Chapter 2: The Quiet Audit
I did not confront him.
Not yet.
Instead, I went back to the office the next morning like nothing had changed.
Routine is the best disguise for war.
I sat with HR first.
“No announcement,” I told them. “No rumors. If anyone asks, Alejandro is on administrative leave pending internal review.”
Then procurement.
“Freeze all vendor changes made in the last ninety days. No exceptions.”
Then dispatch.
“Cross-check route adjustments approved by Alejandro. I want delays, reroutes, cancellations—everything.”
By noon, the picture was clearer.
Contracts had not been stolen outright.
They had been weakened.
Small delays. Slight inconsistencies. Just enough to make us look unreliable.
Just enough for a competitor to step in and offer “stability.”
Victor Salgado had not been trying to beat my company.
He had been waiting for it to stumble.
And Alejandro had been helping him.
Not for survival.
For ownership.
May you like
That word again.
Everything.
