In the conference room of Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, the atmosphere was tense.
Darnell, summoned by Lillian, walked into the meeting room to find a dozen senior executives already present, with Areli and Roberto seated at the center.
“Miss Fanshaw, Mr. Gower, what’s with the early morning meeting?”
Ignoring the grave expressions around him, Darnell cheerfully pulled out a chair and sat down. “Are we discussing company bonuses? I’m all for that!”
“I heard the manager of the sales department gets at least three million in bonuses a year. Since I’ve only just joined the company, I won’t take as much-two hundred ninety thousand should be fine.”
He feigned modesty.
“Darnell!”
Roberto’s face hardened as he took the lead in reprimanding him. “Get serious. Today’s meeting is important and serious. Stop messing around, or you’ll be asked to leave.”
Darnell immediately got up. “Then I’ll just leave. I hate serious meetings.”
“You can’t leave!”
Roberto suddenly realized a critical issue-Darnell was the key figure. Without him, the meeting would be meaningless. He quickly called out, “You need to stay.”
Darnell shot Roberto a disdainful glance. “One moment you want me to leave, the next you want me to stay. What do you want from me?”
“Can’t you have a bit of backbone at your age?”
Roberto was so enraged he couldn’t find words. “You-”
“Alright, enough of this. Everyone, sit down.”
Areli waved her hand, motioning for Darnell to take his seat. She then surveyed the room and continued, “Now that everyone is here, let’s get to the point.”
“Ten minutes ago, HealthMingle, NovaCure, and TrustMed officially sent a letter to the company, requesting to terminate all cooperation. Spectrum Pharmaceuticals products will no longer be sold in their pharmacies.”
Darnell, who had been drinking water, nearly spat it out. He was already troubled by the 1. 8-billion sales pressure, and now this bombshell news hit him hard.
These three major pharmacies had annual sales of four to five hundred million. With only three months left and without these powerful partners, Darnell felt the weight of even greater pressure on his shoulders.
“Miss Fanshaw, why are they terminating their cooperation with us?”
Darnell was furious. “Is there someone scheming behind our backs? I’ll break their legs!”
Damn it! Who was pulling the strings here?
“Things don’t just happen for no reason. Someone is definitely stirring the pot.”
Roberto spoke sarcastically. “Although there’s no hard evidence, I’ve received a rumor.”
“The three pharmacies are terminating their partnerships to collaborate with Pioneer Properties. Besides Pioneer Properties offering significant incentives, someone leaked our product costs to these pharmacies.”
“The three pharmacies feel like we’ve been making too much profit and are quite unhappy about it.”
The room erupted in disbelief, murmurs filling the space as everyone processed this shocking revelation. Did someone leak confidential information? They exchanged wary glances, suspicion brewing among them.
Areli shot a displeased look at Roberto. He was inciting distrust within Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, undermining their unity, and that was unforgivable.
Her intention was to objectively discuss the facts of the three pharmacies terminating their cooperation while discreetly investigating the leak Roberto mentioned. She didn’t want to make this public.
One, there was no evidence to prove the termination was due to a leak, and two, she didn’t want to sow distrust among employees, which could harm the company’s unity.
Instability among the staff could be fatal for the company. Who knew Roberto would blurt it out so recklessly?
“Is this really happening?”
Darnell slammed his hand on the table, anger boiling over. “We must root out the traitor! They should be punished severely!”
Areli interjected calmly, “This is just Mr. Gower’s personal speculation, and there’s no solid evidence. Everyone, please refrain from jumping to conclusions.”
Darnell huffed, “Oh really? Is it Eliezer and Brian’s doing?”
“Eliezer’s been a minister for many years. It wouldn’t be hard for him to sell commercial secrets. His behavior at the celebration also indicates he might retaliate against Spectrum Pharmaceuticals.”
Roberto was livid. This jerk was trying to shift the blame onto them.
He scoffed, “They’ve been detained for fifteen days and still haven’t been released. How could they leak company secrets?”
He looked at Darnell mockingly. “You, the new minister, might have an opportunity to spill the beans.”
Areli cleared her throat, taking over the conversation. “Mr. Gower, Mr. Halford, let’s not discuss unproven matters.”
“Otherwise, we’ll disrupt the company’s morale.”
Roberto persisted, “Miss Fanshaw, I agree that unproven matters shouldn’t be discussed, but if there’s concrete evidence, can we talk about that?”
He pulled out a stack of photos from his pocket and tossed them onto the conference table. “Last night, Darnell was seen meeting with a woman.”
“Everyone, take a look. Who is that?”
Roberto’s expression was smug. “Paige, our old rival. Darnell met her. Who knows what shady deals they made?”
The room erupted in buzz again, people passing photos around and casting suspicious looks at Darnell.
“Who the hell took these photos?”
Darnell grabbed a photo and examined it. “Look at how ugly I look. This is damaging my chances with women!”
Areli’s face turned icy. “Mr. Halford, you’re really out there playing the field, even with Paige?”
Darnell looked aggrieved. “Miss Fanshaw, it was a business necessity…” He had genuinely gone to discuss collaboration with Chandler.
“Whether you’re flirting or not is your own business.”
Areli waved her hand, dismissing Darnell’s explanation with annoyance. “That’s your own choice.”
Roberto laughed coldly. “Darnell, don’t you want to explain anything?”
Darnell appeared dazed. “Explain? What’s there to explain? Having dinner with a girl isn’t wrong!”
Areli’s hostility was palpable. “It sounds like Mr. Halford really wants to have multiple partners.”
Darnell was momentarily taken aback, unsure what had triggered Areli’s anger.
Roberto smirked, eyeing Darnell shrewdly. “You’re dining and singing with our rival, and now three pharmacies have obtained our cost reports.”
“Don’t you think there’s a connection? I can’t help but feel you leaked our cost report to Paige.”
At this, everyone turned their gaze to Darnell, suspicion evident in their eyes.
“Mr. Gower, don’t make baseless accusations.”
Darnell remained calm, responding steadily, “If you’re going to accuse me of leaking information, bring some evidence. Otherwise, I’ll sue you for defamation.”
“And I find it curious…”
“Why didn’t the three pharmacies inform us that they’re terminating cooperation after seeing the cost report? Mr. Gower, how can you be so sure that’s the reason?”
“I could also say I heard that Mr. Gower attended a banquet and accidentally leaked confidential information.”
“Darnell, stop being difficult.”
Roberto’s face darkened. “I suspect you because of these photos. How do you explain them? What about your meeting with Paige?”
“Don’t say it’s for a blind date or something. Even a fool wouldn’t believe that. Miss Fanshaw, I’d like to state that I think Darnell is highly suspicious.”
“No matter the outcome, he should be temporarily suspended to prevent further losses to the company.”
The executives chimed in agreement.
“Yeah, temporary suspension.”
“Exactly, better to be safe during turbulent times.”
“Spectrum Pharmaceuticals has gone through too many upheavals. We can’t afford anymore.”
Areli turned to Darnell. “Mr. Halford, don’t you want to clarify the circumstances of your meeting with Paige?”
“Personal matter.”
Darnell shot back bluntly, “I can assure you it has nothing to do with company interests.”
He couldn’t exactly say that Paige was asking him for stamina pills and Cicada Serum, could he?
“If you can assure us of its relevance, why bother with the police?”
Roberto scoffed, “You either explain yourself clearly or be suspended while we conduct an investigation.”
Darnell looked at Areli, speaking coolly, “Miss Fanshaw, what do you think?”
Areli’s expression remained impassive as she replied coldly, “Mr. Halford, the company regulations state that this matter will be thoroughly investigated. Anyone involved must prove their innocence.”
“Paige is our rival, and after your meeting with her, this serious leak occurred.”
“While it’s not definite they’re related, it’s hard not to speculate.”
Areli’s eyes were sharp. “Mr. Halford, it’s better to disclose everything so everyone understands. Otherwise, I’ll have to put you on leave.”
“Although you’re talented, the company won’t tolerate betrayal.”
Areli pointed at the table, “I hope you don’t skip any details.”
“Put me on leave?”
Darnell glanced around the room and then looked at the icy-faced Areli, nodding. “It’s simple. Chandler asked me to dinner yesterday, and I happened to run into Paige.”
“So we spent some time together. That’s the whole story. I’ve never leaked a single secret of Spectrum Pharmaceuticals.”
Areli scoffed, “That explanation wouldn’t even fool a three-year-old.”
She didn’t know what was wrong with her today, but she felt compelled to provoke Darnell. “Can’t you just be honest for once?”
“Fool a child? Be honest once?”
Darnell took a deep breath and replied calmly, “I understand.”
He then grabbed a bottle of water and drank it down in one go.
Turning around, he walked out of the room.
He didn’t care about explaining or how others viewed him, but he couldn’t stand Areli’s distrust. He knew no one would believe his explanation anyway.
Roberto and the others watched Darnell leave, seemingly shocked that he would just walk out without facing the music.
As he reached the door, Darnell stopped and, without turning back, said softly, “Goodbye.”
“Darnell, what was so inappropriate about that night that you’d rather take leave than explain?”
Areli felt a surge of anger and shouted at Darnell’s back, “Why are you defending Paige so fiercely?”
“Are you starting to like her?”
Darnell paused momentarily, then waved his hand and walked away.