The Supplemental Man

Emma found the iPhone on the bathroom counter, its screen illuminated at 2 AM. David was asleep beside her, his breathing rhythmic and deceptive. She knew his passcode—he always used her birthday, a romantic gesture that now felt like a carefully constructed alibi.

The vitamin supplements were arranged in neat rows: D3 for bone health, magnesium for sleep, B-complex for energy. Each bottle represented a lie. David was a spy—not the glamorous kind from films, but a corporate one, paid to extract trade secrets from biotech startups. His cover story: vitamin entrepreneur, health enthusiast, the man who wanted to make the world stronger.

Emma opened his messages. The conversation thread labeled "Vitamin Supplier" was actually his handler.

"Extract the formula by Friday."

"Progress slow. She's suspicious."

"Do whatever it takes. This is worth millions."

She'd been the target all along. Her startup had developed a revolutionary Alzheimer's drug, and David had been planted to steal it. Their dinner conversations about work weren't intimacy—they were reconnaissance. The intimate questions he asked about her research weren't curiosity—they were intelligence gathering.

Emma returned the phone to its exact position. She slipped back into bed beside him, his body warm against hers, his arm instinctively wrapping around her waist. The familiarity made her sick.

"You okay?" he murmured, half-asleep.

"Just thirsty," she whispered.

In the kitchen, she stared at the vitamin bottles on the counter. Magnesium for sleep. Magnesium for memory loss. She'd been giving him detailed information about her drug trials, thinking she was sharing with her partner, not feeding data to a corporate spy.

She began collecting the vitamins—every single bottle—and dropped them into the trash. Then she opened her laptop and sent an email to her company's legal department, attaching the screenshots she'd taken from his phone.

The vitamin entrepreneur would wake up to find his supplements gone and his cover blown. Emma poured herself a glass of wine. Some things, she decided, you couldn't supplement for. Trust was one of them. Love was another.