Elaine froze. She gritted her teeth and glared at the two other interviewers. It seemed that Garrett had already investigated this matter thoroughly, and he was dead serious about the consequences. There was no way she could save herself with a few measly lies. But the Larson Group discarded dozens, if not hundreds, of hopeful applicants every day. She really couldn't see what was so special about Janet. Why would a powerful man like Garrett go out of his way to personally handle something so trivial? At this point, Elaine decided. to face the situation head-on. She lifted her chin, her eyes burning with resentment and defiance. "I have no evidence. I only heard the rumors. I disliked her on the spot and didn’t want her to work in the company, and that’s why. I said that she has a moral issue. The amiable expression on Garrett’s face disappeared, turning cold. "You made a subjective conjecture about another person based on rumors, and because of your personal feelings, you. slandered and insisted on eliminating a perfectly capable applicant. In doing so, you almost cost the company a competent. employee. It is obvious that you are unfit for a position in the Human Resources Department. The only person of moral issues. here is you. Elaine Sellers, you are fired. Atense silence descended over the room. All the color drained from Elaine's place

"lm so sorry, Mr. Harding!" she immediately begged. "I know I was wrong. I’ve realized my mis takes. It was all my fault. Please, I’ve been working for the Larson Group since I . graduated from university. Please, I beg yo u, let me go this once. If only for the sak e of my years of hard work in the company. Her desperation was written al l over her face. The Larson Group was a le ading enterprise in the f ield of design, after all. It hadn’t been easy for her to get into the com pany in the first place. She had even brag ged about it to e veryone she knew. More importantly, if word got out that she had been fired by the Larson Group, she mig ht not be able to land a job in the industry . ag ai n. Elaine's care er would be ru ined for good. Unfortunately for her, Garre tt didn’t care. He ignored her and turned to his assistant. "Call security and have them ta ke Elaine Sellers out of the bu ilding. " A small ruckus ensued. Only when the guards had dragg ed Elaine away did the meeting room fall into another silence. Garrett's e yes darted t oward Janet. Finally, he could observ e this clever and talent ed woman at his leisure. “Miss Lind,” he said kindly, "you may co ntinue your application process if you l ike

! have read your resume. You meet the . requirements that th e Larson Group has se t for new graduates. Janet gaped at him for a few seconds. When she finally came back t o her senses, all she could manage was a thoughtless nod. "I see. O kay. Tha nk you. She couldn't wrap her he ad around it. Thankfully, Garrett spoke a gain, or she would have rem ained there, dazed and lost. "Thank you again for c oming today," he said, flashing her a smile. "I have another m eeting, so I will be leaving first. He got to his feet and the rest of the men followed suit. Garrett was at the doo r when he suddenly turn ed and winked at Janet. He appeared to be intere sted in her. "It’s been a pleasure meeti ng you, Miss Lind. I look fo rward to seeing you again. Once they had left, the female interviewe r with chestnut hair came over and patted Janet on the shou And then she left before . Janet co uld say anything. Now all by herself, Janet gripped the arm rests of her chair, as if to ground herse lf and make sure that everything was real. When she stood up a while later , she felt like she was stepping on clouds, weightless and free. She was just as confused as she had been when she had fi rst arrived, if not more so. What the heck had just happened? Why did her failed interview draw so much atten tion, and from the VP of the company, no . l es s?