Chapter 6

The next morning, I arrived at the office to find my computer had been reset. All the folders on my desktop were gone.

My account privileges had been downgraded, and all the core design databases I used to access now said "Access Denied."

No one had told me about any of this.

I went to find Henry, the system administrator in the IT department.

Henry rubbed his hands together, looking uneasy. "Sofia, Ms. Smith told me to make the changes. She said it's part of a security overhaul, and she's centralizing all core database access under her."

"Mr. Ludwig personally granted me those permissions," I said.

"I know." Henry lowered his voice. "But Ms. Smith said it was Mr. Ludwig's call. I wasn't about to question it."

I stood in front of the server room door. It was a door I'd had 24/7 access to. I swiped my badge. The reader flashed red.

Nina came up behind me and grabbed my arm. "Something's wrong."

"What is it?" I asked.

"Sunny told Mr. Ludwig you moved the company's core design files onto your own hard drive. She's accusing you of leaking trade secrets. Now the legal team is on it."

I glanced down at the USB drive hanging around my neck.

Nina followed my gaze, her expression suddenly tense. She pointed at the USB drive, her voice tight. "That. Don't tell me that's what they want."

"It's a backup of my own designs."

"Can you prove it?"

"Every file has my digital watermark. The creation dates all predate the Ludwig Group project's approval."

"Then go explain it."

"To whom?"

Nina opened her mouth, but nothing came out.

To Theo? He'd already sided with Sunny. The legal team answered to him. Sunny had taken over all the IT permissions. I couldn't access the database anymore. How was I supposed to prove anything?

At ten in the morning, Theo had his secretary call me into his office.

Theo sat behind his big desk, a document spread out in front of him.

"Sofia," he said, all business. "Sunny reported that you copied core company files without permission. The legal department is looking into it. Until the investigation is finished, you're not allowed to work on any core projects."

I stood across from him. "I'm the one who made those designs."

"You're an employee. Everything you create on company time is company property. Unauthorized copying is a policy violation."

"I completed the initial drafts for four of those designs before I started working here."

Theo looked up at me. "Can you prove it?"

"Yes. Each original file is digitally watermarked and shows the creation date."

Theo leaned back in his chair, giving me an appraising look. "Turn those files over to the legal department. They'll verify them."

"If I give them the files, I'll lose the only proof I have of my intellectual property."

"Sofia," Theo said, his voice taking on an edge. "You've been with the Ludwig Group for three years, and the company has never treated you badly. Now you're talking about intellectual property. What exactly do you mean?"

I looked at him.

Here he was, sitting in this office, surrounded by everything I'd helped him build, and he was asking me what I meant.

I didn't say anything.

"Hand over the files." Theo lowered his head to the papers on his desk. "Let's settle this quietly. I don't want this blowing up."

I turned and walked out.

As I walked past the secretary's desk, she pretended to be working, but she was really checking out my face.

My face gave nothing away.

Back at my desk, my desktop was still wiped clean. There was a new email from the legal department, telling me to turn in all my personal storage devices for inspection within three days.

I didn't reply to the email.

I opened my phone and scrolled to the message Nina sent me two days ago: [Someone from the Harrison Group asked me about your contact info today.]

I sent Nine the plate on that black sedan and texted: [Can you check who owns this?]

Ten minutes later, Nina texted back: [Found it. The owner is Zack Harrison, CEO of the Harrison Group.]

The Harrison Group was the Ludwig Group's biggest competitor.

My finger lingered on the screen for a moment before I scrolled up to find another message from Nina.

It read: [Someone from the Harrison Group reached out to me twice. First, they wanted your contact info. Then they asked if you were thinking about jumping ship.]

I put my phone down.

There was a business card in my drawer. Someone had shoved it into my hand at an industry mixer last month. It read: [Zack Harrison, Harrison Group.] On the back was a phone number scrawled by hand.

Back then, I tossed it in the drawer and didn't think much of it.

Now, I pulled out the card and slipped it between the last pages of my notebook.