He Let Her Take My Award, I Exposed Her

Chapter 3

The next morning, as soon as I arrived downstairs at the company, the project team surrounded me.

Chloe Reed, the design assistant, spoke first. "Madeline, can you please not blow up the morning meeting? If this project gets killed, our whole team's bonus is gone."

Another patternmaker frowned. "Honestly, can't you settle who made the design in private? There's no need to drag everyone into it."

Someone else lowered their voice. "Vivian is the company's public-facing chief designer now. You're just an assistant designer fighting her. Even if you win, it won't look good."

I looked at them and almost laughed. When they couldn't finish their patterns, I used to stay behind and fix them. When the fabrics didn't match, I was the one who ran to the fabric district again and again. When Vivian drew the structure wrong, I was the one who patched it for her.

Now that their bonuses were at risk, their first reaction wasn't to ask for the truth. It was to ask me to shut up.

I said, "Your bonuses came from the sketches Vivian stole from me. If you still want that money, ask yourselves whether it feels clean in your hands."

Their faces all changed.

I ignored them and turned into the stairwell. The moment I pushed the door open, I saw Daniel standing there.

He had obviously not slept well. There were faint shadows under his eyes. But he still reached out and placed a piece of candy in my palm.

It was lemon flavored, the kind I liked most when my blood sugar dropped.

"Eat this first." His voice was low. "Don't argue with me on an empty stomach."

I looked at the candy, and a dull ache spread through my chest.

Over those five years, he hadn't always been cruel to me.

He remembered my tastes. He remembered that my neck and shoulders hurt after late nights. He remembered that I liked my pencils sharpened to a fine point when I drew.

He really had once pulled me out of the worst place in my life. That was why it hurt so much when he later pressed me back down.

When Daniel saw that I didn't move, he unwrapped the candy himself and brought it to my lips. "Maddie, stop this. Go upstairs and apologize today. Tonight, I'll take you out for crab pasta. Didn't you say last time that you wanted it?"

He even remembered tiny details, like the fact that I always wanted extra lemon with my crab pasta. But he also remembered that I was most afraid of disappointing him. That was why he dared to use such a gentle voice to force me to lower myself in front of a thief.

I looked at him. "Daniel, do you think I'll forgive you as long as you still remember these things?"

His hand paused.

"That's not what I mean."

"Then what do you mean?"

He was silent for a moment, and his voice dropped even lower.

"Vivian can't lose. She really can't afford to lose."

I gave a bitter laugh. I took the candy from his fingers and threw it into the trash can beside us.

"Then let her win. Let's see whether she can survive what comes with it."

Daniel's face darkened.

"Madeline."

I walked past him toward the conference room.

The morning meeting had already begun. The entire company was there. When I walked in, everyone looked over.

Vivian sat in the first row with a pale ivory silk scarf tied around her neck.

I stopped short. That was the silk scarf that went with my engagement gown.

Daniel had said he was taking it to the artisan for shaping. So the thing he had been shaping wasn't the scarf after all. It was my replacement.

Vivian touched the scarf. Her eyes reddened, and her voice turned soft. "Madeline, don't misunderstand. Daniel said it suited me, so I wore it for now."

Daniel stepped onto the stage and picked up the microphone. "Today's morning meeting is to address yesterday's serious incident in the Design Department."

The screen lit up.

Madeline Hart, out of jealousy toward chief designer Vivian Blake, fabricated evidence and made a false public accusation.

Disciplinary action: public apology, demotion and transfer, forfeiture of annual performance bonus.

The next slide was the apology statement they had written for me.

I, Madeline Hart, admit that Vivian Blake is the lead designer of Moonlit Sea and that I only assisted with minor details.

Because of my personal jealousy and emotional instability, I maliciously attempted to seize design credit. I hereby apologize publicly to Ms. Blake.

I looked at those lines and found them laughable.

They didn't want me to apologize. They wanted me to erase myself with my own hands.

Daniel looked at me. "Madeline Hart, come up."

I walked onto the stage.

He thought I had given in. Satisfaction flashed in his eyes. "Read the statement."

I took the microphone. "I do have something to say."

Vivian lowered her head, already prepared to cry.

I turned to the screen. "First, Moonlit Sea was originally called Return to the Tide. Second, the lead designer isn't Vivian Blake. It's me. Third, the silk scarf around her neck is also part of my engagement gown."

Vivian's face went white.

Daniel's brows snapped together. "Madeline Hart, enough!"

I ignored him and connected my tablet directly. Original sketches, sampling records, revision timestamps, and the embroidery artisan's video appeared on the screen one by one.

The room erupted in whispers.

Just as Daniel strode toward me, the conference room doors opened. People from the Legal Department, Audit Department, and the Design Rights Association walked in.

The woman leading them placed her badge on the table.

"This morning meeting is paused. We received a formal report and need to conduct an on-site review of the design ownership for Moonlit Sea."

I looked at Daniel's suddenly frozen face and said softly, "Mr. Vaughn. The real morning meeting starts now."