AllFreeNovel
Share Us
About fifteen minutes before most of the office would leave for the night, Allee heard the studio door open. Knowing that a distraction would not be welcomed by most of the team, she went to the office entrance to intercept the visitor. She came face-to-face with a man she'd never met before – he was average height, of stocky build, with close-cropped dark-blonde hair. He was wearing jeans stained with oil and grease, a black t-shirt with a rather crude slogan on the front, and dark wrap-around sunglasses, which he removed when Allee appeared in front of him. Allee pasted a friendly smile on her face and gestured towards her empty office.
“Hi, I'm Allee, the office manager. I'm afraid you can't go into the main area at the moment, but if you tell me who you're after, I can pass on a message.”
The man frowned, not looking at all pleased to be denied entry. Allee licked her lips, a sliver of unease sliding down her spine. Could this be Parker?
“I'm here to see Charlie. Where is she?”
A knot of dread twisted in the pit of Allee's stomach. How could she keep him out of the main office area?
Suddenly, Parker's expression changed, and Allee turned her head to see Darryl, Noah, Sammy, Michael, Andre, and Mark glowering behind her, completely blocking the entrance to the main office. Andre, who Allee had always thought of as laid-back and friendly, was glaring. Allee could picture him armed with a broadsword or axe, and the image was frightening. Michael, in his signature black, exuded a quiet menace. Silence reigned over the room, with all heads swivelled in their direction. Allee could see Beth and Charlie huddled in the rear conference room and realised that the entire office knew about what had happened over the weekend.
A slight noise made Allee look back, and she saw that Craig had appeared, his generally genial countenance darkened by a scowl, his arms crossed as he leaned against his door.
“Parker, get in here, now,” Craig barked and moved aside. Allee backed into her own office as Darryl, Noah, Sammy, Michael, Andre, and Mark stepped forward, herding Parker into Craig's room. Mark clicked the door shut behind him, and Allee released the breath that she had unconsciously been holding. She caught Beth's eye, and gestured towards her office. Beth and Charlie quickly made their way in, and Allee shut her door behind them.
The three women sat in silence, listening intently at the voices from across the hall. A couple of minutes passed, and they heard angry voices, a door slamming, and angry footsteps pounding back down the corridor.
Moments later, they heard a soft knocking on the door.
“It's okay ladies, he's gone now,” said Mark.
Allee opened the door to see Mark and Michael standing there, grim smiles on both of their faces.
Charlie exhaled shakily, her voice low and trembling, “I should have known he would turn up. I should have known he wouldn't just leave things be, do as I asked, and not make a scene. How the hell am I going to be able to go home after this?”
Allee gently squeezed Charlie's left shoulder as Mark answered softly, “You won't. Darryl, Andre, and Noah have all followed him back to your place to make sure he packs up his gear and leaves his keys behind. They'll be meeting a locksmith there and getting all your locks changed as well. Darryl will spend the night at your place, and Andre will take you home to pick up a change of clothes. You're spending the night at ours,” Mark inclined his head towards Beth, who nodded in agreement.
“Hang on a minute,” Allee interjected. “Does Parker know you guys?”
“Yeah, he does. Why do you ask?” replied Beth.
“Well, if he knows you and where you live, couldn't he just lurk around your neighbourhood? I take it that's why Darryl's spending the night at Charlie's, to make sure nothing happens?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Well, he doesn't know where I live,” said Allee, “Charlie could always stay at mine?” They all glanced at Charlie. “What do you think Charlie, did you want to stay with me? I don't live that far away, and we can always get one of the guys to bunk downstairs on my couch.”
Charlie nodded her head, grateful tears shining in her eyes. “Thanks, I really appreciate it.”
Allee nodded, “I’ll make sure everything's ready for your stay.”
“I don't know what to say... thank you.”
“Don't worry about it. Let's just get you tucked in for the night,” Allee winked at Charlie, knowing that this would be a turning point for both of them.
Chapter Twelve
Signalling a change in the weather, Friday dawned clear and cool. Allee woke to discover that Piddle had burrowed beneath the duvet during the night. She smiled and eased her way out of the bed, careful not to disturb the snoring feline.
It had been a tumultuous week. Charlie had spent several nights at Allee's, only returning to her own home the previous afternoon. New locks were fitted on Charlie’s doors and windows, plus an alarm and lights outside the house. Parker was told in no uncertain terms that if he ever approached Charlie, her property, workplace, or friends or family, she would get an AVO out on him. So far, he had kept well away, although whether that was due to Charlie's directions, or the threats of bodily harm given by Andre, Darryl, and, to everyone's surprise, Michael, Allee didn't know.
As Allee dressed, she could see the lump in the middle of her bed begin to move. She smiled as Piddle tunnelled her way out from between the covers before lightly jumping onto the floor to stretch, her mouth yawning wide, displaying all her sharp teeth. Allee grinned, loosely twisting her hair back into a messy knot before making her way down to the kitchen, the cat hot on her heels. She fed the fiercely circling feline, then prepared her own breakfast, musing at just how much she'd been able to open up to Charlie about her own experiences at the hands of Stuart. Charlie was horrified at what she had heard, admiring how Allee had escaped and begun again.
Rinsing the dishes before stacking them in the dishwasher, Allee finished her morning routine, slipped on a light jacket and a pair of flat shoes before giving Piddle a goodbye pat and walking out the door, locking it behind her.
Due to all the past week's excitement, Craig called for an extra team meeting that morning. This was primarily to discuss the progress of the fix for the dependency loop and discuss other issues cropping up around the office. Allee herself had some important news to convey, although thinking about it too much made her angry.
Once everyone was seated around the conference table, Craig opened the meeting. Noah and his team had been working hard and had been able to replicate the bug on enough occasions that they had been able to come up with a solution, which they had released the previous afternoon. Sammy had kept an eye on the forums and had positive feedback from the community so far. Although Charlie was questioned about why the programming team weren’t aware of the issue, they accepted her explanation that she had lodged the bug, but the ticket had been lost. It was at this point that Allee interrupted the conversation.
