Chapter 2

2.

Victor's demand made me shake with pure fury.

"Apologize to her? She's a homewrecker who's trying to ruin my life. She doesn't deserve a word from me!" I snapped.

Victor lunged toward me and delivered a stinging slap to my face.

"Watch your mouth!" he roared. "If anyone is the homewrecker here, it's you. You knew exactly what you were doing when you―"

He caught the hungry, gossiping looks of our coworkers and cut himself off.

"Are you going to apologize or not?" he asked, his voice cold and hard.

I looked at him, feeling a pain in my chest so sharp I could hardly breathe.

"Are you really that certain I'm the thief?" I asked quietly. "Did it ever occur to you that Seraphina might have stolen from me?"

Victor didn't even blink. "Seraphina is brilliant. You're just a connected hire who got in through the back door. You don't have half her talent."

I opened my mouth to defend myself, but he cut me off again.

"Enough. If it's not yours, why won't you just give it back?"

I stared at him as he stood as a shield for Seraphina. The sight was a dagger to my heart.

I couldn't even remember when he had stopped seeing me and started only seeing her.

He was willing to destroy me just to keep her happy.

After the plagiarism accusation went public, Victor had been relentless.

He had called me disgusting and a low-life thief in front of the entire office.

It was a sick joke. The one person who should have had my back was the one leading the witch hunt.

"You want proof?" I said, my voice eerily calm. "Fine. I'll show everyone the truth."

I pulled a USB drive from my bag and plugged it into the nearest laptop, projecting my files onto the big screen.

I showed them the initial drafts, the research logs, and the final iterations from months ago.

The room went silent as they saw the complexity of the data―stuff you couldn't just copy-paste.

Seraphina's face drained of color, turning a sickly shade of white.

"Do you believe me now, Victor?" I asked, looking him straight in the eye.

Victor let out a mocking snort. "Sylvia, what is this supposed to prove? I didn't think you could be this shameless."

"I gave that USB drive to Seraphina myself," he continued. "If you don't believe me, look at the bottom. My initials are engraved right there."

I felt like I had been struck by lightning.

I looked down at the drive. I knew his initials were there.

I had found that diamond-encrusted drive at his place on my birthday. He told me then it was my gift.

I remembered the flash of panic on his face back then.

Now I finally understood. That gift was never meant for me.

Victor was right about one thing. If it wasn't mine, I should definitely give it back.

I finally accepted the truth: the man I loved was dead. This stranger was a monster.

Victor looked at Seraphina with a gaze full of pity.

"I helped Seraphina work on this pitch every single night. I watched her calculate every single data point herself."

"If you want a witness, here I am. I saw her do the work."

Seraphina's eyes welled up with tears, looking like a grateful victim.

"Sylvia might be my girlfriend, but I won't cover for a thief," Victor declared righteously.

The room erupted into applause for his integrity.

I stood there alone, feeling the warmth leave my body.

I finally knew what it felt like for your soul to turn to ash.