Kaden was in a foul mood.

He sat in a quiet corner on the third floor, sipping his second latte. He frowned. It just didn’t taste as good as it usually did. He pushed it away, leaning back in his chair.

Julia had ordered him to go home and rest, but in a moment of pique he had decided he would do anything but that.

He needed time and space to think. There were a lot of emotions boiling inside him, and he wasn’t sure what he should do. He was furious at Julia, Wolfe, and all the other managers in the Company for how this internship was structured and how he was being treated. He was frustrated with Julia’s refusal to share more of what she knew about Tetrionics, his father’s former firm. He was disappointed with himself for his current situation, and admittedly jealous of the other interns who had already secured full-time offers.

He had messaged a handful of the other interns to see if what Julia said was true. Jill had replied in the affirmative, as had Han and Patty. Bill and Mariko had not replied yet. He just did not understand why the Company was doing things this way.

On top of it all, he was still feeling sick and out of sorts. The medicine and painkillers had helped, but his head was still pounding and the nausea was starting to return. Maybe it was time to head home and try to sleep this off.

A message popped up. It was from Sandy.

Earth to Kaden. You there, kid? You look like someone killed your cat. Or knocked up your girl. Or maybe both.

He looked down. The corgi was right there, sitting next to his table and staring up at him.

“Not in the mood, Sandy.”

That’s what she said.

Kaden just stared at the dog, who nonchalantly used a paw to scratch under its shoulder.

No, seriously. That’s what my first ex-wife used to say all the time. And what do I say? Good riddance. Take a page out of my book, kid. Time to move on. Forget that girl, you’re better than that.

He sighed. “It’s not a girl.”

A boy? Hey, no judgment here. Just didn’t expect it. You don’t seem the type. Normally gay men dress a lot better, you know?

He just shook his head. “What do you want, Sandy?”

You and me, we got business. Remember? That little tip you got on Saturday? You owe me. Time to pay up!

He remembered now. In the heat of the moment, he had agreed to share with Sandy the reason he was so interested in David Olson. Now, he regretted it. He felt uneasy sharing this with Sandy; he knew it might come back to haunt him later. But he was also tired of being pushed around and just wanted to get him off his back.

“Fine. If you really want to know. David Olson was a partner at my father’s firm Tetrionics, about a decade ago. The Company acquired Tetrionics a little over two years ago. My father died in an accident not far from here, after a visit to the Tower about the acquisition. I wanted to learn from David more about what happened during the acquisition.”

Interesting. OK, I can see how you’d want to know more. It’s not like the Company keeps any secrets or anything. Did you learn what you wanted?

Kaden sighed. He had not. He continued to explain what David had told him. And then it was like a tap opened up, and he kept talking, explaining what had happened this morning and then a summary of his conversation with Julia. It felt good to vent and get it off his chest. Even if venting to Sandy was like telling the town gossip your secrets.

Wow. What a disappointment you are. To be honest, I’m kinda surprised. I mean, until I heard this sob story just now, I would have hired you myself. If I had the budget, of course. Sadly, I do not.

“Huh. Thanks, I guess.”

No problem. I’m always here when you need me. And now that therapy is done, we’ve got work to do.

“I’m not really feeling it, Sandy. I might just go home and go to sleep.”

What, now you're a quitter? Because you had a bad morning? C'mon.

Sandy accompanied this line with muffled bark and whine.

Another sigh. “Alright. Tell me what you want to do. Maybe I'll help.”

That’s better. I have something you can help me with. And it might actually help you get what you want as well.

“Really.” Kaden raised an eyebrow.

Sandy raised a paw, as if to accentuate his next statement.

Yes. No guarantees, of course, but what we’re going to do could put you in the good graces of a very large number of middle managers in the company.

He sat up. “OK, I’m listening.”

That’s the spirit. All you have to do is take some photos for me.

“Photos?”

Yes.

“Of what?”

Your fellow interns.

He frowned. This seemed too easy.

“What for?”

Let’s just say I’m working on a slide deck of all the interns, to circulate with a group of managers who have expressed interest in getting to know the current intern cohort a little better.

“So why don’t you use the official headshots they took of everyone on the first day?”

Oh I have those already. Let’s just say what we’re pulling together is supplemental research. You know, some live action shots.

Kaden’s eyes narrowed. “And all I have to do is take photos.”

You got it. Just take some photos. But the other interns don’t need to know about it.

“They don’t need to know about it?”

That’s right. Just take a few photos on the sly, you know? And, for extra credit, if you wanted to give notes on the relative attractiveness of your fellow interns, I’d appreciate the favor. Men or women. Or both. Our conversation today has left me confused about your preferences.

It all clicked in Kaden’s mind. Now it made sense.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

“Ahhh. I think I got it. So you’re helping put together some sort of ‘hot-or-not’ presentation for a bunch of predatory mid-managers.”

Your words not mine.

“I think I’ll pass.”

You’re missing out. I’m telling ya, it’s easy work. And it’ll boost your cred with a bunch of powerful people. If you don’t feel comfortable taking full body shots, I can still give you partial credit for some foot pics –

Kaden stood up. “You know, I think I need a little fresh air.”

Ok ok fine. Let’s take a walk first. Think about it, alright? You don’t have to give me an answer right now.

Kaden was walking away, trying to leave Sandy behind, but the dog trotted along to catch up.

Exasperated, he looked down at the dog. “You don’t have to come with me.”

No no, of course not, but I need you to come with me. You still owe me a visit to my lady friend. It’s late in the morning, but who knows? Maybe I’ll get lucky today.

Kaden stopped. “Dude. I already told you. I’m not feeling well and I don’t want anything to do with your shenanigans right now.”

A couple of women walking by paused their conversation, looking at him quizzically, as if to say, “Who are you talking to?” He just sighed and looked down at the dog, who had his tongue lolling out in a big dog grin.

Look, kid. I know you’ve had a rough day. But just because you haven’t been laid in forever doesn’t mean you need to go around cock-blocking everyone else. Trust me. I’ll help you get your mojo back. The best way to get back on your feet is to take a little trip outside. Didn’t you say you wanted some fresh air?

“Fine. Fine! Let’s go,” he said, walking off toward the elevator.

That’s the spirit.

Kaden didn’t reply. He was starting to feel more than a little bullied.

Monday’s truly are the worst, he thought.

They stopped at the front desk to get a leash from Cliff. Kaden attached it to his collar and stood up, ready to go. But Cliff had a package in his hand, held out for Kaden to take.

He looked down at the dog. “Seriously?”

“Bagel cart on Water Street. Yankees hat,” Cliff said.

Kaden took the padded brown envelope. “Anything else? And we’re doing this out in the open now?”

Cliff shrugged and smiled. “You work in the Mailroom, don’t you? Thanks for helping me make a delivery.”

Before he could respond, Sandy pulled him along, heading for the door.

Let’s get going.

Sandy pulled him along, walking quickly outside and around the Tower complex to Water Street. They hurried along, walking north. It was a pretty pleasant morning, a little overcast and not too humid. There were a relatively large number of people out and about for his hour, a few people likely stepping out for an early lunch or mid-morning coffee break. It was a nice morning for the summer.

The dog led Kaden right to the street vendor with the bagel stand. The proprietor was an older man with gray hair and a deep tan. He wore a faded Yankees cap.

He had to wait in line for a couple minutes for his turn. Meanwhile, Sandy sat watching the sidewalk northward, never taking his eyes off the flow of pedestrians moving up and down the street.

When it was his turn, Kaden stepped forward to hand over the package.

And then multiple things happened at once.

He raised the paper envelope in his hand toward the counter, but before he could set it down, Sandy pulled hard on the leash and let out a sharp bark. Pulled off balance, Kaden stumbled to his left. The envelope in his right hand caught on the edge of the sill, ripping it completely open.

Reflexively, Kaden dropped the leash and tried to catch the envelope’s contents before it spilled all over the ground. Small blue and white containers bounced on the ground, rolling everywhere. He scrambled to pick them up and put them back in the torn envelope. Meanwhile he could hear Sandy continuing to bark, the noise growing further away each second.

He stood and started to hand over the ripped envelope full of pill bottles, but then he froze, because he recognized the bottles. They were exactly the same as the prescription he had received this morning. He read the label. It was the same drug.

What the hell, he thought. Why are they smuggling the mana poisoning antidote?

“Sir, your dog,” a voice said, breaking his concentration.

“What?”

The man with the Yankees cap pointed up the street. “Your dog is getting away.”

Quickly, Kaden shoved the torn package and its contents onto the counter and then ran off up the street. He could no longer see Sandy, but he thought he heard a bark followed by someone yelling.

Arriving at the next intersection, panting and squinting from the pounding in his head, he looked left and right, trying to find where Sandy had gone. On the left, he saw a man he recognized, sitting on the ground holding a torn pink scarf.

He hurried over, kneeling down beside the sobbing man.

“Have you seen a –” Kaden started.

“That bitch!” the man shrieked. “That dog attacked me and my poor princess!”

“Which way – “

“I don’t know! Wait. Are you that dog’s owner? If you are – wait! I’m going to –”

He didn’t listen to the rest of the threat. He was already running again, past the man and up the cross street. He came to an alley and shot a glance inside. He thought he saw movement.

Skidding to a halt, he circled back and peered down the alley. At the far end, he recognized a familiar outline. The silhouette of a corgi’s head.

Jogging down the street, he called out. “Sandy! What are you doing?”

As he spoke, another dog, a very petite white toy poodle with a pink collar, jumped up and scampered around the corner. Sandy just sat there, tongue lolling out in a big dog grin.

Kaden slowed as he came up to the corgi. He had a stitch in his side, and his stomach was rumbling uncomfortably. With a whiff of the garbage piled around the corner, he lost it.

He bent over his knees, vomiting what little he had in his stomach out on the ground. Leaning against the wall, he heaved a few more times before standing up and casting a baleful eye at the canine.

You know, up until this moment, you were a pretty good wingman.

“Let’s just go,” he said, snatching up the leash. “Let’s hurry before Princess’ owner finds us.”

That’s the spirit. We’ve got photos to take.

“Nope, not happening.”

They hurried down the street, walking briskly toward the looming Tower in the distance.

I think you need my help, kid. I mean, you got any other plays left?

He didn’t answer right away. He did have one – the request from Mark Hernandez. He could potentially give Kaden some leverage, or a lead, or even an outright job offer. The task from Mark, however, was absolutely shady – possibly even worse than Sandy’s hot-or-not slidedeck. But he definitely wasn’t going to tell Sandy about it.

Even so, he didn’t have everything he needed yet in place to pull it off. Basically steal two laptops without getting caught? This was not going to be easy.

As they walked back to the office, a thought occurred to Kaden, and a plan clicked together in his head. It was devious, and it would definitely get him kicked out if he was ever discovered. But hey, what good had the Tower done for him? A very large part of him felt no small amount of anticipatory schadenfreude at his potential plan.

“Alright, Sandy. I’ll help you with your slidedeck.”

I knew you’d come around.

“But I’ll need something in return.”

Of course, of course. If it’s within my power, it’s yours.

“But no foot pics.”

Fine. Whatever.

The two walked along in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, just enjoying the morning.

“By the way. I’m curious. What are you going to get out of this slidedeck?”

Do you even need to ask?

The dog stopped and looked over his shoulder, giving him his best one-eyed dog grin.

My first and final love, kid. It’s all about the money!

He rolled his eyes. Yeah, he should’ve known.