Six Months 2

17 February, 12040.

Jacob was the first to arrive at the conference room.

After he left the hospital, he had his assistant run background checks on the Carlisle family and Darren Kershaw. Rouen was a large company with a lot of subsidiaries and affiliated companies and contracts. They had connections in all levels of the government from the local to federal. It was not difficult for them to access the family's history from birth certificates to military records.

With such resources, it only took a few days for his assistant to compile a complete background check on the Carlisles and the Kershaws. Rouen would have probably dug up information that even the subjects of the investigation did not even know about themselves.

As the investigation was complete, he was going to present it to the CEO during this meeting. The conference was not exclusively about Etora, although she would come up. During the meeting, they would also talk about how they would proceed once Rouen's public relations team finished with damage control.

Rouen did not have every news outlet in its pocket. Many TV and online news outlets were still covering Electro's blunder from Sunday night in the park. This time, it would not be so easy for things to blow over since a bystander was injured: Darren Kershaw. It would have been worse if the injured party was the young girl. It was as Etora said: Darren Kershaw was the reason the media had not buried Electro for public endangerment.

It has been two days since the incident, and, from his investigations, Darren Kershaw had yet to show any signs of waking. He was in a coma.

Many news outlets and talk shows were talking about the incident. Some talked about what a hero the young man was to have run out to save the little girl. Other news outlets and reporters are more focused on the cause of the incident: Electro's carelessness and lack of control with his powers.

It was not the first time one of the Super 7 had been involved in accidents. It was usually the damage of public property they had to deal with. Still, it was the first time one of them had a civilian casualty.

Jacob thought back to that night as he was watching the battle on television in his apartment. He always made sure to receive an alert on his mobile whenever there was news about the S7.

Jacob planned all of the S7's celebrity appearances, but he did not choose their public battles. As their manager, he needed to know whenever there was an article or a video about the team uploaded on the internet so he could manage the situation. He also needed to be aware of which reporters and programs to avoid.

He saw the accident on television that night and spent the rest of the night coming up with a plan for the aftermath. Electro and the rest of the team could not just leave the public eye for a long time. The narrative for the accident was not due to carelessness, but due to Electro's deep focus on his job and responsibilities.

If Rouen kept Electro from the media and the public for too long, it would seem like they were hiding him from the possible consequences. They would keep him out of the public eye. The company would claim that he was training, so an accident like this does not happen again. After a few months, and a new suit, he would soon return to his work as a Super and the leader of S7.

Jacob released a sigh as he pressed his fingers against his temple. He had his work cut out for him in the upcoming few weeks, if not months.

As he pondered, the room suddenly became louder as a group of people flooded the conference room. The CEO, Warren Cheung, was first to enter the room as he was talking with one of his assistants with another following behind him.

Jacob wasn't surprised to see Laura Lamont following behind as she was the S7 publicist. Laura was the first person on sight with Electro on Sunday. She needed to get an incident report from Electro for the CEO. She coordinated with him on a response for the victims' families and the press.

Following Laura were just a few other employees he had seen around the office and some other high executives on the board.

As everyone took their seats around the wooden table, the second assistant was setting up a video link from her tablet to the projector on the table.

As they began, Jacob, Laura, Jacob, and a director from the PR department reviewed the details of the events of Sunday night. The CEO was less interested in the past and more interested in the future. The most important thing is curbing the press and keeping the Supers out of the public eye until things simmered down.

"There was a hundred million dollar withdrawal from our compensation accounts to the account of Etora Carlisle," said one of the executives.

Many eyes immediately turned to Jacob. "Yes. I was responsible for handling the victim's family compensation. I met with Etora Carlisle and Miriam Carlisle. As the CFO instructed me, I presented Etora Carlisle with a blank cheque. I did not know how much money was withdrawn until after I returned to the office."

"This woman, who wrote a hundred million dollars on a blank cheque, gave you conditions to keeping her silence," said Warren Cheung, incredulously shaking his head.

Jacob replied, "Her condition was to better train the S7, so there are no more casualties during their public battles. She threatens to investigate the company and alert the media, and the government should something like this happen again."

Most of the people at the table scoffed and shook their heads smugly. Small giggles and murmurs went all around. Many whispered among themselves, and Jacob heard someone say, "What can one woman do against a company like Rouen?"

The CEO was the only one who furrowed his brow as he nodded. As a cautious man, he always took any threats or challenges seriously, especially from an unknown player. He preferred to be prepared for the unexpected rather than being caught off guard by what he does not know.