Chapter 3
I should have gone home.
My body was begging for sleep.
But after Arthur mentioned Project Meridian, I couldn't stop thinking about the files someone had tried to access.
I knew the project existed.
Almost every employee did.
Whitmore Technologies had been negotiating a major acquisition for months.
The official explanation was simple.
We were planning to purchase a smaller cybersecurity company to strengthen our cloud infrastructure.
But Arthur's reaction told me the truth was more complicated.
Rebecca escorted Nia out of the conference room.
Then Arthur closed the door.
“Malik, I need you to understand something.”
I sat quietly.
“Project Meridian involves a proposed merger with Vanguard Digital Holdings.”
I recognized the name.
Vanguard was a powerful technology investment group based in New York.
They had acquired several struggling software companies, cut operating costs, and sold their most profitable divisions.
Their reputation among engineers was terrible.
“They want to buy us?” I asked.
“Partially.”
Arthur loosened his tie.
“They've proposed purchasing a controlling interest after I retire. My board has been divided over the offer.”
I frowned.
“Why would you consider selling?”
He looked tired.
“Because several years ago, we borrowed heavily to expand into new markets. The company is profitable now, but some investors believe a merger would protect their returns.”
“And you disagree?”
“I believe selling control would destroy the company my father built.”
I studied his face.
“Then why is the deal still being discussed?”
“Because Nia supports it.”
My stomach tightened.
Arthur continued.
“She believes Vanguard can modernize our operations and make us more competitive.”
“Does she know about their history of layoffs?”
“Yes.”
“Then why would she support them?”
Arthur looked away.
“She believes the people who remain will benefit from a stronger company.”
I thought about Nia firing me without checking a single fact.
Her version of efficiency suddenly made more sense.
Arthur placed a confidential document on the table.
“The board was scheduled to vote on the final merger proposal next week. Yesterday, someone accessed financial projections that only a few executives were authorized to see.”
I stared at the report.
“Do you think someone is trying to influence the vote?”
“I don't know.”
His answer sounded sincere.
And that frightened me more than an accusation would have.
Arthur had always seemed to know exactly what was happening inside his company.
Now he looked uncertain.
I opened my laptop.
“Then we need to separate what we know from what we suspect.”
He nodded.
“Agreed.”
I created a timeline of the incident.
The first suspicious login occurred at 9:14 p.m.
The account entered the confidential merger directory.
Three minutes later, several files were copied into a temporary internal storage location.
At 11:48, the monitoring process was disabled.
At 12:06, the attempted customer data export began.
Arthur leaned forward.
“Could the attempted theft have been a distraction?”
“Possibly. If someone wanted us focused on the client breach, they might have used it to hide access to Project Meridian.”
“Can you prove that?”
“Not yet.”
I enlarged the account details.
The administrative session had been authenticated from a device registered to the executive operations floor.
That narrowed the possibilities.
But it didn't identify the person.
Someone could have stolen credentials.
Someone could have used an unattended workstation.
Or someone with legitimate access could have acted deliberately.
I refused to guess.
“Arthur, we need independent investigators.”
He nodded.
“I've already contacted them.”
I was relieved.
Then he asked something unexpected.
“Malik, would you lead the technical side of the investigation?”
I looked at him.
“Sir, I need to sleep.”
Arthur immediately nodded.
“Of course. I wasn't asking you to continue now. I want you involved when you're rested, with a proper team and full support.”
I hesitated.
“I also need assurance that this won't become a family dispute where evidence gets ignored.”
His expression softened.
“You have my word.”
I wanted to believe him.
But Nia was his daughter.
And families had a way of changing the meaning of fairness when one of their own was involved.
“I would prefer that the board's audit committee oversee the investigation.”
Arthur studied me.
Then he smiled faintly.
“My father would have liked you.”
He picked up his phone.
“I'll arrange it.”
By noon, I finally left the building.
Daniel walked beside me to the parking garage.
“Man, I thought Nia was going to have you escorted out.”
“So did I.”
He shook his head.
“You saved everybody last night. I saw the incident alerts. Nobody else knew how bad it was.”
I leaned against my car.
“How long have you been awake?”
“Only twenty hours.”
I almost laughed.
“Go home, Daniel.”
He looked serious.
“Malik, be careful.”
I frowned.
“About what?”
He glanced toward the office building.
“Last night, while you were working on the recovery, I saw someone come into the executive floor.”
“Who?”
“I couldn't see clearly. The lights were dim.”
“Then how do you know someone was there?”
“Because I was checking the security dashboard when the access door opened. A visitor badge was used.”
I straightened.
“A visitor badge?”
Daniel nodded.
“Not a normal employee badge.”
I felt a new wave of concern.
“Did you save the event?”
“I think so. The dashboard was still recording.”
I looked toward the glass building.
“Tell the investigators.”
“I will.”
Then he hesitated.
“There's something else.”
“What?”
“I saw Nia near the elevator around midnight.”
My stomach tightened.
“Are you sure?”
“Positive.”
“Did she speak to the visitor?”
“I don't know.”
I considered the information.
It was suspicious.
But it wasn't proof.
“Nia could have been working late,” I said.
Daniel nodded.
“Maybe.”
He looked at me.
“But she told everyone this morning that she had no idea there was an emergency last night.”
I didn't answer.
Because I remembered those exact words.
Everyone has excuses.
Pack your desk.
I drove home carefully, stopping for coffee even though I knew caffeine wouldn't fix my exhaustion.
When I entered my apartment, my younger sister Tasha was sitting at the kitchen table.
She was twenty-four, finishing nursing school, and had been living with me while completing her final clinical placement.
She looked up.
“Malik, you look terrible.”
“Thanks.”
“I'm serious. Did you sleep at all?”
I dropped my bag.
“Not much.”
She followed me into the living room.
“What happened?”
I sat on the couch.
Then I told her about the server failure, Nia's termination folder, and Arthur tearing it apart.
Tasha stared at me.
“She fired you after you saved the company?”
“Pretty much.”
Her eyes flashed.
“I would have thrown that folder back at her.”
I managed a tired smile.
“And gotten arrested?”
“Worth it.”
I laughed for the first time all day.
Then she became serious.
“Mom would have been furious.”
I looked at her.
“Yeah.”
Tasha sat beside me.
“You know what she would say?”
I nodded.
“Never let anyone convince you that hard work makes you less deserving of respect.”
Tasha smiled sadly.
“Exactly.”
She wrapped her arms around me.
For a moment, I allowed myself to feel how exhausted and frightened I really was.
I had nearly lost my job.
Now I was involved in an investigation that might expose corruption at the highest level of the company.
And somewhere in the middle of it all was Nia Whitmore.
The woman who had humiliated me without hesitation.
I finally went to bed.
When I woke fourteen hours later, my phone showed seventeen missed calls.
Most were from Rebecca.
One was from Arthur.
And three were from an unknown number.
I opened the newest message.
It contained a photograph of me leaving the office.
The picture had been taken from inside a parked car.
Beneath it were six words.
STOP DIGGING BEFORE SOMEONE GETS HURT.
I sat upright.
Then another message arrived.
May you like
This time, it was a photograph of Tasha entering her nursing school.
And suddenly, the investigation was no longer only about my career.
