Chapter 14 The Traitor Within

​Alex stood motionless outside Nina's apartment building as the words from his head of security echoed in his mind: 

"The anonymous sender accessed executive-level security systems. The person targeting your wife may already be working beside you."

​His grip tightened around his phone. "Don't tell anyone about this," Alex said quietly. "Not even the board."

​"Understood, sir," the security chief replied. "I'll investigate quietly."

​Alex ended the call. Before getting into his car, he looked up at Nina's apartment one last time. He couldn't see Javier from there, but even so, he whispered, "I'll end this. No matter who is behind it." Then, he drove away.

​The Next Morning

​The atmosphere inside Swan Group Headquarters was unusually tense. Employees whispered anxiously as they passed one another through the busy hallways.

​"Have you noticed Mr. Swan hasn't smiled all week?" one muttered.

​"I heard his wife left home," another whispered.

​"They're saying someone is leaking company information."

​The idle conversations stopped instantly the moment Alex stepped out of the elevator. Without acknowledging anyone, he walked straight to his office and turned to his assistant. "Call every executive to the boardroom."

​She blinked in surprise. "Everyone?"

​"Everyone."

​Fifteen minutes later, the boardroom was filled to capacity with directors, vice presidents, and department heads. 

Camille sat quietly near the end of the long table, and a moment later, Kendall walked in and took his seat.

​Alex remained standing at the head of the room, his eyes sweeping across every face before he finally spoke. "I'll keep this brief. We have a serious security breach."

​The room immediately erupted into murmurs. Alex raised a hand, silencing the cross-talk. 

"I am not accusing anyone. But until this matter is resolved, every executive's digital access will be audited."

​One director frowned. "Even yours, Mr. Swan?"

​Alex nodded without hesitation. "Mine included."

​Another director began to object. "Isn't this excessive?"

​Before Alex could answer, Kendall spoke up calmly, "If you're innocent, you have nothing to fear." No one dared to argue after that.

​As the meeting ended, Camille caught up with Alex in the hallway. "Do you really think someone inside the company is behind all this?"

​Alex looked at her. "I don't know. But I'm done making assumptions."

​Camille nodded understandingly. After a brief hesitation, she asked softly, "Have you found Javier?"

​Alex lowered his eyes. "No. I spoke to her... but only through an intercom."

​A look of genuine sadness crossed Camille's face. "I hope she gives you another chance."

​Alex managed a faint, tired smile. "So do I."

​Neither of them noticed the man standing at the far end of the corridor, silently watching their conversation. After a few seconds, he turned and quietly walked away into the shadows.

​At Nina's Apartment

​Meanwhile, Javier sat comfortably on the couch, reading a baby care book. Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Nina walked over to the entry and peered through the peephole.

​"It's the police," Nina said, unlocking and opening the door.

​Inspector David Cole stepped inside. "Mrs. Swan."

​"Inspector," Javier greeted, immediately sitting upright. "I have an update."

​Javier held her breath. "Did you find the anonymous caller?"

​"Not yet," Inspector Cole replied. "But we managed to trace one of the numbers."

​"And?"

​"It was routed through Swan Group's internal network."

​Javier's heart skipped a beat. "So it really is someone inside the company."

​The inspector nodded. "We're keeping several individuals under close surveillance." He paused, studying her before asking, "But I need to ask you something. Did your husband ever mention a project called the Swan Project?"

​Javier frowned. "No. Should he have?"

​Inspector Cole exchanged a brief, cautious glance with Nina. "I can't say much yet, but that name keeps appearing throughout our investigation." Before leaving, he handed Javier his business card. 

"If anyone contacts you again, call me immediately."

​"I will," Javier promised.

​Later That Evening

​The security audit officially began at Swan Group. Alex and his cybersecurity team spent hours hunkered down in a dark room, reviewing access logs from the past month. Hour after hour passed, and nothing unusual appeared.

​Then, one of the analysts suddenly frowned. "Sir."

​Alex looked up immediately. "What is it?"

​"I found something." The analyst projected a series of data records onto the large main screen. 

"Someone used a senior executive account to access confidential files... at exactly 2:17 a.m. three nights ago."

​Alex leaned forward, his eyes narrowing. "Whose account?"

​The analyst swallowed nervously. "The login belongs to..." He clicked to the next screen.

​Everyone in the room fixed their eyes on the display. Slowly, a single name appeared in bold text: Camille Mia.

​Silence swept across the room. Alex's expression became entirely unreadable. "That's impossible."

​The analyst nodded cautiously. "It could have been hacked, or someone else used her credentials."

​Alex continued staring at the glowing screen. Every instinct warned him not to jump to conclusions, but the digital evidence pointed directly at Camille.

​At that exact moment, Camille's phone rang inside her dark office. Without checking the caller ID, she answered. "Hello?"

​A heavily distorted voice whispered back through the receiver. "They're looking at your account."

​Camille's eyes widened in sudden panic. "Who is this?"

​The caller gave a soft, chilling laugh. "Don't worry. They'll believe you betrayed them. And by the time you prove your innocence... it'll already be too late."

​The line went dead. Camille slowly lowered the phone, standing frozen in the middle of her office. For the first time, she realized she wasn't simply caught in the middle of a corporate investigation—she had become the next target.