Chapter 13 - A Sudden Leak Threatens Whitfield Development's Massive Project
Sunday morning broke over Charlotte with bright autumn sunshine filtering through the tall office windows of Whitfield Development.
Daniel sat at his glass conference table alongside Grace, who was meticulously cross-referencing physical blueprint folders.
Arthur Vance burst through the double doors of the boardroom, holding an open tablet with a frantic expression.
“Daniel, we have a catastrophic data leak!” Arthur shouted, slamming the tablet down onto the mahogany surface.
“What kind of leak?” Daniel asked calmly, not even looking up from the structural engineering logs.
“An anonymous architectural blog just published our exact municipal skyscraper bid estimates online!” Arthur panicked.
Grace stopped turning the pages of her folder, looking up at the frantic corporate lawyer with intense focus.
“How is that possible if our server files were encrypted?” Grace asked logically.
“Someone must have copied the physical files from Daniel’s private study desk before the encryption update,” Arthur explained.
Daniel leaned back in his chair, a cold, steely realization settling over his features as he connected the dots.
“Vanessa,” Daniel said quietly. “She must have copied the physical blueprints during her lunch visits last week.”
“If Marcus Vance submits these exact numbers on Monday morning, our bid will be disqualified for intellectual property theft,” Arthur warned.
Grace stood up from her chair, walking over to the conference room wall display where the physical master blueprints hung.
“Then we don't submit the old numbers,” Grace stated plainly, pointing a finger at the architectural schematic.
Arthur stared at her as if she were speaking an alien language.
“Grace, the municipal bidding deadline is tomorrow morning at nine o’clock; we can't redesign a skyscraper overnight!”
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“Who said anything about redesigning it?” Grace asked, turning around with a brilliant, determined spark in her green eyes.
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