Chapter: 172

Jonathan's silence spoke louder than any words could. His attitude was clear from his response.

"I'm asking you the question," Jonathan said.

"No, I haven't shared the drawings with anyone else. Only Carson and I have access to them," Bethany replied.

"I see."

Jonathan's expression darkened. He then walked towards the bedroom with his phone in hand.

Watching him leave, Bethany bit her lip.

It was clear Jonathan wasn't going to advocate for her; she had to fend for herself.

She returned to her laptop, desperately searching for ways to recover deleted messages. Despite trying several methods, none worked-they were all dead ends.

Bethany called the service provider again, but the response was the same: the messages couldn't be retrieved.

Was her future and all her hard work really going to be undone by Maddie so easily?

Suddenly, her phone on the table lit up.

It was a message from Jayson.

But Bethany was too distraught to look at it. She stood, started packing, and prepared to confront Maddie at the company that evening.

Her reputation and future were at stake; she couldn't just let this slide.

When Jonathan returned, he found Bethany packing. "Do you have any evidence of Maddie asking you for the drawings?"

"No."

At her response, he frowned and grabbed her wrist. “Let me handle this."

“No, I can handle it myself!" Bethany pulled her hand away. “There has to be a way to clear my name!"

“Bethany, I've already told you to let me deal with it.”

She stopped packing and faced him squarely. “And then what? Sit around waiting to be fired and live with this blot on my record forever?"

“If you're innocent, no one can convict you unjustly.”

“That's true, but she requested the drawings and then wiped the evidence to frame me. If the truth comes out, Bates Group will lose their chief lawyer." Bethany looked deeply into his eyes. "Are you prepared to let that happen?"

Was he ready to sacrifice the benefits Maddie brought to the company, to jeopardize the career of his favored chief lawyer?

It might seem like a corporate dilemma, but in reality, Maddie's bold move placed her at the center of the storm, gambling on his reluctance to act against her. Between a chief lawyer and a mere assistant, the choice seemed obvious.