to her son's encouragement, Viola seemed to have gotten new hope.

"Baby, you're right. Wait for me tonight. I need to go first. I'll talk to you later, alright?" She hung up the phone and stared up blankly into the endless blue sky.