Noreen nced over. Seth and Bianca were rushing toward the exit with their entourage. Bianca was wearing a hat, sunsses, and a mask, her head bowed as if to hide from the world. Seth''s arm was in a sling, the injury looking quite severe, yet he used his good hand to gently guide Bianca through the terminal.


    As if sensing her gaze, Seth looked over. Their eyes met for a fleeting, almost imperceptible moment, yet it was filled with a cold indifference that was almost startling. Noreen''s expression remained unchanged as she looked away, heading toward a different exit with her team.


    The next morning, Noreen was at the port development site, ready to wee the safety inspection team. To her surprise, Padgett Novak was there as well. Before she could greet him, he spoke first, his voiceced with concern.


    "You''re hurt. Is it serious? You look pale." He paused, his eyes scanning her face. "And you''ve lost weight."


    They hadn''t seen each other in only a few weeks, yet he had noticed every subtle change.


    "I had a small ident in Glenhaven City," Noreen exined briefly. Padgett''s concern deepened. "How bad is it? What did the doctor say?"


    "It''s fine now. I''ve had time to recover. Thank you for asking."


    Padgett seemed to rx slightly. "I''m d to hear it."


    They only had a moment to talk before the inspection team arrived. Noreen hurried to greet them, but her smile faltered when she saw the man leading the group: Forrest Lowell. She quicklyposed herself and extended a hand to him and the others.<fnd0b4> The rightful source is FιndNovel</fnd0b4>


    Forrest was polite enough, his gaze lingering on the fading scrapes on Noreen''s face. "Ms. Gilmore, it seems you''ve had an ident."


    "I''m fine now, thank you for your concern, Director Lowell," Noreen replied with professional courtesy. Since it was a work setting, Forrest dropped the subject after his initial question.


    The inspection was both smooth


    and not. They found no major vitions, but the team seemed determined to nitpick every minor detail as if they were deliberately looking for faults. As the day wore on Noreents expression grew increasingly grim. During the lunch break, she instructed her project team to conduct another, even more thorough, self-assessment.


    Sophia brought her a calming herbal soup, but Noreen had no appetite. She spent


    the entire break on the phone, issuing one order after another.


    Padgett found her still on a call.


    Sophia had reced her soup with a


    ve


    fresh, hot bowl, urging her to eat before her stomach started acting up again. Noreen nodded in acknowledgment but continued her caffs, the soup sitting untouched. Sophia could only sigh in frustration.


    In a rare breach of etiquette, Padgett interrupted. "Ms. Gilmore, the work will always be there. You need to eat."


    Only then did Noreen put down her phone and take a few bites of her meal. Padgett waited until she had finished eating before speaking again.


    "Have you offended someone recently?" he asked bluntly. It wasn''t entirely appropriate for someone in his position to ask such a question, but he could see how stressed Noreen was and feltpelled speak up.


    His question made Noreen pause.


    "I''ve overseen many inspections like this," he exined. "I''ve never seen one this meticulous. It made me wonder if someone is intentionally trying to cause trouble for you."


    The business world was ruthless; making enemies was inevitable. Noreen couldn''t make usations without proof, but she had her suspicions. Forrest''s presence was no coincidence.


    ***