V
VanillaCola
Guest
Original poster
Isabella Hunter - - - Fox and Hunter Industries HQ
Late nights were nothing new for Isabella Hunter. As CEO of Fox and Hunter Industries, her work would often follow her into the evenings and nights, tailing her like a shadow until she got it finished. Meetings, paperwork, and now...this. It wasn't 'work', per se, but it was just as important as her business. She had been working on 'Project Guardians' for what felt like an eternity, but in reality, the work had spanned over a few months. Collecting names, meeting with people on both the right and wrong sides of the law, and gathering enough data on individual people that it could make the NSA jealous. But now, she was ready to move onto the next stage of the project.
Files were scattered around her desk, each accompanied by at least one photo of the individual the files focussed on. She scanned over the files as she leaned forward in her chair, the anticipation of moving forward almost killing Isabella. Occasionally, she would glance over at the laptop to the left of her, the piece of tech settled in a chair, considering her files had taken up the desk space. The screen was empty, except for a little chat box in the right-hand corner. In a way, this was the final planning meeting before everything was set into motion. Isabella's closest partner in all of this was someone she had never met face-to-face, someone who would only speak through an encrypted message box that must have been all kinds of illegal. But Isabella didn't mind too much – whoever was on the other end had been verified as a trustworthy source. They knew things about the Silvergate Brigade and the behind-the-scenes operations that there was no way they didn't know what they talking about, and they had to be someone who had worked with the Brigade or Dr. Rhodes before. Nothing bad had happened yet, no one had gone missing...so this person had to be good, right?
A little beep signified that a new message had come through. Isabella looked over at her laptop, reading the message that had popped up in the chat box. "Is that all?" It read. Isabella was quick to type a response.
"I believe so. I think we have our team." A couple of seconds passed, then another beep.
"Good. Send the letters, I'll keep in touch." That could have been the end of it, but Isabella needed a question to be answered. She rushed a message, amazed that she hadn't made any typos.
"Am I doing the right thing?" She asked. More than a few seconds passed, and Isabella waited with bated breath. The next beep that followed caused a sigh to escape her.
"Yes."
Isabella closed the message box and gathered up the files, putting them in their correct folders. That single word was all she needed to hear. This is happening, she thought, nodding. It's happening. With the desk cleared, she moved her laptop in front of herself and began to type her recruitment letter.
Natasha Gunn - - - Natasha Gunn and Cara Albright's Apartment > Fox and Hunter Industries HQ
The morning sun was a real pain in the ass. It targeted Natasha like a missile, blasting her with blinding light and heat. With a groan, the young woman rolled over in her bed, getting tangled up in the sheets as she tried to escape the glare of the sun beating through her window. She remained caught up in the sheets for a couple of minutes, before finally deciding that there was no point in lying around when she would never be able to get back to sleep. Besides, she had that commission to work on, and that wasn't going away any time soon. Getting out of bed, Natasha threw on whatever was closest to her and headed out of her small bedroom. Unsurprisingly, Cara was already up, doodling in her sketchpad as she lounged around on the couch.
"No work today?" Natasha asked, heading over to her roommate. Cara looked up from her work, smiling slightly at Natasha.
"Considering it's a Saturday, I'd be a little confused if I had work."
"It's Saturday already? God, I'm losing track of time," Natasha grumbled, taking a seat on the couch.
"Which is not good for that client who wants a commission done by next Wednesday," Cara quipped. Natasha rolled her eyes in response, collapsing on the couch. Her arm swung over the armrest, knocking something over in the process. She cursed under her breath as she looked over, scowling as she saw the dried-up paint palette and collection of letters that had been scattered all over the floor after taking a hit. As she began to gather the letters up, one in particular caught Natasha's eye. The envelope was marked 'important', with the 'Fox and Hunter Industries' logo having been stamped on the corner. It was addressed to her, and according to the stamp, had been sent a week ago. With a furrowed brow, Natasha opened up the envelope and began to read the letter inside.
[bg=#FFFFFF]
As part of your acceptance into the 'Project Guardians' scheme, you have been invited to a formal lunch with Isabella Hunter, CEO of Fox and Hunter Industries. Please meet at the Fox and Hunter Industries HQ and bring this letter (with the envelope) with you. Upon arrival, you should present this letter to the receptionist and then wait for everyone to arrive. Formal dress is not required or desired. Any questions should be kept until you arrive at the HQ, and you should not inform anyone else of this meeting. If you are unable to attend, then please clear your schedule and make room for this very important meeting. Absences will not be appreciated. Compensation for inconveniences and disruptions will be given out in due time if requested.
[/bg]Underneath all of that was Isabella Hunter's signature, as well as the date and time of arrival: 12:00pm...today.
"God damn it!" Natasha exclaimed once the initial confusion had worn away. "Cara, why the hell didn't you tell me about this?" She tossed the empty envelope at her roommate. Once Cara had gotten a good look at the it, she shrugged.
"I put it with your other letters. It's not my fault you put your painting supplies on top of it and didn't check any of your mail." She paused, thinking for a moment. "What does Fox and Hunter want with you anyway? Did they commission you?"
"God knows. And if they did commission me, I didn't hear anything about it," Natasha replied. "It says they want me to come to some lunch thing today."
"Well, lunch rolls around in about three hours, and we both know how the downtown traffic can be on Saturdays. And you never know – this could all be a big opportunity for you. Can you imagine how much they might pay for a commission?" Cara was clearly trying to make Natasha feel a little more enthusiastic about having to brave the weekend traffic and crowds, not that Natasha was ever receptive to that kind of stuff.
With a sigh, Natasha got up from the couch, the letter still in hand. "I guess I better get ready then," she said with as much reluctance as she could fit into one sentence. "I can't wait to have some corporate lunch."
The downtown traffic was worse than what Natasha had expected it to be. She had gotten her usual bus, knowing that it went close enough to the Fox and Hunter Industries HQ. She had gotten stuck in traffic before, but never as bad as it had been that day. Honestly, she was lucky that she left as early as she did, otherwise she would have been so late there would have been no point in going to this 'formal lunch'. At least there's no need to dress up, Natasha thought as she glanced down at her outfit: black jeans tucked into a pair of combat boots, a loose white t-shirt that was surprisingly devoid of any paint stains, and her much-loved leather jacket that was still in pretty good condition. It was as dressed-up as she would get, and it would have to do for the corporate suits that wandered in and out of the Fox and Hunter Industries HQ.
She had been stood outside, watching as groups of suits exited the building and ambled inside. Since it was close to lunch time, they were all heading out for something to eat, no doubt. It was weird to think that they worked on weekends, but considering how big Fox and Hunter was, it wasn't too far of a stretch to believe that Isabella Hunter could drag some sorry people in to work on Saturdays. Some of them gave Natasha a few weird looks, and she glared back in response. This wasn't her territory and it showed. But Natasha wasn't one to be cautious. After all, she had been invited there by none other than the CEO of the company, so there was no way she was going to let a few funny looks rattle her. Strolling into the huge building, Natasha marched right up to the reception desk and almost slammed her letter and envelope down on the marble surface, much to the dismay of the man behind the desk. He stood up from his seat, towering over her. How the hell was this guy just a receptionist? He had the build of a bodyguard for God's sake. Nevertheless, Natasha remained just as fearless as she had been when she walked into this place.
"Natasha Gunn," she said, introducing herself. "I'm here for the lunch, or whatever the hell this is all about."
The man picked up her letter, checking that it was indeed Natasha, and then skimmed through the letter itself. His eyebrows raised slightly as he looked from the letter back to Natasha, and she returned the look with a scowl.
"Ms. Hunter will see you when it is time and once the others have arrived. I'll alert her of your presence. Why don't you take a seat?" The receptionist gestured over to a seating area nearby. "I'll take the invitation, you won't be needing it." He tucked it away somewhere under the desk, offering Natasha a vaguely suspicious smile that was not returned by the young woman. With a quiet huff, Natasha took a seat on one of the modern-style chairs, slumping down in it as she glanced around the spacious area. Checking the time, she noted that there was still a while to wait, though she imagined 'the others' were due to arrive soon. At least, they better be due to arrive soon. The last thing Natasha wanted to do was wait around for people.