Chapter 79: Ambition Grows

Thomas did not dare to argue. His fists clenched at his sides as he gave a stiff nod.

"I understand."

"And one more thing." Henry's voice cut in, his gaze sharp with warning. "Do not look for shortcuts. The Caldwell Corporation does not pay dead weight, and it has no room for anyone with a crooked mind."

The words landed like a slap across Thomas's face.

He jerked his head up, ready to snap back, but the cold glint in Henry's eyes froze the words in his throat.

His back went rigid, every muscle drawn tight. Without another word, he turned and strode out of the office, the door shutting behind him with a thud that carried his anger.

Silence settled over the room.

After a long moment, Sophia looked at Henry. "You wanted him back from the start, didn't you?"

Henry walked over to her, picking up the encrypted file on her desk. "Letting him wander outside only means Susan will make him even dumber. At least if he's under my nose, I can keep an eye on him."

Sophia arched a brow. "You're not worried he'll be used by the mole?"

"He's not capable enough for that," Henry said with a faint, mocking smile.

Then his tone shifted. "But Susan might be."

Their eyes met, a flicker of caution passing silently between them.

Susan had always hidden her ambition behind a gentle face. Now she had Megan under her thumb. If she ever learned about the secret buried in the Caldwell Corporation, she might decide the mole was her ticket to power.

That afternoon, inside the Caldwell Mansion, Susan sat on the couch as Thomas dropped his new appointment letter onto the coffee table.

She picked it up, scanned it, and her mouth twisted. "Logistics? Is Henry turning you into his errand boy?"

Thomas frowned. "I'm lucky to be back in the company at all. Stop nitpicking."

"Nitpicking?" Susan shot to her feet, the curve of her belly obvious beneath her loose dress. "Thomas, are you stupid? Logistics doesn't touch any core business. He's brushing you aside."

"And what do you expect me to do?" Thomas's voice rose. "Challenge Henry for the CEO's chair? I don't have that kind of ability."

Susan's voice spiked, laced with mockery. "Remind me again why I ever thought you were worth my time? Look at you now — all meek and spineless."

She let out a short, scornful laugh. "You're every bit the masterpiece your dear mother turned out to be."

The name Megan lit a fuse in Thomas. "Don't you dare talk about my mother."

Susan tilted her head, eyes glittering with cruel amusement. "Oh, I dare."

She took a slow, deliberate step forward, her voice dripping venom. "Thomas, if you don't want to spend the rest of your life as pitiful as she was, you might want to try growing a spine — assuming you can find one."

She stepped closer, jabbing a finger into his chest. "The Caldwell Corporation belongs to the Caldwell Family. You're part of that family. Why should Henry have it all to himself? Think of the baby, Thomas. Do you want our child to grow up under Sophia's smug little smile?"

Thomas's breathing grew heavier. Her words coiled through his mind—spineless, useless, living under someone else's shadow. Each one a needle in his pride.

Why should Henry have been born into power while he was left to scrape by on family scraps?

"What do you want me to do?" His voice was low, but there was a dangerous edge in it now.

Susan's lips curved in satisfaction, though her tone softened. "I heard the Caldwell Corporation is hunting a mole."

He blinked. "How do you know?"

"Your mother mentioned it," she lied without hesitation. "She said the mole has leverage over Henry. If you can find him, you might just find Henry's weak spot."

She leaned in, her breath warm against his ear. "You're in logistics. You'll meet a lot of people. Maybe you'll pick up a lead. And when you do…"

Thomas's eyes lit with a reckless spark. If he could get something on Henry, he could finally stand on his own—and never bow to anyone again.

"Fine. I'll try."

"That's more like it." Susan patted his shoulder with a smile. "Do it for the baby. Do it for us."

She watched him leave, then moved to the window, her smile deepening.

Thomas was a dull blade, but even the dullest steel could draw blood if honed long enough—and she knew exactly how to put him to the grindstone.

As for the mole, she couldn't care less who it was. If they could help her wrest power from the Caldwell Corporation, she'd shake hands with the devil himself.

Meanwhile, back at the Caldwell Corporation, Sophia frowned at the access logs on her screen.

Oscar's name stood out—his visit had been the day before each of the three project leaks.

"Found something?" Henry asked, stepping up beside her.

"Oscar went to the logistics warehouse last week," she said, pointing at the screen. "He pulled procurement records from three years ago. Those records include the equipment list Jesse handled back then."

Henry's eyes darkened. "Looks like the bait is working."

s eyes flicked to his hand, lying open on the desk, the calluses from years of writing catching the lamplight. She lingered longer than she intended, a thought slipping in uninvited—perhaps in this masquerade of lies, they were the only two who could truly trust each other.

Outside, night draped the city in velvet darkness. The Caldwell Corporation's tower burned against the skyline, a solitary beacon in a forest gone silent. Yet both of them knew that in the shadows, countless eyes watched—patient, hungry, waiting for a thirty-year secret to claw its way into the light.

The storm born of the Black Ice Project had already dragged everyone into its wake.

And soon, another wave would rise to swallow the Caldwell Corporation whole.