Simon drew in a breath, his eyes darkening with anger and pain as he looked at Steve.“I am not talking about that,” Simon muttered.Steve stopped, brushed a hand through his hair, and replied, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to bring that up.”Simon looked away, staring out the window of the moving car. The event of five years ago was not something he liked to talk about.“She is just worried about you,” Steve said again.“I know, but can you please tell Sophia I’m not a child?” Simon asked, closing his eyes as he let go of all the pain.“Sophia isn’t someone you can joke with, especially when she has her mind on something,” Steve muttered.“She has you so much in her finger, huh?” Simon stated, turning calm eyes towards Steve.Steve sighed and replied with a grin, “I’m a fool for love, my friend. I have no choice but to do her bidding.”“Hmm, hmm, I can see that, but really I’m fine. Can everyone just understand that?” Simon asked.“You know there is no point in telling them that; they wo
Jasmine and James stared at the screen of the tab Jayden held up to them.“Jayden, what is that?” Jasmine asked, pointing at the words he had typed.“What?” Jayden asked in defense.James suddenly burst out laughing, pointing at the screen and laughing the more.“Why are you laughing?” Jayden asked, pouting as his small eyes narrowed at his brother.“You can’t tell Dad that we are his children,” James pointed out.Jayden had written, Dad, don’t make Mummy cry; we are not happy with you.Jasmine shook her head and took the tab from him, clearing away the words he had written.“You do it then; I’m sure you cannot do it,” Jayden stated, sticking out his tongue at James.James's smile suddenly vanished as he replied, “I can, I can.”“No, you cannot,” Jayden continued to tease him.“Jasmine, I am going to write it,” James stated.“No, nobody is writing it again. I will write it,” Jasmine refused.She placed the tab on the bed again and typed out a few words. Picked it up and showed it to t
“What is wrong, Nat? Can you speak up? You’re getting me more worried with your silence,” Anna said, eyes narrowed at Nat.“Hmm, no, Clayton said something came up at one of the Gary client’s sites, and he had to go with Michael when he sent someone to get you.” Nat explained.“Okay, that does not sound like an emergency,” Anna responded.“No, it’s not, but that’s not the main issue,” Nat stated.“What is it then?” Anna asked.“So, the client is the topmost paying client of the Gary group, and if they lose them, it’s going to be a disaster,” Nat explained.“That’s bad. What is the situation over there?” Anna asked, her expression becoming more serious.“Hmm, I'm not so sure,” Nat replied.“Was it a critical network outage?” Anna asked.“Yes, it is; their entire communication system is down,” Nat responded.“And did the team check to see if this was caused by a malicious activity?” Anna asked.“That I am not sure about. From Clayton’s voice, I could tell things are beginning to get hea
Simon looked at the screen for a few seconds and still didn’t see what it was that Steve was staring at.“What are you seeing?” Simon asked.Hillary shook her head and said, “We’ve been looking at that video for the past fifteen minutes, and we didn’t’ find anything.”“There is an inscription at the base of that video; can you get someone to check that out?” Steve asked Hillary, pointing at the screen.Hillary looked in the direction he pointed, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion just before her eyes widened in shock.She snapped her finger and addressed the room, “I want everyone to check out the video on the fifth minute; it’s at the tail end of the video.”While the team got to work, Simon turned to Steve, his right eye squinted at him.“What?” Steve asked.“How did you find that?” Simon asked.“You’ve got my eagle eye to thank; in forensics, you’ve got to have an eye to catch things people don’t see,” Steve winked at him.“Oh, please,” Simon murmured, waving his hand at him in dis
“Anna, what are you talking about?” Clayton asked, smiling nervously as he looked from Michael to her.“Hello, Mr.?” Anna said, trailing off as she extended her hand to the client.Michael coughed slightly and introduced, “Mr. Harry, this is Anna Howard, known as Vectra within the industry. Anna, this is Mr. Harry Connor, CEO, Connor Media.”Anna smiled, keeping her hand stretched as she said, “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Connor.”Connor smiled in response and took her hand as he replied, “Hello Vectra, it’s an honor to meet you. I had no idea you were the one working on the issue. I guess you’re also the one behind the resolution.”“Well, you could call it a teamwork,” Anna responded, glancing at Nancy.“I don’t know what deal you want to make with me, but I already scheduled a meeting with the Parker group,” Connor responded.“Oh, I’m sure if you take ten minutes of your time to meet with me, you won’t regret it,” Anna responded.The room was quiet for a few seconds as Connor thought
Simon pulled Anna into the hall, bolting the door behind them.They were standing alone in the long hallway, staring at each other. Everything seems to fall away as they become only conscious of each other.“What the h*ll do you think you are doing?” Anna snapped at him.“You tell me; looks like you really are back to make me miserable,” Simon stated.“I am going to make you miserable, Simon,” Anna shouted.Simon paced, flipping a hand through his hair as he turned back to her and asked, “Why Michael?”“That is none of your f*cking business, Parker!” Anna snapped, folding her hand on her chest.“Yes, it is, if you insist on staying back in town. If you keep this up, the media is going to get interested, and soon it will be everywhere that you were once married to me!” Simon exclaimed.“And why should I give a damn about that?” Anna asked, her left brow raised in“For f*ck sake, Anna, don’t play dumb with me. We both know why you are back in town. Are you trying to use Michael to taunt
“William what are you looking at I asked if you know anything about what Steve just said?” Simon called out again.William looked up from his phone and replied, “Hmm, sorry, I was not following. What is wrong?”“Sophia said there is a flyer going around with little Mia’s picture on it. Who authorized the dissemination of the program flyer without my knowledge?” Simon asked.“Hmm, we didn’t make use of little Mia’s picture, and I was going to show you a sample of the design once we got back to the office. I’m not sure how there is a flyer going out already,” William explained.Simon turned to Steve and said, “Tell Sophia not to worry; I’ll sort things out.”Steve spoke with Sophia for another two minutes before finally ending the call.“She is not really concerned that you used little Mia’s picture; she just wanted to know if you were the one who authorized it since she knows how careful you are bringing family into work,” Steve explained.“William, ask the marketing team; I want to kn
“F*ck!! Why does everything have to fall apart simply because she is in town?” Simon said in frustration.“Which is why the fact that Anna is working with the Gary group puts us at a great disadvantage,” Noah stated.Simon’s eyes hardened as he replied, “I know, but how can the Crawford Foundation do this to us? We have been partners for the last ten years, and now they are willing to open our spot simply because Anna is in town?”“As head of operations, I can tell you it’s going to impact our operations significantly if we do not get the Crawford grant this year. I’m sure we can survive without it, but it’s going to be on a very tight rope,” Noah stated, sitting down on one of the couches.“We can survive without them, but having their name as one of our clients is also an advantage beyond the money they invest,” Simon muttered, rubbing his temple.He could feel the onset of a headache as he thought about it. Then his mind drifted to his encounter with Anna a few hours ago.I am going
Anna had a satisfied smile on her face as she stared at the documents in front of her.“What is it about?” Nat asked, her eyes twinkling with interest at Anna’s expression.“Looks like I just got my hand on a very confidential bid,” Anna replied.“I knew it was going to be something like that.” Clayton stated.“Why do you think it’s confidential?” Nat asked.“Well, because the recipient has been the beneficiary for a couple of years now, but now it’s up for a bid,” Anna explained as she glanced at the name on the file again.“And who is this recipient that is suddenly losing this bid?” Nat asked, her eyes narrowed in suspicion.“I think I know who it is.” Clayton murmured, looking at Anna in suspicion too.“Who?” Nat asked.“That should be the Parker group.” Clayton stated.Nat’s eyes turned to Anna quickly as she asked, “Are you serious?”“Yes, he is,” Anna responded.“Why would they be letting go of the Parker and putting it up for a bid?” Nat asked in shock.It didn’t take much to
Simon stared at the flash drive, his eyes narrowed in question as he asked, “What answer?”“I finally have the pinpoint location of the attacker.” Steve replied.“Really? That was so fast,” Simon said.“I think the location would be more surprising; you should have a look,” Steve answered, handing the drive over to him.As they spoke, William’s phone vibrated in his pocket, and he stepped to the side of the office to check what the content of the text he got was about.“Where is the location?” Simon asked Steve.“You should see it yourself, because I’m still surprised also,” Steve replied.He walked over to Simon’s desk, stepping around it to stand behind his seat as Simon inserted the drive into his laptop and opened the file on it. There were a lot of things to sort through, but Steve navigated to the map and opened it.“Is that it?” Simon asked, his hand pointing to the red dot on the screen.“Yes,” Steve nodded.Simon stared at the name on the map for a few seconds before his eyes
At the Howard house, Nancy walked into the house in the early hours of the morning, her eyes bloodshot.“Nancy? Where were you all night?” Cordelia asked, trying to keep her voice low.“I was out, where else? I’m heading up to my room,” Nancy responded, trading up the stairs.“Do you want your father to get pissed with you? Does he have to worry about you doing something stupid?” Cordelia asked in concern, following her up.Nancy chuckled, shaking her head as she replied over her shoulder, “You don’t need to worry about me.”“But your actions say otherwise, Nancy? Did something else happen at work?” Cordelia asked.Nancy got to her door, pulled it open, and walked in, dropping her bag on the floor as she fell into bed.“Something did happen.” Cordelia stared at Nancy’s silence.“Can we talk about this later, Mom? I’m fr*aking tired and need some sleep.” Nancy responded, her voice muffled by the bed.“Won’t you go to work?” Cordelia asked.“I took the day off,” Nancy replied.“What hap
By the time Anna got to the office, there was a kind of ease about her that even Nat noticed. Clayton was not on the seat as Anna passed by his table.“Anna?” Nat called as she walked into the office.“Yes? Did anything unusual happen while I was away?” Anna asked.“No, nothing. I’m just glad to see you looking calmer than you did yesterday and this morning.” Nat responded.“Yeah, I guess so,” Anna mumbled.Anna dropped her bag on her table, pulled out her chair, and sat down. She felt like a heavy weight had been lifted off her shoulders.“Anna? Where did you go?” Clayton asked, coming into the room.“Should I not be asking you that same question?” Anna asked.“But I…” Clayton started to say.“Why don’t we get back to work?” Anna asked, smiling at them warmly.“I know there is something hidden behind that smile.” Clayton defended.“Did you find out anything about the envelope you gave to me?” Anna asked, changing the topic.“No, I told you he didn’t say anything to me. Why don’t you j
"What is it?" Alex asked, noticing the hesitation on her face.Anna looked at Shelly, patting her hand as she said, "If I am going to do this, you need to follow my lead.""You don't want to help us?" Adam asked, his eyes clouded with confusion."Ms. Howard, I know you must have reservations, but this is a murder case, and we need to take extra caution." Alex responded.Anna sighed, placed her elbow on the desk as she explained, "No, that's not what I mean. I know that you need my testimony to make sense of what happened that night. I know who might be behind this, but I need to know that you will follow my lead."Alex's face cleared in understanding at her words as he asked, "Why do you want us to follow your lead?"Anna stood up, walked over to the window in the room, and turned her back to them as she stared out at the city."We know how difficult this must be for you, Anna, but we need to know." Adam encouraged.Alex sighed deeply and stated, "Ms. Howard, this case is critical. If
Anna wriggled her hand, uncomfortable, but she knew there was no turning back from this. She had made a promise to herself to face this head-on, no matter how difficult it may be. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and breathed deeply before looking at Shelly.“Anna?” Shelly asked, stepping closer to her.Anna nodded and replied, “Yes,"“Anna!” Shelly exclaimed in shock, covering her mouth with her right palm.“Who is it, dear?”Anna looked up and saw him, Adam Turker, his head filled with trickles of gray hair. He looked almost the same as he did five years ago.“Hunnie, it’s Anna, Anna,” Shelly called out in disbelief.Adam got to them, his eyes filled with questions as he asked, “Anna? Is that you?”Anna nodded, forcing a smile as she tried to clear her voice, which was clogged with tears.“Oh my god,” Shelly exclaimed softly as she pulled Anna into her arms.Anna felt the softness of her hands around her as she finally let herself cry, releasing all the pent-up emotions she
“Did something else happen?” Noah asked, watching Simon.His eye that had been close to calm was now storming with fury as he cursed under his breath.“Gideon is flying back to the country! For f*ck's sake, did he learn nothing about business diplomacy? He is leaving all that sh*t there and flying back?” Simon stated, his voice hardened in anger.“What do you mean he learned nothing? There is probably nothing else he could do about the situation.” Paul defended.“You know that’s not true; we all bloody know that is not f*king true!” Simon snapped.“Don’t you dare curse at me, Simon!” Paul shouted at him.“For the life of me, how dense can Gideon be? I should have known better than to send him on that trip.” Angrily, Simon brushed back his hair in frustration.“What do you mean by you should have known better? Were you expecting him to bungle this up from the get-go?” Paul asked, his eyes narrowed.Simon didn’t answer, and Noah had picked up his phone to reach out to key directors over
Anna stared at the picture and at the date, a reminder of what happened. Lily's picture was displayed on her phone, her face all smiles as her phone alerted her to the fact that Lily had lost her life in her place five years ago."Anna?" Are you alright?" Nat leaned close to ask.She noticed the pale look on her face and was concerned about her.Anna was silent for a moment before finally admitting, "I think I need to go home.""What? Why? When are we celebrating your win?" Nat asked.Anna pulled out her phone and placed it face down on the table, trying to control herself. She felt a wave of sadness wash over her as she recalled that night."Please excuse me, I need to make use of the restroom," Anna said with a forced smile before standing up.Her walk to the restroom was slow and deliberate, her mind consumed with memories she had been trying to forget.Once in the restroom, she splashed cold water on her face, took a deep breath, and stared at her reflection in the mirror."I'm so
"Oh, my god! When did you guys plan this?" Anna asked, smiling at the grin on their faces.The small restaurant had a cozy atmosphere, with dim lighting and soft music playing in the background. It had been decorated and was only occupied by her team members.The tables were adorned with colorful balloons, and a "Congratulations" banner hung on the wall."Congratulations, Ms. Howard," they chorused.Anna felt filled with gratitude as she looked at their faces, glad they had actually won the bid."Thought you said none of them were going to show up?" Nat whispered to Clayton."Me? I thought that was you." Clayton asked."Thank you," Anna replied as they took their seat."Looks like Michael rented out the whole restaurant."Yes, he did. We got here and met the decor already in place." Evelynn stated, beaming."Looks like he is a thoughtful person after all," Clayton remarked, impressed."I guess I misunderstood him," Nat admitted with a chuckle.Anna smiled as a waiter walked up to them