After getting out of the room, Melissa went to the manager's office to ask for some days off. She needed money but she couldn't work for Mark, in a week he would be gone never to see him again.
"Excuse me sir can I come in?" She asked after knocking on the office door.
"Yes come in, is everything with the client okay?" That was the most important thing in the hotel, making the customers feel at home while staying in the hotel.
"Yes sir everything is all set but I need some days off. I have a family emergency I need to take care of."
"Can't it wait? Who is going to do your job?" The manager asked.
"There are so many qualified employees sir they can handle the job well. Sir I really need to solve my problem else I won't be able to serve our client well." Melissa silently prayed that he would allow her to go.
"Okay you can fill your leave form, hope Mr Johnson won't mind." He said after thinking about it for few minutes.
Melissa was a very capable employee, she couldn't ask for leave unless she really needed it. The problem was explaining to the guest why they have to change the housekeeper. Mr Johnson was a very principled and powerful man, he hoped he would understand.
Back home when Melissa returned her aunt was surprised. She told her yesterday that she would stay in the hotel for a week and barely a day she was back.
"Melissa what happened? Why are you back?" Melissa run and hugged her aunt.
"Aunt he's going to take Tommy away from me." Melissa said while sobbing.
"What? Who want to take my grandson?"
"I saw Tommy's father he is a very powerful man and if he find's about Tommy he might take him back to the capital." Melissa told her aunt about what happened earlier.
"He can't take him away, your his mother and the child needs his mother since he's small so don't be afraid of him." Her aunt said while comforting her. In her heart she was afraid what happened to her would happen to her niece. Losing a son is very painful, she couldn't go through all that pain again.
Back in the hotel, when James his assistant got back. Mark was seated on the sofa with his eye's closed. The two untouched cups of coffee which were cold still on the coffee table.
"Sir are you okay?" He just nodes his head and massaged his temple. "Then I'll this away and where is that housekeeper?" He took the cups to the kitchen.
Soon their was a knock on the door, the manager come in with another male staff.
"Sorry for disturbing you Mr Johnson, the housekeeper we had arranged for you early has an emergency so we have to replace her. This is Luke he will be serving you for now. He is the assistant housekeeping supervisor and quite efficient in his work." The manager explained.
Mark looked at the manager and the new staff. Melissa has run away from him again. He couldn't make things difficult for the hotel management but he had to find a way to get her to a place she couldn't escape.
"I don't mind manager, why don't you sit down and chart with me." Mark told him lazily
"Yes, do you need any information from me Mr Johnson?" The manager asked.
"Mmm.... the manager is a smart man. I want to know a bit about this hotel. With my understanding the founder left it to his son when he died a year ago." With his resources and power their was no information he couldn't find but he needed to build a close relation with the manager. He would help him get what he wanted.
Melissa could run but couldn't hide from him for ever. After charting for a while the manager left. Mark had a smile on his face, seems to have acquired some information he could use to trap her.