Now You Want Me? Too Late

Elena narrowed her eyes. Her suspicion deepened.

There was something about Vivian’s confidence that made her uneasy. She had a strong feeling that Vivian had once again manipulated something to frame her.

But she kept her expression neutral. "No. I am not. I am rather curious." Her gaze swept across the room. "I believe everyone here is just as eager as I am to find out who the traitor is."

Several executives nodded.

"Yes. We all want to know."

"Relax," Vivian said smoothly. "Everything will be revealed soon." Her smile widened. "And I’m sure you’ll all be shocked."

All eyes turned to her.

One executive couldn’t hold back his curiosity. "You are talking as though you already know who the traitor is. Did you find something?"

"If you know something, just tell us."

"Yes. Tell us."

Voices rose around the table.

Even Elena watched Vivian closely.

Vivian lifted one hand, pretending to calm everyone. "Alright, please. Don’t pressure me. I’ve already submitted everything I found to Elias. He will tell you everything himself."

She leaned back. "Let’s wait for him to begin the meeting."

As soon as she finished speaking, the board of directors filed into the room one by one.

Cedric Sterling walked in with them. His eyes immediately found Vivian. For a brief moment, father and daughter exchanged a meaningful glance.

A silent message passed between them.

Cedric took his seat.

Elena noticed the exchange. Her heart began beating faster. ’They are up to something. But what?’

Before she could dwell on it, the doors opened once again.

This time, Elias entered.

Owen followed closely behind him, with a stack of folders in his hands.

Unlike earlier, Owen looked composed. His hair was neatly combed back, his suit immaculate, and his expression sharp and attentive.

Elias walked to the head of the table and took his seat.

The room immediately fell silent.

He looked around at everyone. "Thank you for coming."

There was an unmistakable authority behind his voice.

"Today, I’m going to disclose a scheme that has been operating against this company right under my nose." His gaze swept across the room.

"And I’m going to reveal the identity of the person responsible."

A hushed murmur spread through the conference room. Executives and board members exchanged startled glances.

Elena stiffened. She hadn’t known Elias had already uncovered the traitor.

’Who is it? Why has he not told me anything?’ Questions raged in her mind.

Across the table, Vivian and Cedric exchanged another glance.

Confidence gleamed in both their eyes. They seemed almost certain about what was coming.

"The traitor is sitting right here among us," Elias said, his gaze moving straight to Cedric. "Pretending to care about this company while secretly playing a dangerous game to destroy it."

"This is outrageous," a senior director exclaimed. "Anyone who conspired against the company must be punished immediately."

"Who is it? We want the name?"

"Yes. Punish the traitor.

The room erupted with voices.

Elias raised one hand, and everyone fell instantly silent. His eyes shifted toward Vivian for the briefest moment before moving to Owen.

"Start the recording."

Owen stepped forward. He connected the USB drive to the conference room’s large display.

The big screen glowed as the video began to play. For several seconds, no one spoke.

Then gasps echoed throughout the conference room. Shock swept across every face, quickly followed by anger and disgust.

The footage clearly showed Vivian inside Elena’s office that night, accessing confidential files and printing documents.

Cedric stared at the screen, his mouth hanging open.

Vivian, however, had gone completely pale. She had been certain no one had seen her that night. She had believed she had covered her tracks perfectly. But she had been wrong.

Someone had followed her and recorded everything.

Her horrified gaze shifted toward Elena.

’It’s her.’ Her hands curled into fists beneath the table. ’It has to be her.’

Rage burned through her veins.

"Stop," Vivian suddenly screamed.

Everyone turned toward her.

"Don’t watch it." Her voice trembled with panic. "It’s fake. She fabricated this."

She pointed accusingly at Elena.

The room erupted in shock.

"What? A fake video?"

"Is it really fabricated?"

Cedric immediately seized the opportunity. "This is outrageous."

He shot to his feet, his face dark with fury. "In a board meeting like this, you produce a fake recording to humiliate my daughter?"

His palm slammed against the table. "Is this some kind of joke?"

His gaze hardened toward Elias. "I will sue you for defamation. And I will terminate every collaboration between Sterling Group and Novacrest Global."

Murmurs spread throughout the room. Doubt and uncertainty clouded several faces.

A senior director looked toward Elias. "Mr. Rowan, we need an explanation. The footage clearly shows the inside of Elena’s office. But there are no surveillance cameras inside the executives’ offices."

His brows furrowed. "How did you obtain this recording?" He glanced at the screen. "Is it fake?"

Elias remained calm. He had anticipated exactly this reaction.

"I know there are no cameras inside the executive offices," he said evenly. "And I acknowledge that was a security weakness. But I’m correcting that mistake. From now on, cameras will be installed inside the offices as well."

Several executives immediately reacted.

"What? Inside the offices? That’s unacceptable."

"There would be no privacy. I strongly oppose this. We can’t have cameras recording everything employees do inside their own offices."

"What about private conversations? Will those be recorded too?"

"This is a workplace, not a surveillance facility."

Another executive shook his head. "I don’t agree with this proposal at all. Security is important, but there has to be a limit."

The room erupted into debate.

"Can’t you see what happened?" Another executive’s voice silenced several others. "Someone sneaked into the office and accessed confidential files. If cameras had been installed inside, this could have been prevented."

He looked around the room. "Anyone planning to commit a crime would think twice if they knew they were being recorded."

A few executives nodded.

"That’s right. I support the installation."

"Me too."

"We clearly need stronger security."

But other executives remained firm.

"There is no need to put cameras inside the offices. Cameras in the corridors and outside the rooms should be enough to catch anyone sneaking in. I don’t support the proposal."

The executives began debating again, completely sidetracked from the original question of whether the recording was authentic.

"Enough." Cedric’s thunderous voice cut through the room.

He glared around the table. "You are debating whether cameras should be installed while my daughter is being publicly humiliated with a fabricated video."

His chest heaved. "And no one seems to care."

The entire room froze. No one dared speak.

Cedric’s furious gaze shifted to Elias. "I want an explanation. Why are you showing a fake video?"

Elias slowly turned his head toward him. "Why are you so certain it’s fake?"