Chapter 96 No Sense of Security
Katniss got the boot from her gig as the president's right-hand woman and got tossed into a frontline job at Synergy Global Corporation. Now, she's gotta show up at the dress group on the eighth floor of Grand Era Mall next Monday.
Grand Era Mall, the crown jewel of Synergy Global, raked in millions in pure profit every year.
It was established after Katniss joined Synergy Global Corporation, and she has been involved in numerous affiliations and market development initiatives since then.
You could say she watched Grand Era Mall blow up.
She didn't get canned, just demoted to a service worker.
She clutched her phone, feeling all kinds of ways.
Grand Era Mall's way out east, miles from Synergy Global and even farther from her crib. It's a solid two-hour bus ride.
Call him heartless, and she was still around. Call him compassionate, and he had loaded her down with the toughest job.
She took a deep breath, leaned against the car window, and shut her eyes for a bit.
Even though she had to report in two days, Synergy Global's rules meant she had to show up over the weekend for a full handover.
Ryan hadn't earned Tristan's full trust yet, so Daphne handled part of her work, and Tristan took care of the rest.
She rolled into the office at nine, fired up her computer, and started on a transfer report.
Then she logged some important work stuff.
Once she was done, Daphne showed up, and Katniss shot the documents over to her email.
"I've got all the key info sorted and sent to you. There are also two big projects coming up. Let me break them down for you," Katniss said.
They huddled in the office, whispering.
An hour later, she closed the file. "That's everything you need to know. If you forget something, just hit me up."
"Katniss, where'd they transfer you to?" Daphne asked. "Manager or general manager at one of the branches?"
With Katniss's skills, she could easily snag a high-level spot at a branch.
If it was a regular transfer, that'd be the norm, but this wasn't.
"None of those. The company's transfers are always hush-hush, so don't ask." Katniss gave a faint smile and handed over the documents. "Take these. I gotta go report to Mr. Forbes."
Daphne didn't push it and said, "I just saw Mr. Forbes come in with Miss Astor. Watch yourself."
'Bella's here too?' Katniss grinned at Daphne, spun around, and knocked on Tristan's office door.
"Come in," Tristan's deep, smooth voice called out.
She pushed the door open and immediately spotted Bella perched on the armrest of Tristan's chair, leaning into him.
Tristan was hunched over a document, and standing across from them was a guy Katniss didn't recognize but figured was the new executive assistant, Ryan.
She gave Ryan a nod.
"Hey there." Ryan greeted politely and then, reading the room, said, "I'll head out now."
After Tristan gave a nod, Ryan left, and Katniss placed a document on the table.
"Mr. Forbes, I've wrapped up the restructuring plan for the planning department you asked for. Whether you dig it or not, here it is. Also..."
She laid out her work in a clear, organized way, and Tristan's long fingers flipped through the document she handed over, page by page.
"Also, there's the latest project proposal from the other company, which is top secret." She shot a glance at Bella.
It wasn't on purpose, just following the rules.
Tristan, being a stickler for rules, turned to Bella and said, "You should step out for a bit."
Bella, obviously thinking Katniss did it on purpose, huffed but left since Tristan had spoken.
This was the last thing Katniss needed to report, and it only took ten minutes to wrap up.
But she didn't bounce right away. She looked at Tristan and said, "Mr. Forbes, thanks for all the support and promotions over the past three years. I'm out."
His tall frame lounged against the chair, his profile tight, showing no emotion from the front.
As Katniss turned to leave, his eyes followed her, watching her determined steps as she walked out.
From the moment she stepped into the office, there wasn't a hint of bitterness or hesitation on her face.
His brows knitted, his jaw tightened, and a wave of frustration made him grab a cigarette and head to the window to smoke.
It took him a few tries to light it, and he ended up choking, looking a bit flustered.
Outside the door, Bella's position had been removed, but she was still hanging around, waiting for Katniss.
"Katniss, where'd they transfer you to?" Even Bella was in the dark about Katniss's new gig.
HR wasn't spilling, and given Katniss's status, they didn't dare to leak it.
"Miss Astor, even if you were an insider, company rules say transfer positions are confidential and can't be shared willy-nilly." Katniss kept it to herself.
Bella sneered, "At Grandma Forbes's birthday bash, you must've loved seeing her not approve of me, huh?"
Katniss just stared at Bella, already knowing where this was headed.
"Miss Astor, no need to flex on me. You've been glued to Mr. Forbes lately. Even if Mrs. Forbes isn't on board, she can't stop you. I get it. Got anything else you wanna brag about?" Katniss shot back.
Bella's eyes narrowed, teeth clenched.
Katniss kept going, "Miss Astor, I might not come from money, but I'm not a pushover. If you think a few words will make me cry, you're wrong. If you don't wanna hear something harsh, maybe just talk to me less." With that, she sidestepped Bella and walked off.
Bella stood there, feeling like she'd been slapped. A wave of helplessness washed over her.
'Is there really nothing I can do about Katniss?' After mulling it over, she called Michael. "Michael, Tristan didn't fire Katniss; he just transferred her!"
"Bella, quit obsessing over Katniss. Your main focus should be getting along with Tristan and getting Grandma Forbes to approve of you two ASAP," Michael repeated for the umpteenth time.
And Bella had messed this up countless times, still stuck on it.
Michael continued, "You're with Tristan every day now; everyone knows you're a couple. Katniss is seen as the homewrecker at Synergy Global. Comparing yourself to her just drags you down."
Despite Michael's advice, Bella only wanted to say one thing: Katniss didn't see them as a couple!
Why could Katniss still stay at Synergy Global? It made her feel totally insecure!
"Michael, I need to know where Katniss got transferred to," Bella insisted.
On the other end, Michael sighed, "Alright, I'll dig into Katniss's situation. You focus on Tristan."
Late autumn mornings were chilly, especially early on.
Katniss, wrapped in a cashmere coat, left her place, grabbed breakfast from a street vendor, and squeezed onto the bus during rush hour.
She switched buses once and took nearly another hour to reach Grand Era Mall.
She rode the elevator to the eighth floor and reported to the specific dress group, a brand under Synergy Global with dresses designed by their in-house team.
She handed her transfer notice to the store manager, Laura.
"Katniss, right?" Laura glanced at her info. "Transferred from HQ?"
Laura's tone was surprised. It didn't detail her position at HQ, but going from an office gig to a service worker screamed demotion.
"Yep," Katniss replied.
Laura turned and called over two women in their twenties, both with good figures and looks.
But compared to Katniss's exceptional demeanor, they fell short.
"This is Brenda and Cynthia. They're service workers here. You can learn from them. Your main gigs will be greeting customers and taking measurements," Laura explained briefly before heading off to a floor meeting.
Every Monday morning, store managers had meetings—a rule Katniss herself had set.
Brenda Richardson and Cynthia Chambers weren't as chill as Laura. As soon as Laura left, they scattered to their own tasks.
But Katniss knew the drill here and had done her homework on the workflow, so she didn't need to stick around.
She found tasks that needed doing and got to work.
Seeing this, Brenda quickly pulled Cynthia aside. "Look at her, she's got an good grasp of the situation."
"So what if she gets an good grasp of the situation?" Cynthia shrugged. "She's new here. Does she think she can compete for the store manager position?"
Brenda pursed her lips. "Our store has a rule: the manager can recommend someone for promotion before leaving. It's not about seniority but ability. And she's not an intern; she was parachuted in. What if she makes it?"
Hearing this, Cynthia's face darkened. She walked over to Katniss and asked, "What's your name?"
"Katniss," she replied calmly, looking at Cynthia.
Cynthia pointed to a door. "There's a mop in there. Go wash it and mop the floor. We'll handle things here."
Mopping was the grunt work here, usually dumped on newcomers—a common workplace hazing.
Katniss didn't argue, turned, and took the mop to the hallway sink to wash it.
The base salary here was only six grand, nearly ten times less than her assistant salary.
So, to earn more, she had to get commissions. In this cutthroat environment, getting along with the other employees was a pipe dream.
It was a brutal competition. If someone had the worst performance for three straight months, they were out.
And every senior employee had their own fixed customer base, putting her at a huge disadvantage.
If her performance tanked for three months, she'd be fired.
Thinking of this, she frowned, washed the mop, and was about to head back when she suddenly bumped into someone.
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