Death Layer (The Depraved Club) Read Online Free PDF Page A

self-consciously folding my arms
over my chest. I try not to think about the fact that Mr. King has maybe seen
through my clothes. “Quite impressive.”
    Gerard is all business as we settle into a small cubby-like
room with a camera, desk, and a security guard who hands me a clipboard with a
form and pen. “Please fill this out, and we’ll go ahead and take your picture
and print your company identification and security pass.”
    The ID process is straightforward and pretty soon I am
photographed, labeled, and ready to go. Gerard nods crisply at the security
guards and escorts me back to the elevators.
    “The main thing for you to keep in mind is that you are here
to be Mr. King’s right hand in and out of the office,” says Gerard. “You’ll
want to familiarize yourself as quickly as possible with Skollz Corp policies
and procedures, I’ll give you the manual. Remember, you always have the procedures
and policies to fall back on when in doubt. The system can be your best friend
if you know it well. With Mr. King you’ll never know what to expect. Change
comes fast and furious here. You’ll need to be prepared for anything.”
    There’s an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach, like
Gerard is trying to warn me about something. I’m probably being silly, though.
Chalk it up to first-day jitters.
    “Well, I’ve lived in New York for two years,” I say
blithely. “If that hasn’t prepared me for anything, nothing will.”
    Gerard smiles again, an expression that crinkles the corners
of his wide mouth but doesn’t reach his eyes. “I hope so.”
    Yikes. Something is definitely up. Or maybe this is normal
in the corporate world, a shadowy place of intrigue and competition—right?
That’s normal?
    “I know so.” My voice is confident, even if my gut is
confused.
    Gerard falls silent.
    He mechanically shows me the café, gym floor, nap pods. They
even have a lap pool and sauna—for crying out loud—to offset the long hours, I
suppose. We go up and down every elevator bank, my vertigo building. In rapid
succession I meet the Executive Director, Managing Director, Accounting
Director, Finance Director, Chief Logistics Officer, Global Business Unit
Manager, Marketing Coordinator, Executive Secretary, Public Relations Officer.
    Surprisingly, not all of them are redheads.
    Just as my brain is about to explode, Gerard takes me up to
the sixty-sixth floor and sits me down in a quiet conference room with a giant
book.
    “The Skollz Corp policy and procedures manual,” he
announces. “I’ll leave you two alone for a while. Feel free to visit the café.
After lunch we’ll join Mr. King.”
    The door clicks closed behind him and I am alone, staring at
the giant book.
    It’s at least four inches thick.
    “That’s what she said,” I mutter in response to my own
thoughts, laughing at myself.
    “Something amusing, Miss Clark?”
    “Jesus!”
    I nearly jump out of my skin and spin around in my seat. I
immediately recognize the voice but god damn it I hate surprises. Though room
is still empty, I can hear the cackle of feedback in a speaker system. And then
I notice the etched glass mirror behind me, shaped suspiciously like a door. It
has to be a two-way.
    The CEO of Skollz Corp was spying on me?! Heart hammering, I
squint directly past the reflection of my own face.
    “You definitely have a flair for the dramatic, Mr. King.” I
inspect the edges of the mirror curiously, and think I see the ridge in the
wall that it can slide into. “Was this another pet security project of yours?
Isolate and inspect? I’d rather be sniffed by the dogs.”
    “You’re a fast thinker, Clark.”
    The glass slides into the wall, revealing a sprawling office
on the other side. All of the walls of the office are windows offering a
panoramic, panic-inducing view of the New York skyline. I forcefully pull my
gaze away from the reminder of our precarious height and see a large white
desk. Seated behind it in a throne-chair is Mr.