Aiden

It was a little late by the time we recalled all of the drinks. Two more food poisoning cases were admitted to the hospital the next day, shortly after the story broke.

"What?" As my security officials briefed on the reports, I remarked.

"Why don't these people read the newspaper or follow the news on television? We asked people to return any Reiner soft drinks they had bought in the previous two weeks." I was irritated.

"They were either unaware of it or simply thoughtless. However, following the last two incidences, we haven't had any new cases of food poisoning. The four victims have gradually recovered as well, and they have agreed to an out-of-court settlement." My security chief stated.

"That's a comfort," I said as I scratched my temples and turned to face my financial advisor, Michael. He didn't appear to be in a good mood.

"Our stock prices have continued to fall, as expected. The good news is that it is beginning to slow down. It'll keep going at this pace for a while longer. When the news gets outdated, it will recover. So far, the other businesses have been unaffected. So, I suppose it'll only be a matter of time before things calm down," Michael clarified.
For the past three weeks, my team of advisors, spokespeople, and lawyers have been working around the clock to restore public trust and mitigate the damage. Our bottles' packaging had been altered. All of our warehouses were made more secure. I'd even travelled out to Spring Valley for a few days to meet with the researchers and various department heads. So, far there have still been no calls from any party mentioning extortion or claiming responsibility for the act of sabotage.

"Now, what do we have thus far in terms of the investigation?" I enquired of my colleagues.

"The fake drinks were obtained from a dodgy Mexican manufacturing facility. Some mafias in the area possess it. Those two men who drove the truck on that particular day were assigned on the spot and never seen again. It's not uncommon for blue-collar people to change jobs, but they don't vanish overnight. They usually leave a trail."

"Is there a way to trace who ordered those duplicate bottles?" I asked.

"It's challenging because I would have to deal with the mafia, but I'm doing my best." The security chief responded.

I nodded, encouraging him to continue speaking.

"Emily Parker, one of our human resources employees, entered the appointments of those drivers into the system. She hasn't shown up for work in over a week "..

My brows were arched, "Why hadn't I been made aware of it till now? Did you make an attempt to contact her?"

"We did, she wasn't at her apartment, and we've reported her missing to the cops..."

I interrupted the man.

"I'd like to be informed about this on a daily basis. It's not just sabotage; one of our employees has been missing for a week and no one knows what happened to her. It's completely absurd! Find out everything there is to know about her. Everything. Her friends, her family, everything. Keep an eye on this case and keep me informed." While drumming on the table, I insisted. I had a feeling there was more to this, that Emily was a crucial link, assuming we could track her down.

I had been so preoccupied with meetings and investigations that I had rarely seen Sydney in the previous few weeks. I had been missing her. Every night, I read a large number of reports. Sydney would have drifted off by the time I finished with them, and I would be too exhausted to do anything else.
I gave a sardonic smile. Despite the fact that the sabotage and all the meetings had taken up a lot of my time, Sydney would frequently drop by my office with a coffee or lunch that I had forgotten about. She was always there...waiting. I decided to make amends to her once all of these issues were resolved. Take her on a vacation to a faraway location. Maybe visit her home in Australia, I promised myself.

**********

Sydney

I missed Aiden. He was very busy due to the sabotage. I understood that but I couldn't help missing him. So every day I kept myself occupied with work, attending some of the social events, wearing myself out until I fell asleep.
For a long time, I had been neglecting Leah and Mike. However, this was not done on purpose. Mike had been preoccupied with acting and auditions. Whenever I was able to contact him. Either he was hurrying away or he was in the middle of something. Our exchanges lasted little more than a minute. I desperately needed to speak with someone. Leah was also preoccupied with her art classes, as she was about to take her finals.

Today was no exception.

Grandpa and Wendy and I had breakfast together. After that, I drove to work and went to a couple of meetings. Aiden could be seen dashing about here and there. By 4.30 p.m., I was free. It was both too early and too late to return home or do anything else. I decided to meet up with Mike and Leah because I had nothing planned.
I attempted to contact Mike on his cellphone but was unable to do so. I finally caught up with Leah as she was leaving for her lesson. Mike had gone to meet his agent, she said. I went to Rob's office once. I decided to drop by and give Mike a surprise visit if he was indeed there. Half an hour later, I was walking up the stairs to Rob's office when I ran into Annie, Rob's secretary. She looked surprised, but then her face broke into a broad smile.

"Mrs Reiner. How are you doing? It's great to see you again."

"Hello, Annie I am fine. Please call me Sydney. Leah said Mike was there. Is he there?" I asked, anxiously.

"Oh! Mr Delaware is in and so is Mike. I took the afternoon off. It's my mom's birthday," She said happily.

"That is nice. Enjoy yourself. I will just go up to the office and catch up with Mike. Can I go in ?" I asked.

" Of course! I've locked the front door but let me get it for you," offered Annie.

"Thank you, Annie," I said gratefully.

We walked up the rest of the floor together, and Annie unlocked the front office door for me before leaving. I pushed open the door and walked in, but Mike and Rob were nowhere to be found in the visitor area. "Should I go in, they're probably inside?" I pondered the situation.

I decided to knock and let them know I was there, so I walked over to the office door and knocked. I saw the door was half ajar just as I was about to knock. I thought I heard some strange noises, like someone moaning?
Perhaps someone was ill? I pushed in the door without thinking when I was greeted by an unusual sight. Mike and Rob were sitting on the sofa. They were half-dressed and passionately kissing one other. They were so 'engaged' that they didn't even notice I was standing right there for a few seconds. I should have walked away; it was impolite of me to just barge in, but I was stunned and remained motionless. I tried to say something, but nothing came out of my mouth. Mike caught my eye and froze.

"I'm sorry, I didn't intend to....." I fumbled and bolted. I didn't stop running until I got to the sidewalk. I snatched the wall and leant against it, panting. I heard footsteps and turned to face Mike. He was looking down at me with a smile.

"Are you okay?" he inquired.

I sputtered after a foolish nod.

"I am sorry, I didn't mean to intrude.....I just came to meet you....."

Mike responded, tilting his head, "Relax, it's alright, come on, we need to chat."