Chapter 45 The Trap Crumbles
Selene’s POV
The moment Lucian rose from his chair, the atmosphere inside the conference room shifted completely.
The pressure in the room instantly became suffocating.
His tall figure stood beside the table with natural authority, his sharp features cold and unreadable. The faint warmth from earlier had disappeared completely, replaced by the icy calm that made people instinctively lower their heads around him.
“You said you had evidence,” he said evenly, his dark eyes fixed on me. “Then show it.”
His voice wasn’t loud.
It didn’t need to be.
Even a simple sentence from Lucian Frostbane carried enough pressure to silence an entire room.
Then his gaze swept toward Linda, Catalina, and the others who had already begun gathering their documents to leave.
“Sit down,” he ordered coldly.
No one moved after that.
Linda’s expression stiffened immediately, but despite her obvious reluctance, she slowly returned to her seat.
The moment she sat down, she turned sharply toward me.
“What evidence could you possibly have?” she demanded. Though she tried to sound confident, the tension in her voice was impossible to hide now. “Selene, false accusations are against company policy and against the law.”
She inhaled deeply before continuing.
“I know you’ve never liked me,” she said bitterly, “but that doesn’t give you the right to ruin my reputation in front of everyone.”
A faint laugh escaped me before I could stop it.
Honestly, watching her panic was becoming increasingly entertaining.
“Why are you so nervous, Ms. Cyril?” I asked lightly.
Then I turned calmly toward Lucian.
“With Mr. Frostbane here,” I continued evenly, “nobody innocent will be wrongly accused.”
I paused deliberately.
“But if someone truly harmed the company’s interests for personal reasons…” I added softly, “then I’m sure Mr. Frostbane won’t protect them either.”
The room instantly became quieter.
Several people exchanged uneasy glances.
I looked directly at Lucian afterward.
“Am I wrong?”
Lucian didn’t answer immediately.
He simply watched me in silence.
But from the look in his eyes alone, I already knew—
he had started suspecting Linda too.
Lucian’s POV
Selene was far too calm.
Too composed.
People only remained this confident when they already knew exactly how things would end.
Originally, I intended to let Yaris handle the investigation quietly afterward.
But now…
even I had become curious.
Very curious.
What puzzled me most was Linda herself.
Yes, she could be prideful.
Petty at times too.
But professionally, she had always been careful with her work.
Why would she suddenly risk sabotaging an important collaboration project just to target Selene?
And more importantly—
if this project had truly failed today, Linda herself would also carry responsibility as head of the secretariat department.
There was almost no advantage for her.
Unless someone had promised her something worth the risk.
Before I could continue thinking, Selene straightened slightly and spoke again.
“Since I already know when the designs disappeared,” she said calmly, “the solution is actually simple.”
Her eyes slowly moved toward Linda.
“All we need to do,” she continued softly, “is check the surveillance footage.”
The moment those words fell—
Linda’s expression changed instantly.
“Surveillance?” she blurted out too quickly. “But the cameras were broken.”
Silence fell across the room again.
Selene’s lips curved slightly upward.
“Oh?” she said softly. “Ms. Cyril seems unusually informed about the company surveillance system.”
Linda immediately realized her mistake.
“I—I only heard someone mention it before,” she explained hurriedly.
Selene’s smile deepened slightly.
“And did that person also tell you the cameras were repaired already?”
Linda froze.
For the first time since this confrontation started, genuine panic appeared in her eyes.
“Is… is that true?” she asked weakly.
At that point, even I had already understood most of the situation.
I turned toward Yaris immediately.
“Retrieve the surveillance footage,” I ordered coldly.
“Yes, Alpha.”
As Yaris left the room, I looked back toward Selene again.
Honestly—
even I had underestimated her.
She already knew the cameras had previously malfunctioned.
Which meant she likely predicted this setup long before today’s meeting even began.
That realization only deepened my curiosity toward her.
Who exactly was Selene Nightbane?
Because every single time I thought I finally understood her—
she revealed something new.
Something unexpected.
About twenty minutes later, Yaris returned carrying a USB drive.
“I’ve recovered the footage,” he reported respectfully.
I nodded once.
“Play it.”
The projector screen lit up again moments later.
Everyone focused forward immediately.
The surveillance video began from earlier that morning.
Selene appeared first.
The footage clearly showed her opening the folder and carefully reviewing the jewelry sketches one by one.
Actual sketches.
Not blank paper.
Which immediately proved one thing beyond doubt.
The original designs absolutely existed earlier.
After reviewing everything carefully, Selene returned the sketches to the folder, locked the drawer, and left for the airport.
The footage continued.
For several hours afterward, no one approached her desk.
Eventually lunchtime arrived.
Most employees left for the cafeteria.
Then—
someone entered.
A middle-aged woman wearing a cleaner’s uniform walked quietly into the office area carrying cleaning tools.
The entire conference room became silent again.
The woman glanced around cautiously before heading directly toward Selene’s desk.
She opened the drawer quickly.
Removed the sketches.
Then replaced them with blank sheets of paper.
Whispers instantly erupted across the room.
“So it really was just the cleaner,” Linda said quickly, obviously trying to recover control of the situation. “Selene, you accused me publicly without proof. Now everyone can clearly see I had nothing to do with it.”
Her breathing still looked uneven.
But she was trying desperately to regain confidence.
“You embarrassed me in front of everyone,” she continued sharply. “Shouldn’t you apologize?”
“Wait.”
Selene’s calm voice was interrupted immediately.
Then she gestured toward Yaris.
“Pause the footage.”
The screen froze instantly.
Selene slowly turned back toward everyone.
“Yes,” she said thoughtfully. “We all saw Nelly replace the sketches.”
Then her eyes sharpened slightly.
“But there’s still one very important question.”
The room quieted again.
“Why?”
Nobody answered.
Selene continued calmly.
“What possible reason would a cleaner have for stealing confidential jewelry designs?”
Her eyes shifted slowly toward Linda afterward.
“What exactly would she gain from doing this?”
At that moment, Linda’s expression visibly tightened again.
Selene then looked toward Yaris.
“Please bring Nelly here.”
Yaris immediately stepped aside and made a phone call.
A minute later, he returned looking slightly surprised.
“Mr. Frostbane,” he reported carefully, “Nelly resigned at one o’clock this afternoon.”
My expression darkened instantly.
One o’clock.
Exactly after the sketches had been switched.
The timing was far too deliberate.
Clearly, this entire thing had been planned beforehand.
“Find her immediately,” I ordered coldly. “Bring her back here.”
But before Yaris could move—
Selene suddenly smiled.
“There’s no need,” she said calmly.
I looked toward her immediately.
“What do you mean?”
Selene picked up her phone slowly beneath everyone’s stunned gaze.
Then she dialed a number calmly.
The line connected quickly.
“Nelly,” Selene said smoothly, “it’s time.”
A faint smile appeared on her lips afterward.
“Come to the meeting room on the eighteenth floor.”