Chapter 202
Blake insisted he could handle this mess himself and refused to let Caroline get involved.
Under his agent's murderous glare, he managed to hustle Caroline out and faced the pack of hungry reporters lurking around his apartment alone.
Back at the office, Caroline kept checking her phone. The trending topic still won't die down.
Two hours had passed since she first learned about the scandal. Blake's agency had released a statement, but it barely made a ripple—his fans were too worked up to give anyone a chance to explain.
Restless and irritated, she realized her coffee cup was empty. She called for her secretary, Susan, a few times, but unlike usual, Susan wasn't waiting outside. Caroline grabbed her mug and headed to the break room herself.
Before she could even step inside, voices drifted out.
"Didn't they say she had something special going on with Mr. Windsor just a few days ago? Now she's mixed up with Mr. Hamilton, too?"
"Right? She walks around with that mask, acting all high and mighty. Who knew she was playing the field like this—hooking up with two guys at once. What a slut!"
"I bet she's all cold and frosty with us, but super hot and bothered around Mr. Windsor and Mr. Hamilton. What's that called again... oh yeah, a two-faced bitch! I could tell from the start!"
The break room door wasn't fully closed, and several coworkers were trash-talking without a care in the world.
Every word was pure speculation and twisted imagination, delivered with disgusting smirks plastered across their faces.
Caroline's expression darkened.
The vile comments kept flowing, reaching levels that would make anyone physically sick just listening.
Caroline shoved the door open. The employees who'd been cackling inside suddenly looked like ducks with their throats squeezed—faces flushed red, unable to utter a single word.
"The company pays you to stand around gossiping and slandering your supervisor?"
Caroline had zero intention of letting this slide. Her gaze swept across their name badges—all from the marketing department.
Which meant they fell under Heidi's management.
The group hung their heads, not daring to speak.
"Five hundred dollars docked from each of your paychecks. Next time, you're suspended pending review."
Caroline's tone was ice-cold.
As vice president of the Windsor Group, disciplining these people was barely worth her time.
Hitting them where it hurt—their wallets—made their faces go white as sheets.
"We were just talking! How is that worth docking that much pay? That's not fair!"
"Yeah, we were just repeating stuff we saw online and speculating. It's not like it was real. Ms. Q, you're usually so understanding—don't hold this against us."
"Five hundred is way too much! I've got a family to feed. Ms. Q, please have mercy!"
One by one, they played the victim card, hoping Caroline would soften.
Caroline just looked them over. "Are you trying to tell me how to do my job?"
"We're longtime company employees. Aren't you worried about crushing everyone's morale?"
"Exactly! This is the break room. We were just chatting during our break, and you're docking five hundred bucks? That's way too harsh!"
When playing pitiful didn't work, they switched tactics.
They figured that since Caroline was a woman and currently trending online in a scandal, they could push her around.
If this had been any other supervisor, these people would've been groveling by now.
Caroline took in their disgusting behavior with zero sympathy, calmly refilling her coffee.
"The disciplinary notice will be posted in the company group chat this afternoon. I've already noted all your badge names."
"Ms. Q!"
As Caroline moved to leave, one of the male employees blocked the doorway.
Caroline's expression went even colder. "What? You're going to trap me in the break room and not let me out?"
Her icy tone carried enough menace to make the guy flinch, but thinking about his docked pay, he puffed out his chest.
"Ms. Q, this isn't right. We work under Ms. White, and she never treats us like this—she actually looks out for us."
"You stole Ms. White's position next to Mr. Windsor. Why don't you learn from her example?"
Caroline actually smiled.
"In that case, why don't we call your Ms. White over here and see how she thinks this should be handled?"
Letting subordinates disrespect their supervisor—she was curious to see how Heidi would explain that.
Not just Heidi showed up, but Edith too.
The moment they walked in, the male employees started talking over each other, explaining the situation.
"We were just chatting in the break room, and the VP came in demanding to dock us each five hundred dollars and post about it in the work group."
"She's some hotshot talent who parachuted in from abroad. She has no idea how tough we regular employees have it. If she keeps docking pay like this, we might as well just die."
Hearing this, both women shot disapproving looks at Caroline.
"Dr. Q, I know you're a high-end international talent, but you can't treat employees like this! When staff are in the break room relaxing, what they say and do is their freedom. How can you control even that?"
"So you're saying employees can freely insult and verbally abuse their supervisors in the break room, and that's acceptable?" Caroline shot back coldly.
"They just said a few things. How did it escalate to something this serious? Dr. Q, don't be so petty. Punishing employees over something this trivial doesn't look good!"
Edith and Heidi tag-teamed her, automatically pinning the blame on Caroline.
This emboldened the male employees, who smirked smugly at Caroline.
Caroline let out a cold laugh. "So you're telling me that even if they verbally assault me in the break room, I can't discipline them. Is that right?"
"Dr. Q, you're really making a mountain out of a molehill."
Edith spoke with obvious irritation. "The break room is supposed to be a place for casual discussion. If we have to monitor every word and action, even during breaks, employees won't even have a moment to relax. How is that different from prison?"
"Okay."
Caroline snapped her fingers and pulled out her phone, calling Arthur.
The call connected quickly, and Arthur's low, magnetic voice came through.
"What's wrong?"
"Arthur, you're an asshole."
Not only did silence fall on the other end of the line, but the atmosphere on this end froze solid, too.
Heidi and Edith stared at Caroline in complete shock. How dare she?
"Who pissed you off?"
Even more surprising was that Arthur didn't get angry. After a moment of silence, he just asked what happened.
"Ms. White and Ms. Cox say the break room has freedom of speech, and insulting supervisors won't get you punished. I'm testing to see if that's true." Caroline glanced at the two women, her lips curving into a smile, her tone light and cheerful.
Ten minutes later.
The break room employees, Heidi, Edith, and Caroline, all found themselves in the CEO's office.
The room was thick with tension. Everyone kept their heads down, no one daring to speak first.