Dark Faïz ( Book 1 ) [ COMPLETED]

Chapters 8-2

I opened the office door a little too abruptly, like a hurricane, noticing that the meeting had already started. My colleagues, who stared at me, sat around the large oval glass table while my manager, Mrs. Bonny, editor-in-chief, who was approaching her fifties, stood by the large painting in front of them. She hid behind her little glasses, eyes highlighted with a black pencil line, giving her a most authoritative look that was accented by a plunging blonde square. As soon as I entered the room, she looked daggers at me. I would have liked to disappear at that very moment.

— "Well, Reyes! Are you going to stand there, or distribute the damn copies you're holding in your hands?" she whispered in an unpleasant voice.

I did so promptly, confusing myself with apologies.

— "I'm sorry, the photocopies took me longer than expected—"

She raised a hand in front of me, making me understand that I had to be quiet.

— "God! These interns will drive me crazy," she sighed before continuing where she had stopped.

As I went around the table, my colleagues sympathized and encouraged me with small, benevolent smiles.

— "Agustin?" Bonny called, "is the article on Malcolm MP's embezzlement case almost finished?"

My passive, pale-skinned colleague sitting in front of me was one of the few to adopt a relaxed attitude, and seemed hardly affected by the authority of his superior.

— "It should be completed by the end of next week," he replied serenely.

The young man must have been in his thirties at the very most Agustin was undoubtedly a true passionate workaholic. Indeed, as a journalist in the field, he wrote his own articles himself. Bonny confided to him the most important investigations and could not do without him, hence her blatant favoritism of him. Agustin, like many other journalists in California, had an unlimited admiration for The Black Shadow, and his best articles were about Faïz. I had seen the extent of the phenomenon now that I had a foothold in the press. Everyone was trying to get exclusivity on this modern-day hero, which, of course, made me smile from the inside. I was the youngest in this room, and even in the whole building. Maybe that was why my role was reduced to making photocopies all day, layout, and translating videos or letters for my colleagues. Actually, nothing really exciting.

— "That's perfect, Agustin," she sighed, satisfied.

She then addressed the entire team.

— "I would like you each of you to work on the next article to come."

Bonny turned around, her black and white suit perfectly highlighting the curves of her slim silhouette. Her hand found a red felt pen that she used to write on the board, in large letters, "TRAC-WORLD." My head spun, and all my neurons began to connect at the same time while my concentration was at its peak. My sudden state did not escape Agustin, who gaged me with a curious look.

— "Well," continued Bonny, "everyone knows that this year, this pharmaceutical giant is changing its leadership. The heir..."

She began to consult her notes on the corner of the table in front of her, glasses down on the tip of her nose, and took a few moments to go through them. Then she resumed her speech.

— "The heir is Faïz Mattew. This is an event that must be covered. I will need as much information as possible for the occasion... Oh, yes, the group's head office is in New York. This may be one of the most complicated articles to write, knowing that the family never lets anything escape in the press. There is obviously a whole omertà around that name."

During the interview, I hadn't had to stipulate where I lived. I'd vaguely stated Elora's name. No address had been requested directly from me by my supervisor. Only my university was important to her, given my status as an intern.

Bonny concluded the meeting by asking her team to do everything possible to obtain an appointment within Trac-Word for the next issue. Anyone who succeeded in doing so would get the exclusivity of the article.