Chapter 4

I went back to my desk, knowing full well that this was only the beginning.

Neither Kirsten nor Clay would let it go that easily. There was more trouble coming.

Sure enough, near the end of the workday, Clay posted a notice in the department group chat, saying the promotion results would go through a further overall evaluation and be announced in two days.

No one said anything in the chat, but everyone understood exactly what this was—someone was about to stir up trouble.

I smiled at my screen and opened a folder on my computer ahead of time, the one holding everything I had already prepared.

In my last life, they could twist black into white. This time, I wanted to see just how they'd manage to call black white.

Two days later, in the afternoon, the department held its weekly meeting, supposedly also to announce the promotion results.

When I got to the conference room, Kirsten was sitting next to Clay, head down, talking to him in a low voice. The two of them looked very cozy together.

The moment she saw me walk in, Kirsten sat up straight.

Clay cleared his throat. "Everyone's here, so let's start with the promotion."

"After the overall evaluation, taking into account the growth of newer employees and the team's future development, this promotion spot goes to Kirsten Fox."

The instant he finished, the conference room went silent.

Everyone looked at me first, then at Kirsten, with all kinds of expressions.

Kirsten raised her head, a touch of smugness on her face. "Thank you, Clay, thank you everyone. I'll work hard going forward and won't let any of you down."

I said coldly, "Supervisor Harding, this overall evaluation—what exactly is being evaluated?"

"I had the top score in the defense and the best project performance in the group. So on what grounds does the spot go to her?"

Clay frowned, displeased. "Aileen Henson, the company bases promotions on overall ability, not just the defense and performance."

"Kirsten has strong communication skills and works well with the team, which makes her a better fit for a supervisor role."

I said mockingly, "Clay, don't try to fob people off with that line. The reason you picked her is simply that the two of you have something going on, isn't it?"

Clay slammed his hand down on the table. "Aileen Henson, you'd better have evidence for what you say. Spread rumors again and I won't go easy on you!"

I took out my phone, opened the photo album, and set the phone down on the table with the screen facing everyone. "You want evidence? I'll give you evidence."

Two screenshots were on the screen.

The first was security camera footage from the break room, timestamped last Wednesday at eight p.m. In it, Kirsten was leaning into Clay's arms, and Clay had his hand on her hair, stroking it—an intimate pose.

The second screenshot was a chat log. The profile picture was Kirsten's, and the message she'd sent Clay read: "Clay, you absolutely have to help me with this promotion. Once I'm supervisor, I'll do whatever you say from now on."

Clay had replied: "Don't worry, baby, the spot's yours for sure."

The meeting room instantly blew up.

"Whoa, the two of them actually got together?"

"No wonder Supervisor Harding kept covering for her—turns out that's what's going on."

"Isn't Clay's girlfriend Aileen Henson? This is way too much!"

"Two-timing? What a scumbag!"

"Kirsten knew perfectly well they were a couple and still shoved her way in. She has no shame at all!"

The chatter rose on every side. Kirsten's face was as white as paper, and she waved her hands in a panic. "No, this is faked!"

"Aileen Henson, you set me up on purpose!"

I raised an eyebrow. "The footage is from the company Security Office. Should we call security over right now and pull the original?"

"The timestamp and profile picture on the chat log both check out. Or would you two like to take out your phones and show everyone?"

Clay's face turned livid. He reached for his phone, and I snatched it back.

I said coldly, "Supervisor Harding, in such a hurry to delete the evidence?"

In my last life, I didn't find out until the day I died that the two of them had gotten together long before. Back then he told me Kirsten was his junior from school, all alone with no one to lean on, so he had to look out for her.

And back then, I was foolish enough to believe it.

Looking back now, I really was too naive!

Right in the middle of the uproar, the conference room door was pushed open, and Operations Director Miles Finch and the HR director walked in.

Director Finch frowned. "What's all this shouting? This is a meeting—what does this look like?"

The HR director had a sharp eye and spotted my phone screen. "What's going on here?"

I handed over the phone and gave a quick rundown of the situation. "Director Finch, HR Director Lambert, I scored first in this promotion defense, but because Supervisor Harding has an improper relationship with Kirsten Fox, he gave the spot to her on his own."

"I have the surveillance footage and chat logs to prove it!"