Three Years Forgotten, Why Go Crazy When I Say Goodbye? novel Chapter 354

"What do you mean?"

"I mean this mass exodus was premeditated. They were bought out with massive salaries, and they chose to abandon the Sinclair Group. They've been slacking off and completely checked out of their work ever since Willow left. I didn't want to assume the worst before, but looking back, all the red flags were there," Vivienne stated with absolute conviction.

Julian watched her closely. Though he remained silent, it was evident her words had planted a seed of doubt in his mind.

Sensing the shift, Vivienne poured more fuel on the fire. "People like that have zero loyalty. For all we know, they've already taken our classified data to hand over to their new employer."

After dropping that bomb, she kept her eyes fixed on his face, praying his anger would finally dissipate. She had played every card in her hand and exhausted every lie she could invent.

But a second later, Julian's expression hardened again. He offered her no mercy. "Even if that's true, you should have informed me immediately. You shouldn't have waited until the damage was completely irreversible to force my hand."

Realizing he wasn't going to let her off the hook, panic flared in her chest. "So, what? Are you saying you're never going to forgive me?"

Julian's tone was ironclad. "My mistake was forgiving you too many times; that's what led us to this disaster. People need to pay the price for their actions. Effective immediately, you are suspended from all your current projects. Don't bother coming into the office."

He was effectively stripping her of her power. Even if she returned later, the corporate gossip would be relentless. Unable to accept this blow, Vivienne lost her composure completely. "On what grounds? At the end of the day, they left because of their own greed! Even if they hadn't quit today, they would have walked tomorrow! Why am I the one being punished for their betrayal?"

Forcing two fresh tears to well up in her eyes, Vivienne turned and opened the door. The moment it swung open, she threw herself into Susannah's arms. "Mom!"

Seeing Vivienne sobbing, Susannah didn't even ask what happened—she already knew everything from the drive over. She shot Julian a disapproving look. "Julian, are you bullying Vivienne again? Honestly, she just got back from a grueling business trip. If you won't show her some care, the least you could do is not terrorize her."

Julian hadn't expected his mother to show up and had no desire to air his professional grievances in front of her. He seamlessly deflected. "Mom, what are you doing here?"

"Vivienne just got back today. I came to check on her," Susannah replied, putting on a show of maternal outrage. "Thank God I did, or you would have bullied the poor girl to death."