Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 88742 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 444(@200wpm)___ 355(@250wpm)___ 296(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88742 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 444(@200wpm)___ 355(@250wpm)___ 296(@300wpm)
I mean, we’re almost a fully digital company. There are still a few files offline, which is probably what Robert was alluding to. But he wasn’t straightforward about what files he meant. I should have known something was up at that point – he likes to be vague if he knows it’ll get under my skin.
I’ve gotten so used to it, I thought he was just being his usual annoying self. His weirdness often goes over my head anyway. We’ve known one another for so long that sometimes it’s easier to just let it go in one ear and out the other.
It may sound stupid that I ignore my friend because he’s weird, but simply calling Robert weird doesn’t fully encapsulate his personality. He’s the type of guy who will hire a clown for a Friday meeting.
Yes, that has happened, and it ended up not being as horrible as it sounds, but that’s Robert. He’ll also say wild statements he calls his little pebbles of wisdom.
But tonight, I arrived home, relaxed, had dinner, and worked out a little – my entire nighttime routine. It’s what I always do before settling in to finish any last-minute work. It was pretty late by the time I realized I’d fucked up.
I’m going through the files, and bam! One of them is missing. A few of our files only exist in hard-copy format to protect against hacking. Yeah, that’s great and all, but now, I’m back at the office, it’s almost midnight, and I’m really fucking annoyed. And the only person I can be annoyed with is myself because this was a totally avoidable problem. All I had to do was double-check my briefcase like Robert recommended. He’s going to have a field day with this tomorrow.
“Goddamn stupid idiot. You should have just listened to Robert. He usually knows what he’s talking about, even if he is a little weird,” I mumble to myself as I get out of my car. I’ve been kicking myself in the butt ever since I realized I forgot the file. It’s definitely a little over the top, all of this self-deprecation, but this is a big waste of my time. And one thing I really hate is wasting time. But kicking myself in the ass won’t solve anything, so I need to calm down.
Thankfully, I don’t live too far away from the office. I should be home no later than 12:30. It’s a quick in and out. Just grab the folder and go back home. If the folder is where I left it, this trip inside shouldn’t take me more than ten minutes, and then I’ll be back at my apartment in another fifteen.
Walking inside, I go straight to my office. The file should be in my desk. I open the drawer and find what I’m looking for easily. It’s sitting right at the front of the files I have in my desk. It would have been so easy to have just grabbed this before I left. It was literally right there.
“You caused me so much grief,” I say to the papers. I sigh and then lock up my desk. I’m sure no one at the company would steal from me, but I like to take extra precautions just in case. Honestly, you never really know what could happen. People are in and out of this building all of the time, and there are so many stories of corporate espionage today, it’s enough to give anyone a scare.
I bend over to lock the drawer, causing my phone and my earbuds to fall to the floor. It’s a small inconvenience to pick them up off the floor, but it feels like a large one because I am so tired.
Mentally shoring myself, I pick my phone and earbuds back up. With my earbuds out, though, I hear some weird noises. It sounds as if someone else is in the building, but it’s much too late for the night staff to still be here. By this time, everyone who works for me has gone home.
“Who the fuck could that be?”
Are we getting robbed? We have a really good security system, but it’s not impossible for someone to break in if they really want to.
Shit! This is the worst possible time for a break-in. Everything’s insured, so we wouldn’t lose money, technically. But the whole process of calling the cops and filing a report would take up so much time. And time is money. Plus, with our big meeting tomorrow, I don’t want this mess to get in the way. The fewer distractions I have the better. Having to deal with the police and the insurance company would be too much of a hassle.
Of course, even if we didn’t have a big meeting tomorrow, I wouldn’t want to deal with the police or the insurance company. Every time I have to talk to an agent, it’s like my soul is being sucked from my body. I usually pass that task off to the accounting department and human resources, but a complaint like this would most definitely have to go through me. Especially if I’m the one who witnessed the robbery.