Chapter 16

CHAD MALCOLM

Chad leaned back in his chair and stared at his computer. Numbers and graphs flickered across the screen, rotating in a cycle, and Chad couldn't help but chuckle. He plucked the polished piece of Arkreon from beside a handmade mug of lukewarm coffee with a handle that resembled Leviathan Inc.'s serpent logo and twirled it between his fingers. He huffed another laugh.

"We did it, Darcy," he said, lifting his head to stare across the room toward his wife, who sat behind a desk of her own. A bouquet of flowers he had bought obscured a portion of her face. "We did it."

Leviathan Inc. ran entirely on Arkreon, and every aspect of the company —from the mines to the factories to the power lines— worked flawlessly. Just as he and Darcy had dreamed of. Just as they had spent years planning after discovering the rock and its capabilities.

"We did." Darcy smiled, a soft laugh falling from her lips. Her hair fell in loose curls that framed her face, and makeup accentuated the gleam of her eyes, giving her the appearance of a goddess.

"Our dream is coming true."

Chad stood up from his desk and crossed the room to rest his hands on the couch dividing the joint office space. Darcy followed suit and moved to stand beside him, placing a palm on his back. Chad looked down as she spoke. "We should do something to celebrate. Perhaps it's time to open that bottle of wine we've been saving? A romantic dinner on the bluffs on the outskirts of Cat's Cradle? Or on a boat on Wishing River?"

"I like the sound of that," Chad murmured, leaning down to steal a kiss. "I think either sounds lovely, because I'll be there with you." He traced a knuckle down Darcy's cheek, and she wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Now you're getting all sappy."

"But you love me."

"And you love me," Darcy said, leaning up on her tiptoes to press a kiss to Chad's lips.

xxxx

They pulled apart when Malibu knocked on the door. "Come in." Chad sat down on the couch, and Darcy followed suit, smoothing her dress down her legs to flatten out invisible wrinkles.

"Hello," Malibu said. "How are you doing?"

"Very well, thank you. What do you have for us?" Chad and Darcy's office had a strict Do-Not-Disturb policy; no one was to come to them, unless it was an emergency, vital to Leviathan Inc.'s wellbeing that they be aware of it, or Malibu had an update on something for them.

"May I sit?"

"Please." Chad gestured to the couch across from him and Darcy. Malibu offered a quick thank you before she sat and pulled out a stack of papers from her briefcase and spread them across the glass coffee table between the couches. They were stapled together in groups of a few pages each.

Headlines glared up from the papers. Big, bold letters forming screaming headlines in all-caps. Each one revolved around one thing: a new disease spreading in Corville and Dal that a whistleblower said was the fault of Leviathan Inc.

"Well, that's just not true now, is it?" Darcy pursed her lips, leaning forward to peer down at the headlines.

Chad hummed in reply.

He wondered who the whistleblower was. If they had ever worked at Leviathan Inc. during the time they were using Arkreon —either in the past when they were testing it, or during the present when they were using it to create energy— they would've signed a non-disclosure agreement. Saying anything, especially to a news station, would've been a breach of that.

Chad would press charges against them.

"Do you know who the whistleblower is?" Darcy set down one of the articles published on Did You Hear?!

"No, not yet. I have people looking into it as we speak. The second we find something, I will let you know."

"Work faster," Chad said. "I don't like how this makes Leviathan Inc. look. Bad about the disease, obviously, but we have homes and businesses to power."

"We're going to be getting questions," Darcy said. "We'll have to make sure we answer them right. This isn't the fault of Leviathan Inc. or Arkreon, but we still need to word things carefully."

"And get ahead of the press," Malibu added. "Rumors are going to be spreading, and we will have to get ahead of what people will be saying so only the right information gets out. People will talk regardless of what we say, but if we can keep the information the right information as much as we can, hopefully rumors will shift to other topics and people will forget." Malibu took a sip from her Leviathan Inc. water bottle and then set it back down on the edge of the coffee table, away from the papers.

"Indeed," Chad murmured, nodding his head. "We could do some sort of press conference-style meeting and invite reporters to ask questions. It would be a good opportunity to dispel as many rumors as we can."

Malibu chewed on her lip. "Yes, we could do that. We'd need to be careful what we said. Everyone, reporter or not, will eat up every word we say and look at every syllable under a magnifying glass. We'd need to ensure every letter is exactly what we want them to hear."

"You're right."

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"People are going to be expecting some sort of response from us. I feel like us not saying anything might almost say more. I'd be willing to bet a lot of money that many would take us staying silent as us admitting that Arkreon caused the disease," Darcy said.

"No, no, you're right, Darcy. I do agree that we will need to make some sort of statement, either through Muse, a live interview, or some other avenue." Malibu leaned back in her seat, suit jacket bunching as she shifted.

"We..." Chad trailed off and didn't continue, scratching his chin.

"Whatever we do, there are going to be people who agree with what we say and those that don't, regardless of the actual words we say. It could be the most factual, true statement ever to exist, and there would be people that didn't like it, or it could be the most made-up, false statement ever to exist, and there would be people that did like it. We just need to ensure that what we say comes across the right way," Darcy said.

"Agreed. Whatever we say, it's going to get people talking. We're already under the spotlight, simply because someone called us out with the new disease in Corville and Dal, and we're not going to be able to fully control the situation. That being said, I think with a press conference we would be able to better control how things come across. With a written statement, it's just words and you have nothing else to go off of. No body language, no tone, nothing like that."

"That's true, Chad," Malibu started slowly, before adding on, pace of speaking picking up again. "There are pros and cons to any manner of communicating with the public. It is true that a press conference or otherwise in-person method of addressing the public gives you body language and tone of voice that a written statement lacks. But you also cannot fully prepare for every detail. You cannot control what is said or asked, and you cannot take back what you say; if you make a mistake, people have already heard it, even if the cameras are not recording live."

Chad nodded, humming in reply. "What would you recommend?"

"No matter what we say or do, people will be upset, and we will be painted in a negative light for a period of time, simply because someone decided to say that Leviathan Inc. is at fault for the disease. That being said, I think, as of right now, a statement will suffice. The disease has just been discovered and, currently, very little is known about it. Depending on how things unfold, we may need to do a press conference and answer questions, but I believe a statement will work."

"A statement it is, then."

xxxx

The Leviathan Inc. Muse account contained countless posts, every one of which focused on increasing the buzz and popularity surrounding the company. Clips from videos taken during interviews, photos from meetings, and announcements of we're hiring; come join us! or we're having a party to celebrate the opening of our newest building; tickets are on sale now! posted regularly had increased their following.

The statement Chad was about to add was sure to cause a dip in followers, although he knew they had already lost many because of the article floating around. Not saying anything would cause a bigger loss than saying something.

The comment sections on Leviathan Inc.'s latest posts crawled with demands of answers and accountability.

Darcy ran a thumb across his forehead, and Chad snapped up his head to meet her eyes. "Stop frowning. It's not a good look on you. Now, did you read over the statement again? Malibu and I think it's ready, but we'd like your opinion, too."

"I did give it another look-over. I think it's ready as well. Would you like to do the honors, my love?"

"Very well." She leaned across to reach the mouse of Chad's computer and clicked the post button.

"I will have a few people keep an eye on Muse," Malibu said. "And we will continue to dig into the story of the whistleblower more. Hopefully they've given clues as to their identity."

A few seconds later, the statement was available for all to read. Half of Chad felt tense, wary of how people would react and if it was the right thing to do, and the other half felt relieved, glad he could move on. Besides, he was the co-founder of Leviathan Inc. so why should he be second-guessing himself? He had built one of the most successful companies in Waverwell.

We at Leviathan Inc. are saddened by the news that a new disease is spreading in Corville and Dal, and we send our thoughts and prayers to those affected. A donation to the Corville Medical Center will be made under Leviathan Inc.'s name to support the work that the amazing doctors there are doing. We have added a link in the comments section of this post that will bring you to the donate page of the Corville Medical Center. If you have the ability to give, anything will help, and 100% of donations go to funding research done by doctors at the Corville Medical Center.

We would also like to address the claims made by a whistleblower, who stated that Leviathan Inc. and Arkreon are the cause of this terrible disease. What the whistleblower has said is false. The disease was not our doing.

Safety is our number one priority, and it is something we take very seriously. We have many safety procedures in place at every step in the energy-creating process, and we look over each procedure frequently to ensure the safety of everyone, customers, employees, and anyone involved in any part of our business. For an in-depth look at the safety procedures we have in place, please visit the safety page on our website at LeviathanInc.com/safety.

Arkreon is a new energy source, but it was examined closely to ensure it was safe to use and was tested extensively before even being considered as an alternative to coal, solar, hydroelectric, or any other current source of power. We only began to plan Arkreon's implementation after it passed every test and proved its safety.

The whistleblower who made the claims that Leviathan Inc. and Arkreon are responsible for the horrible disease is not speaking the truth.

Chad read over the statement again. It was too late to take it down; people had already begun to comment on it and share it.

He closed Muse before reading anything anyone had said. Darcy gave him a quizzical look.

"I need a break from this," was all he said.

"Do you need to take a walk? I can finish up in here with Malibu."

"That would be great, thank you. I'll be back in fifteen or twenty minutes."

The hallways were empty, and the afternoon was beginning to give way to evening. Cars honked in the streets, the precursor to the evening traffic jams and bustling sidewalks.

But, instead of heading for the streets, Chad stepped into the elevator and went up, making his way out onto the rooftop balcony of Leviathan Inc.'s Corville headquarters. Several couches and chairs formed a semicircle around a low coffee table. A sprawling series of succulents spilled across a wide bowl in the middle of the coffee table. Neatly trimmed plants dotted the railings and sat in elegant pots. Strings of light overhead gave the space a magical air that felt worlds away from the professional environment within the building. Apart from Chad and Darcy, few had been up to the rooftop balcony. It required a key card, and most didn't know it existed, making it the perfect place to step away for a quick moment to take a breath.

Chad leaned his forearms on the railing and looked out over Corville. Lights flickered on as the sun inched toward the horizon.

He frowned, watching a car drive by on the street below until it turned out of sight. Was the whistleblower someone he knew? Were they someone who had worked at Leviathan Inc.?

Questions raced through his head, swirling around into a mess he couldn't straighten out, though he knew he would. He had to so he could clear Leviathan Inc.'s name and prove it wasn't them.

It might take a bit of time, but he would make sure everyone knew Leviathan Inc. wasn't at fault.

Starting with the whistleblower.