Chapter 7 - PROJECT BENNETT
Daniel spent the entire night going through the files.
By sunrise, he understood one thing.
Someone had been building a case around Clare for years.
Fake complaints.
False performance reviews.
Manipulated payroll.
Missing promotions.
And finally, a forged resignation letter.
Clare had never resigned.
But according to corporate records, she had supposedly agreed to leave Mercer six months earlier.
Daniel called her.
"Clare, I need you to come to the office."
"What happened?"
"I found something."
She arrived an hour later.
Daniel showed her the documents.
Clare stared.
"Why would anyone do this?"
"I don't know."
"You're lying."
He looked at her.
"What?"
"You know more than you're telling me."
Daniel sighed.
"There's something about your hiring."
"What?"
"You weren't hired randomly."
Clare frowned.
"I applied for the job."
"Yes."
"But someone inside the company recommended you."
"Who?"
Daniel slid a document across the table.
Clare looked at the name.
Her father's.
She stopped breathing.
"My father?"
Daniel nodded.
"Thomas Bennett worked with Mercer before he died."
Clare's hands trembled.
"My father never told me."
"He couldn't."
"Why?"
"Because he died two weeks before you started."
Clare looked up.
"What are you saying?"
Daniel hesitated.
"Your father discovered the payroll fraud."
Her eyes filled with tears.
"He knew?"
"Yes."
"And he got me the job?"
Daniel nodded.
"Not because he wanted you to work here."
"Then why?"
"Because he believed someone was stealing from employees."
Clare's voice broke.
"What does that have to do with me?"
Daniel stared at her.
"Everything."
Before he could explain, the conference-room television suddenly switched on.
A video began playing.
Thomas Bennett appeared on screen.
Older.
Tired.
Looking directly into the camera.
"Clare, if you're watching this, I'm probably gone."
Clare covered her mouth.
Her father's voice continued.
"There's something I never told you."
The screen went black.
May you like
Then a single sentence appeared.
TRUST NO ONE AT MERCER.
