When Love Becomes a Cage (Melanie) novel Chapter 56

After uncovering the mole within the company, Jade leveraged her extensive network to access the office surveillance footage.

Located at the entrance of the Design Department, the camera quickly revealed that Hank had sneaked back into the office late at night the day before the data mishap, meddling with the computers.

Given the shared nature of many projects within the Design Department, merely logging into the company’s account allowed for modifications, explaining why Jade hadn’t initially caught on to the issue.

Moreover, taking advantage of the team's celebration over a successful project bid, Hank had sneaked into the office, plugging a USB drive into Jade’s computer. Though he had attempted to disguise his actions, the birthmark on his left hand gave him away.

Fuming, Jade gritted her teeth. “That son of a bitch, Hank! After all I did to cover for him last time, he backstabs me like this!”

I held her hand, urging her to calm down. “Jade, you must realize something. The material Hank stole was for your boss.”

That was the real kicker. Hank was merely a pawn, and her boss was the true villain. Tall poppies were the first to get cut down.

Jade’s exceptional capabilities earned her colleagues’ trust after joining the company for less than a year, as evidenced by the team showing up for her bid presentation. However, such prominence often made one a target of their superiors’ envy, especially in a family-run enterprise that had hired her on a high salary, presumably with ulterior motives.

While clutching her fists in anger, Jade’s eyes reddened. “No, Melanie, I can’t let this slide. It’s not my fault, and I’ll clear my name even if they fire me.”

Her voice was hoarse, but her anger was palpable.

I looked down, inwardly agreeing with her stance.

The designers’ work was without compensation, a clear case of leveraging cheap labor.

When Jade and I returned to the company, her team gathered around. Plugging the USB into the conference room computer, the video of Hank altering and stealing data was unmistakable. All eyes turned to him.

Hank instinctively looked to his current boss, who sneered at Jade arrogantly. “So, Miss Scott, I heard about your data mishap almost derailing the project. What’s this about now? This footage is so grainy. You’re not suggesting Hank stole your data, are you?”

“What else?” Jade’s voice was raspy.

The truth was in front of everyone, yet some refused to acknowledge it.

When the boss arrived, his fury was evident. “Jade, what’s this? Didn’t I tell you to go home? This project belongs to the company, and you’re a company designer. What’s wrong with using your designs for the team? Starting right now, you're out of the Design Department. You'll be working in logistics from here on out.”

I quickly called Lina, who sent me the Design Department III project files.

Jade immediately noticed something was off. “Why are these designs, which I discarded, now with the Patterson Group? Did Kayla buy my designs from Hank?”

After pondering briefly, I stood up, grabbing my coat. “Jade, get your documents ready. We’re going to the police.”

Even Jade’s discarded designs weren’t up for grabs. It seemed Clyde had intended for Kayla to take over the Design Department III, and she was eager to make her mark. Unfortunately for them, ignorance in one field didn’t translate to skill in another.

When we arrived at the Patterson Group with the police, Kayla was still sweet-talking Clyde.

“Clyde, the L brand just released a new handbag. They called me about it. Let’s go and check it out later?”

Kayla reluctantly let go of Clyde’s hand as the secretary ushered us in.

The police officers turned to Kayla. “Ms. Kayla, you’re under suspicion of stealing business secrets. Please come with us.”