Second chance

The Story Part 5

I spent the whole next morning daydreaming about the previous night and hoping to hear from Mark. Around noon I sent him a message simply saying "I miss you..." Although I ached to talk to him, I restrained myself knowing that he was at work. When he did not reply by late afternoon, I assumed he was just too busy and called Anna to meet for a drink. I was eager to tell someone about what happened between me and Mark.

"Hey, Claire, can I call you back? It's crazy here" Anna sounded busy and, quickly apologizing for calling, I hung up the phone and went back to my research. I could not spend the whole days waiting to hear from Mark, and, besides, I needed to concentrate on what I was doing.

Soon, evening was here and no news from Mark. When my cell phone finally rang, I was disappointed to see Anna's name on the screen. "Hey" I tried to sound cheerful. I could hear commotion on the other side. It sounded like she was still in the office. "Hey, sorry I could not talk earlier. We had an emergency here and had to deal with it."

"What happened?" I asked, thinking that maybe something happened to Mark. Suddenly, I wished I called him instead of texting. What if he is hurt?

"Our story leaked and Post published it. Mark is furious. We are still trying to figure out what happened"

"How?" I asked. It was not unusual that journalists ran after similar stories, but rarely did they publish the same story. "Are you sure they did not investigate the same topic?"

"No, it was definitely taken from us" Anna was adamant. "Hey, got to go. Talk later!"

I said goodbye and Anna hung up the phone. I was finished with the research for the day and it was already ten PM. I wasn't tired, but had nothing to do, so I decided to go to bed. All I could think of was Mark.

"Hope all is OK. Anna mentioned the problems you had. Just wanted to send you a kiss. Dont forget to rest" I texted him, not really knowing what else to say. I just wished he would reply to me.

My wish came true early next morning. I was awoken by loud and long door bell. Still half asleep I jumped out of the bed and ran to the door. Mark was standing in front and I quickly brushed my hair, trying not to look too messy.

I opened the door and expanded my lips into big smile: "Morning!"

I immediately noticed that his face did not respond to my happiness. "Let's skip the politeness and go straight to the point" he said as I stood in my pajamas.

Confusion overwhelmed me. "What's happening?" I asked.

"Don't act like you don't know. I spent whole day and night trying to figure it out, but I got the answers."

"I dont understand" I said. "You mean the Post story? Anna told me about it. Did you catch the person who leaked it?" I was still in a haze, not sure what he was talking about.

"Did I catch the person who leaked it??? Are you playing me for a fool Claire?" he came closer, his anger clearly visible on his face although he tried to control it. His forehead was completely frowned. I stepped back into the corridor, unsure what was happening.

"Mark, I don't understand..." I raised my arms to calm him down, but he interrupted me.

"Claire, did you really think it was possible to hide digital footprint? You used your username and password to access the files. Did you really think we would not find it?"

My mind instantly cleared. Was he accusing me of being behind the leak? Was he crazy?

"What are you talking about? I haven't used my credentials since I left Globe!" I raised my voice, although I tried to remain calm. "How can you even think that I leaked? I haven't even been in the office!"

"Yes you have!" Mark snapped back and I realized he already went through the whole imaginary scenario. I was already guilty. "You were in the office two times in the past weeks. You could have easily accessed the network! Not to mention that you had access to my private laptop at home."

"The whole story is crazy. It makes no sense. How can my account be active if I left the company? And how could have I leaked the story when I had no idea you were working on it?" I defended myself the best I could. He was talking complete nonsense.

"And, doesn't the IT turn off accounts as soon as staff leaves?" I reminded him.

Mark shook his head. "I don't know how your mind works Claire, but the evidence is clear. No one else knew your password. You are not allowed in the office anymore and all our work with you is suspended" his voice was like a knife cutting through me. "You will be paid for what you have done so far".

"I really can't believe you are saying this..." I stuttered as I watched him turn around and leave.

"The story is completely crazy" I yelled as the last attempt to get him to change his mind.