Chapter 108
Andrew's POV
I stepped out of the elevator, my usual confident smile plastered on my face as I exchanged pleasantries with passing employees. But deep inside, anticipation coursed through my veins. Today was the day I'd finally corner Grace, and I was looking forward to watching her squirm when she came face-to-face with Richard.
I knocked on Grace's office door, then entered without waiting for permission.
"Grace," I said smoothly, "I hope you're free this afternoon. We have a final evaluation meeting for the key partnership project, and your input would be... invaluable."
Grace looked up from her computer, and I was struck by how relaxed she appeared. No tension in her shoulders, no wariness in her eyes. She simply nodded.
"Of course. What time?"
I blinked. That was it? No questions about the project details? No suspicious probing? This wasn't the Grace I'd come to expect—the one who was always on guard around me.
"Two o'clock, conference room A," I said, studying her face for any crack in her composure.
"Perfect. I'll be there." Grace's smile was almost... pleasant.
Something was off. The old Grace would have peppered me with questions, would have demanded to know exactly which project and who would be attending. This casual acceptance made my skin crawl.
Does she know something? I thought.
Still, the image of Grace's face when Richard walked into that meeting room would be worth whatever game she was playing.
---
I was in my office making final preparations when my phone rang. Elizabeth's name flashed on the screen, and even before I answered, I could hear the barely controlled fury in her voice.
"Andrew, we have a problem. A big problem."
My blood ran cold. She never lost her composure like this.
"What happened?"
"That little bitch played us. Julie's data—it was all fake. Every single piece of information she gave us was fabricated."
My grip tightened on the phone. "That's impossible. I—"
"You verified nothing!" Elizabeth's voice cracked like a whip. "I've been implementing our two-pronged strategy based on those numbers. The personnel poaching, the financial bleeding, the small project bids—all of it calculated on false data. We've been chasing shadows while Grace has been three steps ahead."
The room seemed to tilt. I thought back to yesterday when I'd pressured Julie to help me get information, providing insider details about Grace's computer files. She'd seemed so nervous. I thought I was manipulating a vulnerable employee.
Damn it. I was the one being played.
"How bad is it?" I asked, though I dreaded the answer.
"Bad enough that our 'insignificant' project bids have actually cost us millions of dollars while strengthening her position. Bad enough that the key personnel we thought we were stealing were people she wanted gone anyway."
My mind raced. Julie had played her part perfectly—the anxious employee, the reluctant informant, the woman torn between loyalty and desperation. And I'd bought every second of it.
"Where is she now?"
"Gone. Vanished. Her desk is cleared out, her phone's disconnected, and her resignation is already processed."
I tried calling Julie's number. Straight to voicemail.
For the first time in my adult life, I had been completely outmaneuvered by a woman. The humiliation burned in my chest like acid.
---
I was heading toward the exit, my jaw clenched with rage, when Grace's voice stopped me cold.
"Andrew."
I turned to see her approaching, and my breath caught. She was wearing a black and white checkered vintage Chanel-style suit that made her look like she owned the world. Her posture was confident, her smile serene. She looked nothing like someone whose employee had just betrayed her.
"Leaving so soon?" she asked, her tone mild. "I thought we had that partnership meeting to discuss."
I studied her face, searching for any sign of distress or confusion about Julie's sudden departure. There was nothing. If anything, she looked... amused.
"Of course," I said slowly. "The meeting."
Something was very, very wrong here.
I chose the largest conference room deliberately—the one closest to the common areas with the worst soundproofing. If Grace was going to have a meltdown when Richard showed up, I wanted witnesses.
Twenty minutes until the scheduled meeting time. Twenty minutes until Grace's carefully constructed new life came crashing down.
"So," I said, settling into my chair, "Julie's sudden departure is quite interesting, don't you think?"
Grace tilted her head slightly. "Julie did mention she was considering leaving, but I haven't approved her resignation yet. I'd like to understand the circumstances better."
Her voice was so calm, so reasonable. But there was something in her eyes—a glint of steel that made my skin crawl.
"Of course," she continued, "if there's any suspicion that an employee left due to unfair treatment from management, or pressure from senior leadership, or any other... special circumstances, we can always file for an internal investigation."
The temperature in the room seemed to drop ten degrees. Grace's smile never wavered, but her words hit like bullets.
She knows. Somehow, she fucking knows.
My assistant burst through the conference room door, practically tripping over himself in his haste. He leaned down to whisper urgently in my ear, and I felt my world tilt on its axis.
I shot to my feet, staring at Grace in disbelief. She was calmly putting away her phone, that same serene smile playing on her lips. But her eyes... her eyes were arctic.
"Something wrong?" she asked sweetly.
I waved my assistant away, my mind reeling. Grace and I locked eyes across the conference table, and I saw something there that made my blood run cold. This wasn't the desperate woman I'd been trying to manipulate. This was a predator who'd been playing with her prey.
"I'm afraid our partners won't be able to make it today," I said carefully. "There seems to be some sort of... regulatory issue with their company. The partnership may need to be cancelled entirely."
---
Grace's POV
I nodded slowly, as if this was exactly what I'd expected to hear.
"Harrison Group is experiencing some compliance problems, I assume? Regulatory departments conducting audits?" I spoke as if I was reading from a script. "How unfortunate that all their key personnel are tied up with federal investigators."
I watched Andrew's expression change, the pieces clicking into place with sickening clarity in his mind. The timing was too perfect. Harrison Group's crisis happening just days after Julie's "betrayal," just hours before this meeting.
"You did this," he breathed.
I stood gracefully, smoothing down my skirt. "I'm sorry, Andrew. Did I do what exactly?"
"This whole thing. Julie, the fake data, Harrison Group's problems—you orchestrated all of it."
My smile turned razor-sharp. "Companies with malicious intentions tend to face consequences eventually, don't you think?"