Chapter 73
In the office, Fiona placed a document in front of Lucinda.
"The supplier for that batch of counterfeit goods in the warehouse—it's registered under the same legal entity as the trading company owned by Joseph's brother-in-law, Yves. The signatory on the procurement contract is the same person."
Fiona's voice was crisp and efficient. "All their actions point in the same direction. If the real parasite behind everything is Joseph, this could be tricky. He's been running this company for nearly a decade. He's been here since Mr. Douglas was in charge. His network runs deep. His connections are tangled."
Lucinda closed the file and looked up. "I don't care how hard it is. Once it reaches me, I'll expose him for what he is."
Fiona looked at her, a smile tugging at her lips. Then she lowered her voice, her tone teasing. "Boss, with Mr. Lancaster backing you, taking down a vice president should be no problem."
Lucinda's brow furrowed slightly.
She set down the file, her gaze settling on Fiona's face. "It's just a vice president. I can handle it myself."
Fiona quickly nodded, but the smile at the corner of her mouth refused to fade.
Lucinda picked up the file, flipped through it, then spoke flatly. "Bring Ella in."
Fiona acknowledged and headed for the door. Her footsteps paused. She turned back to look at Lucinda, her expression puzzled. "Ms. Wipere, Ella was already terminated. She's not at the company."
Lucinda lifted her eyes from the documents, the corner of her mouth curving slightly. "Check the warehouse."
Fiona froze for a moment, then understanding dawned. She turned and hurried out.
Less than twenty minutes later, the office door swung open.
Two security guards entered, flanking Ella on either side. Behind her were three more people—two men and one woman, all from HR and warehouse operations.
Ella's dark gray suit was wrinkled. Her face was full of panic.
The moment her gaze met Lucinda's, her pupils contracted sharply.
'How did she know I was there?'
The last time she'd been in this office, Lucinda had publicly dismantled her lies. She still remembered it vividly.
Thinking of how terrifying Lucinda was, her legs began to tremble involuntarily.
Lucinda leaned back in her chair, tapped her phone lightly, and Ella's voice played from the speaker.
"Hire someone to kill her."
Ella's face drained of color. Something exploded in her mind.
How did Lucinda get this recording?
She'd searched that warehouse herself. There was no one there. Nothing.
The three people behind her all changed expressions at once. One instinctively took half a step to the side.
"Ms. Garcia, care to explain?"
Ella's lips trembled. Her knees buckled, and she collapsed onto the floor. "Ms. Wipere… I was wrong… Please give me one more chance. I'll work like a dog for you—"
"Do you deserve it?" Lucinda cut her off, picked up a file from the desk, flipped it open, and tossed a stack of photos onto the table.
The pages were covered in hotel transaction records, bank transfer details. Ella's name appeared in the corner of every single page.
Ella's pupils dilated. She slumped to the floor, staring at the records, unable to say a word.
The three people behind her turned pale as well.
Lucinda picked up another file and opened it. Inside were complete supply chain records. "The four of you. You worked with Ella to swap out the company's raw materials for inferior products, then sold them under the company's name. Three years. You embezzled over ten million dollars."
She closed the file, her gaze sweeping over the four of them. "Customer complaints quadrupled. Seven long-term clients terminated their contracts. This company is one step away from bankruptcy. Once this evidence is submitted to the Economic Investigation Unit, the rest of your lives will be spent in prison."
All four of them collapsed to their knees.
The female clerk was the first to sob. "Ms. Wipere… Ms. Garcia forced me! She said if I didn't do it, she'd fire me… I have a child at home…"
The other two latched onto the lifeline and echoed her words frantically.
Ella whipped her head around and glared at the people who'd worked under her for years, her eyes bloodshot.
But their gazes bounced off her face like she carried the plague. Not one of them said a word in her defense.
She slowly turned back and closed her eyes. "I'll admit it. I did it all."
Lucinda stayed silent for a few seconds, then picked up the final document at the bottom of the stack and tossed it in front of Ella, her tone measured. "You admitted to embezzlement. What about the sex trafficking?"
Ella's head snapped up.
Lucinda opened the file. Photos scattered across the floor.
Young girls' faces. Some looked barely twenty, their expressions still carrying the naivety of fresh graduates.
Beside the photos were detailed records: dates, locations, hotel names, room numbers, transaction amounts.
"Over the years, you targeted newly hired young women in this company. The ones you didn't like—you used promises of permanent positions and promotions to lure them to hotels. You filmed videos and blackmailed them into working for you. The obedient ones stayed and helped you cook the books and swap materials. The disobedient ones? You sent them overseas. Sent them to the bosses you'd made deals with."
Ella's face turned from white to ashen.
Among the three people kneeling on the floor, the female clerk stared blankly at the photos scattered across the ground, at those faces even younger than her own.
The two men's heads dropped lower and lower, nearly burying into their chests.
Just then, the man kneeling at the back suddenly stood up.
He was in his forties, wearing a BlueWave Tech uniform. He was the warehouse supervisor, named Zaid. He'd worked under Ella the longest.
When he stood, his knees were still shaking, but he looked at Ella, something long-suppressed churning in his eyes.
"Ms. Wipere." His voice was hoarse. "I have something to say. It wasn't just them."
Ella whipped her head around and glared at him, her gaze cutting like a blade.
Zaid didn't look at her. He just kept talking. "It wasn't just these girls who were hurt. Even us men—we didn't escape either."
His Adam's apple bobbed. His voice choked. "Ms. Garcia had people set us up. Pulled us into gambling. At first, we won. Then we lost. Lost until we'd poured all our family savings in and still owed more. She sent debt collectors to my door. They blocked my house. Called my wife's workplace. Sent things to my son's school. I had no choice but to work for her. I approved the material swaps. I signed off on the counterfeit shipments. Every single transaction—I knew it was illegal. But I couldn't stop."
His voice grew quieter and quieter, until the words were practically squeezed out through his teeth. "Today, Ms. Wipere laid it all out. I'll admit it. Whatever I did, however many years I deserve—I'll take it. But I'm going to expose her."
At the end, he raised his hand and pointed at Ella. "Everything. Every single thing. I'll tell it all."
Behind him, the other two stayed silent for a few seconds, then slowly stood as well. "We're willing to turn ourselves in too. We've been living like animals all these years. We don't want to live like this anymore."
Lucinda leaned back in her chair, her gaze sweeping over each of their faces one by one.
The office stayed silent for a long time. Fiona stood to the side, her pen suspended in mid-air, her face slightly pale.
She hadn't been at the company long, but the documents she'd handled were enough to show her how chaotic internal management was. She just hadn't expected it to be this dark.
Lucinda stood from her chair and walked over to stand in front of Ella, looking down at her from above.
Ella sat crumpled on the floor, curled into a ball, not daring to lift her head.
"Ella, you know exactly what you've done. Illegal operations, embezzlement, extortion, forced transactions, organizing and coercing others into prostitution—add those up, and you'll rot in prison for the rest of your life." Lucinda's voice carried an oppressive weight that seemed to thin the air in the entire office. "But if you give up the person behind you, the judge will take that into consideration during sentencing."
Ella's shoulders shook violently, but she bit her lip and said nothing.
Seeing her stubbornness, Lucinda crouched down, leveling her gaze with Ella's, and spoke calmly. "You have a son. Seven years old. Second grade at Rainbow Ridge School."
Ella's head snapped up, her pupils contracting sharply.
"Your hotel records with Joseph. The bank transfers. Every single one is in my hands. If this information goes public, how do you think your son will be treated at school? You know the answer."
Ella froze completely. Her lips trembled violently.
In the end, it was as if something inside her shattered. She collapsed, covered her face with both hands, and let out a wrenching sob. "I'll talk… I'll tell you everything…"