Chapter 7 Collette
“Come.” Mr. Holdt’s tone was so firm. It gave me chills that weren’t entirely unpleasant.
I couldn’t help imagining him using the word in a completely different context.
The table in the middle of the room was the perfect size to seat four people. He helped me with my chair.
He took a seat across from me while Rossi stood by the door.
It felt that he was blocking any escape attempt from me.
“Now, Mr. Rossi tells me that you skimmed through the papers you signed. I need to make sure that you understand the exact terms you are agreeing to before we start this working arrangement.” Mr. Holdt’s look of disapproval was unexpected.
Why would he care if I’d read the papers before signing them? It wasn’t as if he could force me to read them.
“Number one: You are mine for the entire duration of the contract.”
His eyes met mine.
I wanted to stick out my tongue at his obvious claiming of me as his property. I wasn’t his slave, and the wording was causing me to have a few extra concerns. As if this man should have more red flags raised. I was happy that I wouldn’t be working for him long term. I was going to get the evidence I needed and be gone.
Though given the current situation, my plans on how to be gone needed some extra work.
“Number two: If at any time you wish to walk away, you only have to say so. You will be released from my services and escorted off the property. Payment for the time served will be taken care of promptly. Any bonuses that would have been given at the end of your contract are considered forfeit.”
Yeah, right. I thought.
“Ms. DeLandro, you do understand what I’m telling you, correct?” He tapped the pen on the table to bring my attention back to his words. The soft scolding he was issuing felt really weird.
My eyes rolled internally at his restatement of what the contract said. He was treating me as if I was a small child that might -have misunderstood what he’d been telling me.
“Yes,” I said. “I’m yours exclusively for the entire year. If I want to leave, I can, but I lose all the benefits that would be mine at the end of the year.”
“If you leave early, you will not be able to approach me or any of the employees of Holdt Technologies in the future. It would be cause for me to sue you.” His intense gaze made me sit up straighter as if I was a misbehaving child that needed to be punished.
At my nod, he continued, satisfied for the moment.
“Number three: You are not to have contact with anyone outside of this room without my express permission for the duration of your contract. It is necessary that you only communicate with Mr. Rossi or myself unless you ask me first.”
I shrugged. If I needed to get information to Ingrid it would be more difficult, but not impossible. Nothing was impossible. I would just have to be careful in how I handled things. This man’s OCD and paranoid tendencies could be worked around.
“Number four: There will be no social media posts or attempts to access any accounts on your social media.”
He held out the burner phone from under the seat of my car.
My gasp of surprise brought a smile to Rossi’s statue-like features. Even though I’d planned for it I hadn’t actually expected them to search my car.
“You went through my vehicle. I didn’t give you permission to do that. It’s an invasion of privacy.” I growled and narrowed my eyes.
“Actually, Ms. DeLandro, if you look right here in paragraph ten of the non-disclosure agreement, you will see that you agreed to these terms. We are free to search your person, belongings, and anything that we deem necessary to determine that you are following the rules.”
His head shook in disapproval and the trace of smugness in his voice didn’t make me any happier. “It’s why we ask that you look over things carefully. If you feel violated and would like to leave, we won’t stop you. It is your choice.”
Silence filled the room. He was waiting for me to respond. When I simply sat there, he frowned.
“Back to the subject at hand, are you going to continue to stay as per your contract guidelines?” His pen pointed to the area we’d stopped on.
I had to force a deep breath into my lungs. I reminded myself this was for Andy. I would endure this for him.
His smarter than thou attitude was going to make me scream before our time together was over, though.
A boss that gave orders was one thing, but he acted like he knew what was best for me. Not even a full day and he was certain that his way was the only way.
I fumed silently as he resumed his speech.
“You will make a post to all social media outlets immediately about taking a break from any and all platforms for your mental health.”
He crossed his arms and nodded toward the phone locked by my fingerprint.
I wanted to make him wait. I really did. On the other hand, I didn’t want to alert them that anything was out of the ordinary.
Unsure of how much information I could send out quickly, I picked up the phone.
“Here is a statement that has been drafted to help you navigate your posts and updates.”
I glanced at the paper he pushed toward me.
“Due to family issues, I have decided that I need to take an extended break from social media for my own mental health. The toxic nature of the platforms is causing me distress. I’m hoping a cleanse from the negativity that surrounds us in the technology of society will help me to focus on more important matters. Thank you for understanding and respecting my need for privacy during this time.”
I lifted my brow. “That’s a pretty broad and all-encompassing statement. What makes you think people will believe it comes from me?” I honestly didn’t care. Nobody followed me on any of the sites anyway. I used them for research and work purposes.
I had no family to care about what was going on in my life. No friends to check up on me. In fact, I was one of those few people in life that truly had no connections to the world. Nobody would notice that I’d be gone. Nobody would file a missing persons report.
Andy had been the only person that had made it a point to check on me. He’d been there through more than half of my life.
He was gone and no one would miss me.
I checked the spiraling thoughts. Ingrid might.
The thought brought a wave of sadness, reinforcing my loss of my only family and friend.
If what I was doing could stop this man from hurting others as I’d been hurt, then I had to make my life count for something worthwhile.
It wasn't foolish heroics if something good came from something bad.
“This is for the protection of Holdt Technologies. We require all employees that work with sensitive material to have limited-to-no social media access,” he explained with controlled patience.
“Whatever.” I started typing the message out.
“There.” I turned the phone toward him so he could read and approve it. “Highly unnecessary, but I’ll do it.”
His gaze read over the words quickly.
“Nicely done. Do the same with the other media accounts and then hand Mr. Rossi the phone.” His tone brooked no arguments.
I did as he asked, but I’d also typed out a message to Ingrid.
Taken to a cabin in the woods to work for Holdt. Won’t be able to communicate.
I hit send and then posted all of the other messages.
“Done.”
The evidence of my communication had been deleted and cleared from my phone.
I’d picked up a few tricks back in my younger days to keep the foster parents from being able to find anything on my phone.
It was also locked by my fingerprint. Unless he cut off one of my fingers, Rossi was going to have a hard time accessing my phone to see what else I was up to.
“Very well.” He nodded to Rossi to come and take possession of my phone. “Let’s continue with the other rules.”
It took a lot of energy to hold in my sigh. I should know what I was signing, but I wanted to get on with it all. The sooner I could get the dirt, the sooner I could properly grieve my brother, and put him to rest. He deserved that.
“Number five: Nothing that is said or done with Mr. Holdt is to be disclosed or discussed with anyone without his express permission.” He leaned forward. “Collette, this is especially important. My personal life and business life cannot have anyone nosing around or finding out details about it.”
I bit my lip. He’d switched from being professional to personal. As if an appeal to my softer side would make me more compliant to his wishes.
His need for secrecy made me want to dig out what he was hiding. If he could keep anyone from finding out about his underhanded dealings, then he would never be held accountable for his actions.
“I understand,” I agreed in order to get him to finish this tedious process. It was time to move on to whatever stage came next.
“Number six: There will be no sexual intimacy without the consent of both parties. All physical encounters are to be discussed and agreed to before being initiated.”
My body stiffened. He was going to use me for sexual gratification in addition to being his personal assistant. Seriously? What did I sign on for?
“I don’t remember anything of a sexual nature being discussed during the interview or the rest of this process. You need a personal assistant that will take care of all of your needs, not just the business related ones?” My finger moved along the list of requirements as if I had never considered he might want that type of companionship.
“Yes. If both parties agree and consent is gained beforehand. This means that you do not have to engage in any physical or sexual activities if you are uncomfortable or do not wish to.”
“Why does a man of your means and obvious good looks need to have an assistant on standby for sex? And, given the power differential, how would I be able to give full consent?”
This time I was the one crossing my arms and waiting for an answer.
“I don’t prefer to have one night dalliances.”
“Instead, you prefer to make them work for you and to be at your beck and call twenty-four seven.” I snickered at the images this brought up in my head.
“Ms. DeLandro, if the circumstances don’t suit you, then you are more than free to leave. I’ll resume the interview process and we can both go back to our lives.”
I locked gazes with Mr. Holdt. Challenge accepted.
“All right. Since it is stated ‘without the consent of both parties,’ then I’ll agree to stay. Keep in mind I fully intend to say no unless it suits me.”
Despite my attraction, this wasn’t going to be a problem. As I’d said, I did not plan to give consent of any kind. That was probably a little na?ve of me, a small part of my brain whispered. Maybe I would od what I had to do to get the answers I needed. I reminded myself that I would do anything for Andy. I’d done worse to stay out of trouble in the past. Whatever it took for justice, I was willing to do. And with that thought, my resolve deepened.
And thinking he’d overcome resistance might be something he craved, given this contract.
“To be crystal clear and so there is no confusion later on. Do you understand and agree to everything stated in the papers you’ve signed?”
My eyes stayed locked with his.“Yes. I signed them in good faith.” I crossed my fingers under the table as I said it.
That counted, right? Nothing said while crossing your fingers could be held against you? The bit of whimsy helped my rampaging nerves.
“Very well, Ms. DeLandro. Shall we begin?”
He stood abruptly and held out a hand to me.
My breath caught in my throat at the gesture.
More of a romantic offer than a professional one.
It took a lot of faith to believe that he wasn’t going to lead me to my death, but I hesitantly placed my hand in his. I couldn’t do anything else or it would make him suspicious about my motives.
We walked down a small, short hallway to a closed door.
An elevator was hidden behind it and we stepped inside.
He was really cautious about security and available escape exits throughout his properties. It just reaffirmed the fact that he was hiding something. I was on the right track to get the answers I needed.
The elevator was not as large or spacious as a few of the others I’d been in in the past twenty-four hours, but it was adequate to give us both a small amount of personal space.
The doors opened to a spacious, fully furnished basement apartment.
While not ornately decorated, it would be a comfortable living space while I was his assistant.
“You’ll see that we’ve catered to your every need.” Mr. Holdt stated as he continued to hold on to my hand. We moved farther into the room.
“The kitchen will be used after we’ve gotten more comfortable with each other. You’ll have to earn those privileges.”
Warning bells went off in my brain. Earned privileges? It was something I’d have to come back to after the tour was over. He was messing with my thought process. This had moved way too fast.
The entire room was one large square. The kitchen was in one corner, with the bedroom situated diagonally across from it.
In the middle were two love seats, a coffee table with padding on the corners, but not much else. A small table was pushed against the wall by the kitchen with the bathroom in the opposite corner.
The bathroom was the most lavish portion of the room. A free standing tub for long soaks and a walk-in shower took up the other corner.
He had spared no expense for the hygienic needs of his assistants, playthings, whatever. Then again, he might be one of those weirdos that wanted me to bathe before having sexual intercourse with him. I’d heard rumors about people like that.
This large room was about the size of a one bedroom apartment. It felt much bigger without the dividing walls. The only enclosed space was the toilet area.
I was certain that he had cameras to monitor my every move. It was what I’d have done if I was his security-conscious ass.
Monitor the new employee until I could trust them enough to do things on their own.
Thank gracious he would allow me to have a modicum of privacy while I tended to my personal needs.
The lack of walls for the shower or bath indicated that he got off on watching other people’s personal moments.
While I wasn’t a fan of someone watching my every move, it would be the fastest and easiest way to assure him that I had nothing to hide. Physically.
Mentally? A completely different story.
What was really unusual was the thick foam padding on all the corners or sharp edges. It was as if a klutz had lived here before me and might be hurt easily.
“You’ll find everything that you require.”
His presence was starting to affect the way I was thinking. The soft, yet firm grip on my hand gave me butterflies. Every touch we shared had my body reacting, I hated it. I had to focus hard on what he was saying.
“If there is something that you don’t see, but you require, just walk over to the intercom and ask.” He led me over to the elevator where the intercom system was installed.
“It connects to my phone, so you’ll be able to contact me directly whenever you need me.”
He released my hand and stepped into the elevator.
I shouldn’t have had such a feeling of emptiness associated with his hand leaving mine, but I did.
“You should familiarize yourself with the space. You’ll have one night to memorize it.”
The doors shut on his words. Memorize?