The applause continued, but Charles was unable to see. Could it have been something he ate? No, it couldn't be. He was yet to hear of something edible that could cause loss of sight all of a sudden, unexpectedly. He knew he was probably being watched, so he plastered a smile on his face, and began to clap along with the others, but behind his smile, his mind was a jumble of thoughts. What was happening? A moment later, just as fast as Charles' sight had disappeared, it reappeared again, and the brightness of the room made him snap it shut. “Is everything alright?” Vera, who was next to him, said, looking concerned. “Yes, yes. Everything is.” Charles replied, as he stood up. He hadn't seen the last emotion the robot could detect, but knew it had been great. “It is amazing. I commend you all on a job well done.” He said, and they all clapped once more. Charles would have said more, but was still baffled about the sudden vision loss that had come and gone so fast. What was wrong with him? At first, it had been a sound only he could hear, then it had been a sudden sight loss that affected him alone. He managed to conclude the meeting quickly, and got to his feet once more, heading for the door. Vera watched him carefully, he seemed to be out of sorts. “Are you okay?” She asked, when they left the room, which had already been thrown into a noise of happiness at the success of the robot. “Uh, yes. I'm fine. You seem really concerned. Why?” He asked, loosening his tie. “Why wouldn't I be? It is my duty to look after your welfare as your personal assistant and secretary.” He said, and Charles smiled. “Oh really?” “Your face seems a little pale.” She remarked. “It does?” “Yes, and a number of times, I caught you with a baffled expression on your face. Is there something you've been worried about?” She asked, and Charles tried hard to find an excuse to tell her, but his mind was bare. He couldn't possibly tell her about losing his sight for a full minute. She'd either think he was overworking himself, and losing his mind, or demand to take him to a hospital. “Is there something you've been worried about?” She repeated, intent on hearing Charles' answer.“A baffled expression, you say. Maybe you saw something wrong because I don't think I've been baffled about anything today.” He lied, trying to walk faster, but she also increased her pace, keeping up with him as he walked. “I recall you saying you heard a kind of noise. I'm thinking it might be stress.” She suggested, just like Charles had expected. “Do you think of anything apart from stress? The problem to everything in your Dictionary is stress, and the solution to every problem is rest. I'm guessing you want me to rest right now?” He asked, and she looked caught. “Well, yes. You've been working quite hard on Mr. Lincoln and his wife's case. They overworked you before you finally put them in a defendant's seat.” She pointed out, and indeed she was right, but stress didn't seem like the issue for Charles. “Well, I'll look after myself and rest well. You do not have to bother about me.” Charles replied, pushing open the door to his office. Vera was about to say something else, but stopped, as she noticed Charles staring at something confused. There was a man dressed in black trying to crack open Charles' safe. He didn't even notice them. Instead, he was trying hard to crack the safe, as beads of sweat rolled down the hair showing out of his face cap, onto the face mask he wore. “Who the hell are you?” Charles asked, and the man bolted to his feet in a frenzy, staring at Vera and Charles. “Damn it.” He exclaimed softly, through gritted teeth, and threw a flower pot towards Vera, who screamed and jumped back. Charles walked into the room briskly, but the man was prepared. He jumped off the window, causing Charles' eyes to widen in surprise. Charles ran to the window, and so did Vera. There was the man falling fast to the ground, although there was a rope he was holding in his hand, which was tied securely to the window of Charles' office. “Hurry, hurry… a pair of scissors.” He said to Vera, who turned away and immediately searched for a pair of scissors. The man was almost at the floor when Charles cut the rope successfully, and he fell, but brought himself back up in a quick forward roll. Then he began to run.“Alert the security!” Charles said, turning away, and running out of his office towards the first floor. He wondered if he could make it in time, before the man escaped. When he got to the first floor, he ran out, and received a walkie-talkie from one of the security men. “They're chasing him, sir.” He informed Charles, and Charles nodded, continuing to run. “We're near the alley…” “Make sure you catch him!” Charles said, running as hard as he could, even though he was out of breath. Shortly, the voice floated through the walkie-talkie once more. “We got him.” “Splendid. Hold him there.” Charles ordered, running towards the nearest alley. By the time he got there, the man in black had been bound by ropes. Charles stopped in front of him, and waited to catch his breath. “Who are you?” He asked, breathily, but the man didn't say a word. It was then clear to Charles that he probably had more enemies than he thought. “I do not need to waste my breath on you. Call the cops.” Charles ordered, and a man brought out his phone immediately. But then, the man in black began to mix something in his mouth, then he chewed continuously as fast as he could, baffling them all. Then he smiled after swallowing. Charles and the men looked at each other, but it wasn't until the man began to cough blood that comprehension dawned on them. He had poisoned himself.