Chapter 237
Chapter 237:
The smirks instantly vanished from Cecelia’s and Nelly’s faces. Cecelia’s voice trembled as she replied, “W-What? What on earth are you even saying? I don’t know anything about—”
A cold wave of dread crashed over her. She’d covered her tracks so carefully—how could this have happened?
Stella faced her with a cool, unyielding gaze. “Doesn’t matter if you deny it. The truth will come out soon enough when the investigators get here.”
Cecelia sucked in a shaky breath, holding tight to her resentment. “Sylvia, stop making up wild stories! What ‘data’? You lost, and now you’re just throwing out baseless accusations because you can’t handle it. That’s pathetic—even for you.”
Stella let out a short, scornful laugh. Then, without a hint of hesitation, she raised her hand and struck Cecelia across the face.
The slap cracked through the cafeteria, sharp and unmistakable, turning every head in the room.
Cecelia’s hand shot up to shield her face, her eyes burning with shock and outrage. “Sylvia, did you actually slap me?” she demanded, her voice shaking.
Stella didn’t even blink as she countered, “Cecelia, I tried to let you save face. I gave you every chance to come clean in private, but you clearly don’t care about shame. So don’t blame me for airing it all out now. I’ve got the video of you and Allen switching the experimental data. Should I play it for the whole room?”
Cecelia’s breath caught. She searched Stella’s eyes, desperate for any sign of a bluff, but Stella’s gaze was steady, ice-cold, and utterly sincere.
Panic flickered across Cecelia’s face. She was certain—when she and Allen made the switch, no one else was in the lab.
Actually, Stella had stumbled onto their scheme entirely by chance.
Her strict habits meant she always left the lab camera rolling right up until she went back to the dorm, just to keep the data aboveboard.
But that day, she’d hurried out and forgotten to switch off the camera—only to return the next morning and find the battery dead.
Discover stories now
After bringing the camera home, she simply plugged it in to charge, never bothering to check the files inside.
It wasn’t until William mentioned something was off that she finally popped out the memory card and scrolled through the footage.
There it was, plain as day—Cecelia and Allen slipping into the lab long after everyone else had left.
The camera had recorded every word between them, their hushed conversation preserved in full.
The evidence was irrefutable.
Cecelia’s breath quickened, panic flickering in her eyes. She recalled every risky move, every secretive gesture she’d made in Allen’s presence that day.
If Stella really had watched all of it, then she was finished.
Cecelia said, “That’s a complete lie! I never met Allen alone—ever! I never struck any secret deal with him or his people. Someone in their group fell sick, so I filled in for them, that’s all. I don’t know anything about data!”
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