Chapter Eight

The system logs were gone.

Not partially corrupted. Not delayed. Not “under review.”

Gone.

Lucas stared at the blank audit screen in silence, his jaw tightening slowly as the reality settled in.

Someone had not only accessed Alpha Zee systems, they had cleaned their trail like they knew exactly how he would investigate.

That was not amateur sabotage.

That was inside knowledge.

“Bring me the backup servers,” Lucas said coldly.

The IT manager hesitated. “Sir, those logs were purged from backup too.”

Lucas turned sharply.

“Impossible.”

The man swallowed. “We checked twice.”

A long, suffocating silence followed.

Then Lucas exhaled slowly through his nose.

“This wasn’t just access,” he said. “This was preparation.”

Someone had planned this long before Vivian ever saw that email.

***

Vivian sat on her bed, staring at her phone like it might attack her.

No new messages.

No clarification.

Just the silence after the threat.

Her mind replayed everything again and again:

The fake termination email. Jane’s hesitation. The anonymous warning. The cold voice on the phone.

“You don’t belong in that world.”

She pressed her palms against her stomach.

“I do belong somewhere,” she whispered. “Just not in chaos.”

Her phone suddenly lit up.

A message from HR:

“Please ignore any previous system notification regarding your employment status. You remain active.”

Vivian frowned.

So it really was fake.

But instead of relief, she felt worse.

Because now it wasn’t just confusion. It was targeted.

Someone had wanted her to believe she was being pushed out.

And they succeeded.

***

Back at the company, Jane moved carefully through restricted corridors, her heels clicking softly against polished floors.

She wasn’t supposed to be here.

But Lucas had sent her one instruction:

“Check physical access logs. Not digital. Physical.”

Jane reached the server room.

The security guard nodded as she passed.

Too easily. That alone made her uneasy.

Inside, she found the technician on duty reviewing CCTV backups.

“I need footage from yesterday morning,” she said.

The technician hesitated. “Which section?”

“HR system terminal area.”

A few clicks.

The screen loaded.

Jane leaned in.

At first, nothing unusual- employees passing, routine movement.

Then...

A figure. Female. Pausing near the restricted terminal.

Jane’s breath slowed.

Sandra.

Team leader in Vivian’s department.

Sandra looked around calmly before pulling out a key card.

She swiped.

The system unlocked.

Jane’s stomach tightened.

“That’s not supposed to happen,” she whispered.

The technician frowned. “That’s executive override access.”

Jane stepped back slowly.

Everything clicked into place. Vivian hadn’t been paranoid. She had been targeted.

***

Lucas stood in his office as Jane played the footage. He didn’t blink once.

Sandra appeared on screen again- this time entering HR backend access and interacting with termination protocols.

No hesitation. No panic.

Calculated. Professional. Intentional.

Lucas’s expression darkened.

“Pause it,” he said quietly.

Jane obeyed.

The image froze on Sandra’s face.

Lucas stared at it for a long moment.

Then he spoke.

“She didn’t act alone.”

Jane turned sharply. “Sir?”

Lucas leaned back slightly, eyes narrowing.

“No one bypasses that level of clearance without help,” he said. “Or approval.”

A pause.

Then he added:

“Someone is protecting her.”

The room went quiet.

Jane swallowed. “What do we do?”

Lucas’s voice dropped.

“We find out who.”

***

That evening, Vivian tried returning to normal life.

But normal no longer existed.

Every notification made her flinch.

Every unknown number felt like a threat.

Even the hallway outside her apartment felt different, too quiet, too aware.

She placed a protective hand over her stomach.

“I don’t even know who I’m fighting,” she whispered.

Her phone rang again.

She froze.

Unknown number.

She answered slowly.

Silence.

Then...

Breathing.

Heavy.

Intentional.

Vivian’s voice trembled. “Who is this?”

A pause.

Then a woman’s voice, calm and cold:

“You should have accepted the warning.”

The call ended.

Vivian stood there shaking, phone slipping slightly in her hand.

This wasn’t workplace politics anymore. This was personal.

***

Lucas didn’t wait for morning.

He entered Sandra’s office that same night.

No knock.

No warning.

Sandra looked up, startled.

“Sir...”

“Close the door,” Lucas said flatly.

Her smile flickered. “Is something wrong?”

Lucas walked in slowly, placing the printed CCTV still on her desk.

Sandra glanced at it.

Then looked up again.

Unbothered.

“Do you know what this is?” he asked.

Sandra tilted her head slightly. “CCTV footage.”

“That’s you accessing HR termination systems without authorization.”

A pause.

Then Sandra smiled faintly.

“I was auditing a system glitch.”

Lucas’s eyes narrowed dangerously.

“Audit logs don’t require executive override access.”

Sandra shrugged lightly. “It was urgent.”

Lucas stepped closer.

“Vivian’s termination email was sent under my credentials,” he said slowly. “Explain that.”

For the first time, Sandra’s expression shifted- barely.

Then she leaned back.

“Maybe someone is trying to make you look careless.”

Lucas stared at her.

Cold.

Unblinking.

“You’re lying,” he said.

Sandra’s smile returned.

“Prove it.”

Silence.

Heavy.

Suffocating.

Then Lucas turned and walked out.

No argument.

No escalation.

Just decision.

He already knew what she was.

He just needed evidence that would survive corporate war.

***

That night, Vivian received a knock at her door.

She froze.

Three knocks.

Slow.

Controlled.

She approached cautiously.

“Who is it?”

A familiar voice answered from outside.

“Open the door, Vivian.”

Her breath stopped.

Lucas.

She hesitated, then unlocked it.

The door opened.

Lucas stood there, expression unreadable.

For a moment, neither spoke.

Then he said quietly:

“You’re not safe.”

Vivian’s grip tightened on the door handle.

“What are you talking about?”

Lucas stepped slightly closer.

“Someone inside my company is targeting you,” he said. “And they’re not done.”

Vivian swallowed hard.

“Why me?”

Lucas looked at her for a long moment.

Then answered:

“Because they think hurting you is the only way to get to me.”

Silence.

Then Vivian whispered:

“Who is it?”

Lucas’s eyes darkened.

One word: “Sandra.”

Before Vivian could respond, her apartment hallway lights flickered off.

And from somewhere in the dark corridor outside her door, a slow, deliberate set of footsteps began approaching.