Chapter 67 Absenteeism
Meredith looked at the stack of money Fiona handed her, her emotions far beyond disappointment and anger.
Her heart had turned cold to the core.Têxt belongs to NôvelDrama.Org.
She didn’t have any words left to say.
Fiona was anxiously staring at Meredith, her expression indicating a fear that Meredith might not move out. Meredith saw it all.
Meredith smirked coldly, “Miss Woods, using money to dismiss me now that you’re flush with cash.”
“Meredith,” Fiona tried to guilt-trip her further, “You’ve been the best to me. You said we share good fortune and tough times together. You’ve helped me a lot in the past, so this money is rightfully yours. Are you saying you don’t want to be my friend anymore?”
“You can take the money, and I’ll move out today,” Meredith didn’t want to say more to Fiona. “Please go back, Miss Woods. You can rest assured that I’m moving. I’ll move to Justin’s first. You can relax now.”
Finding a new place to stay on the same day was not realistic. To put Fiona’s mind at ease, she could only move in with Justin for now.
“Okay,” Fiona said. “Do you need help? If you have a lot of stuff…”
“No need,” Meredith was close to exploding with anger. Why would she need Fiona’s help?
In truth, agreeing to move out was not just to reassure Fiona. She wanted a fresh start, a real break from Terrence Sterling, to get her life back on track.
The pregnancy was a big mistake, perhaps a sign that she and Terrence Sterling were like an illusion. Waking up meant living well.
Meredith didn’t need help, but Fiona stuck around to see her pack her bags and leave before she could relax.
Hopping into a taxi to Justin’s place, where she knew the door code, Meredith planned to tell Justin but decided he was busy. She’d tell him when he got back.
Meredith informed the landlord she was leaving. It was almost the end of the lease, but the landlord could use any excuse not to return the deposit.
Fiona’s actions had angered Meredith enough, and she didn’t care to argue about the deposit with the landlord.
That afternoon.
Terrence Sterling, who spent the morning in turmoil, arrived at Briarcliff Lofts.
He hesitated at the entrance before heading up. He came up with a reason to see Meredith he hadn’t agreed to her resignation, and she had left without notice. As her boss, it was his right to hold her accountable.
Terrence Sterling reached 1512 and felt the corridor was somewhat familiar. It reminded him of when he came looking for Fiona the two corridors looked the same, so he didn’t think much of it.
It had been over a month since he last came to find Fiona in this place, and he couldn’t recall her apartment number. Standing at the door, he knocked for a while, but there was no response. Was she not home?
At that moment, a nosy neighbor, with her grandson in tow, returned. Seeing a tall, handsome man standing at Meredith’s door, she asked, “Young man, are you looking for Meredith? Are you her boyfriend? You’re quite handsome.”
Terrence Sterling neither confirmed nor denied it, asking, “Where is she?”
“When I left, I saw her walking away with a suitcase. Looks like she’s gone on a trip,” the neighbor guessed. “Young man, give Meredith a call, someone with your good taste finding such a good girlfriend like Meredith… let me tell you, she’s a great girl. Finding a girlfriend like her is lucky.”
Hearing the neighbor’s praise, Terrence Sterling suddenly wanted to know more about Meredith.
“Auntie, how long have you been neighbors with Meredith?”
“It’s been about two years since Meredith moved in,” the neighbor said. “She’s an orphan, very hardworking, and self-reliant. I even wanted to introduce her to my nephew.”
With such positive reviews from the neighbor, Meredith couldn’t be that bad of a person.
The man hidden in Meredith’s heart, the one she wouldn’t talk about who could he be?
Even if it was a fake pregnancy, there had to be a man involved. Who was he?
Terrence Sterling couldn’t ask the neighbor about it; it could tarnish Meredith’s reputation.
Not finding anyone, he left the complex. Inside his car, he called Rick, “Have Meredith come to work tomorrow. I haven’t signed her resignation letter, and her actions amount to absenteeism.”