Chapter 569

Evelyn suddenly remembered something and dialed Emily Whitaker's number.

"Evelyn?" Emily sounded delighted. Background chatter buzzed around her.

Evelyn chuckled. "Emily, are you at the office?"

"No, I'm at the Great God Donovan's research lab. I'm on vacation, so he invited me to check out his latest project. It's incredible!"

"You're on vacation?" Evelyn's expression darkened.

"Yeah! Mr. Kingsley gave us two weeks off. Honestly, it was unexpected—the project isn't even halfway done, and we haven't cracked the core tech yet."

Under normal circumstances, researchers wouldn't get extended leave during a critical project. At most, they'd rotate shifts or receive bonuses.

"Two weeks?" Evelyn's face turned icy.

She pressed her lips together, inhaling sharply.

"Emily, I'll talk to Dominic and get to the bottom of this. We'll speak later."

She ended the call.

Benjamin Carter's face paled. Dominic Kingsley had authorized a lengthy break for the R&D team, yet he hadn't heard a word about it.

"Ms. Sinclair... I had no idea—"

"Of course you didn't," Evelyn cut in coldly. "They made sure of that."

Benjamin panicked. His role had always felt too smooth—a fresh graduate handed major responsibilities, treated with deference by Dominic Kingsley and Nathan Blackwood's people. He'd assumed that with Evelyn overseeing the three-way partnership, nothing could go wrong.

Yet this had happened right under his nose.

Evelyn strode away in her heels, her posture rigid. Passing colleagues greeted her, and she forced a polite smile.

On the surface, she appeared composed.

Inside, fury simmered.

She marched straight to Dominic's office.

His secretary blinked in surprise. "Ms. Sinclair? What brings you here?"

Evelyn smiled thinly. "Is Mr. Kingsley in?"

The secretary nodded. "Yes, he's inside."

Without waiting for an announcement, Evelyn pushed the door open.

Dominic was on a call but quickly hung up when he saw her. His charming smile faltered at her stormy expression.

"Ms. Sinclair, what a pleasant surprise. Perfect timing—I'll call Nathan, and we can all have lunch. There's a new restaurant—"

Evelyn's gaze was glacial. Her lips curled into a mocking smirk.

"Mr. Kingsley, is Kingsley Tech going bankrupt?"

Dominic stiffened. He looked away.

"Just say what you mean, Ms. Sinclair."

"You gave the R&D team an extended vacation without board approval. Worse, you didn’t assign replacements, halting progress entirely. If this isn’t sabotage, it’s gross incompetence."

She didn’t mince words.

This wasn’t just about Preston Sinclair’s project. Sterling Enterprises, as a direct partner, stood to lose millions.

Dominic’s eyes flickered with guilt. If not for that person’s orders, he’d never have dared.

"You misunderstand. It’s just a short break. After resolving the AI car issue, I thought the team deserved some rest."

Evelyn scoffed. "Two weeks is short? Are you deliberately stalling Preston’s project?"

Dominic pressed his lips together. "Of course not."

"I recommended Preston Sinclair partner with your company. If you want out, terminate the contract properly. These underhanded tactics don’t suit you."

"It wasn’t my decision!"

"Then whose was it?" Evelyn demanded.