After the big news meeting, things got even busier, like a beehive suddenly disturbed. My phone didn't stop ringing for hours. People talked about it everywhere – on TV shows, on the radio, and all over the internet. Some people praised me for being brave enough to apologize and tell the truth. But others still didn't trust me, whispering doubts. It felt like walking through a powerful wind, and I had to try my best to stay steady and not fall over.
Liam was like a quiet, busy bee, always working. He spent all his time digging deep into computer files and looking at all the security records of the building. He was like a super detective, determined to find that temporary worker. He checked every single person who had worked for us for a short time in the past six months. He looked at exactly when they came into the building, which doors they opened with their cards, and if they were anywhere near our special computer room at the exact right time of the video.
One afternoon, Liam called me into his office, his voice serious and his face grim. "Ms. Hilly," he said, pointing at his computer screen with his finger. "I found something very important. Remember the temporary worker who helped set up the fake video that hurt Damian?"
My heart jumped in my chest, a sudden thump. "Yes?" I asked, leaning closer to the screen.
"Their name is Mark Jenkins," Liam said clearly. "He worked for us for only two weeks, about eight months ago. And look at this." He zoomed in on a picture of Mark. He looked like a very ordinary person, someone you might see anywhere. "He worked in our data entry department, which is very close to the computer room. And here's the really interesting part. His references, the people who said he was a good worker before we hired him, were all fake. And his old company? It magically closed down right after he left. It seems like it was a fake company from the start."
"A fake company?" I whispered, my eyes wide with surprise. This was much more clever and sneaky than I had ever imagined. Bianca didn't just hire someone; she made sure they couldn't be traced or found easily, like a ghost.
"Exactly," Liam said, nodding. "And I found something else that's even more important. Look at the date Mark Jenkins started working here. It was just after you had that big fight with Bianca at the conference, the one where you told her you knew she was stealing your ideas."
My eyes widened even more. Everything clicked into place like a perfect puzzle piece fitting in. Bianca didn't just plan this trick when she saw Damian's holiday picture. She had been planning this for a very long time, maybe even before that big fight. She knew I would try to stop her from stealing my ideas, so she had a backup plan ready. She wanted to hurt me and ruin my good name, so I would be too busy fixing my own big mess to stop her from taking what she wanted.
"She played a very long game, Liam," I said, feeling a cold shiver run down my spine. "She set this whole thing up months ago. Mark Jenkins was a plant, like a seed she planted. He was put here to wait for the perfect, right moment to cause trouble."
"It definitely looks that way, Ms. Hilly," Liam agreed, his face still serious. "And I'm digging deeper now to see if Mark Jenkins has any other secret connections to Bianca, or anyone else she knows. There might be more people helping her."
This new information meant Bianca was even more dangerous and sneaky than I thought. She wasn't just a sneaky thief; she was a master planner, pulling unseen strings from far away, like a puppet master. But finding out about Mark Jenkins, even if it made me feel a bit scared about how clever she was, also made me stronger and more determined. Now I knew just how deep her mean plan went. And knowing that, I knew I could fight back even better and protect what was mine.