la

as

en I w

m my desk so fast my g

and it hit the floor with a bang

re going straight back to their screen

f escaped from its ponytail, one side of my face

h

d aroun

ice. My

ng between desks with purpose. The printer ran witho

r another moment b

nly happened

nd looked at the date in

y 2

orward. Re

y 2

months before I died while Ronan

om the floor and set it on the

dread hit m

I knew t

head presented directly to Lucian Vale in front of the entire sen

re

sisting was just a dream - I had printed my rep

into something that looked like I had ne

eeting anyway because I

of his - that this was not the standard he expected. That carelessne

re and taken ev

arm around my shoulders. He's like that with everyon

d felt g

ing. Opening files. Navig

se let the f

ed the

s stared b

five. Three months of careful work broken so th

from scratch. I knew what it was supposed to say

d the ti

ed: yesterd

t the off

ose numbers fo

t Viv

me a hundred horrible memories of my life t

it down

d at th

rty minutes bef

. Just

dn't f

y. The corruption was too thorough. Too careful.

ifteen I

pressed them flat on th

ed my materials. Fixed my po

urvived this onc

not as comfortin

as everything I remembered and

table that seated twenty. Every s

hort dark hair tucked behind one ear, completely at e

back re

e back - alone, the w

e door

Vale wa

famous, and the kind of handsome that felt almost unfair. He was also the most

iticism of everything I submitted. Even when I eventually quit - pushed out

Sat. Looked around the room on

n," h

e presente

d none

n my lap and mentally recited

the standa

ss has con

weekend to reconsider y

the report without looking at me - like my presence in

Mont

e. His

e steady. I was genuine

ership analys

my report and my mind

yself I knew this work. I knew every numbe

at look had a weight to it I had ne

some

d. Too small. Too uncertain. "There w

said. Patient in the way of so

sente

rushed and breathless, three months of solid work

the silence last

nted

," Lucian said.

a file co

ver raised his voice. He didn't nee

s from memory. The methodolog

ed and ma

report," he said, "is no

e it

said. The same wor

lessn

carelessn

went ve

id that in m

His brows knitted t

ified at 11:47pm

"I left the office at six. I noticed the corruption this morning a

le

ss to your fi

ifted at t

roach. He had not asked who had access to my files. He had simply co

aying those

said carefully. "Stand

r than was strictly professional. Making me a

e made

We'll discuss the ful

at

I pressed them flat against my thighs

carelessness h

who had acces

my lap and Vivienne's warm smile still fresh in my memo

been