Chapter 4

"The evidence is solid. There's no room for debate!" Mandy said.

She gathered the documents and shot me a challenging look, tilting her chin up.

The message was obvious.

My heart sank.

Leo had been with Dad for five years, his most trusted man.

And now he was framing me as a corporate spy.

This mess was way deeper than I thought.

But Mandy wasn't letting up. She kept hounding Leo.

"Can you get headquarters to put out another announcement? I don't want to see her in this industry ever again," she demanded.

Leo glanced at me, then shook his head.

"Relax. This evidence is enough to lock her up for life," he said. "There's no need for extra steps."

I couldn't help but snort at Leo's attempt to act calm.

"Leo, you'd better make sure my dad never hears about this," I warned.

"Otherwise, the Shaw family has plenty of ways to make your life a living hell."

Leo's face stiffened for a split second.

Then he hurried off.

Stephen sensed something was off, but he refused to back down in front of his colleagues.

Mandy, on the other hand, didn't hold back at all—she jabbed her stiletto heel straight into my leg.

"Lynn! Still putting on an act? You're already finished, and you're still talking tough?" she sneered.

Her heel left two bloody holes in my leg, but I still wouldn't give her the satisfaction of seeing me beg.

Soon, Leo came back.

His face was ghostly pale.

"Mr. Shaw's car is downstairs at your company right now," he blurted out.

He froze, like he'd turned to stone.

His breathing quickened.

He looked at me, wanting to help me up, but with Mandy and Stephen staring him down, he felt a chill run down his spine.

Mandy, completely oblivious to Leo's unease, kicked my leg again.

"Mr. Smith! Perfect timing. Mr. Shaw's here. This bitch stole company secrets. Let's drag her in front of him!" she said.

But before Mandy could finish, Leo suddenly clenched his fists and shot her a furious glare.

"No!" he roared.

Mandy had no clue what was going on and looked a bit hurt.

"Mr. Smith! What's with the yelling?" she whined. "If you won't bring Lynn to Mr. Shaw, at least explain yourself."

Stephen noticed Leo's nervous expression and sensed something was off.

"Mr. Smith, is there a reason Mr. Shaw showed up out of nowhere?" he asked.

With Stephen staring him down, Leo's hands wouldn't stop shaking.

He forced himself to stay calm. "No, Mr. Shaw's probably just here to check on things.

"It's just a few days ago at headquarters, he made it super clear he doesn't want any mess or drama in the company. I really don't want our branch to start off with bad luck.

"So... so, you guys take this woman away first. I'll go greet Mr. Shaw myself."

With that, Leo left, leaving Mandy and Stephen watching me thoughtfully behind.

Mandy, totally clueless about the situation, kicked my hand without a second thought.

"Lynn, feeling proud of yourself? You stole secrets from headquarters and still got lucky enough to dodge a bullet," she sneered.

I glared at her cocky face, and for a moment, everything went blurry.

I couldn't let them haul me off.

As long as Dad showed up, he'd see right through everything.

"Hah! I'd love to see what kind of ending I get!" I shot back.

"Too bad you're all scared of a glorified assistant who thinks he's running the show."

Mandy finally snapped, all that frustration from Leo yelling at her bursting out at once.

She kicked me hard, grabbed my hair, and tried to haul me out in front of everyone.

"You bitch! Even when you're about to meet your end, you still act tough," she spat.

"Still pretending to be Mr. Shaw's daughter? I'll make sure you regret it."

I bit back a smile, keeping my angry expression.

Soon, I'd get to see Dad.

But just as Mandy was about to drag me out the door, Stephen suddenly spoke up.

"Mandy, wait. I think we should do what Mr. Smith says," he said.

"I got word from HQ, too. Let's just take her to the fire escape; keep her out of sight.

"Besides, you should change your clothes. You don't want to look like this when the HQ people show up."

That was when Mandy finally noticed she still had trash stuck to her.

She let out a shriek and bolted, her heels clacking loudly as she ran off.

I was just two steps from the door, forcing myself up and ready to make a break for it.

But Stephen's guys completely pinned me down, not letting me move an inch.

"Lynn, don't waste your energy. The Shaw family is one of the most powerful families here," one of them said.

"It doesn't matter if you cross Mandy or Mr. Guthrie, but Sam Shaw? That's someone you really don't want to go up against."

Acting like it was for my own good, they followed Stephen's orders and dragged me into the company's fire escape like I was nothing but garbage.

They even locked the door behind me.

As the lock clicked shut, my heart sank into utter despair.

My phone had been smashed to pieces in the fight, and I was so weak from blood loss that I could only lean against the door, gasping for air.

Maybe I'd be dead before Dad and his people even found me.

But soon, I heard voices outside the door.

It was the girl who had warned me earlier.

"Lynn, are you in there? I saw blood all over the floor," she called out.