Chapter 6

Nora White POV

I left through the back door of the conference room.

I leaned against the wall for a while, until my legs no longer felt weak, then slowly walked forward.

I bought a bottle of water at the convenience store downstairs, sat on the steps by the roadside, opened the cap, and took a sip.

Then I pulled out my phone.

There was a message from Simon.

"Nora, I believe you, but the Hunter family put pressure on this. Vincent Pearson can't stand up to them. Don't worry, I'll help you figure out a way to pull the surveillance footage and logs."

I replied.

"Thank you."

Then I scrolled to my chat window with Liam.

The last message stopped three days ago. He had sent it.

"I'll pick you up after work tomorrow. Let's go to that restaurant you said was pretty good last time."

I never replied to that message.

And I didn't plan to reply now.

I closed my phone, sat on the steps, and stared at the trees lining the street across the road for a long time.

I thought of the day my father sent me to this city.

The bus ride took nearly eight hours. My father helped me load my suitcase onto the bus, stood outside the window, and waved at me on his tiptoes.

He wasn't good with words. After thinking for a long time, he only said one thing.

"Nora, Dad doesn't have much ability. From now on, you'll have to rely on yourself. When you run into trouble, don't be afraid. The sky won't fall."

I lowered my head and took a deep breath.

Then I stood up, patted the dust off my pants, and walked back to the firm.

When I reached my workstation, Liam was already waiting for me.

He leaned against the edge of my desk, hands in his pockets, posture relaxed.

Seeing me return, he raised an eyebrow.

"Cooled off yet?"

I didn't look at him. I walked around him, sat in my chair, and opened my computer.

Liam frowned, his voice lowering.

"About the DuRay case, don't take it to heart. You know what Vincent is like. It's just going through the motions. He won't really do anything to you."

My fingers stopped on the keyboard.

"You know full well that USB drive isn't mine."

"You also know full well that check was from your mother."

I looked up at him.

Liam's expression stiffened for an instant.

So brief. Too brief to truly capture.

But my eyes had seen too many witnesses' microexpressions in court. I saw it clearly.

He knew.

He knew everything.

"Vivian needs the credit from the DuRay case project to compete for a partner seat."

Liam's voice returned to calm.

"You've already decided to leave anyway. This project is meaningless to you now. Sign a voluntary transfer statement and give your signature rights and project results to her."

I looked at him.

The person in front of me had blocked drinks for me, covered me with his jacket, and found the breakthrough in my case in a conference room at three in the morning.

This same person had personally placed a USB drive that didn't belong to me on the table in the conference room, using a check I never intended to accept to nail me to the pillar of shame for selling client secrets.

"I won't sign."

I said.

Liam stared at me for a few seconds. The corner of his mouth twitched slightly, as if he wanted to say something.

In the end, he just straightened up, adjusted his cuffs, and left.

I thought that was the end of it.

If I didn't sign, what could he do?

I was leaving next week, flying to London, and would have nothing to do with anything here.

But I was wrong.That night, my phone rang.

It was my uncle Mike calling.

"Nora! Something happened to your dad! Heart attack! The town hospital can't handle it. He needs to be transferred immediately! The doctor said the surgery will cost at least three hundred thousand dollars!"

I sat up too quickly from the bed. My vision went black.

"Tell the hospital to save him no matter what it costs. I'll figure out the money right away."

"Figure it out?"

Mike's voice suddenly shot up.

"Nora, your dad received an envelope today! It was full of your... those... photos! And some kind of invoice! Your dad couldn't handle it on the spot and..."

His voice choked.

"Nora, your dad saw those things and couldn't take it. He collapsed. If you have the money, send it over quickly. The hospital is pressing hard..."

It felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over my head.