Fractured Trust: The Downfall of Delta Team

A Sudden Change

When Ethan first joined the Delta Project, his salary was fair, and the job seemed promising. But soon after, he was transferred to the Horizon Project—without warning or discussion. Despite the unexpected shift, he continued to work diligently.

A few months later, Daniel, from the finance team, informed him that his salary had been increased by $300. While the raise was welcome, frustration crept in when a new hire, Jake, joined with a salary $300 higher than his, despite having little experience.

Ethan raised his concerns multiple times with his supervisor, Mark, urging him to discuss the matter with Mr. Richard, the department manager. But no further adjustments were made. This injustice gnawed at Ethan, and his resentment grew.

A Moment of Reckless Frustration

One evening, overwhelmed with frustration, Ethan found himself speeding down the highway at 110 mph. In a burst of emotion, he slammed the brakes and pulled over. His teammates in the car were caught off guard, shaken by the abrupt stop.

From that day on, tensions between Ethan and Mark escalated. Small disagreements turned into deep divisions. That same night, in a heated moment, Ethan voiced his anger at Mark in front of Jake and Daniel. Jake saw an opportunity and began plotting to align himself closer to Mark.

Jake’s Deceptions Begin

1. The Missing Money

When Mark left the project, he handed over responsibilities to Jake, despite everyone knowing he was unfit to manage operations. He could only keep track of the fieldwork, but when faced with pressure, he crumbled.

After taking charge, Jake spent most of the month slacking off—showing up to the office less than half the time because he had the backing of Mr. Wallace, the senior project head.

During the transition, $1,200 went missing. At first, Jake blamed a low-level worker, Sam, hoping to intimidate him into silence. But when Sam refused to take the fall, Jake had no choice but to admit his guilt. He returned the money, but his reputation was shattered.

2. Manipulating the Team

Jake didn’t stop there. He also manipulated the work schedules to control everything to his advantage.

He deliberately miscalculated shift timings, making life harder for the field teams.

He lacked even basic email-writing skills—now, he relied on AI tools to do his job.

One day, while trying to "speed up" work, he accidentally erased an entire data sheet during a critical meeting.

3. The Airport Incident

One particular day at the Nova Airport, Jake’s deceit went even further. Ethan was assigned a company car for his duty shift.

He arrived at 10 AM, and Jake and Lucas were scheduled to take the same car for a trip to Northport. Since the flight hadn’t landed yet, Ethan handed the keys to Ryan, a backup driver, instructing him:

"Take this car to them; they’ll drop you back here after their trip."

Instead, Jake and Lucas took the car and left Ryan stranded while they drove off.

When Ryan called Ethan, frustration boiled over. If Ethan had a vehicle at that moment, he might have gone after them himself. But Jake managed to escape confrontation that day.

4. Attempting to Discredit Ethan

Jake wasn’t done yet. He devised a plan to have Mr. Wallace undermine Ethan’s credibility.

One morning, Wallace summoned Ethan to the meeting room and accused him of not performing well.

Ethan, surprised, asked, "What makes you say that?"

Wallace replied, "I know you’re upset that Mark trusted Jake over you."

Ethan calmly responded, "Sir, I told Jake on his first day that if he needed help, I was always available."

Despite his honesty, Jake continued to plot against him, whispering false stories behind his back. But fate had its own plans.

Turning a Friend Against Him

Soon, Aiden, who had just returned from a long break, found himself under Jake’s influence. Since they shared an apartment, Jake wasted no time poisoning Aiden’s mind. Without seeking the full story, Aiden turned his back on Ethan and the rest of the team.

"You guys didn’t treat Jake well," he would say, convinced by one-sided lies.

The Breakdown of Trust

Jake wasn’t just manipulating individuals—he was breaking apart the team.

He told Daniel that Lucas was speaking behind his back.

He told Lucas that Daniel was planning against him.

He feared Michael, so he avoided him but kept feeding lies to Mark about him.

The Final Blow

Jake’s schemes ultimately led to a divided team, broken relationships, and a work environment full of suspicion.

Eventually, the truth surfaced—but by then, the damage had been done.