Carla arrived at the company headquarters just before 8 a.m., hoping to beat the buzz of early gossip. But the moment she stepped into the lobby, she knew something was off.
Too many eyes lingered.
Too many smiles seemed tight, fake, like they were hiding something sharp behind them.
She walked faster, her heels clicking against the tiled floor. Dami waved awkwardly from across the hallway but didn't come over. Carla raised a brow in curiosity, he always had something cheeky to say but not today.
Upstairs, the HR office door was closed. Lights on, shadows moving, but no one answered her knock. She stood for a second, ear tilted slightly. Voices, low, rushed.
One voice she recognized.
Mr. Deremi, Head of Legal.
Her heart began to race.
By the time she got to her desk, she was sweating slightly. Her inbox had fifteen new emails. Three were marked URGENT but she ignored them.
Instead, she opened a drawer in her desk and pulled out a thin folder she had kept hidden since returning from the retreat. Inside was a printed screenshot, one Karen had sent her weeks ago.
The message Karen had received before she disappeared.
"Welcome to your escape, enjoy it while it lasts"
Carla stared at the words again. She had assumed it was some prank. A hoax, but after that call last night, after everything Karen said… it felt like a warning.
Suddenly, her computer screen went black.
Then flickered.
Then came back on with all her files closed.
"What the hell…" she muttered, reaching for her mouse.
Her keyboard lights blinked erratically, then returned to normal.
A cough from behind startled her.
She turned sharply.
Mr. Deremi stood there, his smile was too polite.
"Morning, Carla. Everything alright?"
She forced a nod. "Yes, sir just a little system hiccup."
He nodded slowly. "Strange things happen around here lately. Wouldn't you agree?"
She blinked. "I...I guess."
"Anyway," he said, placing a sealed brown envelope on her desk, "this came for you. No return name, just said to deliver it directly."
Carla stared at the envelope, heart thudding.
"Thank you," she murmured.
He left without another word.
The office suddenly felt too quiet.
Hands trembling slightly, Carla opened the envelope.
Inside was a single slip of paper. No letterhead no signature.
Just one sentence typed neatly in the center:
"Stop digging before Avalon takes you too".