Chapter Three

I wake up Monday morning with my alarm spitting at me.

I'd gone to bed around one in the morning last night and now I have to suffer the consequences of that.

Groggily, I rise out of bed then leave for my jog, eat, shower and head for work.

It's comforting to see everyone else is crawling around like Zombies too. I pick up a coffee for Ms. Bailey and I, knowing we'll need it, and trudge to the elevator.

Ms. Bailey sits at her desk looking as fresh as a daisy, though staying as late as I did last night. I offer her the coffee which she politely refuses.

I don't complain, I'm already halfway through mine. Another won't hurt.

I'm fumbly all day, making little mistakes constantly. Ms. Bailey doesn't confront me about it, but I can tell she's caught on and it stresses me.

"Aurora.", she calls from her office.

I'm glad for the distraction, I've been fighting to keep my eyes open for an hour and a half.

"Yes Ms. Bailey?", I respond, stepping into her office.

"There is a major shipment coming in on Thursday, Dock E013,", She takes her glasses off and folds them in her hands. She sighs, "Problem is that Dock E013's storage renovation is running three days overtime, and containers seem to go... missing during events as such,". She holds her hands on her desk, "I need you to supervise the shipment. Report to me if any issues arise."

Dock E013 is on the Eastern shores, on the other side of the country.

I nod to her, "Of course."

She eyes me for a moment longer, before picking her glasses back up and dismissing me to leave with her hand.

As I'm leaving, she speaks again.

"Sleep before you leave."

Wednesday morning, I arrive at the Eastern Shores airport.

I pull my suitcase behind me as I walk to the cab designated for me.

The driver waits outside the car, "Miss Flores?", he asks, holding his gloved hands together.

"That's me.", I smile as he opens the door for me, "Thank you."

My stay is above the dock, the upper section being a hotel that looks out to the ocean. A man takes my bags as I check in and carries them to my quarters. I walk in soon after him, thanking him on the way out. The place is beautiful. Smooth oak furniture with blue accents.

[] [] []

"No way!", Daisy huffs as she stares at my room.

I'm video calling her to show her my stay.

"I know, it's great here.", I brag, taking her to my bedroom.

"Wow,", She breathes, "Oh- Do I see Mr. Scott- "

"Oh, shut up."

Daisy laughs at herself, "He's real cute, I saw what you meant at that dinner thingy."

I flatten my lips, "He is handsome, yes."

"He is handsome, yes,", Daisy teases, mocking me in an overly formal voice, "He's hot Ro. You know it."

I flick my phone camera around to my face so that I can deadpan her. She laughs.

[] [] []

"No Mr. Menni, I've been assigned by Ms. Bailey to- "

"Kid, how many times do I have to say it? It's Paul, not Mr. Menni."

"I apologise Mr- Paul, but I've been assigned to supervise the shipment. I'm sure you can understand that I am only doing what's expected."

From what I gather, Mr. Menni is the man in charge around here, despite not being the head manager. He doesn't take my appearance pleasantly.

Mr. Menni huffs and rubs his face, "I've done this hundreds of times, why did Ms. Bailey send you? Have ever even visited a dock?

Once or twice. None-the-less, I take a step closer to him, "Mr. Menni- "

"Paul."

"Paul. I've been assigned to- "

"I don't care what you've been assigned to! Get lost!"

I suffocate my irritation as Mr. Menni storms off. Of course, I will not be going anywhere, I've been tasked a job and I'm going to fulfil it.

I follow him. He thunders into a 'staff only' room and I trail behind him, his speed challenging how well I can walk in my heels. He stops by a coffee machine.

"Mr Men- Paul, Ms. Bailey has asked me to be here to supervise the shipment,", he presses a button to begin his coffee, "She is my higher up, along with yours. I will not intrude on- ", He interrupts me with the loud frothing of the milk, "Mr Menni! I will not intrude on your activities, I simply- ", I try over the top of the machine. I huff and smack my hands onto my hips. His milk begins to froth near the top of the pot.

When it reaches the top, Mr. Menni still doesn't listen to me, he clatters around with cups and cutlery.

"Mr. Menni. Please listen to me."

He clenches his jaw, stirring a sugar into his coffee.

"Paul. I am simply to report that everything is running smoothly, there is no other issue at hand here."

Though the lack of an answer leads me to believe that there is.

[] [] []

To: [e-mail]

CC: Regarding Dock E013

-

Good evening Ms. Bailey,

The renovation is running smoothly, and as planned, they should be finished by Monday. The shipment is also on time and will be here tomorrow, Thursday, at noon.

I must report though, that Mr. Menni has been less that pleased with my appearance. He disagrees that there is a need for any 'reports' of such.

I find this alarming. With your permission, I would like to investigate further.

-

Please enjoy your evening,

-

Regards,

Aurora Flores

-------

Beetle Ports Headquarters

From: [e-mail]

CC: Reply: Regarding Dock E013

-

Good evening Aurora,

I am glad to hear that the situation is going well.

As for Mr. Menni, I agree that you should look further into the situation. Please be subtle.

-

Enjoy your night.

-

Regards,

Cassidy Bailey

-

Beetle Ports Headquarters

[] [] []

Thursday morning at six, I slip on my sneakers. I am going to jog around the dock and get an eye on the preparations.

The dock in total is two kilometres long by twelve-hundred metres wide. The main building takes up two hundred metres square, the lobby towards placed in the northern end. The warehouse is separate, just past the southern end. My stay is atop of the main lobby.

Casually, I pull my hair into a ponytail as I begin my run.

There are men and woman already at work, most collected into the warehouse. I keep running, trying to keep my glances subtle. Some walk along the path with me, sharing information about today's shipment, some there for the view. I keep running. I notice that Mr. Menni is nowhere to be seen. Dock workers are up early, as one of the managers, he should be around.

I keep running.

The shipment is here. Fifteen minutes late, but it's here.

I stand watching the shipment take place. Cranes of massive scales tower over the building and I carrying containers off the boat. Below that, men carry smaller boxes and scatter with hard hats and clipboards. It's fascinating to watch. The containers are taken off until the ship is barren, sitting higher in the water than it when it arrived. Twenty thousand shipping containers now sit in the warehouse, and an unnumerable-number of boxes are taken in by hand. I stroll around as the containers are numbered by other supervisors employed by the dock.

Never would I be able to count them by myself, but the numbers range from HKD-ECD 0004061430 to HKD-ECD 0004081430

"Excuse me.", I say, interrupting a woman who is clicking a counter and ticking number off on a clipboard.

"Hey, what's up?", she casually greets, barely glancing at me.

"Hello. Can you tell me what happens to this batch after it arrives here?", I ask eyeing the section she'd been assigned to.

"Yep. So, to the left here,", she gestures over to a large pile of crates, "This is from Hong Kong, this- "

She proceeds to tell me that the containers are separated into Northern, Eastern, Southern, and Western sections. North being sent northern, East being sent Eastern and so on. She explains that fortunately none of the South Southwestern section, her section, had been lost at sea. I ask if that happens often, and she explains that both Northeastern and East Western lost a container.

"It was successful other than that though.", she smiles, clicking her counter.

I nod to her, "Thank you."

[] [] []

"Mr. Menni, if you would just speak to me for a minute- "

"Miss Fars- "

"Flores- "

"I don't care, Miss... Whatever, leave me alone!"

That stubborn man. It's Thursday evening now and I'm trying to ask Mr. Menni about the past shipping containers lost at Sea. I searched the archives and found the fourteen last losses have both occurred at this dock. Ms. Bailey was right; this Eastern Port is losing more crates than other our other docks.

"Mr. Menni, why will you not speak to me?"

"Because I don't want to! Go away!"

I huff.

[] [] []

To: [e-mail]

CC: Re: Reply: Regarding Dock E013

-

Good evening Ms. Bailey,

The shipment came in today, the only noted losses being SF-ECD 004066512 and HKD-ECD 004066532. A woman name Sandra from the South Southwestern unit shared this information with me.

Mr. Menni still refuses to speak with me.

I must ask that I stay another night, preferably without noting Mr. Menni. I am still concerned about his 'hesitance' toward my being here and would like to ensure all shipments are supervised correctly.

-

Please enjoy your evening,

-

Regards,

Aurora Flores

--------

Beetle Ports Headquarters

From: [e-mail]

CC: Reply: Regarding Dock E013

-

Good evening Aurora,

I am pleased to hear that the shipment came in.

As for your request, I'm afraid that I must decline. There is no additional information needed.

I will see you back at headquarters tomorrow afternoon.

-

Enjoy your night.

-

Regards,

Cassidy Bailey

-

Beetle Ports Headquarters

[] [] []

I toss and turn all night. Though Ms. Bailey disagrees that there's any need for more investigation, I can't help but feel something is wrong. Mr. Menni has raised concerns with his defensive behaviour, and I highly suspect it has something to do with missing shipments. In the early morning hours, I search for my laptop. I consider sending another email asking for permission to stay, almost typing it out, but then I keep in mind that Ms. Bailey is my boss and I follow her orders.

Still, I can't help but feel anxious.

In the morning, half an hour before the dock workers arrive, I slither into the warehouse.

In its vast expanse, I take a moment to turn and appreciate all the cargo. Thousands upon thousands of tons, and I stand in the middle of it.

As to not waste time, I take my phone out. I begin my stroll through the warehouse, videoing myself walking clockwise from the Northern entrance. I explain to the camera what it is seeing, in the same way that I was explained. No doubt, my voice is husky and faltering from the early morning, but I keep strolling through the building. Once finished, I turn off my video and head for the door.

[] [] []

"Good morning Ms. Bailey.", I greet with a smile, walking into my office.

"Good morning Aurora.", She says back with a quick glance toward me.

Today is Monday, three days since I left the Eastern Shores Dock. Though still suspicious, I was happy to get home Friday night. There is nothing like sleeping in your own bed.

I have a pile of paperwork on my desk that Ms. Bailey has assigned to me. Most of it includes legal documentation. I suck in a breath and get to work.

There's a café down the road. It's filled with the most beautiful chairs. Every time I visit, I can't help but run my fingers over the wooden frames, marvelling at the beautiful craftsmanship.

"Hello Tiffany.", I greet the waitress. She is the best barista here.

"Hey Aurora, how're you going? The usual?"

I smile to her, she's good at her job, "The usual."

She makes me a black coffee, one sugar, and sends me off with a grin.

As I enter Beetle Ports Headquarters again, I can't help but overhear a conversation as I'm travelling up in the lift.

"Another five shipments lost at sea. They're hopeless.", A man says, shaking his head.

"It's the East Coast. What do you expect?", the other man responds.

They hop out at the next floor.

Another five shipments? There were only two noted losses when I was there last. My instant reaction is to report the news to Ms. Bailey, but then I stop. If I'm to present this, I must have a well-constructed case. Whilst I've still got ten minutes on my break, I dart into the insurance compartment.

"Hello,", I say as I near the receptionist, "I'm Ms. Bailey's assistant, could you help me a moment?"

Turns out that along with the two containers I reported lost at sea, three more had joined the list. As I write down their codes, I note that they were all sent from the same location, travelling together.

After work, I don't drop the case. I transfer my warehouse video to my laptop so that I can see it better. I wait for the section to arise, West Northwestern. When it does, I retrieve my notepad. I'm looking for three serial numbers. If any one is there, I've got a case.

The first time I watch the clip, I see nothing. I persevere.

Second time is fruitless and so is third. I slow down the video to point five times speed. Nothing. Point two five times speed. Nada.

It's late by the time I'm going through sections of frames and even later when I go through each frame on zoom.

Then I find them.

The three missing containers.

[] [] []

"Aurora, please come in,", Ms. Bailey smiles, holding her hands together on her desk. I walk in through the door. Seeing how perfect she looks, makes me swipe a lock of hair back. "What can I help with?", she asks.

"Ms. Bailey,", I start, straight lining to her desk, "No doubt you've heard about the five missing shipments on the Eastern Coast Dock."

She nods, training her eyes on me. I place a printed image and a sheet of documented losses on her desk.

"Two of the missing containers, SF-ECD 004066512 and HKD-ECD 004066532, were reported lost at sea the day I was there,", I then point to three boxes in the far left of the picture, "The three other containers, SSC-ECD 000514304, 5, and 6,", I say, underlining the serial numbers with my finger, "Were reported lost at sea once I left."

Ms. Bailey Stares at the photo. She doesn't touch it for a minute as she thinks it through. I wait for her. Suddenly she sighs, placing her glasses on as she checks the numbers for herself, "Thank you for bringing this to my attention."

And then she dismisses me.

Sometimes I can't figure her out, she is confusing. I expected a better reaction and response from her.