She stands on stage. The powerful lights flashing her face and hundreds of pairs of eyeballs staring at her. She doesn’t mind public speaking, but she can slowly feel her mouth dry out.

Despite her inner anxieties, Rania’s demeanor remains calm, as her expression gives nothing away. She takes a step forward, just like she rehearsed. Just like she practiced.

She starts talking. Aiden stands off to the side, watching Rania pace across the stage. He admires her determination to make this business a reality. For the last two years, she worked on big projects designing many hospitality buildings. She’s given several consultations and advice on how to design a specific space.

This event is perfect for her to show off her skills and make connections.

However, there’s just one problem.

Rania puts a smile on her face as she walks a bit closer to the crowd.

“Good evening, everyone and thank you for being here. My name is Rania Adel. For the last two years, I’ve been working as a freelancer in interior design. It is an honor to help organize and host this years KasxDesign Showcase.”

The crowd claps and cheers, hundreds of interior designers from different niches, ready to present their work. Rania could sense the excitement in the air and she herself was also excited.

She goes through all the housekeeping, explaining the schedule, the different events, and mentioning a few of the special guest speakers. But most importantly, everyone was excited for was the Showcasing.

All of them will spend the third day of the convention in different rooms—which are divided into four quadrants—that rotate. Some work individually while others will work in group. At the end, each quadrant will get a chance to present while the other three quadrants get to view their work.

“It is with great honor, I present to you our first guest speaker. She’s won several awards for her designs and volunteer efforts within the community. She runs her own interior design company that’s one of the top in Kastonia. Please give a warm welcome to Ximena Quintana!”

In that moment, a woman walks onto the stage. With her golden brown skin and curly hair pulled up into a tight bun. She smiles at Rania and greets her with a hug. Rania hugs Ximena back before walking off the stage.

There, Aiden is waiting for her. She turns off her mic before walking up to him and smiling. “I think I did pretty amazing,” She says with a lopsided grin.

Aiden smiles back, nodding his head in agreement while stuffing his hands in his pocket. “You did an excellent job. ”

“Yes, yes, Rania did amazing,” Ben interjects dryly. “Did you notice anyone suspicious out there?”

Remember how I said there was a problem?

Rania’s smile slowly fades as her expression turns more contemplative. “It’s hard to pinpoint right now. I didn’t sense anything unusual.”

Ben grunts through the earpiece. “Well, keep an eye out. I’ll keep looking into everyone present at the convention.”

Aiden nods his head in understanding, rubbing his cheek with his index finger. “Heard. Hopefully the intel we were given is good.”