Ava sat inside Matthew’s study, as silence bled around her.
She stared at the stack of documents on the top of the table. Then towards the bookshelf. She leaned back and let out a sigh.
No sleep for more than twenty-four hours and here she was, still active.
She couldn’t sleep.
And this wasn’t because she wasn’t tired. It was because of her previous conversation with Baba.
She thought about Sierra Leone and what happened after that.
Her time with Trillium was short but it was when she discovered how unstable she was. And again, she used Trillium to hide her... atrocity.
She wasn’t a fool.
She knew Trillium had used her.
So, she used them back.
Her magick was unstable and she used their orders to hide the fact that she couldn’t control it.
She closed her eyes and wondered if what she did was actually right.
She thought about Matthew and the files. Did this mean Matthew already knew what she did in the past? The fact that he didn’t say anything about it should mean something, right?
A soft knock echoed. Slowly, the door opened revealing the old Shaman.
"I guess you have talked to Babaylan?"
She nodded and faked a smile.
"Ah... don’t mind that old woman. She is too uptight, too law-abiding." He smiled at her. "So... are we going to talk about where you were when you were sleeping?"
...
Matthew Graydon
GD Pharma
"The explosion was caused by magick. There is no other way that an explosion like that could happen without a powerful witch nearby!" Mr. Lin Wang glared at the man opposite him. "I have heard about the Prince’s witch and how she had the tendency to blow something out of proportion. All I wanted was a chance to see her."
"We are not going to give you Miss Woods," Mr. Vitalico Bernardo, the man who sat opposite Mr. Lin said. "Miss Woods is an asset— "
"Please Mr. Bernard. Let’s stop fooling anyone here. We are all aware of how GD Pharma has been creating some medicines for all shifters, for all of us. And we appreciate this. All we want is to know if that weapon— the one that was used on that explosion was something that we could look into. This is for the good of all shifters worldwide."
"Mr. Lin is right, " the man who sat next to Mr. Lin, Mr. Shigero Natsukawa spoke. "The explosion... could be a threat to all of us. We from the East side wanted to see if Miss Woods was the one responsible."
"Miss Woods was not responsible."
"That’s not what the images that we received say. We saw her enter the premises with Mr. Graydon. But we didn’t see them leaving."
"The one who sent the images... how sure are you that you can trust them? For all, we know the images have been edited."
"We had them checked, Mr. Bernardo." Mr. Lin said. "They were real. The explosion happened just minutes after they went inside the building."
"This matter is not international gentlemen. I don’t think Japan and China have the — "
"But the shifters have the right to know about that blue fire!" Mr. Natsukawa said. "Look the building vanished because of the fire. Wait... let me rephrase that. The fire ate the building. If the US shifters are developing weapons that could harm the other shifters in the world then... don’t you think we have the right to know that?"
"GD Pharma is not wasting its money on some weapons against shifters. We are not doing anything like that!" Mr. Bernardo said.
"Then let us talk to that witch. We just want to see if she’s capable of doing that."
"I said that is not possible!"
"Why? Are you hiding something?"
"Does this mean the US shifters are hiding something?"
"Aren’t we supposed to stay united?"
"Are you— "
"Enough!" Matthew’s one word silenced the group of men sitting at the table. "We don’t have any responsibility to answer anyone else."
"Mr. Graydon with all due respect— "
"GD Pharma does not and will not involve themselves in inhumane experiments or anything that could harm the shifter community." Matthew leaned back. He opened two buttons of his suit and gave everyone a smile.
Matthew added, "I don’t know what you heard Mr. Lin, Mr. Natsukawa but I can assure you, we don’t have plans on enslaving the whole world. GD Pharma was created to do experiments that could only benefit the shifter community."
When no one said anything else, Matthew said, "Of course, if you were really convinced that the explosion was caused by my company because of some pictures then file a complaint. We can involve Trillium. I am sure they would love to hear your story and start investigating the source of the pictures and... their connections to you."
The two men glared at him.
"I have nothing to hide gentlemen but I am warning you now..." Matthew said. "Do not... dare to touch what’s mine. And yes, that includes Miss Woods."
"Funny how you are saying that with a smile on your face Mr. Graydon," Mr. Lin snorted. "I am not going to touch your witch but I am also taking this to Trillium. It was agreed that we are not allowed to create something that could harm our already dwindling kind. I would request an investigation about this matter."
With that, the two men left his office along with their secretaries.
"Was it worth it?" Mr. Bernardo, the current CEO of GD Pharma asked him. "Protecting your witch?"
Matthew didn’t answer that. When it comes to his Ava, everything is worth it.
"We are not hiding anything," Matthew said. "You don’t have to worry about anything else. Just do your job and they would clear us out soon."
"I didn’t mean to make you upset. I know we didn’t cause the explosion and I know it wasn’t your witch who did it either. But we could have saved the hassle if we just turned her in and then they could determine if she caused that explosion and then we are off the hook."
"So you want them to blame Miss Woods?" Matthew snorted. "For a crime, she didn’t commit?"
"I— I was just thinking about the company."
Matthew stared at him. "Am I not paying you enough to deal with the hassle Bernardo? Of course, I could hire someone else to do it instead, if you are not up for the job."
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