The dawn barely touched the Abidjan skyline when Andreas's phone vibrated. It was Grumpy, his voice tight with controlled urgency. "Sir, you need to see this. A major leak, just hit the wire. Corporate espionage, EdenTech's IP. And… it implicates Cassandra."
Andreas felt a cold dread wash over him. Alex. He knew this was his half-brother's insidious handiwork. He quickly opened the encrypted link Grumpy sent. The article was damning: screenshots of Cassandra's camera feed inside Snow's office, detailed lists of EdenTech's proprietary research, and a narrative painting Snow as careless with her company's most valuable assets. The piece subtly shifted blame, suggesting lax security, and implicitly questioning Andreas's judgment in backing EdenTech. The mention of Cassandra, a former White Cosmetics executive, was a poisonous sting, designed to rekindle doubts about Snow's past betrayals.
"He's good," Andreas muttered, a vein throbbing in his temple. Alex had turned the tables, using Cassandra's betrayal not just against Snow, but as a weapon against Andreas himself.
But Andreas Charm was not a man who buckled under pressure. Fury, cold and precise, ignited within him. He immediately called his top legal and cybersecurity teams. "I want every server at EdenTech locked down, immediate audit of all data. Cross-reference every IP address that accessed Snow's network last night. Find Cassandra's current location, now." His voice was a steel whip. "And start drafting a lawsuit against Cassandra for industrial espionage and intellectual property theft. We are moving with extreme prejudice."
He then called Snow. Her voice was thin, bordering on panic. She had seen the article. "Andreas, what is this? How… how could Cassandra…?"
"Stay calm, Snow," he commanded, his voice firm, projecting an authority that, despite his own simmering rage, instantly grounded her. "I know. Alex is behind this. He fed the leak. But we will handle it. I'm already mobilizing. Do not speak to any journalists. Do not acknowledge the article. I'm coming to EdenTech now."
Within an hour, Andreas was at EdenTech, a whirlwind of focused action. His cybersecurity team was already digitally barricading EdenTech's network, tracing the stolen data. Meanwhile, Grumpy's team, working with remarkable speed, located Cassandra's apartment.
They confronted her there. Cassandra, her face a mask of terror, crumbled under Andreas's unyielding gaze. She admitted to the data theft, terrified of the legal repercussions Andreas was laying out. "He made me do it!" she sobbed, gesturing wildly. "Alex! He found me after I admitted everything to him for Snow. He said this was the only way to truly expose Ravenna, to make her pay. He paid me, promised me a new life, a clean slate, if I… if I got this data for him. He said it would make Snow trust him more, show her that Andreas couldn't protect her. He forced me to sign contracts, tying me to his team."
Snow stared at Cassandra, her heart aching with a fresh wave of betrayal, not just from Cassandra, but from Alex's cold-blooded manipulation. "He lied to me," Snow whispered, the realization bitter on her tongue. Alex hadn't been helping; he had been setting a trap, using her vulnerability as bait.
Andreas listened, his face grim. Alex's scheme was even more elaborate and cruel than he had initially thought. He had used Cassandra's desperation, her knowledge of Ravenna's past manipulations, to create a perfect storm of chaos and discredit Andreas's ability to protect Snow.
"Don't worry, Cassandra," Andreas said, his voice devoid of sympathy. "You'll get your chance to tell all of this in court. As for Alex's contracts, my lawyers will be looking into their legality, as well as his direct involvement in industrial espionage and corporate defamation."
He immediately instructed his legal team to expand the lawsuit. The existing suit against Ravenna for the White Industries takeover was now to be heavily amended, adding charges related to the Cassandra betrayal, potentially linking Ravenna as the original source of Cassandra's compromised position. Simultaneously, a separate, but equally powerful, lawsuit was initiated directly against Alex Charm for corporate espionage, defamation, and malicious interference.