Chapter 4

Just as Liam was about to retort, a sudden hush fell over the infirmary. The crowd parted. My father, Mr. Sterling, stood at the entrance, his face a mask of thunder. He must have taken the first flight back from Asia the moment he heard about the fire.

He was flanked by two members of the board. His eyes, sharp and intense, scanned the room until they landed on me, lying on the gurney. The fury in his expression was instantly replaced by raw, unfiltered panic.

Liam, oblivious, didn't recognize him from the rare, out-of-date photo on the company website. He saw only the CEO, the man he needed to impress. He rushed forward, intercepting my father.

"Mr. Sterling, sir," Liam said, his voice oozing false sincerity. "It's a relief you're here. It was a terrible situation, but I managed to secure our most valuable asset."

He gestured grandly toward Tiffany. "This is Tiffany, the daughter of Johnathan Croft from Croft Ventures. I was able to rescue her from the server room."

My father' s gaze flickered to Tiffany, then back to Liam. His face darkened. "Our most valuable asset?"

"Yes, sir," Liam plowed on, eager to seal his victory. "Unfortunately, the fire seems to have been caused by an electrical short. The initial investigation points to some shoddy code in a new diagnostics sub-routine. It was Chloe's project."

He pointed a finger directly at me. "She was in the server room when it happened. I'm afraid her negligence may have caused this entire disaster."

Mr. Sterling stood perfectly still for a moment. The air grew thick with tension. When he finally spoke, his voice was dangerously quiet.

"You rescued the investor's daughter," he repeated, his eyes like chips of ice.

"Yes, sir. A difficult choice, but the right one for the company."

My father took a slow step toward him, his voice dropping to a near-whisper that was more terrifying than any shout.

"Then tell me, Liam," he said. "Where is my daughter?"