Chapter 5
Dorian was already in early again. And someone else had turned the coffee machine on.
He sat behind his desk, a picture of control with his sleeves rolled to mid-forearm, collar crisp, and his pen in hand, twirling absently between his fingers.
He didn't glance up when she entered. And just like that, they both pretended the night before hadn't happened.
No one mentioned the drunken visit or the slurred demands through a barred door.
Rune said nothing, and Dorian acted as if he hadn't been found passed out on her doorstep.
But the shadows under his eyes told another story. He looked exhausted, skin drawn tight at the jaw, his usual polish dulled by the slight tightness beneath his cheekbones. His clothes were perfect, his hair controlled, but the signs of overindulgence lingered.
And still, the mask had slid back in place with dawn.
Mr. Hyde by day and Dr. Jekyll by night, Rune thought sourly.
But she moved through the familiar ritual like clockwork.
She placed the coaster in its usual spot.
Laid out the breakfast mat, a minimalist charcoal square.
Then the coffee – black, no milk or sugar, exactly 84°C when poured.
Next to it, his usual bagel, wrapped precisely in white parchment.
She adjusted the angles and stepped back.
Then, she forced her voice to stay neutral.
It was akin to pulling teeth without anaesthetic.
"The new recruits will be here soon."
Dorian twirled the pen once, then set it down, still not looking at her. A tiny smirk dared to lift the corner of her mouth.
"Send them to Finn. He'll handle contracts," said Dorian brusquely, still not making eye contact.
Rune nodded once and stepped out into the main office. Across the room, Margo stood at the coffee machine in a sharply cut charcoal skirt suit and polished nude heels. Her lipstick was fire-engine red, and her blowout looked freshly styled.
"Morning," she chirped, setting her phone down on the breakroom counter as she double-checked her reflection in the steel of the microwave.
"Someone didn't get the memo about business casual." Rune didn't respond. Passive-aggressive bullshit did nothing for her.
Instead, she walked past her, poured herself coffee into a paper cup, milk and two sugars, and returned to her desk.
Tom arrived a few minutes later, cheerful as always, in a slim-cut shirt and tie that didn't quite match.
He gave Rune a small nod and a gentle smile. She returned both with quiet civility.
He lingered awkwardly with a slight blush on his cheeks, hands clasped behind his back. Margo, on the other hand, was already dragging Rune's tote bag and laptop case toward the table by the wall. Rune's old desk was now sporting a tiny bag with the LV logo and a sleek laptop bag.
Rune paused, watching her antics. "What are you doing?"
Margo turned with a toss of her perfectly styled hair. Big hair today, Rune mused.
"Dorian said I could take this space. He said we'd better start with the handover. Tom can have the desk over there once you leave.", replied Margo, super-sweet with extra whipped cream and a cherry on top.
Dorian, not Mr. Albury, Rune registered. On her first day.
Rune blinked once, her expression still a neutral mask while she worked towards not bashing Margo’s skull in with the decorative bronze vase in the display. "I see."
Then the phone rang.
Rune picked it up. "Angel Consulting, Rune O'Connor speaking."
"Rone?" came her least favourite voice over the phone. "Be a dear and remind my son about the Children's Wing charity benefit. That's Great Ormond Street – haematology and oncology. You know how Dorian gets. All work and no play."
Rune opened her planner. "Noted, Mrs. Albury. I'll pass it on."
"Oh, and Rone, this time, do remind him properly, hmm? You forgot last month."
"I did remind him, Mrs. Albury," Rune said calmly.
"Well. Clearly not hard enough."
Click.
Rune stared at the phone for a difficult second while she wondered why they no longer used the guillotine for aristocrats, then set it down with delicate precision. No, she did not slam it down like she wanted to. She would not give him the satisfaction because he might be watching.
She consciously relaxed her shoulders and kept her face blank as she turned to her replacements. Sharks had a keen sense of smell, and she didn't want any blood in the water.
Then she turned to the two recruits.
"Let me take you down to Contracts."
Rune led them down the long corridor with efficient grace.
Today, she had worn a soft grey sweater tucked into dark slacks, black loafers clicking softly on the polished floor. Her shining dark hair was wound into a clean knot at the crown of her head.
Margo walked behind her with the energy of someone who was used to taking charge, her heels a fraction too loud. Tom followed, clutching his folder like a lifeline.
"We're a small team," Rune explained as they walked. "Dorian prefers it that way."
"Easier to pinpoint the f-f-fuckups," Tom offered, with a nervous half-smile.
Rune gave him a warm look. "Exactly. But it also means we help each other out. You'll be fine."
Margo laughed softly. "So long as you're not slow, darling. Dorian hates inefficiency."
She gave Tom a sideways glance that flickered from flirtation to boredom in one breath.
When they reached the end of the corridor, Rune knocked twice and opened a frosted-glass door. "This is Finn. He is our contracts and accounts lead. He's been here longer than I have."
Finn looked up from behind a stark white desk, salt-and-pepper hair, weathered features, and a stare that made most people sit straighter.
"Rune," he greeted with a quick smile for Rune. "Deliverin' fresh meat, aye?"
"Unfortunately," she replied with a small smile. "Try not to chew them out."
Tom gave a nervous chuckle. Margo didn't laugh.
Rune turned to leave and glanced down at her watch. Time was ticking. A few more days, and she'd finally be free of all of it.
Tom was easy to get along with. Blushes aside, he caught on easily and was eager to learn.
Margo, however, was a different story. By midmorning, she had already asked Rune to double-check the single client file she'd been handed.
It was the one she had misplaced twice, and Rune had to spend twenty minutes frantically hunting it down.
Then she suggested loudly that Rune must've forgotten to forward the correct version.
She flounced in and out of Dorian's office with increasing frequency, always carrying a notepad and always finding reasons to linger.
Rune walked past once and heard the end of a sentence-
"...well, you did say exclusive, didn't you?" A pause. Then Margo's low laugh. "I always honour my agreements."
Rune kept walking, ignoring the sudden despair that caught her unawares. She was not quick enough to disguise it from Margo, who passed her with a shoulder check and a sly grin
.
When she returned to her desk, she found Margo leaning far too close to Tom, giggling at something he'd said, one perfectly manicured hand resting lightly on his arm. A second later, she handed him a stack of documents and sashayed away, tossing over her shoulder.
"You're quicker with formatting anyway, darling."
Tom blinked and took the papers, visibly unsure if he'd just been complimented or played.
Rune sipped her coffee and said nothing. This was what Dorian had chosen. She had been replaced by someone louder, flashier, and more decorative.