Is this destiny?

Sunday, June 7

Sarah and Aiden joined Lucija, Petar, Marija, Emir, Tereza and Mishi in the conference room in the basement of the Chateau, to discuss the current status and future plans.

Based on the schedule, they will spend most of the today and tomorrow morning in meetings. And on Monday afternoon (June 8), Aiden will take Sarah on a road trip. At that time, members of the Sigma army are welcome to stay at the Chateau or go to Paris. Sarah and Aiden will return to the Chateau on the evening of June 11 and three days later, the two of them will say their goodbyes with the Sigma army and head to their island on The Adriatic Sea. This is how much Sarah knows. Everything else is a secret perfectly concealed in Aiden's mind.

"Nick is expanding his influence under alias Nu.", Mishi summarized while sharing details he collected on the large screen. "So far he is not attacking any of us directly, but he collaborated with these four companies which are known to usually use Petar and Lucija. I don't think it's a coincidence."

"What do you think he is up to?", Emir asked while fidgeting nervously.

Mishi shrugged indicating that he is not sure, but he shared his opinion: "I believe that he is hurt. He left and none of us went after him. He wants us to know that he is close and can expose us at any time."

"I spoke with him…", Tereza said and everyone turned to her. "I met him four months ago at the conference for laser technology in Italy. It looked random, like he attended the conference for some other reason. He asked how everyone is doing, but nothing significant. We spoke maybe half an hour and parted ways."

"What do you think?", Petar asked Sarah.

Sarah thought for some time before responding. "So far there is no bad blood between us. But let's keep an eye on him. Mishi, can you continue watching him?"

Mishi nodded in agreement.

"I can help also!", Marija volunteered.

"As you wish.", Sarah responded and moved on to next topic.

No matter how much Sarah told herself not to be bothered with what happened last night, she is unable to ignore resentment toward Marija which is bubbling inside her.

Sarah never liked Marija's behavior when it relates to throwing herself at men, and she was irritated when Marija shamelessly made passes at Aiden. But Aiden never responded favorably so it was bearable.

Sarah wondered: why can't Marija have more self-esteem? She is a beautiful young lady with a brilliant mind. Sarah was unable to understand: how can Marija be satisfied with one steamy night? Doesn't she want to have a man who will cherish her?

At that time, Sarah felt sorry for Marija, but mostly she thought of her as a joke.

However, in this situation with Jesse, Sarah can't feel sorry for Marija and she definitely does not think it's a joke because Oni is hurt.

Sarah knows Oni as a bright girl with pure intentions and Marija's behavior threw at Oni a harsh slap of adulthood which can be compared with dumping a bucket of dirty water on Oni's head.

Also, what happened with Jesse and Oni made Sarah think what would be the outcome if Aiden didn't reject Marija. That was a thought which created a painful knot in Sarah's chest.

After few more topics, Sarah brought up one which Aiden and she planned for…

Sarah gestured toward Aiden and started her introduction: "The two of us are starting a project, and we hope that you will help us out. We are opening a company with headquarters in Romania…" Sarah saw that Emir raised his hand and she told him: "Please, keep your questions for later. Let me finish what I have to say…"

Sarah told them that the company will be focused on marketing and cover areas such as: brand design and management, advertising, public relations, marketing strategies, digital marketing services, etc. "If you have any other areas that you wish to add, that is open for discussion…"

When Sarah finished her talk about her vision for the company, Petar asked: "How do we fit in that story?"

"We hope that you will consider accepting management roles in the company. Aiden and I will provide initial financing and when the company picks up, we will communicate with you on a high level, but other than that you will have mostly free hands. Our plan is that Mishi will act as the CEO, and the rest of you will lead a department each. In the files we shared you can see the company structure, and you are free to express your interest in certain positions. Once we finalize your roles, we will provide you with training which will enable you to be successful."

Mishi's eyebrows shoot up in surprise. A CEO? All this sounds too good to be true. He voiced his suspicion: "I assume there is a different agenda under the guise of this company?"

Sarah glanced at Aiden and he understood that this is his part to talk about: "The company will be real, and you will need to work hard in order to make it profitable. However, there are organizations in Eastern Europe which we want to keep an eye on. This company will serve as our base. As of now, we have no plans to involve you in that area. For the execution from our side, we will have a number of people in the company as employees. Also, occasionally we will provide you with clients. But even with that, you will be running a legit marketing company."

"Did you say… Romania?", Tereza asked.

Sarah confirmed. "For who wants in, relocation expenses will be covered."

Aiden showed on the screen a slideshow of a castle on a massive property and explained: "We purchased a castle about 30 kilometers East of Bucharest. As you can see, it includes a lake, it's surrounded with a forest, and it has a great road access. It has eight two-bedroom one-bathroom apartments and each of you will get one. In addition to that, there are ten bedrooms and twelve bathrooms. We will hire staff for maintaining the grounds and structures." Aiden switched to different set of photos and continued when a large three-story brick building was shown: "This is a separate structure on the same property. It will be used as an office space which can accommodate more than one hundred employees in cubicles and has one large conference room and five smaller ones as well as fifteen offices. There is also more than one flex space for which we still didn't decide its use. The lower level will have a full kitchen and a cafeteria which will provide breakfast and lunch for all employees. We don't expect that anyone stays after 6 PM." Aiden turned off the slideshow and looked at six people in the room with a conclusion: "Remodel will be done in about two weeks and after that you can move in. At that time, we will start with trainings and a week later you can start hiring process for the employees. If all goes according to plan, by end of July we are in business..."

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