"What temperature was it when you found it, Fiona?"
I dragged my fingers down the front of my face as the scale of my setback began to register in my mind.
"Almost four hundred degrees," I grumbled.
"Wow, hmm. That is unusual. And you're one hundred percent sure you didn't do it?"
"Yes."
"When is the last time you checked on it?"
"This morning. When I got here."
"Were you in the lab the entire time?"
I barely listened to Andrew any longer as he rattled off his questions. How could I be such an idiot? Suddenly the scope of trying to play catch up started to sink in. I'd never finish in time. Winning the competition was out now. Hell, I'd have to think fast not to get fired at this point, considering how integral my work was to the project. What a nightmare. Moisture dissipated from my mouth as the awareness of my failure hit me with full force.
"Fiona?" Andrew said, as I sat there in my stupor. "I asked you a question."
"What?" I said, as I snapped my head in his direction. Frustration peppered my tone.
He stepped back, lifting his hands in mock surrender. "Hey don't bite my head off. I'm trying to help. I've got plenty of my own work to keep me busy."
I closed my eyes for a moment and exhaled. "I know. I'm sorry Andrew. What was your question again?"
"Were you here? In the lab? The entire time?"
"Um, I think so. I stepped out for a few minutes to use the restroom and for lunch, of course, but otherwise, I've been here."
"Well, okay then. I'll leave you so you can get back to it. There's no time to waste now."
I dropped my head into my hands once more.
"Mmm, hmm." I grumbled, as he began to walk away.
As he did, I retraced my steps in my mind. I would have never been so careless. Glancing up for a moment, I noticed Amanda and Melissa looking at me. However, as soon as I made eye contact with them, they looked away.
What the hell was that?
I looked at them for a few more moments. No, it couldn't be. There's no way they would do something like that.
Right?
Picking up my pen, I squeezed the hard plastic between my fingers until the tips began to whiten. Biting my lip, I glanced back down at my planner as I tried to not jump to conclusions.
Calm down, Fiona.
I took a deep breath and considered all the possible outcomes. If I confronted them, they could simply deny it and blame it on me. After all, there was no proof I hadn't done it. There weren't any surveillance cameras or anything to help me prove my side of the story.
And what if I was just being paranoid and they hadn't done anything?
Was it realistic to suspect that a couple of married women would be so jealous of me and their perception of my relationship with Gabe that they'd go to such lengths? Even though I was the only single girl in the lab, the notion just seemed too outlandish to consider.
But as sure as I was that I knew my own name, I was doubly sure I hadn't fucked up my cultures. Someone or something caused it. Yet, without any proof, it didn't matter. I was behind in the competition, plain and simple.
Worse yet, soon Gabe would get wind of it and want to know it happened.
What the hell was I going to tell him?
GABE
"Thanks Holly. What time did they say they wanted to schedule that call?"
"Three," Holly replied, as she stood near the entrance to my office.
Flicking my arm at the wrist, I glanced down at my watch as it slid out from beneath my sleeve.
"Hmm, that's not gonna work. Tell you what … Call them back and see if you can push it back to four. If they can't do it, let's try for tomorrow."
"All right. I'll take care of it."
I smiled at her. "Thank you my dear."
"My pleasure. Is there anything else?"
"No. Not right now. But Andrew should be here any minute. Send him in when he gets here will you?"
"Speak of the devil," Holly began, as she glanced through the doorway. She gestured with her chin in the direction of the open door. "Andrew's here."
"Terrific." I said with a nod. "Send him in."
Since I'd made the decision to create the competition in the lab, things had been quiet. Fiona had managed to stay upright and out of the infirmary and according to Colin, everyone was on track with their experiments.
Utilizing Andrew in the way I had might have been overkill. But this was his first update since I'd requested he do it, so until he sat across from me and gave me some details, I wouldn't know for sure. Just then, Andrew poked his head through the door and with a snap of his hand at the wrist, he waved in my direction.
"Gabe? You ready?"
I nodded and leaned back in my chair. "Yep. Come talk to me."
He gestured towards the door. "Close it?"
I nodded and within a few seconds Andrew sat across from me.
"Well, what do you have for me? Anything unusual to report?"
Andrew thinned his lips as he began to answer. "Hmm, well, things have been pretty normal. Most everyone is hard at work. You really lit a fire under the team's collective butt with that idea of yours. So, no. Nothing at all. That is, until the last day or so … "
I frowned as he finished his thought. "What's happened?"
Andrew propped his elbows up on the arms of his chair. Bringing his hands together, he tented his fingers in front of his face.
"Well, I happened to be passing by the break room and … " he paused as his voice trailed off and looked at me in silence for a moment.
"What?"
Andrew shook his head and started to speak once more. "Look, not that it's any of my business or anything but … "
As before, he stopped speaking. I was under a bit of a time crunch if I had to get on the call I'd spoken to Holly about a few minutes earlier.
"But what? Just get on with it, Andrew."
"Okay, um … Well, is there something going on between you and Fiona?"
"No," I said, shaking my head. "Why do you ask? Did she lead you to believe there was?"
"She didn't, no."
"I'm not following Andrew. What happened in the break room?"
Andrew spent the next several minutes relaying the details of the conversation he'd overheard between Amanda and Melissa. The gist of it was they suspected I was playing favorites in the competition and that it was a forgone conclusion Fiona would win because of a supposed dalliance with me.
This created an annoying problem for me, to say the least. First of all, the purpose behind the contest was legitimate. I wouldn't, and didn't, need any form of trickery or manipulation to get Fiona in bed. As if all that wasn't bad enough, there was still more …
"Well this has gotten off track hasn't it?" I said with an exhale. "Are they at least on schedule to complete their work?"
"Yes, as far as I know. All them except for Fiona."
I cocked my head in disbelief. Fiona? Behind? It couldn't be. Dumbfounded, I pressed him for more information.
"Why is she behind? What's happened?"
"She had a mishap, lost a large culture sample. By my estimation, it'll put her behind by a week, if not more."
"Hmm, well, that's unfortunate."
"Strange thing though, about that."
"What do you mean?"
"Well I happened to be in the lab when she lost them. I talked to her about it, and I'm positive it wasn't her fault."
As he finished his thought, I leaned forward, interlocking my fingers and resting my joined hands together in the middle of my desk.
"Are you suggesting someone tampered with her work, Andrew?"
He leaned back in his chair and dropped his hands, covering his kneecaps.
"I haven't seen any evidence to suggest Fiona would make a mistake like this. She's exceptional in the lab. Especially when you consider how young she is."
What little I'd seen from her work, I'd have to agree with him. It would be out of character for her to do something like this.
"So if I may … The likely culprits are Amanda or Melissa or both?"
"I'm not going to make any accusations, Gabe. You asked me to report strange goings on in the lab and that's what I'm doing."
"Mmm, hmm. Okay, fair enough."
"I would say this though. Whatever is causing this issue is having the exact opposite effect of what you'd hoped to achieve, I think. If all this jealousy is real, well, Amanda and Melissa are distracted by it. I can't think you're pleased about that."
I scoffed. "Maybe I should dispense the raise and promotions altogether and just offer to sleep with the winner instead."
Andrew chuckled. "Well, there's a few men in the competition don't forget. I'm not so sure they'd be as thrilled."
I laughed at his wisecrack, unusual for him.
"In all seriousness, Gabe. You've got to find a way to deal with this situation before it escalates much further. Work on the Link Protocol is at risk, in my judgment."