The meeting soon ended. Three hours had passed without Stan noticing.
Time always behaved differently in rooms where the decisions actually mattered, compressing and folding in on itself until minutes disappeared unnoticed.
With an acknowledging nod, he shook hands with Albrecht on the way out, exchanged a few productive words with Chen about the new escalation protocol, and accepted the quiet nods of acknowledgment from the other senior figures as they headed toward the elevator bank.
Only after stepping into the corridor did he pull his phone from his jacket and unlock it.
The screen exploded with notifications.
He had silenced the device before entering the meeting, as protocol required. There hadn't been any reason to expect urgent calls, so the silence had felt routine.
Then his eyes landed on one particular notification. His stomach tightened upon reading it.
[10 Missed Calls — Sis Sacha]
Stan's heart skipped.
'Ten missed calls????'
