Chapter 114
When those words came out, many people in the room couldn't help but shift their eyes.
Most of them had let the online rumors cloud their judgment, which was why they'd done what they did.
Now, hearing what Charlotte said, they all started to feel a little uneasy.
Charlotte took in every expression in the room. She curved her lips slightly, pulled out a tablet from her bag, and opened up some data charts and reports.
"I know you all want answers. So today, I'm going to give you some."
"This is the complete progress report and financial record for the project, from launch to when things went wrong. Every single transaction is documented clearly."
After showing that section, Charlotte tapped the tablet again.
"And these are the anomalies I found after pulling an all-nighter to review the data once things went wrong."
"This key geological survey report was accessed from inside the company's network at 2:17 in the morning, the night before it was submitted. Three core data points were tampered with."
"Those three altered figures triggered a chain of problems in the construction that followed."
"Then there's this major building materials payment. Someone used my name to sign a supplementary agreement and transferred the funds into an overseas account with absolutely no connection to our partners. That's why the proper equipment never showed up on time."
"Every single action you're looking at right now came from the same internal IP address. Whoever did this had high-level access and knew every detail of the project workflow."
Charlotte's voice stayed calm and clear as she laid out one piece of hard evidence after another.
"I'll admit that as the project's lead in the later stages, I do bear some responsibility for not catching this sooner."
"But the person who caused all of this isn't me. It's someone who planned this carefully and sabotaged everything from the shadows."
"I trust that the Langley Group will give me, and every one of you here, a fair and honest answer."
"I've already handed all the evidence over to the police. It won't be long before that person is caught and everything comes to light."
When she finished, the room went completely silent. Everyone was stunned.
They had assumed this was just the Langley Group being poorly managed, or that Charlotte had been skimming money off the top and things had blown up in her face.
What none of them expected was that this had been a carefully planned setup all along.
In the corner of the room, Nora's face had gone completely pale by the time Charlotte finished speaking, her forehead covered in cold sweat.
Just then, her phone buzzed.
The sudden vibration startled her so badly that her hand jerked and she nearly dropped it.
She took a slow, deep breath and steadied herself.
But when she saw the name flashing on the screen, her pupils shrank. It was the director of the group's internal affairs department.
A wave of dread hit her instantly.
She answered carefully, and a cold voice came through the line.
"Nora. Come to my office. Right now."
Just as things were starting to turn around for Charlotte, Chloe was hitting a wall on her end.
She had called Benjamin countless times, but he never once picked up.
On top of that, ever since their last conversation ended badly, Benjamin had completely disappeared from her life, as if he'd vanished off the face of the earth.
As time dragged on, Chloe grew more and more anxious.
She gripped her phone tightly, biting down on her lower lip, feeling completely on edge.
No. She couldn't keep sitting back and waiting like this.
She had worked so hard to get close to Benjamin. He was her one shot at marrying into a wealthy family and finally getting one over on Charlotte. She couldn't afford to lose that.
A flash of desperation crossed Chloe's eyes.
If playing it soft wasn't working, she'd have to force his hand.
She pressed her lips together, picked up her phone, found Benjamin's number, and typed out a message.
[Benjamin, I know you don't want to see me right now.]
[But there's something really important I need to tell you. It's about Charlotte.]
[If you want her back, come to room 1808 at the Celestial Peak Hotel. I'll give you half an hour. After that, I'm done waiting.]
The moment she hit send, Chloe's eyes turned sharp.
She was certain that anything involving Charlotte was something Benjamin simply couldn't ignore.
Sure enough, in less than five minutes, a reply came through. Just one word.
[Fine.]
Seeing that, Chloe smiled like she'd already won.
She got up, walked to the wardrobe, and changed into a silky, form-fitting nightgown.
She thought about it for a moment and decided that wasn't quite enough. So she lit a scented candle, drew the curtains shut, and let the flickering candlelight fill the room with a soft, intimate glow.
Once everything was set, she looked around, gave a satisfied nod, then reached for her handbag and pulled out a small paper packet from inside.
The moment she saw it, her expression hardened with resolve.
A smile crept onto her lips as she carefully tipped the white powder into a glass of red wine she'd already prepared, swirling it gently until it dissolved completely.
Then she waited.
Half an hour later, the doorbell rang.
Chloe straightened her nightgown in the mirror, made sure everything looked right, then arranged her face into a soft, helpless expression before walking over to open the door.
Just as she expected, Benjamin was standing outside.
His face was dark, his eyes cold with impatience and suspicion.
"Talk. What is it?"
He had no intention of coming in. He stood in the doorway with his arms crossed, his tone flat and clipped.
He wanted to get this over with fast.
But there was no way Chloe was going to let that happen. If he stayed at the door, her whole plan would fall apart.
"Benjamin, there are people around out here. Come inside."
She stepped aside to make room, her expression soft and humble.
Benjamin hesitated when he heard that.
He figured a woman like Chloe couldn't really do anything to him, so he stepped inside.
Once the door was closed, Chloe picked up two glasses of red wine from the cabinet and held one out to him.
"Benjamin, I know you're still angry with me. What I did before was wrong, and I embarrassed you. I'm sorry. Let me take the first drink as my apology. Can you find it in yourself to forgive me just this once?"
With that, she tilted her head back and drank her own glass in one go.
But when she was done, Benjamin didn't react at all. He just stared at her, his eyes full of cold contempt and disgust.
Seeing his expression, Chloe felt her heart sink. But she quickly shifted her face and lowered her head, letting out a quiet sob.