“Lunch in this place never seems to get any better. I don’t know why we come to the staff cafeteria instead of going out.” Abby grumbles constantly about the food, and she’s right, but it’s easy and convenient, and eating out five days a week is cutting into all of our budgets. She picks listlessly at her salad. Next to her, Errol picks up a paper-wrapped bag and stares into it.

“Errol, what the hell is that?” He turns to me with a look of confusion.

“The cafeteria staff seem to have the idea that if you combine two good things, the result is automatically good.”

“Right.”

“Clearly, uh, beef curry is good.”

“Uh-huh.”

“As is a donut.”

“Yep.”

“But,” He holds up the paper bag for my inspection. “This is a beef curry donut.”

“Riiiight. Are you sure this wasn’t designed by some kind of artificial intelligence through reading recipe books, or something?”

His eyes widen. “Do you think that could be it? I mean, you could definitely use the corpus of recipe books to…”

I put a hand on his arm. “Errol, that’s an interesting idea, but in truth I think that isn’t what’s happened here.” His face falls. “It’s completely doable, though, I agree with that. I’m just not sure we should be the test subjects, though.”

Abby looks up from her salad. “Ron, it’s not like you’re going to have to worry about eating in this dump much longer. I can’t believe you got an offer—I’m so proud of you, honey!”

I blush. “Thanks, Abby. I’m sure you guys will get something soon as well.”

“Speaking of getting something,” Abby smirks, “what about your date with Dr. Sexypants, huh? Come on, you’ve got to tell us what’s going on there.”

I throw my straw at her, and she dodges while still in her seat. “Come on, spill.”

“Okay, okay.” I hold up my hands. “Maybe, hypothetically, something has been going on, but you can’t tell anyone, right? Dating your boss is a big no-no.”

At the word dating, Abby almost snorts, but I glare at her, and she does an admirable job of suppressing it.

“Wow.” Adam is goggle-eyed. “You mean, you, and uh, Dr. Macaulay, were, uh…” I nod, feeling awkward all of a sudden.

“Yes, although everyone needs to be clear that it didn’t affect my offer. Offers are made by Human Resources, and they aren’t under the control of any individual department.”

Abby nearly snorts again. “Are you sure? Couldn’t he have leaned on them a little to offer you a job?”

I shake my head. “He wouldn’t. In fact he’d die if anyone even suggested it, which is why I’ve been I haven’t said anything. I’m sorry, guys, I wouldn’t have wanted to keep anything from you.”

“I know, Ron,” Abby voice is gentle. “I don’t mean that you wouldn’t have gotten the job without him. You’re brilliant, and everyone knows it.”

There is a series of nods around the table, and Adam speaks up again. “For sure. I mean, it was you who had all the ideas to restructure the…”

The television screens above us light up, and his words are lost in a wave of sound.

“BREAKING NEWS ON FINANCE TV: SECRET PLANS FOR MACAULAY BOND LEAKED”

The effect on the cafeteria is immediate; everything stops, like an old Western when a stranger walks into a bar. Everyone stops, glued to the screen. It’s Dana Garvey again.

“Today, we’ve learned that the hidden details of the upcoming Walters Capital bond issue are now in the public domain. This reporter recently received a tipoff from an anonymous source which detailed specifics about the complex transactions involved in the hotly-anticipated deal. Later in this report, we make them public knowledge.”

My coffee cup is halfway to my mouth.

“Even now, financial experts are analyzing those details. It’s too early to predict the full consequences of this leak, but those same experts are calling this a ‘catastrophic blow’ for Walters Capital.”

I look around me, and all I can see are wide eyes, and white knuckles holding the edge of tables.

“The firm, previously a darling of investors across the country, is now committed to the bond issue going ahead in two days’ time, having warranted to investors and the SEC that it will enter into a huge set of contracts. Failure to go ahead with the deal will render the firm liable to prosecution for sums likely to run into the billions of dollars.”

The whole room looks frozen in time, like the moment before a car accident.

“It’s been claimed that the leak came from a low-level source at Walters Capital. Industry insiders say that the culprit is likely to have been one of the trainees recently brought on board. If that claim turns out to be verified, it raises significant questions about Walters’ vetting process, further damaging the firm’s reputation with investors.”

Adam mutters quietly under his breath. “Oh, wow. Oh, boy.” Abby looks at me desperately, and back to the screen.

Oh shit. This wasn’t what was supposed to happen. Dana said those details would be off the record. They broke their word.

Everything goes slightly white around me. I hear a rattling noise, and after a few minutes I realize it’s the sound of my hands on the table. I’m lucky that the others are glued to the screens and they don’t see me.

It was me. I wanted to stop the deal, but instead I’ve doomed it. I’m responsible for this.

“We’ll have more developments as they come to hand, but for now, a cloud hangs over the future of Walters Capital; could this fast-rising star of the finance industry have flown too close to the sun?”

There’s a moment’s silence, like the eerie quiet of low pressure before a thunderstorm hits, then a crackle of static. It’s not coming from the television screens, it’s coming from a PA speaker right above us. I’ve never heard the PA system before.

“Trainees to report to conference room 4A immediately. Trainees to report to conference room 4A immediately.”

Abby is hyperventilating. White-faced, Adam and Errol look at me. Finally, Errol speaks.

“I think we are in really big trouble.”

* * *

The conference room is very different to the last time we were here. The lectern is gone, and instead there is a long table on a raised platform.

The lights are very bright; I don’t remember them being this bright.

Behind the table sits the Board of Directors of Walters Capital; I recognize them as the faces on Tom’s screen. Most of the other trainees have never seen them before, but I don’t think anyone will mistake who they are. Barbara stands off to one side. She’s clutching a clipboard, and her knuckles are white around the edge. There’s an expression on her face I don’t recognize.

There are no other chairs in the room.

We shuffle in and stand in a loose group in front of the table, about fifteen of us. No-one speaks. Abby is at the back; we got her to breathe into a bag on the way here, and she’s stopped hyperventilating, but she’s still panting and breathing deeply.

The door is pulled shut on us from the outside. It slams, and some of us jump.

There’s a moment’s silence. The only sound in the room is the heaving of Abby’s breath from behind me. Finally, one of the Board speaks. It’s the bearded one; I don’t remember his name.

“Today, a very serious incident has taken place. This incident has put the future of this firm in jeopardy, and threatened the livelihoods of everyone who work here. It has furthermore blackened the reputation of the firm’s partners, and risked the capital of the many high net-worth individuals who have entrusted us with their assets.”

No one says anything.

“This incident has been identified as the responsibility of one of the trainees in the group here in this room. Someone in this room has deliberately and willfully committed a serious misconduct offense, whose consequences will be catastrophic for everyone employed by Walters Capital.”

I’m overcome by a desperate need to say something, but my mouth won’t open. What could I say?

“Accordingly, the Board has ruled that the trainee program is canceled, effective immediately. Those of you who have received offers of employment should report to your departments. Those of you who have not—” here there is a significant pause, “will be escorted from the building following the conclusion of this meeting. Security has a list of your names, and will check you off as you leave this room.“

* * *

Filing out, we all look at each other, but no-one speaks. I try to avoid meeting anyone’s eyes for too long.

I should have said something. I should have spoken out in the meeting, and taken responsibility.

Outside the room, there are four security guards waiting. Names are read off one by one, and people shuffle to stand in a group.

“Abby Bairstow.”

“Adam Simons.”

“Errol Rasic.”

At the end of it, my name is the only not called, and I’m standing on my own. I realize with a shock that I’m the only person in the trainee group to have received a job offer. The rest of the group look at me.

I feel like I ought to say something, but Abby speaks up.

“Good luck, Ronnie. Take care.”

Adam and Errol nod. “Yeah.” One of the security guards coughs.

“Come this way, please.” The group of trainees is led off across the hallway to the door to the street. I look around, and see Barbara next to me. We watch as they remove their security passes one by one, and hand them back at the reception desk. I look again at the expression on her face, and see a glint at the corner of her eyes. She’s actually upset.

She looks back at me. “This was undeserved. Punishing all of them. They were all good young men and women.”

“I—” I have no idea what to say to her.

Chest heaving, she makes a few marks on her clipboard, and walks off. I stand outside the conference room and look across the foyer at the last of my friends leaving the building.