Chapter 6- The test
729 Words
Abbey stepped out of the elevator with purpose.
Lunch was over.
The light ease she had felt downstairs was gone the moment the executive floor came back into view. Everything here moved differently, faster, quieter, sharper.
She walked straight to Daniel’s office, pushing the door open just as he was on a call.
“…no, move it to four. If he insists on three, then reschedule Zurich. Yes. I said reschedule it...”
He paused when he saw her, lifting a finger briefly to signal her to wait.
Abbey stepped in, closing the door behind her, and stood near the desk without interrupting.
Daniel turned slightly away, lowering his voice. “I don’t care how it looks. Fix it.”
He ended the call and exhaled.
“Good,” he said, glancing at her. “You’re back on time.”
Abbey nodded. “Yes.”
“Then let’s not waste it.”
He moved quickly, pulling out a file and placing it on the desk in front of her.
“I need you to prepare this for Mr. Lawson’s 2:30 meeting.”
Abbey stepped closer, opening it immediately.
The file was thick..documents, projections, legal notes, schedules.
Daniel continued, “The previous version was updated this morning, but the formatting is inconsistent, and there are gaps in the financial summary.”
Abbey flipped a few pages, scanning.
“How long do I have?”
“An hour.”
She looked up.
“An hour?” she repeated.
“Yes.”
“That’s tight.”
Daniel gave a small shrug. “So is everything here.”
Abbey nodded once. “Understood.”
He stepped back, watching her. “You’ll need to cross-check the numbers with the system. Don’t assume anything in that file is correct.”
Abbey closed the folder. “I won’t.”
“And Abbey....”
She paused.
“If you’re unsure about something, ask.”
“I will.”
Daniel didn’t say anything else.
Abbey sat down immediately, pulling the file closer and opening her system.
Her fingers moved quickly across the keyboard, pulling up internal data, aligning documents side by side.
She started with the summary.
It didn’t take long to see the problem.
The numbers didn’t match.
Not completely.
Some figures aligned.
Others didn’t.
Abbey leaned closer, narrowing her eyes slightly as she compared the projections with the system data.
She flipped a page.
Then another.
The formatting was inconsistent, just like Daniel had said.
But it wasn’t just formatting.
There were missing updates.
Easy to overlook.
But they mattered.
She picked up her pen and began marking corrections.
Page by page.
Line by line.
The clock ticked quietly on the wall.
1:32 p.m.
Time moved.
Fast.
Across the room, Daniel watched her work.
She didn’t hesitate.
Didn’t second-guess every move.
She checked, corrected, moved on.
That was good.
That was necessary.
Abbey reached the financial breakdown again.
Something still wasn’t right.
She went back to the system, pulling up the latest figures.
Compared.
Paused.
Then checked again.
There.
A discrepancy.
Small.
But real.
She leaned back slightly, thinking for a moment, then leaned forward again and recalculated the numbers herself.
The correct figure came out different.
Enough to matter in a meeting like this.
Abbey picked up the phone.
“Daniel?”
He stepped over immediately.
“Yes?”
She pointed to the screen. “This doesn’t match the system.”
Daniel leaned in, scanning the numbers.
His expression tightened slightly.
“You’re right.”
“It’s off,” she said.
“By how much?”
Abbey tapped the calculator lightly. “Enough to raise questions.”
Daniel straightened.
“Fix it,” he said.
“I already started.”
She adjusted the figures, updating the summary and aligning it with the correct data.
Then she went back through the document again.
Carefully.
No mistakes.
Not now.
1:58 p.m.
Abbey printed the updated file.
Stacked the pages neatly.
Reviewed them one last time.
Everything aligned.
She stood, holding the file securely.
“I’m done,” she said.
Daniel looked at her, then at the file.
“Already?”
“Yes.”
He took it, flipping through quickly.
His eyes moved across the pages, checking.
Pausing.
Continuing.
Then he closed it.
“Good,” he said simply.
There was no smile, Just acknowledgment.
That was enough.
Daniel checked his watch.
“Come with me.”
.
- Writer
