I Thought My Coworker Was Flirting With Someone Else Until She Pulled Me Aside and Told Me the Truth
Chapter 5
Elias Mercer was more than the founder of the company.
He was the man whose name was on the building.
On the scholarships.
On the awards.
On the wall in the executive lobby.
He had supposedly died during a boating accident twelve years earlier.
His daughter, Sarah Mercer, had taken control.
The company had become more modern.
More transparent.
More successful.
At least publicly.
But Hannah had seen Elias alive.
That was enough to make everything feel unreal.
“Where?”
“At a private property outside the city.”
“Why didn’t you tell the police?”
“Because the police have his name on their donor list.”
I stared at her.
“You’re serious.”
“Yes.”
“What does Elias want?”
“Control.”
“Of the company?”
“Of the information.”
That answer made no sense.
Hannah explained.
Elias had built an internal system years ago.
A way to collect financial records, personal vulnerabilities, private agreements, and sensitive information on employees, vendors, executives, and competitors.
The system was supposed to protect the company.
Instead, it became a blackmail operation.
“Who knows?”
“Sarah.”
“Daniel.”
“Some board members.”
“And you?”
“I found it six months ago.”
I frowned.
“Why didn’t you expose it?”
“Because I needed proof.”
“And you had me?”
“I didn’t know about you at first.”
“Then why my name in that old report?”
She hesitated.
“That is what scares me.”
“What?”
“You weren’t hired because of your qualifications.”
She handed me another file.
Inside was my original employment screening.
At the bottom was a note:
Select candidate for external containment strategy.
I stared.
“What does that mean?”
“I don’t know.”
“Who approved it?”
She pointed.
The signature belonged to Elias Mercer.
My skin prickled.
“I was recruited by a dead man.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Maybe because you were supposed to find something.”
“Or?”
“Maybe you were supposed to take the fall.”
Neither of us spoke.
A car entered the garage.
Hannah immediately pulled me behind a concrete pillar.
A black sedan stopped near the elevator.
Daniel stepped out.
He looked around.
Then Elias stepped out beside him.
I nearly stopped breathing.
The dead founder was standing fifteen yards away.
Older.
Gray-haired.
Very much alive.
Elias said something to Daniel.
I couldn’t hear.
Daniel nodded.
Then Elias handed him a folder.
They left.
Hannah looked at me.
“Now you believe me.”
“Yes.”
She exhaled.
“Good.”
We followed them at a distance.
The sedan drove to an old warehouse.
We parked nearby.
Inside, voices echoed.
I heard Daniel.
“They’re asking questions.”
Elias answered.
“Then give them the analyst.”
“Which one?”
“Carter.”
My blood went cold.
Me.
Daniel hesitated.
“He knows too much.”
“That’s why.”
I looked at Hannah.
She squeezed my arm.
Don’t move.
Elias continued.
“Once the audit is complete, he becomes the perfect explanation.”
Daniel asked,
“And the woman?”
“She’s already compromised.”
Hannah’s expression changed.
“They’re talking about me.”
Elias laughed.
“She thinks she’s investigating us.”
Daniel said,
“She has copies.”
“Then take them.”
I felt something inside me snap.
We needed to leave.
Now.
But Hannah shook her head.
One more second.
Then Elias said something that changed everything.
“Her brother’s debt makes her predictable.”
Hannah went completely still.
I looked at her.
“What debt?”
She didn’t answer.
Elias continued.
“She will do anything to keep him out of prison.”
I looked at Hannah.
Her eyes were full of tears.
She had lied to me.
Not about the investigation.
About the reason she was doing it.
She pulled me back toward the car.
We drove away in silence.
Finally I asked,
“Your brother.”
She nodded.
“He owes them money.”
“How much?”
“Two hundred thousand.”
“Why?”
“He made a mistake.”
“And they threatened him?”
“They threatened to put him in prison.”
I stared at her.
“So that’s why you flirted with Daniel.”
“Yes.”
“You were being blackmailed.”
“Yes.”
I didn’t know what hurt more.
The fact that she’d lied.
Or the fact that she’d been carrying it alone.
She looked at me.
“I wasn’t using you.”
I believed her.
But the hardest truth was still ahead.
Because Elias hadn’t chosen me randomly.
He had chosen me because my father had once worked for him.
