Cody was left speechless. Sadie, however, showed no shame, tilting her chin up at me.
“Fairness?” She sneered. “Phoebe, don’t be so naive. In this world, whoever has the power… that’s where fairness lives.”
“You want justice? Then go find yourself a rich dad to fight for you. Too bad—you don’t have one.”
She didn’t bother hiding the contempt on her face as she said coldly, “But I do. I’m the daughter of Wesley Modine, CEO of CipherLux Innovations. With that identity alone, I can crush you so hard you’ll never get back up!”
I stared at her, genuinely wondering where she got that kind of confidence.
I even started doubting my own uncle for a second; could he really have fathered some secret love child behind the family’s back?
I suddenly asked, “I heard Mr. Modine has a niece he treats like his own daughter. Tell me, Miss Sales-Champion Modine, have you met her?”
Sadie’s face froze for a split second before she shot me a disdainful glance.
“That’s my cousin, of course, I’ve seen her. But she’s been living overseas for years. Hardly ever comes back. Even I barely see her. Someone like you—a low-class nobody—don’t even dream about it.”
I let out a short laugh. “Is that so? If the Sales Champion isn’t ‘low-class,’ then why did she steal someone else’s title and bonus? Don’t tell me… you’re the fake heiress?”
“Bitch!” Her face went completely dark as she glared daggers at me. “Phoebe! Don’t push your luck. Your title was revoked because you didn’t deserve it. I earned mine with real skill!”
“Skill?” I took a step closer, staring straight at her.
“You mean the ‘skill’ of playing games at your desk every day? The ‘skill’ of taking two-hour lunch breaks and clocking out exactly at five?
“Or maybe the ‘skill’ of spending an entire day typing only the words ‘Project Plan’ into an empty PowerPoint?”
I wasn’t speaking fast, but every word hit hard enough to make her flinch.
She opened her mouth but nothing came out. Then she shot a desperate look toward Cody.
His face showed that classic can’t-believe-how-useless-you-are expression. Then he turned to me, his voice dropping low.
“Phoebe! Watch your mouth. This is a company, not a fish market. You don’t get to yell and scream here.
“And don’t think that just because you brought in a few projects in the past you can do whatever you want. Survival of the fittest. If someone better replaces you, accept it. Don’t make a scene!”