After Hamilton and Rosie left, Cullen turned to Niall with a curious expression. "Did you finish talking to Mrs. Reid?"

Niall nodded with a slight smile curving her lips.

Based on Rosie's demeanor before departing, it seemed her patience with Veronica was wearing increasingly thin. What Niall didn't realize was that Rosie had been well-informed about the ongoing tensions between Stellar and DataPulse long before their conversation.

Dario had briefed her thoroughly in advance.

When Rosie stepped away claiming to take a call, she hadn't actually received one—she was recording their entire exchange. Moving a short distance from Cullen and Niall, she glanced back at them briefly before transmitting the recording directly to Dario.

At that moment, Dario and Veronica were still at the office wrapping up their day. Upon receiving the recording, Dario smiled knowingly and walked straight to Veronica's office to update her on this latest development.

After listening to the details, Veronica's eyes gleamed with satisfaction. "Now I can be sure that we'll definitely win the lawsuit."

"Exactly," Dario agreed, leaning against her office doorframe.

Their persistence in pursuing the contract termination lawsuit wasn't merely about severing ties with Stellar. It was a calculated move designed to pressure Niall into a corner, forcing her to exhaust every possible avenue to prevent the termination.

They were counting on Niall reaching out to the Murray or Reid families in desperation. Each attempt she made to salvage the contract would create more opportunities for them to manipulate her into making damaging statements and gather additional evidence to strengthen their case.

Simply put, the harder Niall tried, the more mistakes she would inevitably make.

Had she limited her response to sincere apologies and demonstrated willingness to cooperate, they might have struggled to terminate the contract even after trial. And if they had succeeded, the compensation would have been relatively minimal.

But now, the situation had shifted dramatically in their favor.

The initial conflicts were clearly Niall's fault, yet she was now claiming that their determination to end the contract stemmed solely from Veronica's personal vendetta against her.

What made this particularly damning was Veronica's position—not just any staff member at DataPulse, but the key liaison responsible for the Stellar partnership. Niall had first disrespected this professional relationship, then resorted to indiscriminate slander against their project staff to avoid termination.

This provided compelling evidence that continued collaboration had become untenable.

Furthermore, by alleging that Veronica's actions were motivated by personal grudges, Niall had opened a dangerous door. If a judge inquired about the nature of these grudges, wouldn't Veronica have the perfect opportunity to expose everything about their history?

In that scenario, Niall would likely be more concerned about her personal conflicts with Veronica becoming public record than about the contract dispute itself. To avoid uncomfortable revelations, she might ultimately agree to terminate the contract and pay whatever exorbitant fee they demanded.

Contemplating this perfect trap, Dario's smile broadened with satisfaction.

As soon as Dario departed from her office, Veronica's phone lit up with Sabrina's name. This wasn't the first call—Sabrina had tried reaching her earlier that morning as well, but Veronica had let it go unanswered.

Tomorrow was Sabrina's fencing competition. The call was likely to confirm whether Veronica would accompany her or not.

Then again, Veronica thought cynically, perhaps Sabrina had changed her mind and now preferred Cullen and Niall's company instead of hers. It wouldn't be the first time such a thing had happened.

With that bitter thought lingering, Veronica set her phone aside without answering, determined to complete her data analysis before heading home.

Sabrina tried calling several more times throughout the day. Each unanswered call deepened her disappointment and frustration.

That evening, when Cullen arrived home, he found Sabrina curled up on the sofa, absentmindedly tugging at a stuffed toy's ears, her expression glum.

Cullen instantly recognized the source of her distress. "Your mom didn't answer the phone or didn't have time to go with you?"

Sabrina's lower lip jutted out in a pout as she continued pulling at the toy's fuzzy ears. "She didn't answer the phone." After a moment of hesitation, she looked up at Cullen, who was loosening his tie while watching her expectantly.

"Since Mom doesn't have time," Sabrina finally said, her voice small, "could you and Niall go with me to the competition tomorrow?"

Cullen's face softened into a gentle smile. "Sure," he replied warmly. "I'll let Niall know."

"Good night, Dad," Sabrina murmured, clutching the stuffed toy to her chest as she trudged upstairs, disappointment still evident in her slumped shoulders.