Condemned Daughter

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 4

She placed a load of files in my hands. “These are one hundred and fifty files. You will record each of them on a single file in your computer and send them to my mail”. She said sternly.

One hundred and fifty files in my hands?

You need to see the way the files were falling to the floor.

Nelson rushed to help me with them but my manager stopped him. “She doesn’t need your help”.

I really couldn’t carry those files alone so I divided them into half and met her eyes. “I didn’t kill your sister”. I whispered.

She acted as if she didn’t hear me.

But she did.

That was why she was frustrating my life.

Gretta Anderson was pushed from upstairs and the last person that had called her line that fateful day was her ex-husband.

Raymond reasoned critically.

It was unusual for Gretta to be at work at that time of the hour,but that fateful day that she had chosen to spend long hours in the office was when someone had pushed her off.

When her body was found, her phone was nowhere to be found.

The killer that had pushed her off had taken her phone.

Gretta Anderson had probably been grieving over a text message that she had received from someone.

According to Raymond Maxson’s research about Gretta Anderson, she had lost her two year old son and in some way, his death had happened because of her. She had allowed him to cross the road that fateful Wednesday and a cab had run into him.

Since then, Gretta had blamed herself.

He had to go to Sparkles company.

He had to be Gretta’s office.

Her diary had also been missing the day she had died.

It was more proof that Rosa might not be the killer because the day Gretta had died, her diary was in her house.

Only someone that her family knew quite well could penetrate into her room and her house was alwaya heavily guarded.

He drove to Sparkles company.

I had already rounded up with the records that Mirabel Anderson had told me to do.

I stretched my tired arms and looked at the wall clock.

Ten p.m already.

I took my bag from my desk and walked out of the office.

“Rosa Harrison?”. Someone called from behind.

I turned. It was the handsome detective. “Raymond Maxson?”.

“Do you usually stay this late?”.

I rolled my eyes. “I usually have wicked managers that make me work my ass out”.

He cleared his throat. “I came here to do more investigation about Gretta”.

“Oh! Happy investigation”. I winked at him.

“Gretta Anderson’s diary was also missing the day she had died”.

I scoffed. “Why? The killer is a fool. Is he not aware that Gretta never wrote her real secret in her diary because she knew people will find out?”.

“How did you know that?”.

“Yeah, I agree that we were enemies,but we were friendly enemies”.

“How do you mean?”.

“All the years I knew Gretta, she was never happy. She always used ‘teasing me’ to get her mind off her real suffering”.

“Is this about her son’s death?”.

“Even before that happened to her ,she didn’t like her home because they were always having issues. Anyway, how many rich children like their family? The richer you get, the more detached the family becomes”.

“Do you have any idea where Gretta keeps her real secret?”.

“She always buys a hard cover that contains four hundred pages and writes her secret in it with a pencil. An Hb pencil”.

“Does she sometimes write in her office?”.

“Why not? She writes most times when we are eating at the cafeteria. She gets easily depressed especially when she is eating”.

“Can you recognize the book if you see it? I mean the thick back book?”.

“Yes, but don’t even think about it”.

“I know you must be tired from a long day at work but can you spare me just thirty minutes? Please???”.

“Do you have trophy or Benson?”.

“I don’t have such things. I promise to drive you home”.

“I have a car”.

“Please help me” He walked towards Gretta’s office without even waiting to hear if I agreed to helping him or not.

I reluctantly followed him to the office.

It was damp just as I had expected.

I shivered. “Oh my God, I can feel Gretta’s spirit lurking around already”.

He rolled his eyes and began to ransack her shelf.

I made eyes at him. “How can Ryan be hundred times more considerate than you are?”.

“Opposite attracts”he said mischievously. “Wait…you know Ryan?”.

“We just met once”.

“You met once and your conclusion is that he is hundred percent considerate?”.

“How many times have I met you and still you are no bit considerate!”.

He chuckled. “…because of Trophy and Benson? You are so impossible”.

I sighted the hard cover. The familiar green hard cover. “That is it!”. I pointed at the thick back he was holding.

He impatiently flipped it open. He gasped. “You are right! A lot of things are written in here! Thanks so much!!!”.

I made eyes at him and walked out of Gretta’s office.

He rushed after me from behind. “I have snacks in my car and drink…non alcoholic of course”.

I rolled my eyes. “I don’t need your snacks and non-alcoholic drink”.

“I will give you a treat this weekend. How about that?”.

“Bill’s totally on you”.

“No problem”. He smiled. “Thanks so much for this”.

I was just stepping into the house that evening when Dominic rushed to me aggressively. “Business card? What is Ryan’s business card doing with you? Did you guys meet?”.

“Why are you shouting? The big head has a crush on me so I accepted his business card. Why? Is he your enemy?”.

Tears filled her eyes. “He told you that? He told you that he had a crush on you?”.

I suddenly realized that I had hit the wrong spot. I could see it in my sister’s eyes that she liked Ryan. How can she like Ryan of all people? The first man that had ever melted my heart. “Er…he didn’t really say anything like that, he was only teasing me”.

My sister didn’t believe me.

Of course.

She glared at me and walked into her room.

She didn’t come out of her room till I went to work the following day.

It hurt so much that it was Ryan that my sister liked.

I burn’t his business card with my lighter.

I had to erase him off my mind completely.

My sister liked him.

“Rosa Harrison, take this to this department, Rosa Harrison, return this files, Rosa Harrison, rearrange this files, Rosa Harrison, record this, do this, do that”. I had it completely with Mirabel that morning with no breathing space.

I was breathing heavily when I finally got to my office after all the endless errands I got from my manager that morning.

There was suddenly a knock at the door of my office.

I cried out a frustrated ‘Who is that?’

Mirabel Anderson walked in and gave me a smile that she had never given me before.

A smile of anger. “You are already tired when you have not even started. The whole world is against you, Rosa Harrison”.

“The whole world? What are you talking about?”.

“Guess who will be taking you to jail when the proof against you gets out?”.

“Who?”.

“Your blood sister, Dominic Harrison has taken the case against you. She is the prosecutor for the murder case of Gretta Anderson. She knows that you are the killer, but she still took up the case. Your own family turned their backs against you, Rosa. You are condemned by your own family”.