Лидия Антонова
Revenge – served cold
" But if that's the case, you probably shouldn't overstep your bounds. This business trip will be a test. Whether you can stand the test of his beauty and charm or not. You need to pack your things. "
And not in a way that makes it look like you're ready to jump into bed with him, even though you'd rather be on the table with your boss. You have a different mission for this company.
That's where I totally agreed with her. I didn't have a normal job in my employment history. I had to be able to hold it for a couple years. And ideally get a promotion. Rendezvousing with my boss didn't fit into that plan.
" But, you know, it's time to get out of the "mousey mouse" mold, too. There will be other men there," Ramila added unexpectedly.
I grimaced. After the betrayal of my beloved, I was not ready to let someone into my life.
" Hey, neighbors!"
There was a knock at the kitchen window. We shuddered and turned at the knock. A burned-out neighbor loomed in the yard. This time he looked almost decent: in sweatpants and an open turtleneck, but in the same alcoholic T-shirt. He looked about forty years old. His blond, long uncut hair fell over his eyes, and his face was framed by a beard that would only scare a barber.
" What do you want? " Ramila snorted, opening the window.
" I just came to apologize. I didn't know you'd already arrived."
The man's logic was strange. That is, if he knew that the house was inhabited again, would not have set fire to the wood?
" Well, apologize, " "allowed" Ramilya.
" Wo!"
The neighbor shook a colored shabby bag and… climbed through the window. Ramilya recoiled, and I jumped up. No one had ever come to visit us like that before. The neighbor threw the bag on the table and introduced himself:
" Mathew."
" Ramilya, Rina."
Unexpectedly, my friend responded, approvingly squinting at the bag, which in fact turned out to be full of smoked fish.
" I smoked it myself," Mathew said proudly.
" Have a seat," Ramilya almost purred.
Smoked fish was her weakness. She consumed it in immense quantities and drank it with sweet tea. To me, it was a terrible combination. The guest did not talk himself into it, and sitting down at the table, he grunted approvingly, taking a mug of mulled wine. Being in some shock from unexpectedly formed neighbor's meetings, I snatched my phone without looking and answered the call.
" Hi, " Dimitri said hello.
" Hi," I answered muffled.
My heart sank somewhere in my stomach and fluttered. I must have changed my face, because Ramila immediately looked up to see who was calling me. When she saw the contact, she hissed angrily. We had agreed on the train that I would not answer his calls.
" For some reason I can't reach you. I miss you very much," Dimitri went on the offensive.
I kept silent, because I knew who was the only one of us missing, and who was living life to the fullest and had even started a family.
" Where did you disappear to? Why are you silent? " Dimitri asked, without waiting for an answer.
" I'm here."
I couldn't pull myself together. The words were stuck in my throat. They were backed up by sobs, which I was ready to burst into tears. My head was like a balloon, it was going to blow away.
" Someone important is on the phone," Mathew said.
" Yes, it is," Ramilya snorted.
" Who's that there? " Dimitri asked suspiciously. " A man? Did you get another one? Is that why you don't answer my calls?"
" Why? " I got angry.
" I'm working for our future! And you!"
I couldn't believe my ears. He's trying to make me jealous?! I was sitting at home like a fool, daydreaming. and now he's accusing me of cheating on him!
" It's the neighbor! " I enlightened him.
" Oh, yeah?!"
" Well, yes! " I confirmed it with a challenge.
" I've got it all figured out, it looks like I'm in danger of catching a scene from a cheap joke!"
" Vaudeville," I corrected him.
" Are you laughing? Honey, if I came home, would you at least let me in?"
I didn't say anything, desperately fighting myself. To start sobbing into the phone was to bring myself down even lower. We'd meet at the office sooner or later. It's a miracle we haven't crossed paths yet.
" Tell him we're waiting for him, and we'll make pies, his favorite! With meat! " Ramila came to my rescue
" With cabbage. Dimitri likes cabbage, " I corrected him.
" What kind of man doesn't like meat? " muttered the neighbor.
" "The best," Ramilya grinned. " Tell me, I'm already running to the market for cabbage. Or better to the fields, I'll take it from a private citizen, just in time for his arrival and I'll turn around."
Now Dimitri was silent, listening to our argument. I tried feverishly to think of something to say to him. When Ramilya and Mathew laughed, Dimitri hung up.
I sank down in my chair and stared dumbly at the screen.
" Should I call him back? " I muttered.
" He'd call me. He's in dire need of you right now," Ramila snorted.
" What's that? " I didn't understand.
" He badly needs your part of the money for the mortgage," she said.
Unfortunately, she was right. In my mind I understood it perfectly well. But that didn't make it any easier. I finished the contents of my glass in a gulp, said goodbye to my neighbor and went to pack my things.
***
I decided not to take too much with me, so I pulled out a small gym bag and packed two suits, one dress, and a pair of shoes. The clothes had to come from Ramili's closet. That made it a little embarrassing. If it wasn't for this trip that couldn't be turned down, I would have gone to the mall on Saturday and bought my own. The tutor didn't need business suits. Oh, and for the past few years, I've only bought things out of necessity. When things that had fallen into disrepair couldn't be darned without a mark.
" Are you going? " Ramila asked. I nodded. " Ta-dam!"
My friend pulled out several tubes of paint from behind her back.
" Now we'll do your head. Since we can't fix the contents, we'll fix the outside. Please!"
I frowned skeptically, then sat down resolutely. It was reckless to entrust my hair to a manicurist. Though it wouldn't be any worse than it is now.
Ramila stirred the paint with inspiration and made the first stroke. Judging by the number of bottles used, she was a professional. I sincerely hope my hair won't fall out after it!
Chapter 4
A nasty, nasty sound popped into my ears, cracked my head, and threw me out of my dream and into reality. My body wasn't going to give up just like that, so I tried to sleep it off. But as soon as I closed my eyes, the sound repeated itself. The realization that it was an alarm clock brought a sharp sense of doom. By the end of the week, after commuting to work every day, spending four hours a day on the subway, my only dream was to get some sleep.
Fumbling for the phone under my pillow, I decided to cowardly postpone rising for ten minutes and was surprised to find that it wasn't an alarm clock! It was a bell! And it was only half past five in the morning!
Wondering who could have called at this hour, she accepted the call. I was going to say everything I thought about this person, and in the most obscene form.
" Rina! I knew you'd been awake for a long time. Smart girls get up early!"
The voice of the unknown interlocutor was ringing. I wasn't thinking straight, and it took me fifteen seconds to understand the meaning of the word "early".
" What?" I asked in surprise. " Who are you? "
" I'm Mila."
In fact, if I wanted to insult her to her face, that's what I'd call her.
" I asked who you are and why are you calling so early?"
I sat down on the couch and shrugged irritably. Today I have a hard day ahead of me and instead of getting a good night's sleep and rest, I have to talk to some crazy woman.
" I'm the manager, I'll bring the waiters to your office," she reported cheerfully.
" It's twelve o'clock in the afternoon! " I got angry.
" Yes, yes, there's not much time left. We'll be there at eleven o'clock and…"
I breathed through my teeth and dropped the call. I collapsed onto my pillow and tried to sleep. It didn't work, though; anger was more energizing than anything else.
After turning around for about ten minutes and realizing that she couldn't fall asleep, she got up and went to the kitchen.
In fact, Mila had woken me up only half an hour earlier than my alarm clock, but that half hour was exactly what I needed to sleep. I had been missing half an hour all week.
To my surprise, Ramila was already in the kitchen, absent-mindedly stirring coffee in a coffee pot. She looked as if she hadn't been to bed at all.
" Can't sleep? " I asked glumly.
I usually got up first, showered, and then met her in the kitchen.
" You could say that. I keep thinking, what exactly Dimitri was counting on when he went on a walk?"
" Does it make any difference? " I inquired with demonstrative indifference.
" Of course! " Ramilya assured me eagerly.
I sat down on the chair and raised my eyebrows in surprise. It seemed that my friend could not calm down and continued to think about her plan of revenge.
" What does it matter to us what he was counting on? I doubt we'll be able to get him to talk about it. "
" Why would we ask him anything? We could just follow him."
I was lucky I was able to sit up. If I'd stood up, I'd have fallen. Ramila seems to have had a lot of crazy ideas this morning. And she loves them.
I didn't share them. As far as I was concerned, the idea was impossible, moreover, on the verge of fantasy. But Ramila seemed to like it more and more every minute. I had to touch her forehead defiantly.
" Don't fuss," Ramila waved my hand away.
" Didn't you sleep well? Why do you suddenly have such strange ideas in the morning? And in general, how do you envision it? Are we going to ride the subway after him? And beforehand, to specify – at what station to get off? "
Dimitri traveled around the city by car, and we took the subway. Of course, we could take a cab, but traffic jams can eat up a fortune, and we can't even talk about our modest means.
" How we do it is another matter," Ramilya snorted.
I sighed and, pushing her away from the stove, took the pot off the fire. Ramila was so excited that she stopped watching the drink. It looked like the coffee was nasty and overcooked, but it didn't even run off. I don't know how she does it. Mine escapes almost immediately. All my attempts to make an Americano end up with washing the stove, the pot, and sometimes the floors, and I have to drink instant coffee to realize my inadequacy.
I poured the coffee into cups and sat Ramila in a chair. I didn't understand why she was having this conversation at all.
" Let's start at the beginning," I suggested. " Why are you going to follow him? "
" Think about it, Dimitri has been using women all his life to achieve his plans. So his next woman is much richer than the one he's married to. And if he hasn't moved in with her and divorced her yet, it can only mean that their relationship hasn't reached the stage of living together yet."
" So? " I asked dumbly.
Hearing about another of Dimitri's girlfriends hurt. I would have been more than happy to end this conversation. Only then, developed a detailed and illogical plan, will sit in the nearest bushes from the office with theater binoculars.
" And the fact that now is exactly the moment when you can intervene and spoil his "raspberry"."
" You think?"
" Oh, Rina, you never cease to amaze me! Now he's not going out with a girl, he's going out with his legal wife. Plus he works for her father's company. One mistake and he's"
" Unemployed, but with his own apartment," I finished.
It was a sore subject. I never dared to tell my parents the truth. And they're always asking how I live and want me to take pictures of the apartment. So far I've managed to avoid this conversation, but I'm afraid it won't last long.
Ramilya is certainly getting carried away and, at the moment, her thought is more like the plot of a detective novel. But she is right about one thing, it is a good moment to reveal Dimitri's affairs. However, there was still an open question: " how to find out who that woman was?
" Do you have an idea yet? "
" Not yet, but I'm sure I'll think of something."
***
All the way to the office, I thought about our conversation with Ramila.
In fact, my friend was right; if we didn't intervene now, there was no way to get revenge. There was one more problem, I wasn't sure I needed this. Immersed in my thoughts, I made it to the office almost without adventure. All I got was another foot stomp and an elbow to the stomach.
I got out of the flow of people and walked toward the office. When I hesitated, I almost ran into a lone picketer. I understand when people strive for something important, but here the sign said: "save aliens from space."
I was floored and frozen in place. I can't even imagine what humanity has to do to accomplish this? The man holding the placard gave me a look of superiority and set his jaw stubbornly. I belatedly jerked into the crosswalk, the traffic light blinked mockingly and switched to red. It told me it would take a hundred and eighty seconds to stop.
I had to run the last couple of dozen meters to the office. When I reached the entrance hall, I slowed down to find my phone ringing in my bag. Only when I stopped, I noticed Dimitri standing in front of the guards. He was talking to someone on the phone. Judging by the way he was writing, the conversation was unpleasant. If I hadn't stopped, I might have hit him. He'd be surprised to see me.
I didn't have time to jump out into the street, and I wasn't ready for him. I dropped the bag I'd been rummaging through for my phone, its contents scattering on the floor. Feeling like I was going to burst into tears, I started to pick it up.
" You're Miss Tidy today, aren't you?"
Julia sat down next to me. I gave her a quick glance and continued taking everything into the bag.
" Almost," I muttered.
Julia laughed and started helping me pack. I was more grateful to her for blocking Dimitri from me. The former "man of my life" didn't recognize me. Just slid an indifferent glance and went to the elevator. I tried to reassure myself that it was because of the color of my hair, the dye was uneven, and it turned out to be a kind of melting. Well, it was still better than my natural mousy color.
" What's your hurry? And why do you look like that? " Julia asked.
" Because you don't know what will happen if I'm late?"
Out of the corner of my eye I watched Dimitri enter the elevator. He looked like a Greek god, if the gods of Olympus really existed, and they were stylists for glossy magazines. Dark hair, slightly disheveled by the wind, long black coat, impeccable suit. And there's nothing to say about the right facial features and statuesque figure.
" Oh-oh, don't tell me you've fallen victim to our handsome man? " Julia grinned contemptuously.
" Yes, a victim on the altar," I muttered.
" He'd chosen another unfortunate woman as his victim. And she's so in love with him that she doesn't even want to see the obvious."
" The obvious?" I wondered.
" Of course! This macho, before marrying, tried almost all the women in this office.
Julia laughed, but it seemed to me that there was something personal in it. Not for nothing she is trying so hard to bypass him on the career ladder? "
" Run, I'll try to hold him off, " Julia suddenly said, looking behind my back.
Turning around, I found Andrew , rapidly approaching us. Quickly thanking Julia, I ran up the stairs to my workplace. There was no time to wait for the elevator. I hope Julia will be able to delay him for at least a couple of minutes. I should just throw off my coat so he wouldn't realize I'd just arrived. Losing my job would be much more frustrating now than it would have been even a week ago. And as Ms.Adams told me, the only thing Andrew doesn't tolerate is tardiness.
***
As I flew into the waiting room, I threw off my coat and sat down in my seat, pretending I'd been here a long time. The hardest part was getting my breathing even. I ran up the stairs only three floors, but it felt like ten. I should do some cardio workouts after all.
As I waited, Andrew appeared almost right behind me, muttering something unintelligible, he opened up in his office. I remained seated in my seat, for the first time since morning not having received an order. Truly, I had never seen him so angry. All of Julie's efforts to get his attention seemed to have had the opposite effect. Instead of taking an interest in her, she started to annoy him.
Putting Juli's and her boss's problems out of her mind, she decided to think about her own. A confrontation with Dimitri in front of Julia would have exposed us. I doubt he would have been able to keep from making a couple of compromising comments about us. I doubt she'd like the fact that we already know him. And I'd better not show my face to him just yet, but when we finish the project....
Dreaming and thinking are best done with your hands full. So first, I programmed the coffee machine for a double Americano and then watered the palm tree. Preparing papers to sign, a tray of coffee, and exhaling in front of the supervisor's door.
" Good morning, " I said hello to Andrew, entering his office.
Putting a cup of coffee on his desk and putting the documents in front of him, I froze. Andrew took a sip of coffee, hummed approvingly and looked at me.
" Do you remember what day it is today? " He asked glumly.
" Today is the board of directors, of course. The commercial director has already sent the report so you can read it in advance. It's in the top folder. The waiters will be here on time, they've already confirmed the order."
Maybe I should have told him it happened at five in the morning. Maybe he'd cheer up. The bosses were in a bad mood today, and I was afraid to say too much. In that mood, "You're fired" comes off quickly.
" Well, I hope it goes smoothly this time."
I didn't ask how it went last time. It's clear that he didn't like the result. Actually, it was not surprising. The director is young, and the deputies are old. I think there are those who think that they can cope with this position better.
Andrew leaned back in his chair, corrected his watch, unbuttoned the cuff, then buttoned it and took it off for some reason. It was obvious to the naked eye that he was worried.
" Can I get you some … chamomile tea?"
I corrected myself at the last second and didn't offer a sedative. It wouldn't hurt, though.
" No thanks," Andrew hissed, having managed to read the sedative between the lines.
" Can I go now?"
I wanted not only to leave, to run away from him. I don't know where that confident man who'd been going to work all week had gone. Today he's replaced by a nervous and twitchy boy.
" Yeah, yeah, go and check it out again."
As I left the office, I exhaled a sigh of relief. I didn't expect him to be so worried.
***
" So formidable, huh? " They asked me sympathetically.
I shuddered with surprise and looked at the early visitor. A short, short-haired brunette, dressed in a bag with fringe (it looked faintly like the fashionable boho style, more like a bag even with fabric), smiled sympathetically at me.
" Excuse me, do you have an appointment?"
I ignored her question. Now I had a much more important problem – how could I make an appointment for this day?
" Oh yes, we haven't met in person yet. I'm Mila. I'm so happy to meet you."
She smiled charmingly. My smile was not so happy, but rather artificial and glued.
" You're here too early," I enlightened her, fighting the urge to strangle her.
Thanks to her, I almost fell asleep on the subway, holding onto the handrail and leaning against the man standing next to me.
" Oh, of course! You and I have so much to prepare!"
I pulled my eyebrows together, not sure what she meant. To me, she had a simple task – to bring the waiters who would put the food on plates and set the table.
" I'll be glad to help you in any way I can," I informed her nonetheless.
" I believed in you, Rina! You are my bright angel! " Mila splashed her hands.
I had no other choice but to smile and unobtrusively lead her out of the waiting room. Andrew is not in the right frame of mind to face such a cheerful person like her. Even I was annoyed by her diminutive and affectionate suffixes, and he'd definitely freak out. And since I'm the closest employee he can reach, all the anger will fall on me.
Taking Mila to the room reserved for waiters, I showed her where the dishes, towels, and flutes were, and turned on the refrigerator. This room, not an employee dining room. It was for the service staff, who were constantly called to all the meetings and large meetings.
Leaving Mila to go through the plates "what if they are chipped and it will not be nice and unpleasant!", I returned to the reception room. I have a lot of work to do without Mila. First, I opened the windows in the conference room to check it out. I put the mineral water and the glasses rubbed to a shine in their places. I printed out six more copies of the report and organized them into special folders.
I don't know who invented this statute, but I carried the documents in a red folder for signing. If Andrew just needed to familiarize himself with something, then – in the black one. Invitations to exhibitions or receptions – in the green one. And the folders for the Board of Directors' report were dark purple.
***
Time flew by without a second thought, I didn't have time to close the windows before the participants began to gather.
The first to arrive in the conference hall were both of Andrew 's deputies. I had seen them only glimpses before, greeted them faithfully and never received a reply. They always looked at me only as furniture.
Both deputies were of advanced age, overweight and somewhat similar to each other. Mr. Druz was in principle constantly busy and talked on the phone. Nair Iosifovich Akhmadulin looked through everyone and looked down on them. Mr. Brow, as he was "affectionately" called on the sidelines of the company. I liked it because he was Dimitri's father-in-law.
When they came in, they immediately settled down in the armchairs. Tension hung in the air.
" Coffee," Mr. Brow demanded.
I smiled sweetly, waiting for him to continue. I didn't know what kind he drank. Maybe he liked it sugary and black or, on the contrary, without sugar but with cream?
" I'll just have a black one, and a lot more," asked Pyotr Ivanovich.
He looked away from his papers for a moment, gave me an indifferent glance, and then went back to his documents.
I had to go for coffee. "Hog" I made the same as Peter Ivanovich, only I put a couple of pieces of cane sugar on a saucer. After thinking about it, I put them around the cup.
While I was making coffee, new faces appeared in the conference room: two middle-aged men and a woman. When she saw the cup I put in front of Akhmadulin, she smiled sarcastically.
" Tea? Coffee? " I inquired.
Akhmadulin nonchalantly put seven lumps of sugar in the cup and stirred it with a spoon.
Having received a new order, I jumped out into the reception area and ran nose to nose with Mila. At the sight of me, she splashed her hands with joy.
" I took away such a gorgeous set! You must see it."
" I trust your taste," I assured her.
I didn't want to have to run to look at the plates with the difference of the monograms turned to the left or right. After setting out the cups, I programmed the coffee machine.
" You're so great! You're like a cheburashka! Just as touching and sweet!"
At least it's not an eared one. But just to be on the safe side, I did look at my ears through the reflective panel. It's not uncommon to notice flaws only after they've been pointed out.
" Oh! The boys are here! " Mila suddenly shrieked and took off.
I exhaled a sigh of relief and, having made coffee, went back. I got the order again. Feeling like a waitress in a roadside cafe, I ran back and forth a few more times.
So when Andrew said the sacramental: "Let's begin". I was ready to kiss him with happiness.
I lowered myself into the chair and stretched out my buzzing legs. Now I understood and bowed before the labor of waitresses. How much patience and health to work in such a mode all day long!
Thinking of the waiters, I remembered Mila. Her thirst for activity must be controlled! She had said the boys were here, we should see!
I jumped up and ran to the staff quarters. She was in a madhouse! Six guys in their twenties were trying to change their clothes. Mila snuck between them and interfered with each with advice.
" Yura, tuck in your shirt. Mishenka, little girl, the butterfly must be straight!
"Baby," standing in his shirt and underpants, dropped his pants and began to adjust his bowtie.
" Sweetie, there are some bottles in the cupboard: whiskey, cognac, please take them out. I need to take them to the front desk.
Catching the appreciative looks from all the guys, I realized I was going in the right direction. Sweetie needs to be neutralized!
While she got the bottles out, I took the tray and put the right glasses on it. I'm sure you'll need them soon enough. Men in general like to discuss important matters with a glass in their hands.
" Please help me carry it to the waiting room.”
Sweetie was eager to follow me. For good reason, as it turns out.”
" Your place is so stylish and beautiful! Do you often order waiters?
" For every council and big meetings.”
" Oh, that's great. I'm ready to help with all the preparations.”
I nodded in agreement, vowing never to use their company again!
Dumping the glasses on the table behind the palm tree, I turned to her to cool her fervor a bit. Maybe if she took offense and left, the serving of lunch would go off without incident?
The conference room door opened and a board member stepped out. He walked purposefully toward us, looked at the glasses, chose one for whiskey and turned to Mila. She readily filled it. Having drunk in a gulp, he put the glass down and returned to the conference room. All this in silence!
I looked at him in complete bewilderment and turned to Mila.
" It happens," she shrugged philosophically.
I didn't have time to answer, this time Mr. Brow came into the waiting room. He chose a cognac and made sure that the glass was full, drank it in one gulp and left.
From that moment on, a whole joint pulled out of the conference room. Sweetie became the bartender, and I ran to the restroom to wash glasses. As a result, it was no surprise that when lunch started to be served, everyone was a little tipsy.
" Can I get you anything? " quietly asked Andrew .
" No, thank you, he shook his head."
The gathering became very lively, and they were cheerfully discussing something. The guys coped perfectly well, neutralized Mila, left to guard the bottles, and did not interfere with them.
" Rina, do you remember that we're leaving today? " Andrew suddenly inquired.
" Of course, " frankly speaking, I forgot about it. And I didn't take my suitcase with me, as I had planned.
" Everyone is starting to disperse. Call the cleaning lady and go to pack. Meet me at Domodedovo at 8:30. There's an 8:00 p.m. flight."
" All right."
I can't believe he's really taking me on this trip. For the first time in a long time, I had a wonderful sense of anticipation.
