The meeting was nearly over when the company's newest programmer projected a screenshot of a document bearing my name.

"Mr. Stark, I'm reporting Lina for misappropriating company assets. She put her personal name on the company's core algorithm."

Every head in the room turned toward me.

I almost smiled. I had built that algorithm on my own years earlier and later lent it to the company. Misappropriation? The accusation was almost laughable.

I expected it to collapse under its own weight. I did not expect my boyfriend, the CEO, to nod in agreement. "Lina, this was a collective effort in the end. Update the credit to the company's name after the meeting."

I struggled to process what I was hearing. He had come to me in tears, begging to use that algorithm. He had built the entire company on it.

I had trusted him completely, so I had never put a single word in writing. Now that trust had become the very thing he used against me.

A chill settled in my chest.

I picked up the USB drive and set it down hard on the table. "Fine. Change it yourselves."

None of them knew I had filed for a patent the moment I finished the algorithm.

Unauthorized use of someone else's patent was a serious offense. People went to prison for it.

The USB drive hit the table with a sharp crack that echoed through the conference room. No one moved.

My name is Lina Hartwell, and I was the company's second-in-command. Everyone knew it. My methods were sharp, and my results sharper. I had led most of the company's core projects from the ground up.

In every way that mattered, I was the backbone of this place. Only Sophia Becker had the nerve to reach out and take the USB drive.

She held it like a trophy, satisfaction written across her face. "Lina, I'm doing this for the good of the company. This algorithm is the result of everyone's hard work. If the other employees found out you'd been taking sole credit for it, who knows? We might have a full-on revolt on our hands."

I shifted my gaze across the table to Vincent Stark, my boyfriend and the company's CEO.

"Vincent, tell me. Did this company build that algorithm?" I asked.

I already knew what he would say. Years ago, when the company struggled to survive its early days, he had come to me. He had begged for my help.

I had given in. I did more than loan him the algorithm. I left my own work and joined him. We built this company side by side until it became what it is today.

Now Vincent looked away and cleared his throat. "This algorithm was built by the company's employees. Since most of the company's products rely on it, it naturally belongs to the company."

I laughed. People changed. That much was obvious.

Years of trust and loyalty had collapsed under the weight of greed.

Sophia saw Vincent take her side and grew bolder. "Mr. Stark, just changing the name back isn't really enough, is it? By the rules, misappropriating company assets is grounds for a lawsuit.

"But Lina is the VP, so maybe we don't need to go that far. How about a one-week suspension? That would give everyone a fair answer."

"A one-week suspension?" I raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure about that? Do you have any idea that I have a nine-figure partnership deal in its most critical phase right now?"

Sophia waved it off. "Everything you've accomplished, you did because of the company's algorithm. With the algorithm in hand, anyone could have done what you did. The company will run just fine without you."

I studied her. She was breezy, utterly certain of herself.

The corner of my mouth lifted. The algorithm was mine. I had built it from scratch. The program was complex, and only I understood its core logic. Anyone else who tried to use the source code without proper guidance would run straight into system errors.

"Fine," I said. "Since you make it sound so simple, every project on my plate is yours now. When things go sideways, don't come crying to me to clean up the mess."

Sophia lifted her chin, her expression pure arrogance. "At least I act with integrity. I don't steal from the collective and call it my own achievement."

At last, Vincent cut in sharply, his brow furrowed. "Enough. No one-month suspension. One week off, and her performance bonus for this month is forfeited. Consider it a formal warning. During the suspension, Sophia will take over Lina's current projects."

I did not argue. I only looked at Vincent. The man across from me felt both familiar and strange.

When we first got together, he had been straightforward and genuine. His eyes had been only for me. Back then, I believed I could build a life with him.

Now he showed no gratitude. He was trying to take what was mine.

I had poured years of work into his company. I had even arranged for my family to invest quietly, so he would not feel indebted.

Now it all felt like a joke.

Sophia held up the USB drive as if she had just claimed something priceless. "Lina, relax and enjoy your week off. And when you're back, try not to let jealousy get to you if I've done a better job than you."

I met her gaze and said flatly, "Go ahead. Take it."

Whether she had the skill to handle such a complex algorithm was one issue. The law was another. Using patented technology required authorization, and authorization came with licensing fees.

Every time they ran that algorithm, it would cost them. I intended to see exactly how they planned to pay me back.

The news spread faster than I expected. The meeting had barely ended before word of my suspension swept through the company.

"Oh my God, the VP got suspended? She always seemed so sharp. I never would have pegged her for something like this."

"Who knows? The boss signed off on it, so it must be real."

"Maybe this isn't the only thing she's taken. If they ran a full audit, who knows what else they'd find?"

I ignored the chatter. I had just sat down at my desk when Sophia barged into my office.

"Lina, send me all the handover files for your current projects before you leave today," she demanded. "And the client contact files for the partners you've been managing. Send those over too."

I did not look at her. I opened my computer, compiled everything she requested, and sent it over.

"That's very cooperative of you, Lina. But that's not everything, is it?" she asked. "You always close deals over drinks, don't you? The clients' favorite dishes, the liquors they prefer, any allergies. Put everything in a spreadsheet and send it to me before you go."

I looked up at her, puzzled. "Sophia, drinks are just a tool for doing business. Why would I keep track of things like that?"

"Don't give me that act. You think I don't know? That one investor has poured over 40,000,000 dollars into this company over the years. You don't pull numbers like that just by clinking glasses.

"The way I see it, you had to have used other methods, such as selling yourself. Why else would he stay so loyal to you?"

The accusation was crude and ignorant, and I had no interest in arguing.

"Fine. I'll put it together and send it to you," I said evenly.

Sophia looked pleased. "Don't worry, Lina. I'll take good care of the projects while you're out. I guarantee I'll do a better job than you. And unlike you, I'll do it the right way. I won't sell myself to land investments."

I leaned back in my chair, my expression flat. "Is that so? I look forward to seeing that."

After Sophia left, I picked up my phone and called my lawyer. "Hi. I'd like to consult on a patent infringement matter and discuss filing a lawsuit."

I laid out the details. Over the years, the company had built its entire product line on that algorithm. It spanned multiple industries and generated enormous profit.

When I first handed it to Vincent, I did so as an act of trust within our relationship.

There was no contract, no written agreement, nothing on paper. Because of that, I never signed a patent licensing agreement with the company, and they never paid me a single cent in licensing fees. That alone constituted serious infringement.

Under the law, they would be required to pay full compensation for every dollar earned from the algorithm, and every product built on it would have to be pulled from the market.

It was enough to bring the company to its knees overnight.

My lawyer confirmed he would begin gathering evidence immediately.

I hung up, sat with it for a moment, and found that I felt completely calm.

Then I opened a new document and began compiling the list Sophia had demanded—every preference and habit of the partner investor she was so eager to impress.

When I finished, I reviewed what I had written and could not help but smile.

Sophia was not entirely wrong. I had used other means to secure that investor. Just not the kind she had in mind.

The reason was much simpler. The so-called big investor was not an outsider at all. He was my older brother, Leo Hartwell. As his younger sister, I naturally knew every preference on that list.

After I joined Vincent's company, I had persuaded my family to invest through a partnership arrangement to help the company grow.

I had kept it from Vincent because I did not want him to feel indebted. I had never told him where I came from or that I was the daughter of a major business family.

In front of him, my family and I had always played the role of ordinary business partners.

Now I was curious to see how Sophia planned to win my brother over.

I had no interest in staying at the office any longer than necessary. A one-week suspension felt like a paid vacation.

What I did not expect was a call from Vincent two days in. He sounded frantic the moment I picked up. "Lina, get back to the office. Something's gone seriously wrong!"

I had seen this coming. My voice stayed even. "What happened?"

He spoke quickly, tripping over his words, but within a minute I understood.

It was exactly as I had predicted. Sophia had no real familiarity with the algorithm. She had tried to integrate it several times and failed each time. It would not adapt under her handling.

Instead of stopping there, she decided she knew better and altered the core parameters herself. The result was a complete system crash across the new product line.

I tried hard not to laugh. Failing to adapt the algorithm was one thing. But rewriting base code without understanding it? What had she been thinking?

Vincent's voice dropped low over the phone. "Babe, what happened before was on me. I didn't have a choice. The whole team was watching. Just come back and take a look. Please. Do it for me."

So now he remembered how to be sweet. Unfortunately, it did not work.

"Vincent, have you forgotten I'm still on suspension? If I walk in right now, I'd be breaking company policy," I said.

"Forget the policy. The project matters more. I'm revoking every penalty right now. Just come back," Vincent urged.

"That's a shame. I had so much free time during the suspension that I booked a trip," I drawled. "I'm abroad right now. I just landed. I can't get back anytime soon."

Silence stretched on the other end before he spoke again. "Lina, stop messing around. The company genuinely can't function without you."

"I'm not messing around. You put Sophia in charge of the project, so let her fix it," I shot back. "If she can't, the timeline slips. When I finish traveling and I'm in a better mood, I'll come back."

I hung up before he could respond and switched my phone to Do Not Disturb.

Just like that, I enjoyed my trip without a second thought.

…

A week passed, but I still did not go back.

I prolonged it deliberately. One day, bad weather canceled my flight. Next, I felt unwell and needed a few more days. Then an old classmate reached out and wanted to meet.

At first, Vincent called constantly and pushed me to return.

After a while, he realized I was delaying on purpose and stopped pressing. He changed tactics, sending careful messages in a softer tone, trying to keep me from cutting ties with the company entirely.

A colleague told me that the entire project had stalled because of what Sophia had done. In a few days, the investor's team would send someone to review progress.

Sophia busied herself preparing explanations and rallying people to manage the visit.

Unfortunately for her, it would not matter how well she prepared. That investor was my brother. I knew exactly how he operated.

…

As expected, Leo's call came a few days later.

"Lina, why did the project lead change? Are you not running it anymore?" he asked.

"I was suspended," I said.

I walked him through everything that had happened in that meeting.

By the time I finished, he was furious. "That ungrateful little… After everything you've given his company, this is how he repays you?

"And that Sophia. She doesn't know what she's doing. I could tell in yesterday's meeting that she wasn't focused on the project at all. She spent the whole meeting throwing herself at me. That kind of person has bad intentions written all over her."

He grew more agitated by the second, so I ended up calming him down. "Don't get upset. Think of it as me sharpening myself in the real world. And honestly, it's a good thing he showed me who he really is now. We haven't made it to marriage yet. It's not too late."

Leo let out a long breath and asked whether he should pull the investment entirely.

I told him to wait. The time to spring the trap had not come yet. My lawyer was still building the case and gathering evidence. When everything was in place, I wanted to make sure they had no way back.

Leo agreed without hesitation. "The family is always behind you. No matter what happens, you don't have to be afraid."