Claire strode into Cryptonic's sleek, glass-lined halls, her heels clicking sharply against the polished floors. She was expecting to see Matthew-or at least hear his familiar voice grumbling about work deadlines-but his office was eerily empty. The blinds were drawn, and

his usually cluttered desk sat untouched, with a thin layer of dust betraying his absence.

"Where is he?" she muttered under her breath, frowning.

Deciding not to jump to conclusions, Claire turned on her heel and headed to her own office. Once inside, she plopped into her chair and immediately dialed Sandra. The phone barely rang twice before Sandra's chipper voice answered. "Good afternoon, Ms. Peterson! How can I help you?"

"Sandra, is Matthew at Metacortex? I haven't seen him here," Claire asked, leaning back and fiddling with the pen on her desk.

Sandra paused, sounding slightly hesitant. "Matthew? Oh, no, he hasn't been at the office for a few days now."

Claire's brow furrowed deeper. "He hasn't? Why not?"

"He mentioned he wasn't feeling well and said he'd be working from home." Sandra's voice dropped, as if she wasn't entirely convinced herself.

"Sick?" Claire echoed, leaning forward. The idea sounded absurd. Matthew was the kind of person who'd jog five miles in the pouring rain and then show up to work like it was nothing. "Are you sure about that?"

"That's what he said," Sandra confirmed. "But honestly, I thought it was strange too. He has such a good record of showing up-this is the first time I've heard him say he's sick."

Claire drummed her fingers on the desk, her mind racing. "When was the last time he was at the office?"

Sandra took a moment to think. "Hmm... I believe it was after you went to Las Vegas. He came in once, but that was it. Afterward, he even canceled that meeting with the potential client."

Claire sighed heavily, raking her hand through her hair. "Got it. Thanks, Sandra. Let me know if you hear anything else."

"Will do," Sandra replied, her tone tinged with concern.

Claire ended the call, staring at her phone for a moment. Matthew sick? That didn't sit right with her. The guy was practically invincible, and the fact that he hadn't even told her about it gnawed at her. Was he hiding something? It certainly seemed out of character. As she absentmindedly scrolled through her messages, her eyes landed on a text from Winnie, sent nine hours ago: Are you available? Found new information about Lisa Thompson.

Claire immediately replied: Come by tomorrow at noon.

With that handled, she hesitated for only a second before dialing Matthew's number. It rang once before his familiar, cheerful voice picked up.

"Claire! What's up?"

Her annoyance flared. "What's up? Really, Matthew?" she snapped, trying to keep her irritation in check. "Where are you?"

Matthew sounded confused. "At home? Why?"

Claire pressed her lips into a thin line, her annoyance bubbling just beneath the surface. "Okay," she said curtly before abruptly ending the call.

Matthew blinked at his phone, baffled. "What the...?" he muttered to himself. Shaking his head, he set his phone down and returned to studying the guest list from Adrian's banquet, muttering about Claire's unpredictable moods.

Meanwhile, Claire grabbed her bag and stormed out of her office. "Driver!" she called as she descended the lobby stairs. Her driver, already anticipating her urgency, opened the car door. "Where to, Ms. Peterson?"

"Matthew's apartment," she ordered, sliding into the back seat.

The driver nodded and merged into traffic. Claire sat back, her thoughts swirling. Something was definitely up with Matthew, and she wasn't about to sit around waiting for an explanation.

The car pulled up to Matthew's

building, a modern complex with

shiny glass windows and a

meticulously maintained front garden. Claire stepped out, her heels clicking sharply against the

ve

pavement. Her face was a mask of determination, and the poor

doorman barely got a nod as she

breezed past him and into the lobby.

By the time she reached Matthew's door, she was practically fuming. Raising her fist, she knocked firmly-three loud thuds that echoed in the hallway.

It took a few moments before the door creaked open. Matthew stood there, barefoot, wearing a rumpled t-shirt and sweatpants. But it wasn't his outfit that stopped Claire in her tracks-it was his face.

Her eyes widened as she took in the fading bruise around his left eye, the faint cuts on his cheek and jaw. "What the hell happened to you?" she demanded, her tone sharp with concern. Matthew froze, clearly not expecting her. He hesitated, his hand gripping the edge of the door as if debating whether to close it. "Uh... nothing?" he tried, offering her an unconvincing smile. Claire's eyes narrowed. "Matthew. Don't you dare try to feed me that 'nothing' nonsense. Look at your face! Did you walk into a wall repeatedly, or are you hiding something from me?" Matthew sighed, running a hand through his hair. "It's really not that—"

"Cut the crap, Matthew," Claire interrupted, crossing her arms and stepping into the apartment without waiting for an invitation. "Tell me what happened. Start from the beginning. Now." Knowing there was no way to wiggle out of this, Matthew shut the door and gestured toward the couch. "Fine. You might want to sit down for this."

Claire stayed standing, glaring at him expectantly. "I'll sit when I think you're done being dramatic. Talk."

Matthew sighed again, rubbing the back of his neck. "Alright, alright. So, a couple of days ago, I got grabbed."

"Grabbed?" Claire repeated, her voice rising. "By whom? Where? And why am I just hearing about this now?!"

"By Eligos's men," Matthew said, his tone almost casual, as if he were discussing the weather.

"Eligos?" Claire frowned as she heard the familiar name'

"Well, not precisely grab but...we kinda communicate and I wanted to meet him to settle all that nonsense of him hacking Metacortex and Cryptonic but turns out it was a bad idea." Claire leaned forward curious to hear the complete story. "What did you do?"

"Eligos and I made a deal to meet up and we did at the abandoned warehouse, and I thought he came alone so was confronting him turns out he had it all under his fingers. He has his men hiding in the shadows waiting for his cue. And when he did signal them, one of them hit me in the head and I... lost consciousness." Matthew looked down, feeling slightly embarrassed telling Claire the story. noveldrama

"I know you mean well but... what is wrong with you? A guy like Eligos will not keep his promise. Why did you go alone?"

Matthew paced back and forth in front of Claire. "Because I want him to stop. He kept playing these games and I know that I am not the one who get sick of his games. You are too."

Claire sighed. "Yeah, I am. But I don't want to see you hurt, Matthew. You mean a lot to me and even if we have to take the long route to figure this whole thing out then I'm fine with it." "I'm really sorry, Claire I wasn't thinking."

"Please next time, do not lie to me and do not do stupid shit. This is my last warning, Matthew."