Chapter 2: Modern Day Slave

Clarence, who heard what Calvin had asked August to do, was stunned at what he heard. He couldn't believe that August, Hendrik's right-hand man, his favorite employee, had just been ordered to fetch some documents from Hendrik's personal assistant. 

It was very insulting for him to ask August to do such a thing as if August was just a mere servant to them. 

"Then tell the chairman that I would be gone for a while," August replied, surprising Clarence even more that he took the job when he could have just tasked someone else to do it. 

Pleased by August's response, Calvin left with a smirk. 

August stood straight and faced them, making Clarence quiet. However, he still noticed the change of expression on Clarence's face.

Even though August is Hendrik's favored employee and has a good reputation in the company, there are a lot of things that people don't know about him. August's life is not as good as anyone thought it to be. 

Today, Clarence should learn one of them. "Clarence, come with me. The rest you can stay." Without another word, August immediately left, sending Clarence chasing after him. 

"Clarence, do you have a car?" August asked him without sparing him a glance. 

"Yes, sir," Clarence spoke hastily as he matched August's strides. 

"We shall use your car today," August spoke emotionlessly. 

Clarence fished for his car keys in his pocket as he led August to where he had parked his car. 

"Here it is," Clarence spoke as he pressed his car key. A white sedan blinked its headlights when it opened. 

August paused right in front of Clarence's car as he watched how Clarence hurried toward the car's driver seat. 

"Sir?" Clarence stopped when he opened the door and noticed that August had remained unmoving.

"You work for the Henderson Group, yet you bought a car from our company's competitor?" August pointed out, staring at the competing brand logo on Clarence's car. 

Clarence couldn't speak and felt humiliated. However, he is also amazed by August's loyalty to the company. The Henderson Group also sells its own line of cars. 

"I should sell my car and buy a new one from the company." Loyalty is the first lesson that August taught him. He should apply the first lesson he learned from him. 

Pleased by his answer, August entered the car and sat in the front passenger seat. After buckling their seatbelts, Clarence finally drove away to go back to the company building. 

The business event is held at a hotel venue, which is a bit from the office. The fastest way to get there is by car. 

"Sir, why did you accept the task? Sir Fletcher could have tasked someone else to do it." Clarence couldn't keep his mouth shut; his mind had been nagging him the whole time.

"Haven't anyone taught you how to do your job?" August asked him a simple question that confounded Clarence greatly.

Of course, someone taught him how to do his job. He has been working for Henderson Group for two years already. He knows how to do his job. 

"There are rules in this job, Clarence. The most important rule is that you must never defy an order given to you."

"But…" Clarence paused, not sure if he should continue. "It doesn't make sense. You are Hendrik's right-hand man; you shouldn't be doing stupid tasks like this."

"Who said that I am Hendrik's right-hand man?" August asked; this was the first time he had heard of this.

"Are you not? You are always by the Chairman's side, and you often do things for him. If only you had his last name, everyone would think you are his eldest grandson and not Sir Reeve. We naturally thought you were his trusted man because you are always with him."

This is August's first time hearing this; he had never thought that everyone thought that way. 

"The Chairman trusts me greatly, but I am not his right-hand man."

Clarence frowned at his complicated answer. "If you are not his right-hand man and you are not his personal assistant. Then what is your job?" 

August opened his mouth, about to give him an answer, but he closed his mouth again. He fell silent at his question, not knowing what the answer was.

August has been working at the Henderson Group by the Chairman's side, but until now, he doesn't exactly know what his job is. 

Hendrik Henderson took August from the orphanage and became his benefactor in exchange for his promise that he would work for him. 

Hendrik provided for August and gave him a high-quality education in exchange that he would work for him in the future. He doesn't know what job he gave him exactly. He just started working for him as soon as he graduated.

"I don't know what it's called, but I only do whatever the chairman asks me to do," August replied with brows drawn together. 

Although Clarence had more questions, he had no choice but to drop them since they already arrived in front of the company.

August left the car and rushed inside the building to do what he was tasked to do as Clarence sped off to park the car. 

Although the company was holding an event someplace else, there were still lots of employees left to work in the company building. Some heads turned towards him when they saw him running towards the private elevator, which only he, the chairman, and Calvin were allowed to use.

August pressed the top floor where the chairman and his assistant's office were located. He rushed towards Calvin's table, and there on top of it was a folder of documents, just like he had said. 

August slowly picked up the folder as he stared at Calvin's clean table. There's no way he would forget to bring this folder with him. It looks like he purposefully left it here so he could task August to fetch it for him.

Calvin never liked August, and he had also done things like this before. It's not out of the ordinary for Calvin to do something like this. 

August stared at the folder, curious to see what was inside. Although his fingers itched to turn it open, he didn't. He shouldn't have looked at what was inside. 

August's stomach growled as he stood all alone in that huge office. Aside from the fact that he did not have enough rest, he also skipped his lunch and breakfast, leaving his stomach empty. 

He is starving, and there is no guarantee that he will be able to eat dinner later in the party. 

"Now that I am in the company building, I might as well get myself something to eat before I leave." August thought after he decided to go directly to the office canteen to eat some free food in the office. 

Since August didn't have enough time to spare, he could only have instant noodles, which is the fastest food to prepare. 

August sat at the farthest corner of the canteen as he gobbled up his first meal for the day. August chewed the noodles hungrily and sipped its hot soup greedily, glad that there was no one else in the office canteen. 

"I just came back here for Sir Hayes." August heard a familiar voice speak. Soon enough, a group of employees walked into the office canteen with food of their own. 

August paused and quieted down, hoping that no one would see him there at the corner. He doesn't have the time to entertain them and have small conversations with them. He just wished to eat in peace.

"Hayes? You mean that August Hayes?" One of them asked, stealing August's attention. 

August raised his head a bit to see who entered. He was curious when he heard that they were talking about him. He recognized Clarence, who was there with them. 

"Yes, Hendrik's favorite employee," Clarence spoke proudly as they sat at the farthest table from August, still not noticing that he was there the whole time. 

They laughed when they heard Clarence's words, making Clarence confused. "What do you mean by favorite?" one of them asked mockingly

August couldn't recognize the man who asked the question; his back was turned on him. 

"You mean he is the chairman's favorite servant," one of them added, and they all laughed except for Clarence. 

"Watch your words!" Clarence scolded them. "How can you talk about Sir August this way? He has a close connection with the chairman himself."

They giggled at Clarence's words. "Why are you defending him? He is just an employee, just like any of us. There is nothing special about him."

"Even though he works directly under the chairman. He is just a dispensable employee to him. Just wait and see; once August fails in his job, he will be replaced by a new one."

August stared at his cup of noodles that he hadn't finished yet. He suddenly lost his appetite when he heard their words. 

"There's no way August would fail in his job. He is very meticulous, and he has an outstanding educational background. Haven't you heard of his accomplishments? There's no way a man like him would do a bad job at anything. Even if he does, I doubt that the chairman will let him go that easily. Besides, a lot of great companies out there will hire him if that happens," Clarence defended.

"If that is true, then why do you think he is staying in that crappy job?" One of them asked. 

"What do you mean at a crappy job?" Clarence asked with a surprised face. "Not anyone can become the chairman's right-hand man."

They laughed again at his words. "What do you mean, his right-hand man? He's no right-hand man. He is Henderson's modern-day slave."

"Clarence, don't you know August's real story? I heard he was just an orphan that the chairman handpicked to work for him. That's just what he is; the chairman saved him from the orphanage, provided for him, and enrolled him in prestigious schools so that he would be indebted to him forever. It's no different to adopting a dog."

They laughed as they compared August to a slave and then to a dog. Clarence was speechless and could only feel bad as his friends talked ill about August.

August's phone rang, making their laughter die down. They thought they were the only people in the office canteen. 

August fished his phone from his pocket and answered the call. "August Hayes, speaking," he spoke loudly, and Clarence and his friends heard him. 

The faces of Clarence's friends paled when they realized that August had been listening to their conversation all along. 

"Yes, sir. I'm coming right away," August spoke before ending the call. He stood up, threw his unfinished food at the trash bin, and faced Clarence, who was sitting with his friends. 

"Clarence, we should go," August spoke sternly as if he hadn't heard how Clarence's friends talked ill of him. 

Clarence's friends lowered their heads, they heart beat rapidly in their chest, knowing how bad their words sounded. They held their breaths, thinking that August would punish them. 

Clarence could feel the heavy atmosphere in the room as he left his friends to be with August. Even he thought that something bad would happen. 

Little did they know that August had heard worse things than that. August is so used to hearing people mocking him and talking ill of him that it no longer bothers him anymore. 

"I'm sorry that you had to hear that," Clarence spoke, breaking the silence in the car as they drove back to the hotel venue. 

August did not say a word. There's nothing else for him to say. He just wanted to forget everything that happened. 

Aside from Clarence, there are only two more people who were kind to him and even stood up for him.