Chapter 14: The Consultant

"What on earth is going on?" After Ashlyn left, a bald executive in a razor-sharp suit strode over to Byron. He jabbed a finger in Byron's face, swaggering and aggressive. "Who are you and where did you crawl in from? Do you even know where you are?" Byron frowned. "None of your business where I came from." At that, the bald man blew his top. "Security! Security, where are you? What good are you if you let some street punk hang around here, wrecking the Thubron Group's image?" "Uh… Mr. Zimmerman." A guard cleared his throat. "He walked in with a note, said he's here to start work. We were confirming his ID." "You've got to be kidding me!" Spittle flew as Murphy Zimmerman, deputy director of HR, thundered, "I run HR, and I've never heard of recruiting a loser like him. Haul him to the police station, now!" "Yes!" At his bark, the security guards lifted their stun batons and closed in step by step. Byron stood surrounded by guards in black uniforms, a sliver of contempt in his eyes. Just as the situation edged toward a boil, an engine roared from the driveway. A cherry-red Ferrari streaked up and screeched to a halt at the front steps. The door swung open. A woman stepped out in sheer black stockings. Then Kara, cool and striking, appeared before them. People at the entrance froze mid-step. "Good morning, Ms. Thubron!" "Morning, Ms. Thubron!" Respectful greetings went up around her.  Murphy's expression changed in an instant; he pasted on a fawning smile and hustled forward. "Ms. Thubron, you're here. You look absolutely radiant today." Kara walked right past him as if he were invisible and headed straight for Byron at the center of the circle. Her brows knit. "Byron, what happened here?" "Nothing much," Byron said evenly, "I came to start work and the guards stopped me. Then this bald executive told me to get lost and ordered the guards to drag me to the station." Kara's face darkened. She turned on Murphy. Authority and anger sharpened her gaze. A chill climbed Murphy's spine. "Murphy Zimmerman, what's the meaning of this?" "I-I didn't know he was someone you appointed, Ms. Thubron," Murphy stammered. "I thought he was some troublemaker." "He is the medical consultant I appointed personally," Kara snapped, "And this is how you treat him?" Murphy went slack with shock. He had never imagined the plainly dressed young man was that closely connected to Kara. Kara's voice cut like ice. "Effective immediately, fire the security guards on duty. And remove Murphy from his HR post." Gasps spread through the Thubron Group staff clustered outside. No one had expected Kara to swing the axe so hard for a young man. Murphy's knees buckled. He dropped to his knees and bowed, forehead to the floor. "Ms. Thubron, I was wrong! I was reckless. Please give me another chance!" "That won't help you," Kara said. "Apologize to Byron and earn his forgiveness." Murphy scrambled on hands and knees to Byron, slapping his own cheeks as he went. "Mr. Qualls, I was wrong! I didn't realize who I was talking to. Please forgive me." A low buzz of commentary spread. "Who on earth is Byron for Ms. Thubron shields him like this?" a woman murmured. "Must be something between them… Is he her… kept man?" a man whispered, stunned. Watching Murphy slap himself until his cheeks were red, Byron felt his anger ebb. He turned to Kara. "Let it go, Ms. Thubron. I forgive him." Kara studied Byron's face. "Since you forgive him, I'll rescind his dismissal. But if this happens again, I won't be so lenient." Murphy exhaled like he'd just gotten a last-minute reprieve. He bowed again. "Thank you, Ms. Thubron! Thank you, Mr. Qualls! I won't forget this lesson." Kara ignored him. "Come with me, Byron. I'll get you onboarded." Byron nodded and followed her into the building, leaving a crowd of staff staring after him, curious and a little awed. ***** Ashlyn stormed into the office. Her carefully made-up face was contorted with anger. She slammed her designer bag onto the desk and dropped into her chair, chest heaving. Desmond Mabre hurried over, face full of concern. "Baby, what's wrong? Who ticked you off so bad?" Ashlyn shot a venomous look toward the door and ground out, "Who else but that convict, Byron?" Desmond knit his brows. "Byron? Who is he and what did he do to you?" "Byron is my cousin," Ashlyn huffed, then recounted how she'd run into him at the building entrance that morning. "I got to work and there he was at the door, claiming he was here to join the Thubron Group. Talk about humiliating." Desmond's lip curled. "What a piece of work. He really doesn't know his place. Coming here, of all companies? Baby, don't waste your breath on someone like that. There's no way he's getting in." Ashlyn's resentment flared brighter as she moved on to the scene from yesterday at her home. "He slapped $10,000 down in front of my mom and told us to move out in a week. Who does he think he is? We bought that place fair and square. What right does he have to order us out?" Desmond soothed her with soft words. "Don't let him get to you, baby. He's a deadbeat. Ignore him. I'll grab you a coffee in a minute and take the edge off." By then, more employees had arrived, and the office had warmed up with chatter. Someone brought up a rumor about the company's medical consultant. "I heard the medical consultant changed. Wonder what the new one's like." "Must be exceptional. The last one graduated from a top international school and was a big name in the field. The successor has to be a heavyweight too." Ashlyn, drawn by the talk, joined with a proud tilt of her chin. "The new medical consultant has got to be a serious talent. The Thubron Group doesn't just let anyone in." She let herself daydream about meeting such a figure and maybe, with a bit of luck, catching a lift up the ladder. In the heat of that buzz, Byron appeared in her line of sight. He wore plain clothes that clashed with the office's sleek decor. "Byron?" Ashlyn shot to her feet. She pointed at him. "How did you get in here?" Byron gave her a cool glance. "I walked in." She stared at him as if he had sprouted wings. "An ex-convict like you getting into the Thubron Group? Be honest, did you sneak in?" "I came to start work," Byron said, a faint crease between his brows. Ashlyn burst out laughing. "You? Start work? Don't be ridiculous. Not just anyone gets to work here." Her voice rang out, drawing eyes from every direction. Faces turned until every gaze rested on Byron. At that moment, Kara Thubron's secretary, Aliana, appeared. Immaculate in a tailored suit, composed and poised, she crossed the room and stopped beside Byron. "Mr. Qualls," she said with a pleasant smile, "please come with me. I'll take you to complete your onboarding paperwork." The room fell silent, then erupted into a stunned murmur. Ashlyn stood there like a statue. "Ms. Sabey, y-you must be mistaken. You're onboarding him?" Aliana gave her a brief look. "Any problem with that? He is the Thubron Group's newly appointed medical consultant." Silence cracked into incredulous whispers. "What? He's the medical consultant? No way." "So young and already the consultant here? That's wild." Aliana's tone turned formal. "That's true. Mr. Qualls cured Mr. Thubron's serious illness. Ms. Thubron has full confidence in his medical skills, so he's been appointed medical consultant." The hum of voices swelled. "I can't believe he treated Mr. Thubron." "He's the real deal. We'd better not underestimate him." Byron stood there, unruffled, as if the chatter had nothing to do with him. Ashlyn's face went from livid to ashen. The cousin she had always looked down on had, overnight, become the Thubron Group's medical consultant, her direct boss. "You've got to be kidding," she mused. Ashlyn clenched her fists. She had graduated from a top-tier university and pulled every string to get into the Thubron Group, while Byron was a junior college grad and an ex-convict. How was he suddenly the one lording it over her?