It was a typical Wednesday morning when I found myself in Mr. Larkin’s office, the city skyline sprawling beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows. His office was a testament to success—expensively framed accolades and photographs lined the walls, a testament to his decades-long career. The desk between us was large and imposing, polished to a shine, with only one item out of place: a manila folder. “Thank you for coming in on short notice,” he began, his voice smooth and practiced. I nodded, trying to mask my unease with a practiced smile. “Of course, Mr. Larkin. You mentioned something about discrepancies?”
“Yes,” he said, gesturing to the folder. “I think you should take a look.” I opened it carefully, my heart pounding as if it anticipated bad news. Inside were pages of invoices, each neatly itemized, each stamped with approval from projects I hadn’t been aware of. I scanned the dates: March 3rd, May 15th, August 24th—each one a reminder of meetings I thought I’d attended, decisions I thought had been made.
“I assume this is about the quarterly reports,” I said, attempting to sound composed. “Partly,” he replied, leaning back in his chair. His demeanor was calm, unnervingly so. “But there’s more. These invoices suggest a pattern, and we need to understand it before the auditors arrive next week.”
The word ‘auditors’ sent a chill down my spine. In the corporate world, auditors were both a necessity and a threat. Their findings could unravel years of effort with a single signature. I swallowed hard, feeling the weight of the folder in my hands. “This isn’t a mistake,” he continued, his eyes fixed on me. “We need to talk about your department’s expenditures.”
I looked at the invoices again, trying to find something—anything—that would explain this. But the numbers were clear, and so was the implication. “I assure you, Mr. Larkin, I’ll get to the bottom of this,” I said, my voice firmer than I felt. His gaze didn’t waver. “We’ll need a meeting with the auditors,” he said, making a note in his planner. “Let’s arrange it for Friday.”
I nodded, knowing this was just the beginning of a much larger unraveling. As I left his office, the gravity of the situation began to settle in. This was more than a simple oversight; this was a storm, and I was at its center.
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