Masuk“I lost her.”Michael didn’t respond immediately.Silence.Then_“What do you mean you lost her?”The bodyguard hesitated.“Only for a few seconds… she was there, then gone.”Michael’s grip tightened.Michael's thumb stopped against the edge of the desk.The bodyguard knew better than to lose sight of her.Especially today.Michael hadn’t sat yet when his phone rang again.MotherHe already knew before looking.He answered.“ You haven’t been picking up my calls.”He leaned back.“I’ve been busy.”A pause.“Busy?” Her voice sharpened. “Or ignoring responsibility?”His jaw tightened.“I’m handling it.”Silence.Then—“Fix this mess, Michael.”His hand stopped on the table.“The company is already under heat after the office incident.”Another pause.“Don’t make it worse.”“You have a meeting.”She added firmly “ Don't be late”.Click.Michael lowered the phone slowly, for a moment he didn't move. The silence in the room felt heavier than the conversation; his eyes drifted back to the pa
Michael drove home immediately after the incident.His hands stayed tight on the steering wheel.The words wouldn’t leave him.ENJOY THE SHOW.YOU'RE RUNNING OUT OF TIME.SHE'S NEXT.They stayed behind his eyes like a stain he couldn't wipe away. When he arrived at the mansion, the first thing he noticed,silence. Too much of it. Jessica wasn’t there.He called her name once. No answer. Her room was empty, Her phone went straight to voicemail.Michael stood still for a moment, then picked up his phone again, No response. Something tightened in his chest.*******Back at the office, the situation was still unfolding.Security reviewed the hallway footage again and again.Something about it didn’t sit right. Michael running,Smoke spreading. Broken glass. But the angles, too clean.Too controlled.Like someone knew exactly where the blind spots were.The corridor still smelled faintly of smoke, security tape. Stretched across one end of the hall.Officers moved in slow, controlled steps, a
Jessica stepped away from the desk. Not quickly. Her bag strap slipped slightly on her shoulder and she adjusted it without thinking.The corridor was normal. People walked past. Doors opened and closed.Jessica moved through it without really meeting anything, outside the building she paused. Not long enough for anyone to notice, her fingers found the taxi lane without her deciding.A car slowed, didn't stop at first, then stopped. She opened the door, got in, and closed it.“Where to?” the driver asked.Jessica looked forward, not at him, her hand rested on her bag,the file was inside it She could feel it even without touching it.“Just go” she said after a moment.The car pulled into the road. Jessica leaned back against the seat. The window reflected her face faintly. She didn't look at it for long.A traffic light turned red ahead. Jessica watched it change without really noticing when it turned green.*******Room 206 felt too quiet before she even opened the door. Jessica stop
Jessica didn’t sleep. She lay there staring at the ceiling, the message still burned into her mind.Ask the right question next time.She turned slightly on the bed, the room was quiet in a way that pressed on her ears.Too wide.Her fingers twisted into the bedsheet without her noticing.SARAH COLLINSMICHAEL CARTER HER FATHERThe names kept returning. Slower each time, heavier.She squeezed her eyes shut.No…Not tonightBut it didn't stop.Sarah's smile flashed behind her eyes. Then the document. Michael's name printed on it. Clear. Final.Like something already decided. Something she was never meant to see.Her chest tightened. That future she never allowed herself to name was already gone.A shaky breath escaped her. The room blurred at the edges. She blinked once, then again. But it didn't stop.The first tear slipped down her cheek before she even realized she was crying.Jessica wiped it away quickly. Another followed, then another.And she stopped pretending after that.Her
Jessica didn’t go straight back to work. She still couldn’t decide if what she heard was real.She stayed in her car longer than she meant to, fingers locked around the steering wheel. Like letting go would set something loose she couldn’t contain.Sam’s voice kept looping in her head.How’s your father?She exhaled slowly.“Stop,” she muttered under her breath.It didn’t.She started the car anyway.The hospital looked exactly the same when she returned. That was what unsettled her most.People moved through the corridors talking, laughing, living, as if nothing had shifted at all.As if she hadn’t just heard something she couldn’t unhear.Jessica lowered her gaze and walked in.Just move. Don’t think.She had barely stepped into the staff area when Maya noticed her. Maya was talking, something about shift notes but Jessica wasn’t fully listening.“Jessica—”She didn’t stop fully.“I’m fine,” she said quickly before Maya could finish.Maya frowned. “You don’t look”“I said I’m fine.”
Jessica almost gave the wrong medication. She stopped mid-motion.She already felt it. Wrong chart.She froze.This wasn’t her patient.For a second she simply stood there, staring at the file in her hand.Then the door opened.“Jessica.”Dr Helen’s voice. Calm. Sharp.Jessica looked up immediately.Doctor Helen stepped inside and glanced at the chart. Then at Jessica. Then back at the chart. Silence. The kind that feels worse than being yelled at.Jessica swallowed hard.“I’m sorry.”Doctor Helen didn’t speak right away. She took the file from Jessica’s hands and closed it.“You never make mistakes like this.”Jessica forced a smile.“I’m just tired.”“Tired doesn’t explain this,” Helen cut in immediately.The smile stayed on Jessica’s face. Her jaw tightened slightly as she nodded.“I’m okay,” she said.Doctor Helen looked at her for a long moment. The way she looked at difficult patients. Like she was searching for something beneath the surface.“You haven’t slept well,” she said.
The elevator doors closed.Jessica stared straight ahead. She could see both their reflections in the polished doors, her standing slightly to the left, him behind her. She didn't turn around, even though she felt him behind her like heat she shouldn't acknowledge The elevator hummed softly behind
Jessica had worked at Boston General for three years.Long enough to memorise the smell of disinfectant. Long enough to survive a night shift without coffee.Long enough for the hospital to feel more like home than the mansion in Kensington ever did.Here, at least, people talked to her. Here, she
Michael didn't move for a second after the door closed.The house felt different even though it was quiet.He stood there, eyes fixed on the empty space Jessica had just left behind.He didn't even know why he was still standing there.Finally, he exhaled and walked back into the living room. Picked
Michael sank into his chair, running both hands through his hair. His mind raced. Investors expected reports. The board expected results..Rivalries companies were circling, waiting for any weakness.He couldn't change the past. Couldn't erase the contract.But he could act. Protect the company. Pro







