The Heated Moments..

Mark rushed to his office.. Jane was waiting for him. He was not very fond of this lady. Her father was very rich and has many companies of his own but Jane preferred to stay with Peter. Mark had seen her the first time he came to this office and he knew it from her first few works that she had no talent. She was not at all meant for the profession and he always wondered why his boss would keep her in his office. Afterwards he learnt that she was his boss's friend since he was at school.

Jane was usually very calm and never indulged much into work matters. She just wished a few praises from Peter now and then and she gained it by making her subordinates work for her. But today she looked very alarmed and shouting.. She was everywhere in the office panicking everyone around her. The issue was serious but it could still be handled with his boss's tricks and talent, but Jane was making it worse.. Someone had leaked the latest novels and published it, but the problem was solved now.. Even though his boss had to pay his entire life's salary to the writers, the issue was settled. But strangely, workers started leaving the company and writers were demanding back their novels. Mark was new to this kind of calamities. He strangely felt someone big might be behind it, but he had no idea.. If the situation continues, his boss might go bankrupt anytime just paying salaries to his employees.

But Mark knew his boss too well, it will not take much time for him to rise like a phoenix again.. He was sure his boss already might have caught the culprit.

Mark entered his boss's room. Peter was standing still, facing the huge glass wall..

" I ll make her pay for it.." Mark could clearly make out that his boss was very angry..

Peter turned to face Mark as he was pulled out from his deep thoughts by the sudden knock on his door.

" What Mark, you wish to leave too?" His boss was laughing sarcastically..

"I'll stay at your side boss, always.." It was a decision Mark had made the first day they met, he wished to learn a lot from his boss.. and he was not even halfway..

" This is only a mild issue, we can easily come out of it, but I want to expose this person who cheated me, I want her exposed publicly, infront of the media and want her arrested for doing such a disgusting thing.. We can easily shut this case without any investigation, but since I know exactly who is behind this, I want her to pay for it.." Peter looked dangerously serious.. He looked hungry, for a dreadful revenge…

" Boss, I knew you would have found out the traitor by now,.. Is she one of our staffs, May I know who is it?" Mark asked doubtfully..

" Its someone I believed deeply.. and she betrayed me so easily, just for the sake of money.. god knows how many more of them she had cheated this way, her entire family are cheaters.. Ahh.. You too know her, the one whom I was at the hospital, that deaf and dumb girl, Bella.."

Peter's voice cracked as he said her name..

" She flew from the spot, I couldn't trace even her shadow anywhere after the incident.. a very clever plan.. but I'll find her soon. What's the situation here.. Is everything alright."

Mark was stumbling after he heard whom the culprit was.. but he couldn't believe it.. Only in this girl's case he was sure, his boss was always wrong..

" What is the situation here?.. Mark??" Peter repeated..

" Its bad.. employees are leaving and asking for a payback.. Writers are asking their works back.. We are running short of money.. If we could somehow prove it was not the company's fault.." Mark replied sadly..

" Then I'll make her confess her crimes to the press.. Mark, control the conditions here, I'll be back soon.."

Just as Peter turned to leave, Jane threw open the door and entered.. " Sorry for interrupting.. But Peter, we have been friends for a long time.. I can't see you suffering like this, I have asked my dad to invest some money on your company and he has promised he will restore your fame back.. So don't worry.. we can face it together.." Jane was adding extra sugar in her words with so much emotions that any ordinary guy would have instantly fallen in her trap.. but not Peter.

" Jane, I appreciate your concern for me. But I had build this company on my own and have reached this top without anyone's help so far. So I'll be really grateful if you stepped out of it. I can handle this on my own.. thank you.." Though Peter sounded just fine, Jane turned red like fire…

Peter quickly stepped out of the room.. He has to find her… the traitor..

Bella thanked Mrs Thomson as she stepped out of her house. The lady, though first seemed to hate her, later on fed her lots of food at her home. She even made her try few of her fancy clothes and packed it for her..

" Girls should look more attractive.. you should wear more presentable dresses, .. I cant wear any of these dresses now, so you can have it.. Look at your arm, its so thin, boys usually like chubby girls, you should eat more.. You look so weak.."

Mrs Thompson even packed some snacks for her to carry home.

Bella never got such kind of attention before. There was no one who ever told her to dress up beautifully or eat well and get fat.. She was always asked to stay out of everyone's affairs and lead a quiet life.. And hence she lived her life.. Quieter than anyone else.. shut out from the world.. And she thought that was the most comfortable thing..

But in recent days, she seem to get infected.. by a strange sense, and strange people.. who bestowed on her a beautiful feel that was too tempting.. Love was indeed very tempting…

She looked at the key on her hand.. Mrs Thompson had given it to her so easily, never questioning what it was for.. She saw that it was a unique key.. She wondered what secrets it held that even the gardener couldn't find out through years of efforts. It was not the key of her father's study, or else he would have opened it long back, so what it could be..?.. she wondered.. It was engraved with words she couldn't decipher. But one thing was very clear.. right at the centre of the key in a black and white shade, there was a familiar carved out image… of a... Panda..

She knew it instantaneously.. Her mother had hid the real key and this key was only a clue..

She rushed to her aunt's home... something was becoming very clear to her now..