The fluorescent lights hummed above Emma's head, sending a cold glow over the room. She stood in Adrian Cross's office, the glass walls offering a panoramic view of the city below, but Emma wasn't focused on the skyline. Her gaze rested on the man who sat at the large oak desk in front of her, his expression unreadable.
Adrian Cross had a way of making everything feel like a high-stakes game, even the smallest decisions. But this. this was different. This was a game of trust, deception, and risk—one that Emma didn't know if she was ready to play.
"You want me to do what?" Emma asked, her voice shaking despite her best effort to mask it.
Adrian's eyes locked on hers, his icy gaze searching, probing. "I'm going to flush out the saboteur," he said, his voice steady, as if the weight of their situation was no more than a simple business meeting. "And I need your help."
Emma's stomach twisted. The plan he was outlining sounded dangerous, too dangerous for someone like her, who always kept her head down and did the administrative grunt work and avoided attention. This was different from anything she had ever done.
"I don't understand," she said, taking a step backward. "Why me? Why not take it to somebody with a higher position?"
Adrian exhaled, his fingers beating out a rhythmic pattern on the edge of the desk. "Because the saboteur is close to me. They know the inner workings of the company, and they know who to trust. They've been watching me for months. The only way to find out who they are is to feed them information they can't resist."
"Information you want to be false?" Emma's brows furrowed.
"Exactly. We're going to plant a rumor, something too enticing for the mole to ignore. Once we do, we'll see who tries to bite. It's the only way to catch them."
The weight of what he was asking her to do sank in. She'd heard the rumors about the mole, the whispers of a betrayal within Arcadia's ranks, and the growing tension that hung over everything. But actually being involved-actively participating in a scheme to lure out the very person who had been sabotaging the company-was a different thing altogether.
Emma shifted uncomfortably on her feet, at a loss for words. "And what if this goes wrong? What if I make a mistake?"
Adrian's lips curled into a small, grim smile. "Then we adjust. I won't let anything happen to you, Emma. But this is the only way forward."
Despite his confident tone, Emma could hear the tension underlying his voice. He was far from calm. That made it as dangerous for him as it was for her. She had always known that the stakes were high, but now they felt too high. She was playing a part in something that could shatter everything.
"I don't know if I can do this," Emma admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. She felt a sense of unease bubble up, but there was also a flicker of something else. She was in too deep now. There was no going back.
"You can," Adrian said with finality. "You have more strength than you realize, Emma. You're already in the heart of it. You might as well take control."
His words, spoken with that old, cool authority and something softer beneath, made her heart speed up. He was right. She was involved. But was she strong enough to see it through? Could she bear the weight of what they were going to do?
"What's the plan?" she asked finally, unable to ignore the knot that had formed in her stomach.
Adrian leaned back in his chair, eyes narrowing as he watched her. "We'll plant the false information with a select few people-those we know are in direct contact with the mole. We'll make them think it's a legitimate leak, something too valuable to ignore. Once they bite, we'll have them."
Emma felt a cold chill wash over her. "And if the mole doesn't bite?
Adrian's gaze darkened. "Then we'll move to phase two."
She didn't ask what phase two was. She didn't want to know. She already felt the pressure of this plan weighing heavily on her.
A moment of silence passed between them. Emma tried to steady her breathing, but everything inside her was screaming to run. This wasn't just about saving the company anymore. It was about survival. And trust. She had to trust Adrian-or at least, trust that he knew what he was doing.
"I'll do it," Emma said finally, her tone a lot steadier than her nerves. "But you have to promise me—something goes wrong, something happens and I'm over my head, you're getting me out."
Something flickered in Adrian's eyes, softening; just a fraction. "I will."
Days turned into a daze of cloaked tension. Adrian had filled her in on each and every minute detail of the plan; no one could know but themselves, Emma was going to be the one that would plant that seed through the rumors that were to begin luring the mole from its burrow. It would require the touch of a velvet glove. She couldn't afford any false steps.
All it took was something as simple as leaking a small piece of false information to a few of her colleagues. It had to be plausible enough not to raise suspicions, yet juicy enough that the saboteur would fall for it. She was instructed to be casual with it, like an accident. She could throw in the hint in passing conversation over coffee or in an email. But nothing too obvious. The subtlety was key.
Emma wasn't sure she was ready for this. Every conversation, every interaction, was a performance now. She walked the halls of Arcadia with a new air of vigilance, as if every pair of eyes that lingered on her might be watching for a sign, a slip-up. Already, she'd begun to drop a few hints with certain trusted employees-people she knew would spread the word.
It seemed straightforward enough-simplistic, even-but Emma was not naive. She knew in this sort of game, there could never be anything as sweet as an easy win. Every move was to be calculated, and every word had to be carefully selected. One step wrong, and it would come tumbling down.
In two days' time, the first omen arrived.
Emma was in the break room, making herself a cup of coffee, when one of the senior analysts, Greg, came in. He was a quiet man, always keeping to himself, but there was something in his eyes that made Emma wary. She had spoken to him just the day before, casually mentioning something about a new project that was supposedly going to be launched under tight security. She hadn't said much, just enough to raise his curiosity.
Now, as Greg approached, he gave her a slow smile, his eyes calculating. "I heard something interesting today," he said, voice low, as if testing the waters.
Emma's heart skipped a beat. He was testing her, too.
"Really?" she asked, pretending casual. "What did you hear?"
He leaned in, speaking in an even softer voice, looking back to see if anyone was standing near them. "About this merger that's supposed to take place, and some of the assets to be transferred. You don't happen to know a thing or two about it?"
Emma's breath caught in her throat. He had taken the bait. She had only mentioned the merger in passing, a rumor she knew would spark interest. But now, it seemed like more than just a casual conversation.
"No," she said, trying to sound nonchalant. "I haven't heard anything about that."
Greg's smile broadened, but there was something in his eyes now-something predatory. "Well, I guess the cat's out of the bag. You didn't hear it from me."
With that, he walked out of the room, leaving Emma standing there, her pulse pounding in her ears.
She had done it. She had planted the seed. But now came the hard part. They had to wait. They had to watch and see who would make the next move. Who would follow the trail she had laid out?
And when the mole took the bait, they would strike.
Yet, right at the back of Emma's mind, one question nagged: What if this all was a trap? What if Adrian wasn't just trying to flush out the saboteur? What if he was using her as bait, too?
The weight of that thought pressed down on her chest as she returned to her desk. She didn't know the answer, but she couldn't afford to dwell on it now. Not when the trap was set.
Not when the game had already begun.