She walked in like she always did; confident, quiet, unaware of the chaos tucked inside that one file in her hand.
The Kargan file.
It landed on my desk fifteen minutes ago. And I haven't moved since.
The figures were off. The document was outdated. A careless mistake... and coming from Mara Daniels, it didn't add up.
I called her in.
"Miss Daniels," I said, coolly. "In my office. Now."
She entered without hesitation. Back straight. Hands clasped in front of her. Her eyes met mine; but this time, there was a flicker of uncertainty.
"Is there a problem, sir?"
I pushed the file across the table.
"You tell me. This isn't the finalized Kargan proposal. The numbers here are from a draft; an old one. That deal almost went out to our partners."
Her brows drew together as she picked it up, flipping through quickly. The frown that followed wasn't fear; it was confusion.
"This is the file I found in the flagged folder. The one marked urgent."
I stared at her.
"That folder is encrypted. Only senior execs have access."
"It wasn't locked when I opened it. The document was there, untouched. I thought—"
"You assumed," I cut in. "You work here now, Miss Daniels. We don't assume. Not on deals worth millions."
Silence.
Her lips pressed into a thin line. But no excuses came. Just calm, careful words.
"If I made a mistake, I'll take the fall for it. But I didn't touch any other file. And someone else had to have placed it there."
I raised a brow. "Are you saying you were set up?"
Her voice was steady. "I'm saying… it doesn't make sense."
And that's what stopped me.
She didn't try to defend herself with flattery or flustered explanations. She gave me logic.
I hated how convincing it sounded.
I leaned back in my chair, watching her. Sharp edges, smart mouth, too many secrets behind calm eyes.
There's more to Mara Daniels than that neat bun and clipped tone.
And I intended to find out exactly what.