Vivienne arrived back at the estate after the meeting had finished. The car pulled up and Oliver appeared at the door, ready to greet her. She was tired. Exhausted both mentally and physically. Oliver nodded and said nothing. "You were right, Oliver. As expected." She walked in and proceeded to head upstairs to her bedroom.
When morning came, Vivienne awoke early. It had been a full two weeks since she had set foot in the corporate office. There was work to be done and she needed to be strong and show that she could do it. Her uncle had left ownership to her and it was up to her to prove that she was worthy of the job. Especially after what she saw last night.
As she got dressed she couldn't help but remember Lionel's words before he killed the creature in the woods. It was a threat, a warning to her not to get involved in trying to derail the research that was already going on. A warning that she needed to put her feelings aside when it came to this. She had always prided herself on doing what was best for people and human kind. Vivienne had often opposed certain studies and research that weren't heavily studied before going to trials. She never wanted anyone to be harmed by what they were trying to do and never wanted anyone to suffer because of their research. She had advocated time and time again for the people that were supposed to benefit from the research itself. Was this why her uncle had chosen to keep her in the dark? Did he think she would struggle internally about right and wrong? There had to be more, and she wanted to know more.
Vivienne chose to be driven to the office in the city. She told Oliver she would be staying in her condo in downtown as she expected to be working late. As much as that was true, she also felt she needed familiarity. She wanted to be back in her own space surrounded by her own things. Being in her uncle's estate had been foreign and though it belonged to her now, it wasn't home. Not yet.
The car pulled up to the lobby of the corporate offices and Vivienne stepped out of the car and looked up to the sky high, glass tower. It was going to be a long day. She just hoped she was ready for it. She had chosen to wear a wine red dress, her hair down but pinned back on one side with just a simple pair of pearl earrings. Her high heels clicked on the marble lobby floors as she headed to the elevators. She smiled at people she passed by, putting on her best face. She had to be a pillar of strength now and she knew that.
The day went on as normal, phone calls and emails galore. Two weeks away had sent her email inbox into email hell. A hole full of messages she was sure she'd never get through. After a few hours she stood from her desk and walked to the windows of her office. Her office, on the top floor, looked over the glittering city. The sky was overcast and dark gray clouds had passed through the sky scrapers. She sighed as she ran a hand through her long, brown curls.
"Long day?" Vivienne jumped as she heard the voice. She quickly turned around, heart racing, to find none other than the man from the forest sitting on the couch against the wall, nearest to the window. He was leaned back against the back of the couch, arm draped over the back, one leg crossed over the other. He had that mischievous smile on his face again. He was wearing a dark gray suit with a crisp white collared shirt.
"I... H... How did you get in here?" Vivienne asked as she looked towards the door. It was still closed and she hadn't heard it open, not even once. The man grinned. "Vampire, remember?" The admission sent chills down her spine. When she had woke up in the morning she had hoped this was all a dream. She had hoped that when she had come back to work and gotten back into a routine that all of this would prove to be just some weird hallucination she had from her grief. There was no way this was real, right?
"Miss Westing, I needed your approval for tomorrow for- Oh! I.... I'm sorry I didn't know you... had.. company.." Vivienne's assistant had walked in and was startled by the appearance of the man on the couch. No one could even get into Vivienne's office without going through her first. The fact that even her assistant didn't know this man had entered had her worried even more. "Neither did I." Mumbled Vivienne. "I'll just... I'll connect with you later, after." Her assistant stumbled over her words as she turned and exited the office, clearly perplexed as to how this man got past her and on Vivienne's couch.
Vivienne turned to the man, still confused and now scared as to how he just seemed to appear in her office.