Cool air bit at Arthur Vance's exposed skin. He shifted, adjusting the immaculate knot of his tie. Elias had summoned him to the penthouse conference room, not his usual office. Marcus stood by the panoramic window, arms crossed, a silent, imposing figure. Eliza sat at the head of the polished obsidian table, her expression unreadable. “Arthur,” Elias began, his voice low but firm. No pleasantries. “We have a problem.” Arthur’s brow furrowed. “A problem, Elias? What kind of problem?” His tone was light, dismissive. He was Head of Operations. Problems were his domain. Elias pushed a tablet across the table. It displayed a grainy image of the server farm, then a close-up of a small, sophisticated device. Arthur leaned forward, his casual demeanor cracking. “Recognize this, Arthur?” Elias asked. His eyes were like chips of ice. Arthur squinted. “Some kind of… network tap?” He looked up, a forced smile playing on his lips. “What’s this about, Elias? I’m busy. I have the Q3 projections to finalize.” Marcus finally spoke. “It was found in Server Farm Delta. Activated less than an hour ago. Designed to siphon off our most sensitive data.” His voice was a flat monotone. Arthur scoffed. “A breach? Impossible. Our security protocols are ironclad. I personally oversaw the last audit.” “Someone bypassed them,” Eliza interjected, her voice quiet. “Someone with intimate knowledge of our network architecture. And access to Delta.” Arthur’s gaze flickered to Eliza, then back to Elias. A vein throbbed faintly in his temple. “Are you implying…?” His voice rose, tinged with outrage. “Are you accusing me?” Elias’s jaw tightened. “The device was installed in a section only accessible to a select few. Your fingerprints were found near the access panel.” Arthur’s face went white. He pushed himself back from the table, knocking his chair slightly askew. “My fingerprints? That’s preposterous! I haven’t been to Server Farm Delta in months. Not since… not since the power grid upgrade back in May.” He paced a few steps, running a hand through his perfectly coiffed hair. “This is a setup. Someone is trying to frame me.” Marcus stepped away from the window. “We have security footage. Your key card was used to access the Delta facility late last night. Just before the tap was installed.” Arthur stopped dead. His eyes darted between Elias and Marcus. He swallowed hard. “No. No, that’s… that’s wrong. It has to be. I was… I was at the hospital.” “The hospital?” Elias prompted, a dangerous calm in his voice. “Yes! My mother,” Arthur blurted out, his voice thick with what sounded like genuine distress. “She had a fall. A bad one. I spent the entire night there. From eight PM until dawn.” He clutched his hands together, his knuckles turning white. “Which hospital?” Eliza asked, her eyes never leaving his face. “St. Jude’s. Room 402. You can check. They have visitor logs. My sister, Clara, was there too. She can corroborate everything.” He spoke rapidly, a torrent of words pouring out. “I didn’t leave her side. I couldn’t.” Elias exchanged a look with Marcus. St. Jude’s was a prominent hospital. Visitor logs would be easily verifiable. “Why didn’t you inform us?” Elias asked. “A personal emergency, especially involving a family member, would be understandable.” Arthur wrung his hands. “I… I didn’t want to worry you. It was late. I just wanted to be there for her. I’m sorry. It slipped my mind with all the stress.” He looked genuinely distraught, his eyes glistening. “And the key card?” Marcus pressed. “How was it used if you were at the hospital?” Arthur hesitated. His gaze flickered again, this time to the door. “My assistant, Brenda. She sometimes borrows my card for after-hours access. To fetch files, or… or prototypes from R&D when I’m out of the office. She must have forgotten to log it.” Brenda. A loyal, unassuming woman who had worked for Arthur for years. It was a flimsy excuse, yet plausible enough to cause a moment of pause. But then Arthur’s eyes narrowed, shifting from defensiveness to accusation. His voice dropped, becoming conspiratorial. “Wait a minute. You found my fingerprints. My key card. But… has anyone considered Ben Carter?” Elias blinked. Ben Carter, their long-time Chief Financial Officer. A quiet, meticulous man. “Ben?” Elias repeated, skepticism evident. “Think about it,” Arthur urged, stepping closer to the table. “Ben has access to everything. Financial records, market strategies… the kind of data a competitor would kill for. And he’s been… agitated lately. Remember that investment portfolio he lost last quarter? He was furious. Blamed the market, but I heard him muttering about wanting ‘new opportunities’.” His voice dropped further. “And his office… it’s right next to the network hub. He’s always tinkering with his personal server setup. Says he’s ‘optimizing’ his home network, but who knows what he’s really doing?” Arthur leaned across the table, his voice full of feigned concern. “He also has a gambling problem, Elias. I’ve seen him at the track. Heavy losses. He might be desperate. He might be trying to cover his tracks by framing me.” Eliza watched Arthur. His story about his mother, the details, the emotion, it was almost convincing. But the swift pivot, the sudden, vehement accusation against Ben, felt too convenient. His eyes still held a flicker of panic, despite his bravado. Yet, the seed was planted. Ben Carter. Gambling. Financial distress. Elias’s mind reeled. Ben, his steadfast CFO. The thought was jarring. Elias found himself staring at the tablet, the image of the data tap now overshadowed by a new, disturbing question mark. Arthur’s denial might have been hollow, but his accusations against Ben resonated with a chilling, unexpected force.

Chapter 33: False Confession