Chapter 96

The phone rang for a long time before someone answered.

"Who's this?" A slippery middle-aged male voice came through.

"Mr. Fisher, this is Sophia." I got straight to the point. "Why haven't my employees been paid yet?"

CFO Gage Fisher, on the other end, fell silent for a few seconds, then let out a dry laugh. "Oh, Sophia. This... there's a small issue with the process. We're expediting it, don't worry. It'll be in the account very soon... very soon."

I'd heard this kind of bureaucratic brush-off far too many times.

My patience was wearing thin. "Mr. Fisher, I don't want to hear excuses. I'm only asking you one thing—can the money be deposited today?"

"Well..." He hemmed and hawed, unable to give a straight answer.

"It can't?" Ice crept into my voice. "Mr. Fisher, do you know the consequences of withholding wages? If my people don't have their money by six o'clock this afternoon, the Labor Bureau will be at headquarters tomorrow."

The threat clearly worked.

Gage on the other end sounded like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, his voice instantly shrill. "Sophia! Don't threaten me! This isn't my decision! I... I'm just following orders!"

Like he'd cracked, everything came pouring out. "It's not that I won't approve your funds—the Group literally has no money! The deficit is too big to fill! Mr. Neville... he's planning to abandon your subsidiary. He's already preparing to file for bankruptcy protection with the court!"

My mind buzzed, going completely blank.

Bankruptcy?

How could that be?

In my previous life, the Neville Group had indeed declared bankruptcy shortly before my rebirth, but that was years from now!

How could it have been moved up so much?

What went wrong?

Could my rebirth have changed the trajectory of certain events?

No time to think it through. Cold fury surged from my feet straight to my head.

I hung up on Gage and, without a moment's hesitation, dialed a number I'd deliberately tried to forget for so long.

"What is it?" Isaac's voice answered.

Suppressing the fire in my chest, I asked word by word, "Why are you abandoning the subsidiary?"

Isaac didn't seem surprised I'd called him. "Sophia, don't throw a tantrum. That little company has no value anymore. I'm doing this for your own good. Bring your projects back to headquarters. I'll reserve you a seat on the board of directors."

"No value?" I laughed bitterly. "Isaac, have you forgotten how that company came to be? My mother started it with her own dowry! You absorbed it into the Neville Group, and now you say it has no value?"

"Why are you still hung up on a dead woman's things?" His voice was full of impatience. "I'm paving the way for you!"

A dead woman's things.

Those words were like a poisoned knife, stabbing viciously into my heart.

All the blood in my body went cold in that moment.

"Isaac, I'll say this one last time." My voice was terrifyingly calm. "Save the company. Pay the wages. Otherwise, I don't mind finding a few reporters to help you recall exactly how you had an affair during your marriage, how you coerced and manipulated my grandfather into giving you my mother's shares, and how you eventually drove her to her death."

"You wouldn't dare!" He finally exploded on the other end.

I hung up directly.

Clutching my phone, I stood in place, breathing heavily, my fingertips white from excessive force.

Outside my office door, the commotion grew louder, escalating from hushed discussion to open argument. Panic spread through the crowd like an epidemic.

No. I couldn't lose my composure like this.

I took a deep breath, forced myself to calm down, straightened my somewhat disheveled clothes, and pulled open the office door.

The scene outside was even more chaotic than I'd imagined.

In the entire office area, everyone had abandoned their work, gathering in small groups. Every face was written with anxiety and unease.

And at the center of the crowd, one voice stood out—particularly shrill and grating.

"...My cousin is a secretary on the board at headquarters. She told me herself! The board already decided in a meeting to abandon our company and file for bankruptcy liquidation! Not being able to pay wages is just the beginning! We've worked so hard for so long, and in the end, we won't even get severance pay. We need to figure something out fast!"

I recognized the woman speaking—Lyra Cole from the marketing department. She always loved stirring up trouble and forming cliques.

Her words instantly created massive waves.

"What? We're going bankrupt?"

"Oh my God, what are we supposed to do? I still have next month's mortgage payment!"

"Where's Ms. Neville? What does she have to say? Didn't she claim she could turn things around?"

Panic erupted completely. The entire office descended into chaos.

I walked through the crowd, step by step, toward the center.

Wherever I passed, the chatter gradually subsided.

All eyes focused on me—probing, doubtful, but mostly waiting.

I didn't look at anyone, my gaze locked directly on Lyra's face.

She looked somewhat guilty under my stare, but still stuck her neck out, blustering defensively. "Ms. Neville, perfect timing! Give everyone an explanation! Is the company really finished?"

I didn't answer her question.

My voice wasn't loud, but it reached every person present clearly.

"Lyra."

"How did you learn about the board's confidential resolution?"

My words, though not loud, rippled through everyone's hearts.

All eyes shifted from me to Lyra in unison.

Lyra's face went white.

Her eyes darted around, her lips trembling as she forced herself to stay composed. "I... I just heard about it! I was just concerned about everyone, concerned about the company!"

"Heard from whom?" I took a step forward, closing in on her. "A board resolution under confidentiality is a trade secret. Leaking trade secrets is a crime. Spreading rumors and disrupting the company's normal operations is also a crime."

My voice remained calm, each word measured, yet like a hammer pounding on Lyra's nerves. "Lyra, I'm giving you one chance. Tell me now who put you up to this, and I'll only fire you without pursuing legal action."

Gasps rippled through the crowd.

Lyra's psychological defenses completely crumbled. Her legs went weak, nearly collapsing as she stammered incoherently, "I didn't... no one put me up to it! Ms. Neville, I was wrong. I'll never do it again..."

I had no interest in wasting more words on her.

"HR department, process her termination immediately. She leaves today. Also, notify legal to prepare a lawsuit."