Chapter 225 - Team Spirit

After Tom's phone call with Harry, he turned to look at Lucy who was watching him with a guarded expression, and he flashed her a reassuring smile to calm her.

"Don't worry, we are already trying to find the person who started this mess. Everything will be okay," he said as he returned to her side.

Lucy folded both hands in front of her as she watched him approach her, "Do you think Anita might have a hand in this? Or am I being paranoid?" Lucy asked as she looked up at him when he stopped in front of her.

She did not want it to appear like she was being overly suspicious of Anita simply because she was his ex-girlfriend.

"I won't put it past her. Although I spoke to her earlier on," Tom said, making Lucy's brows furrow.

"You did? When? About what?" She asked with a frown.

Tom gave her the details of their conversation and Lucy sighed, "I see."

Tom watched her for a moment and then reached out to take off her glasses so that he could look into her eyes, "You read it, didn't you?" He asked knowingly.

"I had to. Have you read it?" She asked in return, and Tom shook his head as he took her hands.

"I haven't had the time to. I was too concerned about finding you, after Harry called to inform me about it. And now I'm too busy trying to clear things up," Tom said with a shrug, "What's the point of reading it anyway? It's not like it's true."

"I'm sorry."

"What for?" Tom asked, gazing into her eyes earnestly.

Lucy shrugged, "This whole thing is going to rub off on your and the company," she said, shifting her gaze away from him.

"None of this is your fault, so you have nothing to be sorry about. It's not just insensitive, but also stupid of people to try to make you feel like a murderer without even checking the facts," Tom said as he kissed the back of her hand.

"We will fix this, alright?" Tom said, but before she could respond his phone started ringing, "Excuse me for a moment," he told her when he picked up his phone and saw that it was his mother calling. He could tell that she had seen the news. 

"Sure," Lucy said with a nod, and then he moved away from her as he received the call.

"What is this I'm seeing all over the internet? Lucy is your assistant? And she is a murderer?" Evelyn asked in disbelief.

"I expect better than this from you, mom," Tom muttered under his breath, not wanting Lucy to hear the details of their conversation.

"And I also expect better from you than getting involved with your employee. End things with her at once! Things are going to get messy with your shareholders if news gets out that you're dating her," Evelyn instructed.

He couldn't exactly blame his mother since she had always been the type of person who would choose her sentiments and moral beliefs over logic. In the same manner she had jumped to conclusion that Lucy was a prostitute simply because of how she was told Lucy had been dressed the first night. 

Seeing the way Tom was murmuring under his breath, Lucy could tell that the phone call was probably about her and he didn't want her to hear what was being discussed, so she stood up and whispered to him that she was returning to her office and they could talk later. 

Once she left and shut the door behind her, Tom drew in a deep breath, "Who I choose to date or not date has nothing to do with the company..."

"It has EVERYTHING to do with the company. Most people marry for connections to strengthen their companies, and secure their fortune. If you're not going to marry for that, then you should at least get married to someone who wouldn't bring such negative publicity to you."

"Have you stopped to ask yourself whether or not she is guilty of all these accusations?" Tom asked, knowing that his mother was being sentimental about the issue.

"Have you seen the old news articles on it? Did you see the videos the parents of the boy she murdered made before they died? I'm sure there is an element of truth in all that was published!" Evelyn fired back.

"Mom, I love you, but you're being too sentimental right now, and I can't stand it. Let's talk when you're ready to be logical," Tom said and hung up the call before his mother could say another word.

For the first time in a very long time, he felt like screaming out in frustration, and he could only imagine how Lucy was feeling if he felt this way when he wasn't even the one being gossiped about.

Without wasting any more time, Tom walked into his mini bedroom and put on his disguise costumes. Once he made sure that everything was in place he walked out to Lucy's office, "How many minutes do I have before the meeting?"

Lucy glanced at the wall clock, "Roughly twenty-five minutes."

"Push all the other meetings forward as well. I want to get it all done so we can leave," Tom said and then turned to return to his office. 

He paused by the doorway when he remembered something, "Text me your secretary's office line. I want to speak with her," Tom instructed before returning to his office.

Just as he sat down on his office chair, his phone beeped with a text notification and he picked it up to see Lucy's text. It was the number he had requested for.

He dialed it on his office line and almost immediately Amy received the call when she recognized the number which was calling. 

"Hello, sir!" Amy greeted as she quickly stood up, as though he could see her.

"You are Director Perry's secretary, am I right?" Tom asked, making Amy's heart skip a beat.

"Yes, sir."

"Good. I want to see everyone in Miss Perry's team in my office. You have less than five minutes to get here," he instructed, and then hung up the call.

Although Amy had defended Lucy the little way she could, he couldn't punish the others and leave her out else it would make them suspicious.

Less than four minutes later Lucy's office door opened and all her team members walked in, startling her. These were some of the people who had made her their topic of discussion that morning, Lucy thought as she looked at them. She could point out who had said what.

"Good morning, Director Perry," few of them who had bad-mouthed her earlier greeted, and Lucy just stared at them without saying a word.

"Good morning, ma'am. The CEO asked to see us," Amy informed Lucy politely, making her break her gaze away from the others to look at Amy

"Give me a minute," Lucy said as she stood up and walked over to Tom's office. She rapped on the door gently before walking in.

"Why are they here?" She asked after shutting the door behind her.

"If by they, you mean your teammates, then let them in. You'll find out soon," Tom instructed as he raised his head to look at her, "Trust me," Tom added, and Lucy sighed before walking away to usher them in.

While some of them were excited to see the CEO who they had never set eyes on before, some others felt very anxious about it, as they suspected that whatever had made the CEO invite them to his office wasn't something good.

"I have a meeting soon, so I'll be quick. I've heard the rumors going around the company concerning Miss Perry, who happens to be your team leader. I do not exactly know the details, but I'll have to fire her if indeed what was written about her is true," Tom said, making Lucy glance at him in surprise, while some of her teammates looked pleased with the news. 

Wasn't he supposed to be on her side? Why was he saying something like that?

"However, seeing as you're all a team, she won't be the only one that will be fired. So I'm assigning all of you in her team the task of proving her innocence. If you're unable to do so before Monday, you can all submit your resignation letters. Work overtime if need be, but I need results by Monday so you can present it to the shareholders and board of directors," Tom said, making every one of them look at him in disbelief.

This did not make any sense. What did they have to do with Lucy's crime? They were not there when she murdered the family, so why did they have to share in her punishment? "But sir, how can we prove that she is innocent when she is..."

"What? Guilty?" Tom asked before the young man could finish, and he snapped his mouth shut.

Seeing the displeasure on their faces, Lucy decided to speak, "Sir..."

Tom cut her off before she could say anything, "I can see that most of you here have already concluded that she is guilty even without hearing her side of the story. If that is the case I do not want to hear what you have to say either. Feel free to submit your resignation letters before the close of work today. I don't want a group of staff that lacks team spirit. If anyone is caught making snide remarks or gossiping about this until there is proof that she did as she has been accused, that person will suffer the consequences," Tom said, and then jerked his head to the door in a way that told them that the meeting was over and they should leave. 

As the others trooped out, Lucy remained in her position with her head bowed. She waited until the last person had left the office and shut the door before looking at Tom, "What was that about?"

"That's the least punishment I can give them for running their mouths over something they know nothing about. Don't worry, I'm sure they will all want to keep their jobs. Hence, they will look past what is on social media and try to find out the truth," Tom assured her.

"Now they will become suspicious of my relationship with you," Lucy complained.

"They won't. I told them I was going to fire you, so there's nothing to be suspicious about. Stop worrying and get back to work," Tom urged her since he knew that getting busy would distract her.

Now all he needed to do was try and focus on work while he waited to hear back from Harry.. He hoped for Anita's sake that she wasn't involved in this mess.