SWNOVELS Chapter 8
Chapter 8 Freeloader
“My ex went there, to the Bamford Group, for an interview earlier. They ended up giving him the position with a starting salary of 85,000 a month,” Helene explained, the anger rising in her voice. “But he hasn’t worked for six months now! When we were together, he’d be screwing around and playing video games at home every day. He didn’t do anything else. I have no idea who’s in charge of the Bamford Group, but they have to have a screw loose. To think they’re hiring someone as lazy as him. And they’re paying him that much for it, too!”
Carlisle nearly choked on his lasagna upon hearing this.
Helene quickly poured him a glass of water and continued. “Right? You think that’s way too much too, don’t you?! Making that much right off the bat… Hey, you only make just over half of that. Why don’t you apply to Bamford too?”
Carlisle started choking even more, turning his face red. It took him a long time to recover before he eventually asked, “Didn’t you say you weren’t in contact with him anymore? How do you know he’s at Bamford?”
“His current girlfriend told me. The three of us were
classmates in college, and I work at the same company as her. We were good friends.”
Carlisle was surprised to hear this. So the woman he had seen on the third floor must have been this woman, not Helene.
“You’re in the same company as her? Doesn’t that make you
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uncomfortable?”
“Oh, it does. I’m looking to change companies.”
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Not wanting to pry any further, Carlisle finished his meal and went to take a shower. When he came out, he saw Helene sitting on the far side of the bed. She was on her phone texting someone or perhaps writing an email.
After getting her attention, Carlisle told her that he would sleep in the study that night, taking a pen and notebook with him next door. He didn’t explain himself, but it appeared he had to work overtime until very late.
That didn’t bother Helene, though. Once Carlisle was gone, she grabbed a change of clothes and went to take a shower herself.
After stepping into the study, Carlisle walked directly to his desk and turned on his laptop. He set down his notebook and sat in silence for a long time, not opening it at all. Finally, he picked up his phone and called his HR director.
When the director received a call from the CEO, he could feel his body trembling. Since coming to the company, the CEO had only spoken no more than five sentences to him. And three of those sentences were said the other day.
“Mr. Bamford! Why are you up so late?”
“The new hire we discussed earlier, Diego… You know we have strict policies about leaking information about our salaries. Anyways, I want his salary lowered to a fifth of the original offer. If he wants to work for us, he’ll be paid $17,000 annually. And if that doesn’t suit him, he will find a replacement.”
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The next morning, Helene woke up early and made a hearty breakfast for everyone. As everyone sat down to eat, Carlisle’s Grandpa suddenly asked, “Carlisle, where were you sleeping last night?”
Carlisle’s face froze immediately, and he glanced at Helene.
“I asked you a question, didn’t I? Has your hearing somehow become worse than mine?”
“I had some work I still had to finish last night, so I slept in the study. I didn’t want to make too much noise and bother Helene.”
“You just got married, and it’s only been a few days. Put aside your work and spend your nights with Helene at least,” the old man chided. “Why don’t you go on your honeymoon?”
“A honeymoon?” Carlisle asked, giving Helene a sideways glance. “Was this your idea?”
“No, I didn’t say anything,” Helene replied in confusion. She was just as confused as Carlisle was as to how the old man knew where Carlisle was sleeping.
And seeing as there was no other explanation, Carlisle was rightfully suspicious of Helene.
“No, no, Helene has nothing to do with this. I’m just anxious to hold my great–grandchild in my arms. If you aren’t serious about giving me one, I hope you’re prepared to face the consequences.”
Carlisle was especially irritable after the meal, given how he was pushed and prodded by his Grandpa.
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Standing at the door to the dining room, Matilda silently observed the situation. That was when she remembered the marriage agreement that she came across earlier in the master bedroom while cleaning the room.
If the old man knew that the two were planning to divorce in half a year, perhaps he’d lose hope in Helene. And if that was the case, then Matilda’s niece still had a chance.
After breakfast, Helene called in to ask for the day off and then left straight for the hospital. Her grandmother’s operation was scheduled for the following week, and a series of preoperative examinations had to be performed first.
She first stepped in, accompanying her grandmother for a morning check–up before meeting the attending physician, Niall Anderson.
He was a handsome doctor, known throughout the hospital to be a gentleman. And his experience was nothing to scoff at, either. During his time studying abroad, he quickly made a name for himself as one of the best doctors of his generation.
Sitting down with Helene, he explained to her the details of her grandma’s condition thoroughly but in a way she could understand. The entire time, he was understanding and patient as well.
Opposite the door to his office, one of the nurses peeked inside and eyed the doctor in amusement.
“Dr. Anderson has been talking to that woman for a while. If Dr. Wilson finds out about this, we’re in for another show,” she
remarked.
“It’s nice to see Dr. Anderson available again. And look, Dr.
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Wilson might be looking for a partner, but she’s not the only single woman here. Dr. Anderson’s free game for anyone
now.”
“What, you’re interested in him too?”
“It’s not just me! Dr. Anderson is a good man. Any woman would bite at the chance to be with him, no?”
“Shh! Dr. Wilson’s here.”
And with that, the two nurses quickly put an end to their conversation and pretended to be busy.
Delilah passed the nurse’s station and glanced at the nurses, who had since clammed up.
“What were you two talking about?”
One of the nurses smiled awkwardly and replied, “We were talking about how Dr. Anderson over there is way too patient. He’s been chatting with one of his patients‘ family members for like half an hour now.”
Delilah looked over into his office and saw a young girl sitting across from him at his desk. She wore a high ponytail, her skin was fair and supple, and she looked so very pure. She could have still been in college.
Suddenly, in response to something the girl said, Niall
suddenly laughed. His smile felt like the warm sun in winter, or perhaps the cool breeze during a hot summer’s day. He was warm yet refreshing all at once.
It was Niall’s trademark smile that made Delilah fall for him. Even after she left to study abroad for three years, she still
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chased him back when she returned. But no matter how hard she tried to win him over, he never reciprocated.
And now, seeing him acting so friendly to this girl, Delilah’s face turned cold. Her expression darkened so quickly that everyone around her could tell.
“Whose family member is that?” Delilah asked.
“Bed 23. It’s the old woman’s granddaughter.”
“The one with terminal cancer?” Delilah recalled. “They haven‘ t paid for the surgery yet… Right?”
“Not quite. The deposit’s been paid for, but there’s still about 55 grand left to cover.”
“Schedule her surgery only after the fees have been paid in full.”
“What? But that’s Dr. Anderson’s patient, and he already cleared it…” the nurse protested in shock. She didn’t expect Delilah to be so jealous that she would stoop so low.
“But I’m in charge of anything to do with the operating room he booked. It only makes sense, doesn’t it? Only patients who‘ ve had their fees properly paid will be operated on. Just tell him what I said, and if he has any questions, Dr. Anderson can discuss them with me.”
After learning about how severe her grandma’s illness was from Niall, Helene could feel herself tearing up. The corners of her eyes must have been red. Seeing how she was struggling, Niall gave her a tissue and comforted her.
“Don’t worry. As long as we operate on her as soon as
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possible, I believe your grandma’s condition will stabilize.”
Helene nodded and thanked the doctor profusely. Then, she added the doctor to her contacts so that he could continue to update her on her grandmother.
Later that afternoon, a realtor called Helene to inform her that a potential buyer wanted to look around her apartment. So, knowing that she was quite far, she drove to her old place as quickly as she could only to find that the lock had been changed.
Noticing that she was struggling to get the door open, one of her neighbors came out to tell her that he noticed her ex had called a locksmith in to change the lock yesterday. Furious, Helene immediately called Diego, but the line never connected. Diego had even changed his phone number.
Soon after, Helene arrived at the front desk of the Bamford Group’s company headquarters to ask about Diego’s department. The receptionists weren’t even aware that they had a staff member with his name.
Desperate to find out what was going on, Helene wanted to walk inside the office and look for the bastard herself.
Security at the front desk wasn’t going to let her in so casually, though. Using the excuse that she had to use the bathroom to touch up her makeup, she eventually found an opportunity to slip in.
The Bamford Group building was 25 stories high, but Helene had a few leads she could work with. After taking a look at the directory, she decided to start at one of the technical
departments located on the fifth floor.
But without an elevator card, she had no choice but to climb
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the stairs, searching each floor starting from the fifth to the fifteenth. But still, she couldn’t find Diego. Exhausted from climbing all those flights of stairs, Helene gave up and sat patiently for an elevator to visit the fifteenth floor.
Fortunately, one of the elevators opened not long after, and a middle–aged man walked out followed by another person. But after seeing Helene, he immediately retreated inside and closed the door.
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