Chapter 12: The Corporate Leak

The supervisor struck first, seizing his chance. He had harbored resentment toward Sophie from the start, and now his voice sliced through the room with razor-sharp accusation. "Sophie, Mr. Carter placed enormous trust in you, giving you access to such critical documents. Now that we're facing this massive breach, don't you think you owe everyone an explanation?"

"I didn't do it!" Sophie's face drained of color, her voice trembling despite her efforts to control it. "I would never leak company secrets."

"Just because you say so doesn't make it true." The supervisor's lips curled into a cold smile. "I heard that two nights ago, you had dinner at a restaurant with the project manager from Stellar Technologies—our direct competitor. Laughing, chatting, looking quite cozy together. Care to deny that?"

The words landed like a grenade. Low gasps rippled through the conference room.

In the corporate world, private meetings with rival executives were absolutely forbidden.

Sophie stood frozen, blindsided. She had never imagined her innocent dinner with Samuel would be turned against her in such a calculated way.

Her eyes burned with tears she refused to let fall, voice shaking. "He's my college friend! I had no idea he worked at Stellar Technologies—it was just two old classmates catching up!"

"Old classmates?" The supervisor's tone dripped with mockery. "What kind of 'old classmates' meet for dinner the night before a critical project deadline? Sophie, I think you were bought off. You deliberately leaked company secrets."

"I swear I didn't!" Her voice sounded fragile against the weight of their collective suspicion.

She had no defense. It felt like being shoved into a carefully constructed trap, every explanation only tightening the noose.

Just then, a knock sounded at the conference room door.

Emma entered, carrying an elegant insulated lunch container. The moment she stepped inside, she registered the suffocating tension, her expression shifting to surprised innocence. "I'm sorry—I brought Mr. Carter his lunch… Am I interrupting?"

Her gaze quickly found Sophie, pale and cornered, and she hurried over with apparent concern, grasping Sophie's hand. "Sophie, what happened? Don't worry, I believe in you. This has to be some kind of misunderstanding."

The gesture of solidarity sent a flicker of warmth through Sophie's chest—like finding a spark in a blizzard.

Emma patted her hand gently, then turned to Sebastian, biting her lower lip with an air of thoughtful concern. "Mr. Carter, the priority right now is solving this problem. If Sophie is under investigation, then the Eldoria trip… it probably wouldn't be appropriate for her to accompany you, would it? This acquisition is too important to risk any complications. I've been studying all the relevant materials these past few days. Why don't I go in Sophie's place? I promise I'll give it everything I have—I won't let you down."

Her words were flawlessly calculated, projecting concern for her friend while positioning herself perfectly to claim the opportunity.

Sophie's heart sank like a stone.

Emma was right, of course.

Until her name was cleared, she represented the biggest liability. This rare opportunity was sliding out of her grasp.

She closed her eyes in despair, waiting for Sebastian's final verdict.

Termination, blacklisting. She could already see her future crumbling.

The conference room fell into deathly silence.

Everyone assumed Sebastian would take the safe route and accept Emma's practical suggestion.

Instead, Sebastian rose slowly to his feet, his ice-blue gaze cutting through the crowd to land squarely on Sophie's ashen face. "Who said she's under investigation?"

His voice wasn't loud, but it carried absolute authority that made the room's temperature plummet.

The supervisor faltered, then forced himself to respond. "Mr. Carter, but the leak—"

"Evidence?" Sebastian cut him off coldly. "You claim secrets were leaked. Where's your proof? Did you intercept their internal communications? Obtain their formal documents? Or are you spreading rumors based on nothing but hearsay, undermining team morale? If anyone needs investigating here, it's you."

The supervisor's face turned ashen, sweat beading at his temples. He couldn't produce a single word in response.

Sebastian's gaze returned to Sophie, his tone still severe, but she caught the thread of protection woven through it.

"Two nights ago, Sophie worked in my hotel suite until five in the morning, rushing to complete the departmental integration proposal. If she had time to leak secrets, then I'm her accomplice."

The statement detonated in the conference room like a bomb.

Everyone froze, eyes darting between Sophie and Sebastian, expressions shifting into something complex and loaded with implication.

Man and woman. Hotel suite. All night. The subtext was impossible to ignore.

Sophie's face burned scarlet, mortification flooding through her. She wanted the floor to open up and swallow her whole.

How could he say something like that in front of everyone?

Sebastian appeared completely indifferent to their stares. He turned to Emma, still standing frozen in place. "Pack your things and stay on standby."