Chapter 474

"It's nothing."

Winnie turned slightly, her hand clutching the warm spot on her back. Her face, chillingly pale, showed no emotion as she looked at Lawrence and the woman he was tenderly holding.

Her cold stare pierced Lawrence. It was then he noticed the edge of the desk, right where her back had been. "You..." His voice lost a fraction of its calm.

With a mocking tone, Winnie answered his implied question, "Do you really think, Mr. Rodriguez, that we could have done something to your Manager Nelson? Did she storm into my office and fall on her own because I certainly didn't touch her. Am I supposed to take the blame for this?"

"Winnie... you misunderstood me. You thought I stole your project plan and, in anger, you accidentally hit me..."

"Let it go, let's just say I fell, Lawrence. No need to stir up trouble with Winnie," Ishara whispered, her face ashen, clutching her chest, barely able to speak. Her ankle shook uncontrollably.

Lawrence examined the burn, which not only hadn't healed but had been aggravated. An infection seemed imminent.

"Blood transfusion scheduled for tomorrow..." His heart sank as he pressed on her spine to alleviate her pain. "Slow down your breathing, Ishara. What on earth happened?" he demanded.

His stern voice instantly silenced the office.

Ishara gave him a piteous look, biting her lip as if wronged, and shook her head weakly, eyeing Winnie as if fearful of saying more.

Winnie gave her a scornful smirk, as if witnessing a performance.

Melanie clenched her fists, unable to watch silently any longer. She burst out with courage, "Mr. Rodriguez! Manager Nelson stormed into the assistant manager's office, stealing our team's strategy plan. We caught her red-handed. I wanted to alert the higher-ups, but when Ms. Nelson couldn't find another way out, she played the victim. She fell on purpose, reopening her wound, to gain sympathy and wriggle out of this. But we won't let her off that easy. Lacking in talent and resorting to theft, even Mr. Rodriguez can't shield her, not with all these eye witnesses."

Lawrence's lips pressed into a thin line, his piercing eyes held a stern warning. "You say she stole the strategy; do you have proof?"

Melanie confidently presented the strategic document. "This is Assistant Manager Winnie's strategy plan! The security footage will back it up. Besides, so many of us saw Manager Nelson sneak a look at it and even tried to take it."

Jannie nodded quickly, "I saw it too!"

"Hand it over," Lawrence commanded.

His secretary stepped forward to collect the documents from Melanie.

Lawrence helped Ishara to her feet, brought her a chair and carefully helped her sit.

As he took the documents and started examining them, Ishara's lips curved into a slight, secretive smile, a smile that did not escape Winnie, whose heart sank.

Lawrence opened the document with a snap and spread it across the desk, his face turning stern as he looked directly at Winnie, "This is your strategy plan?"

Winnie's eyes flickered nervously.

Melanie and the others craned their necks to see Lawrence's slender finger pointing to the document's byline: Ishara!

Shocked, Melanie picked up the strategy plan and pored over it.

Melanie and Winnie exchanged glances - it was evident the disastrous jewelry selection and the childish, shabby excuse for a plan had been Ishara's plan all along.

It was unbelievable. Her cover page was an exact replica of Winnie's!!

The pair found themselves at a loss for words.

The compact office was suddenly steeped in silence, but ideas were sparking in Winnie's mind as she stared icily at Ishara.

In that moment, meek and silent, Ishara now stood up decisively, hurting and indignant, reaching for her own planning document, "Winnie... have you seen enough?

"This plan is mine, and mine alone! I know it's not great... I lack the experience.

"But I worked hard on it yesterday, hoping to show it to you. Maybe you'd gracefully give me some feedback.

"I was embarrassed, so I thought I'd leave it on your desk sneakily... And to thank you, I even brought breakfast for you.

"Lawrence... to think that Winnie would misunderstand me like this.

"Why? Just because I'm not skilled, doesn't mean I ought to be falsely accused of plagiarism, does it?"

Then, the atmosphere in the room shifted dramatically.

Winnie's eyes narrowed with understanding.

Lawrence, his expression cold, glanced at Winnie's desk and noticed a warm breakfast in an inconspicuous corner.

"Lawrence, I genuinely came for Winnie's guidance. Maybe, with the competition at stake, she did not want to mentor me. I mean, with the 4% Blanchet family shares on the line, I can understand why Winnie would misconstrue. It's the reason she suspects I stole the plan..."

As her tears fell one by one, she looked both heartbroken and pitiful, "And Melanie was quick to accuse me of plagiarism, leaving me defenseless..."

It was an implicit accusation that Melanie and Winnie were deliberately sullying her reputation.

The coworkers in the office were abuzz.

Who would have thought that Ishara was simply trying to deliver her own plan?

Lawrence's eyes fell on the blood still trickling from Ishara's ankle, his concern for his mother intensified.

His countenance grew colder as he looked down at Winnie with disappointment, then turned an icy gaze towards Melanie, "Do you have anything to say for yourselves?

"You accuse her of plagiarism with her own plan in your hands?

"Why are you intent on troubling her? Winnie, don't you realize how important she is to me right now? Can't you just leave her alone?

"Yesterday, Melanie, you caused her to scald herself with coffee, and today you bully her again?

When are you and your subordinate going to stop this nonsense? Apologize to her! You owe her an apology."

With Ishara in such a state, it's impossible to remain calm. Any minute now, she might need to be hospitalized again! He was exasperated!

The fury in the man's eyes sent chills down Winnie's spine.

"Do you even realize how important she is to me right now?"

"Can't you just let her be?"

Who's holding on to whom, exactly!

With a cold glance at Ishara, who couldn't hide her smugness, Winnie sneered, "Mr. Rodriguez, let me ask you, what are the basic rules and regulations of a company?"

"What are you trying to say?" Lawrence's voice was icy cold.

Standing tall, Winnie looked at him steadily, "This is my office. Manager Nelson snuck in early this morning without my permission. The sales department handles confidential information. If Manager Nelson can't grasp her job, shouldn't she at least understand basic protocol? Doesn't she owe me an apology and an explanation for her unauthorized intrusion?"

Her gaze was sharp as she locked eyes with Ishara.

Yet the office fell silent.

The company's management is strict, with each office being a separate area. Even superiors knocking on subordinates' doors required consent.

Winnie raised an eyebrow, "Manager Nelson disregarded company policy. She's to blame. She could have approached me openly with her proposal. Instead, she chose to sneak into my office and surprise me with it? If I misunderstood, it was justifiable. After all, it's Manager Nelson's actions that led to the misunderstanding. Why should I clear her name when it's her intrusion and secretive manner that caused others to suspect plagiarism?"