Dumping The Ice King His Mini-Tyrant novel Chapter 556

Selene raised an eyebrow at Adrian, a playful, almost flirtatious spark in her eyes. “Sorry,” she explained with a smile. “I know you want to help, but this is an internal QuanTech matter. I’m more comfortable using my own people to handle it.”

“You’re right, Selene,” Adrian replied smoothly. “After all, I’m not one of your people… yet.”

The two guards standing nearby wished they could melt into the floor. Did Adrian Shaw realize what he was saying? They had just stumbled upon some seriously high-level gossip. So the celebrated scion of the Shaw family wasn’t on their boss’s team yet? Though they were stuck in the security room all day, they were well-versed in the rumors surrounding their CEO.

Selene shot Adrian a mock-warning look. His phrasing—*I’m not one of your people yet*—was far more suggestive and intimate than a simple declaration would have been.

She placed her own laptop on the desk and inserted a USB drive. The two guards recognized the QuanTech logo; it was a high-level security key. As CEO, Selene had the highest clearance on the internal network.

While Selene began her deep dive into the network data, Adrian’s voice cut through the silence again.

“It would be best for both of you to completely forget everything you’ve seen and heard tonight.”

It took the guards a second to realize he was speaking to them. They immediately straightened up. “Yes, sir!” They very much wanted to keep their jobs.

“Mr. Shaw, Ms. Thompson, please rest assured,” one of them stammered. “Without your permission, we won’t breathe a word of this to anyone.” Besides, if word got out that they’d been so negligent, they’d be finished at the company anyway.

*

Once they were in Adrian’s car, Selene spoke first. “Aren’t you curious who’s causing trouble at QuanTech?”

Adrian fastened his seatbelt and pressed the accelerator, the silver sports car gliding into the night. “Only a certain type of person could execute such a precise operation against QuanTech: an insider. It’s a classic case of internal theft, and it has to be someone high-level. That leaves two primary directions for investigation: Gwyneth Lockridge and Annalise Johnston.”

He continued his analysis smoothly. “Gwyneth is now your superior, which means you’re both in the same boat. Any loss for QuanTech is a loss for her, so it’s unlikely she’d sabotage her own investment. That leaves Annalise Johnston as the most probable culprit. Since leaving QuanTech, she has every reason to want to see you fail. If she could steal valuable data and hand it over to Vaughn Enterprises, it would be the perfect way to prove her loyalty to her new employer.”