The atmosphere in the conference room was so tense, it felt like you could choke on it.


    "Can anyone exin this?"n''s voice was cold as steel. "Why is our core algorithm being unveiled at someone else''s press conference?”


    No one quite knew what to expect fromn''s temper; Eleanor herself had never seen him truly angry.


    The silence stretched for a heavy ten seconds.


    Faye was the first to speak, her tone carefully measured, threaded with uncertainty. "Mr. Goodwin, this is... highly unusual. Our team spent three months developing that system, and now-"


    She trailed off, words caught in her throat.


    Joel jumped in, voice low and tense. "Faye, don''t make usations unless you have proof."


    "Proof?" Faye replied, her meaning unmistakable. "Even if there was any, it''s probably been wiped clean by now. But I do know someone on our team has been awfully chummy with Juliette''sbtely."


    She didn''t have to name names. Everyone''s eyes turned, knowingly, toward Eleanor.


    A low murmur swept the room. Eleanor could hear the whispers just behind her.


    "No way, Miss Sutton''s one of our own."


    "She''s the one who came up with our main theory."


    "Still, at thest conference, she was awfully friendly with that Juliette group."


    "And she''s friends with their lead, Xavier."


    Eleanor listened, her expression unreadable, as the murmurs circled around her.


    Joel was quick to defend her. "You can suspect anyone but Eleanor. She''d never betray thisb."


    An engineer spoke up, voice tight. "Then how do you exin that their demo today matched our configuration settings, down to thest detail?"


    She took a steady breath. "I need to review the actual data Juliette''sb released today. A presentation alone isn''t enough to prove they used our algorithm."


    “Still making excuses?" Faye''s voice rose, sharp and using. “We all know how close you are with Xavier, and you—"


    "That''s enough.” Ian''s interruption was sudden, his authority absolute. "I''ll handle this investigation myself. Until the facts are clear, the project is suspended. Everyone is to sign a non-disclosure agreement. No one breathes a word of this outside these walls."


    His gaze lingered on Eleanor. "Eleanor, stay. The rest of you are dismissed." Simone and Joel exchanged worried nces with Eleanor as they filed out. Faye couldn''t quite hide the hint of a smirk at the corner of her mouth.


    When the door closed behind thest person,n walked to the window, his back to Eleanor. "Anything you want to say?"


    "I didn''t leak anything." Eleanor''s answer was cool, but firm.


    Ordinarily, Eleanor would have refused to answer such a question. But with confidential data on the line, her reputation at stake, she metn''s gaze. "We''re just friends. Nothing more."


    They held each her''s eyes for a moment. Thenn picked up his suit jacket and headed for the door. He paused before leaving. "Eleanor, I hope you''re telling me the truth."


    Eleanor''s breath caught in her throat. So, he didn''t trust her after all.


    When she stepped out, only Simone was waiting for her. Simone put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Don''t worry, Eleanor. They''ll get to the bottom of this."


    "Where''s Joel?" Eleanor asked.


    "He and VP Chase went over to Juliette''sb for talks."


    Eleanor narrowed her eyes, exhaling a shaky breath. "Professor Langley, I need


    to get into theb and review our data."


    Simone nodded, ready to go with her.


    But as they reached theb floor, two security guards blocked their way.


    "Sorry, Miss Sutton. Your ess has been temporarily suspended. You can''t enter theb area right now."


    Eleanor blinked, caught off guard. "Who gave that order?"


    "Mr. Goodwin''s direct instructions."


    "Let''s go back to the office and wait for Joel''s update," Simone suggested.


    Eleanor bit her lip and nodded.


    Back in her office, Eleanor''s thoughts were a jumble. Her phone buzzed, snapping her out of her daze-it was a message from Xavier.


    "Eleanor, are you okay?"


    "Don''t worry. I''m going over myb''s data. If I find anything, I''ll let you know right away."


    She typed back a simple, "Thanks."


    That afternoon, Eleanor went to pick up her daughter, only to find the nanny already there for Vivian. Xavier must still be dealing with the fallout.


    Later, Juliette herself called Eleanor, making it clear her team was determined to investigate the theft thoroughly.


    It was obvious both Xavier and Juliette knew the incident was somehow linked to Eleanor.


    Joel called soon after, his voice tense but relieved. "We''ve confirmed it-someone stole Meridian Dynamics''b data and passed it to Juliette''s team. Juliette''s engineers had no idea it was our proprietary research. They thought it was one of their own staff''s breakthrough projects and made it public." "They''ve halted the project on their end too, pending a full investigation."


    Eleanor gripped her phone tightly. "Did Juliette''sb say who leaked the data?"


    "They''re still digging," Joel replied, lowering his voice. "The data was sent via an encrypted email. They''re tracing the sender''s IP address now."


    She heard Joel have a hushed conversation with someone on his end.


    "Eleanor? Are you still there?" His voice had gone hoarse.


    "I''m here," she said, steadying herself.


    After a pause, Joel sounded hesitant. "The data was sent from your email ount."


    Eleanor''s eyes widened in shock. "That''s impossible. I never-”


    "Don''t panic," Joel cut in quickly. "IT is still investigating. It could have been someone hacking your ount."