Dawn's eyes were wide with surprise. It was an email addressed to her blog email ID. She tapped to open it. All the sappiness that had drained her energy from her body was washed over by a feeling of ecstasy. Hopelessness was so tangible after her horrid encounter at the office but after reading the email she felt at ease. There was lightness in her chest and she held her arms to hug herself. Removing the cover from herself, she squealed with joy. She sprang out of the bed, wore a light t-shirt and went to her computer with a wide grin. She couldn't believe how a little message had made her day. How soon all the negativity that was bringing her down purged, and positivity flowed in.

Cole, who was studying in the adjacent room, came to her and watched his sister with interest. She was singing loudly. He clasped his hands to his chest and raised his eyebrows. "Dawn, is everything okay?" he asked, leaning on the door.

​​

Dawn jumped out of her chair, swayed her arms and waked to him tapping her foot on her song. "Guess what?"

"What?"

"Your strategy worked!" She squealed again.

"What strategy? Can you elaborate? Or would you keep speaking in code words?" Cole asked with a frown.

She ignored his statement and tapped her phone to show him the message. "I have been contacted by a journalist in the Evening Business Newspaper to write a column for them. He thinks that my blog is very informational and that my writing shows that I have an in-depth knowledge about the market."

Cole watched her as if she had grown two horns. "That's awesome sis," he said. "You should totally do it." He offered his encouragement and support to her.

Dawn's face glowed. "I know, right?" she bounced on her toes back to the chair. "This is such a wonderful opportunity."

"Of course!" Cole said. "It is going to make you very popular."

She cringed at the word 'popular'. "But there's one thing."

Cole rolled his eyes. "Now what?"

"People on my blog think that I am a man," she said with puffy cheeks.

Cole stared at her for a moment and then laughed hard holding his stomach. Once he stopped laughing and perched on her bed, he said, "Just continue like that. Reveal yourself when the time is ripe."

"Hmm," she gave a flat response.

"Have you replied to him?" Cole asked hoping that she had taken a quick action.

"No! I am about to." Dawn cursed herself for not seeing the message earlier.

"Give him a solid reply and then please make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for me. I am hungry. Don't forget to add some salad dressing. And if you are up to that, you can also give me some fresh lemon juice." Cole smiled as Dawn gave him a hard stare. He walked out of the room.

Cole had become extremely busy with school these days. And also with his fetish with the Hispanics and boys in general. It was becoming a confusing year for him.

She read the email again:

Dear DW,

I have been a regular reader of your blog. You offer some fantastic advice on it and I can see how knowledgeable you are. Your idea on investing in dividend-oriented stocks is pretty interesting and I think it should be given more exposure. I would like to take this opportunity to invite you to write for our evening newspaper's business column twice a week. The column is not more than three hundred words.

I look forward to a positive reply.

Sincerely,

Daniel Hugh

(Editor in Chief)

Dawn wrote the reply enthusiastically:

Dear Sir,

Thank you for offering me this opportunity. I would be more than glad to write for your column. Kindly let me know the details to get started.

Regards,

DW

She hit 'send' and then suddenly realized whether her email was too short. She regretted not reading it again and sending it in excitement. At first she thought she would frame a better reply and send but then on a second thought, she didn't. What if showing her eagerness would rather make her look as if she was soliciting charity? She pulled her hair at her impulsive behavior. "Ugh!" She got up from her chair and went to the kitchen with her phone. She had to call Azura.

While applying peanut butter, she dialed his number and put it on loudspeaker.

His excited voice came, "Dawn! How have you been? I was trying to call you, but I had so many meetings." He was almost breathless. "How was your first day? Was there any breakthrough?"

Dawn pursed her lips. This was not what she hoped for. She wanted to quit. "Azura, I had a horrible time there." She remembered Maya's mouth over Daryn. It was gross. She shuddered. "Daryn Silver knows about my presence and I want to leave. I think you should get someone else other than me." She went on to narrate that Daryn had recruited her as the Head of a project.

Azura listened to her patiently. This was not what he had expected from Daryn. That man was never interested in such petty jobs or new recruits. And the fact that Dawn came in his eyes, it could be dangerous. At the same time, he also thought this was a fantastic chance. "Dawn if you quit now, Daryn would become suspicious. He will trace you back to me and we will get exposed. You need to stay there and utilize these favorable circumstances to keep an eye on him. You can gather more information."

She laughed with an edge at his blasé. "Azura, I will not do anything of that sort! I am already in deep shit and you want me to keep an eye on him? With him keenly observing me, do you think I will even be able to get the information about the gaming company? You must be daydreaming!"

Azura retorted. "Don't be ridiculous. He wouldn't have time to interact with you all. He is notorious for ignoring his employees and only caring for his customers. Why do you think he has made billions? So don't worry. Take this chance to dig whatever information you can. Just keep low, do your job and get out of there."

Why wasn't he understanding that she felt miserable with Daryn around her? Daryn affected her. She stopped doing her work and stared blankly in space.

"Go there tomorrow, baby. Think of what I told you earlier. We really need that blueprint. Once you have it, I will take you out and erase all your data from the company. Trust me," he said earnestly.

Dawn took a deep breath and looked at the ceiling. Every cell in her body revolted at the thought of going back to Daryn.

"You there?" Azura's voice came.

"Yes," she said irritatingly. "Okay. I will go."

"That's like my girl!" Azura said excitedly. "Okay babes, I have reached the venue for my next meeting. I will call you again as soon as I can." The phone went dead.

Dawn pursed her lips. She made the sandwich for Cole and went to his room with a droopy look. At least the highlight of the day was her stint with the newspaper. In the night, she got a detailed email about what to write for the news column, which would be published two evenings later.

Next day, she found herself cursing the guy who had parked his bicycle in her spot in the car parking area of The Silver House. She removed the bicycle, stashed it behind, and parked her car there with a "Humph! Let's see how you get out now." She walked in the building brushing her jacket.