Lydia Layne tells Tom Harding and Celia that she knows that they've been waiting for her decision. The shelves shake briefly and Lydia says that it was a commonplace minor earthquake. She says that one of them is going to be the company's new CFO, and finally tells Tom that he has been chosen. Lydia tells Tom that he's one of the best financial managers she's encountered, and Tom leaves to call his wife.
Celia complains that Lydia chosen Tom, and figures Lydia was never going to let her "be her". Lydia says that she doesn't want to lose her and Tom is being transferred to Switzerland, but Celia notes that Lydia has been preaching about lifting women up for years but abandoned her. Her lover says that they'll have enough money to go anywhere they want and smash barriers, but Celia tells her that the CFO position was going to be the beginning of her life. Lydia says that there'll be other opportunities, but Celia calls her a fraud talking about female empowerment. She insists that she deserved the promotion and doesn't want to be Lydia's "sidekick". Lydia tells her that she just wants a life together, but Celia says that she can't look her in the eyes again.
When Celia threatens to reveal Lydia's lies to the word, Lydia slaps her. Furious, Celia threatens to call the police and go to the newspapers, ruining Lydia. Lydia grabs her and they struggle, and Celia falls over the couch and impales her skull on Lydia's "Woman of the Year" award. Horrified, Lydia pulls the award out of Celia's head, then pushes it back in when an assistant, Kevin, comes by. He sees Celia's corpse on the couch from the back and assumes that she's alive, and Lydia says that she's trying to calm Celia down after Tom's promotion.
Once Kevin leaves, Lydia puts Celia's body in an office chair and wheels her to the elevator. Everyone but the janitor has left for the night, and Lydia shoves Celia into an office when Tom comes out of the restroom. Tom tells Lydia that Celia will bounce back, and Lydia says that she's forgotten something when the elevator arrives. Lydia goes into the office and sees Celia apparently scowling at her, and closes her eyes. She then wheels Celia to the elevator and gets her in, and hits the ground-floor button.
As Lydia works out how to make it look like Celia died in a car accident, another earthquake shakes the building. The elevator stops and the chair wheels into Lydia. Once the quake is over, Lydia pushes the chair away and confirms the buttons don't work. There's no phone service and the elevator is stuck between floors so there's nothing but a concrete wall beyond the doors. Lydia uses the chair--and Celia--as a stepladder to get up to the roof hatch, but the chair shifts and Lydia falls to the floor.
At 3 am, Lydia wakes up from her fall and hears Celia calling to her. Celia's eyes have come open and Lydia shuts them again. When she does, Celia's mouth pops open. The elevator shifts and the lights flicker, and then the car drops down the shaft before the emergency brakes kick in. The fire department calls on the emergency phone, but Lydia remains silent rather than give away her position and the fact she's with her lover's corpse. Lydia turns on the phone light and sees Celia now sitting up. When Lydia reaches for the phone, Celia's corpse moves next to it, her eyes open and glaring at Lydia. Hysterical, Lydia screams at Celia that she'll never be her and she's the woman of the year.
Later, the fireman calls again and Lydia responds. He says that he's been there for 24 hours, and they'll be there as fast as they can. Celia's body slumps over and as Lydia watches, the award emerges from her skull and falls on the floor. Lydia figures that she's hallucinating and picks the award up, laughs, and peers into the hole in Celia's skull. Celia grabs Lydia by the throat, and Lydia manages to pry herself free. The corpse glares at Lydia, who tries to find a way out.
Lydia pries open the door and calls to the firemen, and swings herself up to the doorway revealed by the car's fall. As Lydia gets her legs and torso out, Celia stands up and grabs Lydia's hair. The car goes down, decapitating Lydia.
Later, the firemen open the elevator door and find Celia's corpse inside... holding Lydia's head in her lap.
Written by Gadfly on Dec 2, 2019