The Setup
633 Words
Zoe wasn’t naïve. She knew the moment Vanessa Sinclair walked into Carrington Corp., things wouldn’t be the same.
What she didn’t expect was how fast the claws would come out.
It started subtly.
Her desk chair suddenly missing one wheel.
An email mysteriously unsent though she swore she’d hit “Send.”
Her name “accidentally” left out of the staff lunch invite.
And her copy of the investor briefing? Replaced with a dummy file.
But the final straw came when she walked into a department meeting… only to realize the presentation she had stayed up all night preparing had been swapped with a file full of errors.
And it had her name on it.
Damian sat at the head of the boardroom, expression unreadable as the first few slides flicked on the large screen. Confused graphs. Outdated numbers. Spelling mistakes Zoe knew she didn’t make.
Whispers stirred around the long table.
Zoe’s chest tightened.
“I…I don’t know how this happened,” she said, trying to keep her voice calm. “These aren’t the slides I uploaded.”
Lara smirked from across the room. Vanessa, seated by special invitation, of course didn’t even bother to hide her amusement.
Damian said nothing at first. He simply closed his tablet and stood.
“Meeting’s over,” he said coolly.
The room emptied faster than a fire drill.
Zoe stood there, stunned. Embarrassed. Angry.
She gathered her notes with trembling hands, trying not to let anyone see her face.
Before she could slip out, Damian’s voice stopped her.
“Miss Bennett. My office.”
She followed him upstairs in silence, her heart in her throat. Once inside, the door clicked shut behind them.
Damian didn’t sit. He stood near the windows, arms crossed, back to her.
“That presentation,” he said, “was a disaster.”
“I know. But I swear, those weren’t my slides. Someone tampered with…”
“Who?”
She hesitated. She had no proof. Just gut feelings, and one too many icy smiles from Vanessa and Lara.
“I don’t know,” she admitted.
“Then don’t make accusations.”
Zoe stiffened. “I’m not making excuses. I stayed up all night on this. You know I wouldn’t be that careless.”
Damian turned slowly, his gaze locking onto hers.
“I also know this company is full of people who want to see you fail. You’re not the first to walk into a war zone without armor.”
Zoe blinked. That almost sounded like concern.
“So you believe me?”
His jaw clenched. “I didn’t say that.”
Her eyes narrowed. “No, you didn’t. You also didn’t stand up for me in that meeting.”
He stepped closer. “And what would you have preferred? That I fire someone based on instinct?
“No,” she said quietly. “I just wanted to know you had my back.”
The room went still.
He looked at her for a long moment, expression unreadable. Then…
“You have two days. Redo the report. Present it again. This time, triple-check everything.”
“And if it gets tampered with again?”
His voice hardened. “Then you’ll prove it.”
Zoe bit her lip. “Right.”
She turned to leave, her hand on the door handle.
“But Zoe,” Damian said, stopping her.
She turned.
“I do notice when someone’s lying,” he said. “And you weren’t.”
Her chest tightened, just a little.
She nodded, then stepped out.
Down the hallway, Vanessa leaned against a pillar, arms folded. Lara was beside her, trying not to grin.
“She’s shaken,” Lara whispered.
“She’s predictable,” Vanessa replied coldly. “Next time, we won’t just embarrass her. We’ll eliminate her.”
- Writer
