Chapter 10
377words
This room became my new prison—and my new battlefield.
The Fisher Group crisis wasn't resolved by my apparent "fixes"—it plunged deeper into chaos thanks to the hidden traps I'd planted.
Frederick needed me—needed the brilliant mind he kept chained.
Rather than taking me to the company, he brought a laptop to my hospital bed.
Chained by my ankles, I was forced to clean up his financial disasters.
More humiliating still, he positioned Lily as my "supervisor."
Daily she arrived in designer clothes, leisurely eating imported cherries—my favorite—while taunting me.
"Work faster, Sophie. When you're done, Frederick's taking me to Paris for the new season's handbags."
She deliberately spat cherry pits into my bedside trash, each one landing with a sharp click.
"Look at yourself—half-dead, half-alive. Hard to believe Frederick once called you brilliant. You're nothing but garbage."
I typed mechanically, completely ignoring her taunts.
Seeing her barbs had no effect, she escalated her attacks.
"Still so proud, aren't you? Listen carefully, Sophie—whether your father gets a proper burial depends on how fast you work. Slack off, and Frederick promised to feed your father's ashes to the dogs!"
My fingers froze mid-keystroke.
Lily smirked triumphantly, believing she'd finally struck a nerve.
I looked up at her smug, vicious face and replied calmly:
"You know something, Lily? Dogs eat almost anything—but even they won't touch garbage."
Her smile froze.
"You—! Who are you calling garbage?!"
"Whoever answers that question identifies themselves." I returned to my work without another glance.
Her face flushed crimson as she grabbed a water glass, ready to throw it at me.
Frederick pushed the door open just then, instantly grabbing her wrist.
"Get out." His voice could have frozen fire.
Lily looked at him with feigned hurt: "Frederick, she insulted me—"
"I said get OUT. Are you deaf?" Not a trace of warmth remained in his eyes.
Lily trembled, scurrying away without another word.
Frederick approached my bed, studying the complex code and data on my screen. His eyes flashed with appreciation and possessive hunger.
He believed he owned me completely.
He never suspected that each line of code I wrote was another nail in the Fisher family coffin.
