Drifting Deception

Chapter Twelve

SYDNEY

"Tell me what happened?" I said as I stormed through the doors of my studio and found Lucie standing there with two medics and a lawyer. I received a phone call at twelve a.m. on Wednesday, telling me there had been an accident at the studio and I needed to return to sort out an injury claim.

It was now Saturday, and my immediate exit from my so-called 'tour' with the Santoro team hadn't gone unnoticed. Both Henry and Theo seemed concerned when I told them I'd be leaving so abruptly. I didn't want to worry either of them—well mainly Theo—with the news that my studio was potentially facing some legal issues, so I told them I'd debrief both of them when I returned. Said return date was unconfirmed, as I had no idea how long this mess would take to sort.

I placed myself next to Lucie. "Sydney Larsson, owner of MoveFit Studios," I said as I held out my hand. The lawyer and two medics shook it firmly. "I understand there's been an incident at the studio involving a member and one of my teachers?"

The lawyer nodded. "Yes, Ms. Larsson, medics were called to the scene on Wednesday around noon. It appears one of the members has injured their back due to the routine they were told to perform in the uh," he read the first page in his binder, "yogi-dance class?"

"Ah, yes it's a mix between yoga and danc—never mind. Um, are they okay and how did this happen?"

The medic next to the lawyer sighed. "Unfortunately we don't know the outcome yet. It appears the member was told to perform a dangerous manoeuvre using a barre and Pilates ring. The other members in the class were concerned about the technique too."

I closed my eyes in defeat. I couldn't even picture what my instructor was trying to achieve. "Okay. What do I need to do?"

The lawyer explained there would be a few forms for me to fill out before the injury claim could be processed. I was just grateful we wouldn't have to dig up into our savings or pay for our insurance excess fees.

I followed the lawyer into my office where I completed the admin and signed everything with dark ink. "I'll need to call the member to apologise too," I said nervously. "Is it bad if I throw in a free year's membership? I'm not sure they'll want to return."

"Maybe just start with the apology," the lawyer said.

I nodded. "Cool. Um, is that everything?"

The lawyer's smile faded before his worry lines increased and his frown deepened. "Unfortunately, there is something else I'd like to discuss."

Shit. What else had happened while I'd left the city? I'd known it wasn't a good idea to leave the studio alone when I'd spent so long trying to get it all started. I mentally kicked myself for always making the wrong decision.

"While we do have a system that provides injury cover for accidents, there is the possibility of the member applying for damages in court."

Huh? Damages. How could I be done for damages?

"Negligence," the lawyer repeated after I misheard him the first time. "Now, I understand you have a mix of contractors and employees at this studio?"

I nodded. "Yes. However, I only have five employees. My two receptionists, Lucie, and two fitness instructors. Everyone else is contracted."

The lawyer nodded. "Unfortunately, the person teaching the class at the time was one of your employees. Now, if they were contracted, the liability would fall onto them, and you'd hope they had some public liability claim taken out. In the case of employees, the—"

"The company is liable, yes I understand. Vicarious liability and all."

The lawyer flashed me a sympathetic look. "We haven't heard anything from the member as of yet. But I wanted to keep you warned in case this does come to light."