Love In Between

Ava hurried to her office, only to see Mason already waiting.

“What are you doing in my office?” Ava frowned.

” Boss lady, I only came here to show you the new ex…” Ava interrupted.

” But why…” Ava stopped as someone familiar stepped in.

“You?” Ava screamed in shock.

“You?” Bruce looked more surprised than Ava.

“What the hell?!” Ava suddenly looked furious.

The pair faced each other, their faces red with anger as everyone around them watched them recall the details of when they first met.

“You mannerless creature.” Bruce cursed use nose. He was so annoyed to see Ava again.

The company is big and yet, he was called into the office by the crazy lady he met earlier at the elevator.

“What is he doing here?” Ava too is so shocked.

Someone she never wished to meet again.

“Um.. somebody explain what’s going on?” Roxie broke the silence, as she looked from Ava to Bruce to Mason.

“I don’t know and I don’t care.” Mason answered and began to walk out of Ava’s office.

“No! You, come back here right now! You are going nowhere.” Ava called him back.

In as much as he didn’t want to answer her, she was his boss regardless. He turned around and walked back to the trio, staring Ava dead in the eye.

“What is this?” Ava asked him, pointing at Bruce.

“This? What do you mean ‘this’?” Bruce glared at her.

“Well, ‘this’–” Mason gestured to Bruce, “is your new executive assistant. Did you not hear the explanation Roxie gave you or have you suddenly gone deaf?” He made a mockery of her.

“Mason, you may be my cousin but I will not hesitate to fire you if you ever think you can speak to me in such a manner, especially in front of this–” she turns to give Bruce a vile look, “–this thing!” She was obviously upsetting Bruce.

“You may be the CEO of this company, but kindly refrain from calling me names, because I will not hesitate to call you out online and make sure this company doesn’t exist anymore.” Bruce threatened. He wanted Ava to know he’s got what it takes too.

“It might actually be in your best interest to not say anything right now. And do not interfere in their family drama.” Roxie advised Bruce.

“You said, you wanted a new executive assistant after Durant got fired for attempted embezzlement and I got you a new executive assistant, what the hell is your complaint this time?” Mason frowned. He was already getting fed up with Ava.

This was his reason why women should not be given power. Because Ava is currently taking the whole thing too far.

“You cannot hire an assistant for me in my absence or without informing me about it first.” Ava countered.

“Well, if you did your job properly as CEO and came to work early today, I wouldn’t have had to hire somebody in your absence, now would I, huh?” Mason asked and rolled his eyes. He hated the unnecessary argument.

“Don’t you have a phone? Or did technology pass you by? What stopped you from calling me, Mason?” Ava asked.Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

“And what makes you think I care enough to do that? Maybe you should take your job more seriously, and if you can’t do it properly, quit and let someone else do it for you.” He was actually referring to himself. Only if Ava would agree to step down for him.

“There’s a reason why I was voted in as the CEO of this company and not you, Mason. If I were you, I’d watch my mouth, because it would really suck for you to go from Vice President to Account Officer, now wouldn’t it?” Ava retorted. With the silence, Ava knew she won Mason.

Mason walked out in anger.

He hated Ava.

He had a burning, passionate hatred for her. And he hated his father even more, because he was the only reason the stupid Ava could even talk to him like that.

“Hi Mason.” A voice from behind him.

He ignored the sultry call of the office slut and got into the elevator. He didn’t care where he was headed to, but he knew he had to get out of there. He was too angry to be in the workspace.

He got in his car and drove to the gun store. Just five blocks away.

Mason usually goes to the gun store whenever he is angry, to take out his anger at the shooting range. He would imagine the target was whoever made him angry and with every shot he took, he would slowly get relieved of his anger.

Mason would never shoot anyone in real life though. He didn’t have that mind or zeal to do that real.

It was just his way of relaxing and it worked very well for him. He would rather do that than take his anger out on anybody.

He got in, greeted the receptionist and paid for the regular. He was handed the loaded gun as he got to the shooting range and the target was brought up.

He fired the first shot angrily, landing it right in the center of the target’s head. Headshot kill point.

“Why did you have to be such a terrible person?” He asked as fired the second shot.

Mason’s father had founded The Quinns Co alongside Ava’s mother. The two were siblings who decided to start the business and manage it together. His father put in his all in the company, thriving alongside Ava’s mother to make it the best.

But life happens.

Eventually, Mason’s father got introduced to alcohol after his wife’s death. He started drinking and abusing drugs. That was enough grounds to exonerate him from the company as a co-founder.

Even though the board of directors agreed to exonerate him, his sister-Ava’s mother, fought for him to be left in the company; with a promise that he would change, this was all a phase for him to deal with his loss.

But he didn’t.

Instead, he got worse.

He began using drugs in the office and his office became a storage space for drugs. It got too much and the board decided to get rid of him for good, in fear that he might attract the police department into the company but Ava’s mother still insisted on letting him stay.

She got him professional help, booked therapy for him and did everything she could do to assist him, but nothing worked.

At one point, it seemed like he was getting better, but the board carried out intensive research on his files in the company, and it was discovered that he had been embezzling the company’s money.

Ava’s mother had gone to confront him about it, but unfortunately, he ran away with a lot of cash, leaving her to fix his mess.

She knew where he was, but he was wanted by the police for embezzlement, and in a bid to protect her brother, she kept the secret and ran the company all by herself.

When she heard that her brother passed away from drug abuse, she was heartbroken. She wished she could turn back time; she didn’t know what she would’ve done differently, but she wished she could. She wished it didn’t end that way for her brother.

Mason was still a young boy when all of this happened and he didn’t understand any of it back then.

All he knew was that Ava’s mother was the villain in his father’s story.

Ava’s mother died after many years and handed the company down to her only inheritor, Ava. Because of this, Mason despised Ava, even though she had employed him as the Vice President of the company.

He was supposed to be the CEO, not Ava.

And he would stop at nothing to get what he wants. Except killing anyone.