A NEW ERA

Chapter 5

By late afternoon, the office had settled into its usual rhythm. The sound of keyboard taps, distant phone calls, and the hum of the HVAC system created a background soundtrack that Vanessa had learned to both rely on and tune out. But today, everything felt different. There was a buzz running through her veins, a mixture of adrenaline and clarity. For once, she wasn’t trailing behind Carter, cleaning up his mess or amplifying his ideas. She had led, on her own terms.

Her screen lit up with a new email—subject line: “Excellent Work Today – Let’s Debrief Tomorrow”—sent by Conrad. She opened it and scanned the short message. He wanted to touch base in the morning and talk about next steps with BlueEdge and potential internal presentations. The words were clear, but the subtext was even clearer: she had entered a new orbit in the company.

She leaned back in her chair, eyes drifting to the glass wall that separated her from the rest of the open-plan floor. Carter still hadn’t returned. She glanced at the time. It was almost 4:00 PM, and he hadn’t sent a single message, not even to check in.

Typical.

A part of her resented how predictable he was. Another part was relieved—his absence had made this possible. Still, the silence felt oddly personal. She opened their last thread of messages, staring for a moment at the final one he’d sent that morning, after she called him: “You’ve got this. I trust you.”  No explanation. No follow-up.

She minimized the window.

As she stood to stretch her legs, she caught sight of Mel from sales department walking briskly toward the elevators. Vanessa hurried to catch up with her best friend. She caught up with her 

 “Nessa, hey. Great job with BlueEdge today.”

“Thanks,” Vanessa said. “You heading out?”

“Actually, no. I’ve got a quick meeting with legal. Something came up—Carter-related.”

Vanessa blinked. “Oh?”

Mel hesitated, clearly gauging how much to say. “Not my place, but... well, you might want to check your inbox later. There’ll be some shifts happening soon.”

“Shifts?” Vanessa echoed, trying to sound casual.

Mel gave a knowing look. “Nothing bad for you, I promise. But…. things change.”

And with that, she disappeared into the elevator.

Vanessa stood there for a moment, stunned. Her heart quickened. Shifts? What kind of shifts? Her mind raced with possibilities. Was Carter leaving? Being moved? Could it really be that simple?

By the time she returned to her desk, her thoughts were spiraling. She opened the company’s internal platform and began searching for updates, memos, anything. But nothing new had been posted yet.

A ping sounded—another email. Her heart leapt, but it was just a calendar update. Tomorrow morning, 9:30 AM. Subject: “Internal Strategic Realignment Meeting – Leadership Only.”

Her name was on the invite list.

Her stomach flipped. Leadership?

She barely had time to process the implications when her phone buzzed again. This time, a message from Carter.

> “Heard it went well. Knew you’d handle it.”

Short. Vague. Detached.

She stared at the message, thumbs hovering over her screen. After a pause, she typed:

> “You could’ve given more notice.”

Delivered. Read. No reply.

She set the phone down and took a deep breath.

The rest of the office slowly began to empty out as the clock edged closer to five. Vanessa stayed seated, staring at her screen, thoughts clashing like waves. She knew this was the moment she had been building toward, even if unconsciously. All the nights she stayed late, all the emails she ghostwrote, all the client strategy she quietly structured while Carter took the spotlight—this was the payoff.

And yet… a strange emotion sat in her chest. Not quite guilt, but close. She had built her success in the shadows, and now that the spotlight was shifting, it brought with it not just attention—but responsibility. Visibility.

Her phone buzzed again. This time, it was Conrad.

“You still here? Thought we could grab coffee down the street. My treat. Call it a post-win debrief?”

She smiled at the message. Quick fingers typed back:

 “Sure. Give me five minutes.”

Vanessa grabbed her blazer, shut down her computer, and stood. As she walked toward the elevator, she glanced one last time around the office floor. It was the same space it had always been—but she wasn’t the same.

Outside, the late afternoon sun was casting a warm gold across the city. A breeze swept her hair slightly as she stepped onto the sidewalk where Conrad was already waiting, coffee in hand.

He handed her one and said with a grin, “You ready for what’s next?”

Vanessa took a long sip, looking out at the street, eyes sharp with focus.

“I think I am.”