Cracked Sources (B01 E08)

There was a little misunderstanding
pertaining to why the missing Crescent Document would be found inside Andrew’s
desk. Agnes had already been questioned, and she refuted any knowledge of an
intruder gaining access into Andrew’s office, “Unless when I wasn’t on
seat,” was her angle of argument. Andrew pressed Mark for his support, to
show he believed him, that was the only thing that would prevent the security
officers from taking him into custody. Mark just kept his gaze on the document
as it played on the table, he observed that the seal was still unbroken so he
gave the security officers the order, “Let him go,” Andrew heaved a
deep sigh of relief.

“The
Circle needs to gather now,” Mark said
Andrew.

***

At the meeting, Mark announced that the
security breach facing the firm was signs that they were targeted by yet
unknown men, but luckily they weren’t able to get the document they were after.
The security’s effort yielded little fruit, a hooded figure was found loitering
the firm during the time Andrew and Patrick were showing off their might.
Patrick admitted to receiving a cryptic message from someone wearing a hood
that morning that he interrogates Anna very well over her involvement, so he
stupidly did. Andrew was exonerated completely before Mark, he feared he
wouldn’t be able to trust the man who showed much potential to be his best ally
here.

“I
don’t think they got what they wanted with the document, but our security
measures need an overhaul. We need to be on the look out to avoid a
reoccurrence, especially now that the Crescent case is rumored to be
reopened” Mark calmly announced.

The Circle murmured, different factions
discussed within themselves, they thought the Crescent case completely
finished. “I thought we had finished out the case in public” Andrew
asked looking shocked. Mark announces that the opposition had new pieces of
evidence according to what he heard, but nonetheless, they had to be prepared
or lose a case fine tuned to a worth of billions in naira.

Mark needed Patrick and Andrew to wait
behind after the meeting ended. “You’re off for two weeks with effect from
now,” Mark spoke after the room had cleared. He didn’t give Patrick the
chance to argue, and threatened to call the security if Patrick repeated the
show of shame he displayed to the firm inside his office. Patrick left,
exchanging a damning eye with Andrew. Andrew ignored him, and so did Mark who
was more concerned with Andrew giving him names of people who would want to
frame him up in such a manner.

“No one comes to mind,” Andrew
answered.

Mark reassured him of his commitment to
keep working with him to change the face of the firm, and of his trust for him.
“The war must be won,” Andrew joined him to say, no one was going to
take them down. Andrew left.

“Your dinner with Ms. Anna is still
tonight,” Mark’s beautiful PA came in to announce, she wanted to know if
he’d like to reschedule. “No,” Mark didn’t want to disappoint if Anna
wasn’t ready to disappoint, all the PA had to do was confirm if Anna was
coming.

 ***

As Patrick drove away from the firm, he
felt nostalgic. It was usually him dishing out 2 weeks of leave to
insubordinates and unruly staffs like he did to Anna weeks ago – It was now he
understood how they felt whenever those words fell easily from his mouth –
Free. He pondered on where to go as his wife and his job had rejected him for
varying number of days, he knew the coming days were going to be rough for him,
and he decided o brace himself up for the challenge. He decided to go home and
pack a few stuffs, knowing his wife won’t go home until she narrated her entire
show today to all the ladies in her salon. With each passing moment he spent on
the Lagos traffic, he cursed out loud, as he knew they were moments closer to
his wife returning home, and certainly, she would rain down hell on him as she
promised to do. It wasn’t the first time.

 ***

Patrick ran upstairs, and packed his bag
with much hurry, not stopping to calculate the amount of clothes he needed for
the five days she warned him to not return home, all he wanted was to be gone
before she arrived. As he was about to leave, a phone beeped on their
matrimonial bed. He took a moment to stare at it to be sure he didn’t forget
his while hurrying, but soon realized it was his wife’s. He wanted to go but
couldn’t, his inquisitive nature got the best of him to take a look at the
phone he’d never gone through.

There was a message there and he opened
it without thinking twice, it was a thank you message from someone over a job
well done, while pondering another message came, an online bank transfer of two
hundred thousand naira. He scrolled through old messages to see so many similar
messages, a thank you and a transfer, he wondered if someone was paying his
wife to sabotage him or they were for he business deals at the salon he opened
for her, he couldn’t think well, his brain was certainly clouded