LOGIN"Your services are no longer needed." The words came out flat. Final. "Pack your things and leave. Security will escort you out."Faustina's mouth opened. Then, she closed and opened again, completely awe stricken."You're firing me?" she whispered. "After everything I've done for you?""You're lucky I'm not pressing charges." Emily turned her back on her. "Get out of my sight."For a long moment, Faustina didn't move.Then she turned and walked out of the office, her steps measured, her back straight. She didn't look back.Emily stood alone in the silence.The anger that had carried her through the confrontation began to fade, leaving something worse in its place, grief.The elevator doors slid shut.Faustina stood in the corner, her hands shaking, her face a mask of barely contained fury. Beside her, Janice, a junior secretary who had been in the wrong place at the wrong time, watched nervously."Faustina, are you okay? What happened?"Faustina didn't answer immediately. Her eyes we
The morning light filtered through the office windows, casting soft whitening hues on the files on top of tables.Emily sat behind her desk, a cup of coffee growing cold beside her, her eyes scanning the day's schedule with mechanical precision. The court victory had bought her time, six months to find answers, rebuild, and expose the truth. But time was a luxury she couldn't afford to waste.Her pen paused over the schedule.She noted the name, it was Faustina again, and she was absent.Emily's jaw tightened as she recalled it all, the emergency board meeting the previous night, the chaos of Nicole's shooting, the attack on her home and where was her trusted secretary? Absolutely nowhere to be found in critical times like this.She pulled up the attendance records as her eyes scanned the pages again. Faustina still hadn't clocked in, called or even sent a message.She bit into her lips, blood curling in veins with each rising wrongdoing. Her nails traced the edges of the desk again,
"Your Honor, the plaintiffs are relying on a shortened interpretation of the clause in question. They claim that Ms. Dally here, failed to resolve the matter within two weeks, and therefore forfeits her right to continue operations."The investors' attorney nodded smugly."However," Nicole continued, "the full clause contains a hidden condition. The plaintiffs only have the right to take legal action if Ms. Dally fails to provide a credible suspect responsible for the contamination incident. Not proof of guilt, simply a suspect tied to the case."The courtroom went still.Nicole pulled a document from his briefcase. "As the court can see, Ms. Dally has already presented a suspect, the missing secretary, Faustina, who disappeared shortly after the contamination was discovered. The requirement for immediate action has therefore not been violated."The investors' attorney sprang to her feet. "Your Honor, that's absurd! A missing secretary is not a credible suspect…""The clause does not
The morning sun cast long shadows across the courthouse steps.Emily helped Nicole out of the car, her hand steadying him as he winced against the pain in his side. The bullet wound was still fresh, barely twenty-four hours old, but he had refused to stay in the hospital or to rest, he had also refused to let the case collapse in his absence."You're going to tear your stitches," Emily murmured, her voice tight with worry."I'll tear them after we win," Nicole replied, forcing a faint smile. "Priorities."She wanted to argue. She wanted to drag him back to the hospital and chain him to the bed. But she knew him well enough to understand that nothing would stop him from walking into that courtroom and the wound in question was well dressed behind an open blazer suit jacket.So she simply held his arm and walked beside him.They had talked on the way to the courthouse.Emily had told him everything, about Carl's sudden appearance, the attack, the rescue. Especially, about the way Carl
The air was thick in the hospital, the doctors hurried over, nurses and gurneys. The sterile smell of antiseptic and fear.Emily was pushed aside as they wheeled Nicole into the emergency room. Her eyes followed his body until it disappeared behind the doors that swung shot, and she was left alone in the waiting area, her hands still shaking, her heart still pounding.She didn't know how long she sat there. But they had become so cold, more bumps rose on skin unapologetically despite the heater at the end of the wall.She checked her wrist watch every now and then minutes turned into hours and hours, an eternity.Then a doctor emerged quite long enough, tired, bloodied gloves, but he was calm and it gave her hope."Ms. Dally?" He called attentively.Emily stood, her knees barely holding her. "How is he? Is he…""Quite stable." The doctor's voice was gentle. "Luckily, the bullet struck his right side. It missed all vital organs. We've removed it and repaired the damage. He's weak, and
A figure crashed through the glass, a blur of motion, of fury, of impossible timing. Carl landed on the floor in a roll, coming up with a weapon that had materialized from nowhere.The men froze."DROP HIM," Carl roared.They didn't.The first man lunged at Carl, swinging a knife. Carl sidestepped, caught his arm, and twisted it behind his back with a sickening crack. The knife clattered to the floor. The man screamed.The second man reached for his weapon.Carl was faster unfortunately for himHe closed the distance in two strides, drove his fist into the man's jaw, and sent him crashing against the wall. The man slid down, unconscious.The third man, the one who had spoken to Emily, dropped Nicole and turned to flee.Carl grabbed him by the collar, spun him around, and slammed him against the floor."WHO SENT YOU?" Carl's voice was a snarl. "WHO DO YOU WORK FOR?"The man laughed, a wet, bloodied sound. "You think I'd tell you? You think I'm stupid enough to…"Carl's fist connected w
Emily stepped through her front door and closed it behind her, leaning against the wood for a moment longer than necessary. The meeting with Detective Marquez had left her hollowed out. The maid was dead. The files had vanished. And the possibility that someone had been operating inside her compan
Emily sat in silence for a long moment.Then she said, "You said last night you couldn't continue the investigation. You said something came up. This was it? This was why you couldn't make it?"Marquez nodded. "Her death changed everything. We've been trying to contain the fallout, but the truth is
“Fuck, these tits are perfect,” he groaned, burying his face between them. He sucked one swollen nipple into his hot mouth, tongue flicking rapidly over the stiff peak before biting down gently, then harder on the areola area, until the hardened nub was flattened between his teeth. Emily moaned lo
Emily had almost lost all hope, she bit into her nails for the first time in a decade. Regretting almost instantly, she'd let him off with a confidential document in the name uncovering some ruthless criminals after her.She'd almost lost her senses, he could never return, it was too late to.The e







