CHAPTER EIGHTY – A Future Hanging in the Balance
“Would someone like to explain what the hell is going on out there?” he demanded.
Kira jumped in immediately. “Sir, I have reason to believe that Laura has been accessing my files and stealing my work. The similarities between our recent progress reports are too close to be coincidental.”
Laura opened her mouth to protest, but Bo held up a hand, silencing her. “Laura, what’s your side of this?”
Taking a deep breath to steady herself, Laura spoke. “Mr. Chen, I assure you I’ve done nothing of the sort. My progress has been the result of my own hard work and research. I would never steal from a colleague.”
Bo’s eyes moved between the two women, his expression unreadable. “These are serious accusations, Kira. Do you have any proof to back up your claims?”
Kira hesitated for a moment. “Well, not concrete proof, but the timing is suspicious. Laura’s project was going nowhere for months, and suddenly she’s making leaps and bounds? It doesn’t add up.”
“That’s not proof, Kira,” Laura interjected. “That’s speculation and jealousy.”
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Kira whirled on her. “Jealousy? You think I’m jealous of you? That’s laughable.”
“Enough,” Bo said firmly. “This kind of behavior is unacceptable from both of you. We’re professionals here, not schoolchildren.”
He moved to his computer, typing rapidly. “I’m going to access both of your project logs and compare them. If there’s any truth to these accusations, we’ll find out right now.”
The room fell silent as Bo examined the data on his screen. Laura could feel her palms sweating, not from guilt but from the stress of the situation. After what felt like an eternity, Bo looked up.
“Kira, I’ve reviewed both project logs thoroughly. There’s no evidence of any unauthorized access or data transfer between your projects. The similarities you’ve noticed are likely due to you both working in similar fields of Al development.”
Kira’s face fell, a mix of disbelief and embarrassment washing over her features. “But… but that’s impossible. I was sure…”
Bo’s expression softened slightly. “I understand your frustration, Kira. This project means a lot to all of us. But accusing a colleague of theft without proof is not only unprofessional, it’s potentially damaging to the entire team’s morale.”
He turned to Laura. “Laura, I apologize for this situation. Your work has been exemplary, and these accusations are completely unfounded.”
Laura nodded, relief flooding through her. “Thank you, Mr. Chen.”
Bo leaned back in his chair, his gaze moving between the two women, “Now, normally, I’d expect you both to apologize and move on. However, given the public nature of your dispute, I think it’s best if you both take the rest of the day off to cool down. I expect you back tomorrow, ready to work together professionally. Is that clear?”
“Yes, sir,” Laura and Kira mumbled in unison.
As they left Bo’s office, the tension between them was palpable. Kira stormed off without a word, leaving Laura standing alone in the hallway, still shaken by the confrontation.
As Laura gathered her things to leave, her mind raced. The stress of the argument with Kira, combined with her lingering doubts about Justin, left her feeling overwhelmed. She knew she couldn’t go on like this. It was time to confront Justin and get some answers.
With shaking hands, she pulled out her phone and dialed Justin’s number. He picked up on the third ring.
“Laura? Is everything okay?” Justin’s voice came through, concern evident in his tone.
Laura took a deep breath. “Justin, we need to talk. Can you meet me at Riverside Park in an hour?”
There was a pause on the other end. “Uh, sure. Is something wrong?”
“We’ll talk when we meet. See you there.” Laura ended the call before he could ask any more questions.
An hour later, Laura sat on a bench in Riverside Park, her legs bouncing nervously as she walted for Justin. She spotted him walking down the path, his brow furrowed with worry.
“Laura,” he said as he approached, “what’s going on? You sounded upset on the phone.”
Laura gestured for him to sit. When he did, she turned to face him, her expression serious. “Justin, I need you to be honest with me. I’ve noticed some.. Inconsistencies lately, and I can’t shake the feeling that something’s not right.”
CHAPTER EIGHTY A Future Hanging in the Balance
Justin’s face paled slightly. “What do you mean?”
“The other night, when you were on the phone in the car,” Laura began, watching his reaction closely. “I heard a woman’s voice. And then yesterday, I saw you with a woman near your office. You said you had a family emergency, but it didn’t look like one.”
Justin’s eyes widened, and he opened his mouth to speak, but Laura held up a hand. “Please, let me finish. I’ve been feeling like you’re hiding something from me, and I need to know the truth. Who is she, Justin?”
For a moment, Justin looked like he might try to deflect, but then his shoulders sagged. “Laura, I… God, I’ve made such a mess of things,”
Laura felt her heart sink. “Just tell me the truth, Justin. Please.”
Justin ran a hand through his hair, his eyes unable to meet Laura’s “The woman you saw… her name is Kira. Kira Volkov. We… we were in a relationship until recently.”
The name hit Laura like a punch to the gut. “Kira? My coworker Kira?”
Justin nodded miserably. “I’m so sorry, Laura. I should have told you from the beginning. I just… I didn’t know how.”
Laura felt like the world was spinning around her. “How long?” she managed to ask.
“We were together for over a year,” Justin admitted. “We broke up briefly because of her intense focus on her career. That’s… that’s when I met you.”
Laura stood up abruptly, needing to put some distance between them. “So what, I was just a rebound? A way to make her jealous?”
Justin quickly rose to his feet. “No! No, Laura, it wasn’t like that at all. When I met you, I was genuinely attracted to you. I fell for you, hard. I just… I didn’t expect Kira to want to reconcile.”
Laura whirled to face him, anger bubbling up inside her. “So you’ve been, what, stringing us both along? Playing us against each other?
“I never meant for it to go this far,” Justin pleaded. “I was trying to figure out how to end things with Kira without hurting her career We work for competing companies, and I was worried about the fallout.
Laura let out a bitter laugh. “Oh, how noble of you. And in the meantime, you thought it was okay to start a relationship with me based on lies?”
Justin took a step towards her, his eyes pleading. “Laura, please. My feelings for you are real. I know I’ve made a huge mistake, but I want to make it right.”
Laura held up a hand, stopping him in his tracks. “Make it right? Justin, do you have any idea what you’ve done? Not just to me, but to Kira as well? God, no wonder she’s been so angry lately.”
Justin’s face fell. “I never meant to hurt either of you. I just… I got caught up in trying to please everyone, and I ended up hurting the people I care about most.”
Laura shook her head, tears stinging her eyes. “That’s not an excuse, Justin. You manipulated both of us. You lied to our faces for months. How can you possibly think that’s okay?”
“I don’t think it’s okay,” Justin said, his voice breaking. “I know I’ve screwed up, Laura. But please, give me a chance to explain, to make things right.”
Laura looked at him, really looked at him, and for the first time, she saw the man behind the charming facade. A man who, despite his claims of good intentions, had callously played with the emotions of two women.
“There’s nothing to explain, Justin,” Laura said, her voice calm but firm. “What you did… it’s not something you can just fix with an apology. You betrayed my trust, and Kira’s. You’ve caused pain and confusion that goes beyond just our relationships.”
Justin’s shoulders slumped. “Laura, please. I love you. I know I’ve made mistakes, but-”
“No,” Laura cut film off. “You don’t get to say that. Not now. Love isn’t about manipulation and Iles, Justin. It’s about trust and respect, two things you clearly don’t understand.”
She took a deep breath, steeling herself for what she knew she had to do. “We’re done, Justin. I can’t be with someone I can’t trust. And right now, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to trust you again.”
Justin’s face crumpled. “Laura, please don’t do this. We can work through this. I’ll do whatever it takes.”
Laura shook her head, taking a step back. “No, Justin. It’s over. I think you need to take a hard look at yourself and figure out why you thought it was olcay to treat people this way. But that’s not my problem anymore.”
CHAPTER EIGHTY – A Future Hanging in th
With that, Laura turned and began walking away. She could hear Justin calling after her, his voice desperate and pleading, but she didn’t look back
