The Devil's Love For The Heiress

Chapter 75

Chapter 75: Who Stole The Designs?

“I swear, Kate, Mister Ronaldo, I did not do it! I was shocked when my assistant came to me with the designs!” Catrina was crying, after hearing that the designs in her hands were the ones that were stolen. “I did not even expect her to hand me the designs? What for?”

“Look at me? How many tubes are attached to me?” Catrina pointed out. “Do I really have the time to plot against the company? Six days ago, I was in a coma!”

Carlos and Kate looked at each other. Then, Kate answered, “Tell me, Catrina.” Referring to Catrina’s assistant, Kate asked, “When did Venice come to give you the designs?”

“Just two days ago,” Catrina replied. “It’s still in the drawer, right there, because I can’t do anything about it! I did not even order her to bring it to me. Why would I need it here?”

Immediately, Catrina sobbed. She covered her face with her palms and questioned, “Why is this happening to me? First, I was food poisoned, and then this?”

“Can I ask you something, Catrina? How did you get poisoned? Wherever you got the food from, we should sue them,” Carlos suggested. As he asked Catrina for more information, Kate excused herself, calling the security team on her mobile.

Catrina was wiping the tears from her face. She sniffed and stumbled in her words, “I asked Venice to buy me my usual dinner while I was working late. You and Kate were in London then, so the company was very busy. I always buy my food at the cafe across the street, so I don’t know how I could have gotten poisoned -” 2

“I had the security team check the cameras again, including the logs. Venice brought out the designs five days ago.” Kate said, returning to the hospital room. “So, what did she do with it in those three

days if she came here only two days ago?”

“Then,” Carlos concluded, “I think we may have just found the correct culprit. As Catrina’s assistant, Venice had access to all her files, too.”

***

While Carlos and Kate were talking to Catrina at the hospital, Channel 5, a local TV station, did a live interview with the new owner of SWEAT IT, Monet Williams. She was seated at her office, talking to a reporter about her current predicament.

“I received a demand letter from CSK Apparel. They claim our designs were theirs! The audacity! SWEAT IT has served Braeton for five years, and the city can attest to the quality of its products. Why would we do such a thing?” Monnet claimed.

“I’m sure you know by now that Carlos Ronaldo owns CSK Apparel, and while I admire him as a tennis player, clearly, he is not suited for business! Shame on you, Carlos!”

She looked at the cameras and challenged, “Carlos, if you have any proof, come out and show it to the entire Braeton! But I know you won’t because there is no such thing! We stole nothing! You are the new company, and you have something to prove, not SWEAT IT!”

Later that day, Carlos and Kate learned of Monet’s challenge. They replayed the interview from the CSK Apparel office.

Alexander hissed and said, “How are we going to deal with this?”

“Why do I feel like this is a personal vendetta against me?” Carlos asked. It was supposed to be his break from the tournaments, a chance to recharge and plan for the next Grand Slam. However, he experienced

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another problem again upon returning to Braeton. To think, he only had a week left before the US Open would start

Shaking his head, Carlos suggested, “I have this fucking feeling this is all Tyler. He was still upset with me after I beat him. He never recovered.”

Of course, aside from that, while Tyler acted like a playboy, Carlos earnestly felt he always liked Kate. Otherwise, why did he collude with Hailey in the past? Then, at the same time as their return from London, Tyler showed up at their high school reunion. To Carlos, it was not a mere coincidence!

“Don’t worry, Carlos. If someone other than Monet is behind this, we will find out who it is. For now, what’s important is we fight back publicly,” Kate replied. She said, “We will accept the challenge.”

Kate called her brother and demanded, “Kyle, please arrange for a joint interview with Channel 5 and BNC Media. Let’s invite Monnet and confront her with her claims.”

“Will this really work?” Alexander asked. “Venice had not reported from work today. She has gone AWOL, and the police could not find her.”

“Trust me, Alex, nothing slips through the fingers of the Wrights. They will find Venice,” Carlos revealed.

“But to prove whether the designs were ‘stolen, we do not need Venice,” Kate said with a smirk on her face. “Those are my designs, after all.”

It took two days for the interview to be arranged. It was held at SWEAT IT’s main boutique. Two TV networks brought their crew to conduct a live meeting on both sides; CSK Apparel and SWEAT IT.

Sofa couches were settled at the center of the store, and samples of SWEAT IT’s new products were on display, especially the ones that Kate and Raffa had designed.

Kate could see how Monet turned the interview into a chance to promote the store, but she was confident about what she was about to reveal. SWEAT IT would go down anytime soon, and Monet would have to pay them off for damages.

The interviews finally began, and both reporters from the TV stations managed the flow. It was Monet who first spoke, representing SWEAT IT. She asserted that they stole no one’s design. She challenged Kate and Carlos to prove it, saying, “They can’t find any proof because there isn’t one.”

SWEAT IT’s designer joined in the interview. He brought out sample sketches of the recent designs, and he even showed the camera how he had his signature on it.

When it was CSK’s turn, Carlos first introduced himself as the owner of CSK Apparel. He said, “This company is owned by myself, my girlfriend, Kate Wright, Alexander Jenkins, and lastly, Kate’s brother, Kyle Wright. Thus, this company represents not only me, but the four of us.”

Learning of this, Monet’s eyes widened. She certai did not expect to be going against Kyle Wright. However, she felt she and her partner had a solid plan. The only witness to all this was Venice, the assistant of Catrina, and her partner assured her he took care of Venice. She wasn’t popping out of nowhere. No, not anytime soon.

Thus, their timetable to put down Carlos Ronaldo went on, and the best way to do it was to go live on TV. It was quick and efficient. Whereas going through court would take months.

“So, Mister Ronaldo, how can you prove that SWEAT IT?” The reporter from Channel 5 asked.

Kate brought out the patent filings and said, ‘We had registered the designs for patent ownership. These were filed two weeks before SWEAT IT claimed it as theirs!”

Monet’s eyes rounded. As far as she knew, it wasn’t necessary to register for a patent unless the design

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was unique to the company. She faked a scoff, pretending to be calm, and turned to the sports jerseys, compression shorts, and pants on display, but she just found them ordinary with several prints.

Feeling courageous, Monet quickly returned her attention to Kate, saying, “I can’t believe you! So you have stolen our designs and tried to claim them as yours! Just because we did not register them for a patent, that does not make you the real owner!”

“If this design is important to you, why didn’t you register it? Don’t you know that whoever register’s it first is legally the owner?” Kate reminded her.

“How dare you?” Monet questioned. “We can counter your claims because we have already opened our designs to the public!”

“Let’s not make this any longer,” Carlos suggested. He got up, walked to one jersey worn by a mannequin, and said, “We don’t want to waste any more time. So, we will prove our point.”

Turning to his girlfriend, he suggested, “Kate, do the honors.”

Monet’s gaze shifted from the cameras to Kate. She acted fearless, but deep inside, she was already worried. ‘What is Kate trying to prove?’ No matter how much she studied the products, she could find nothing that was unique.

Kate walked over to the first jersey. She touched the design on the lower part of it and said, “I love spirals. You can keep a secret code in it without being noticed, which was how I came up with this.”

The first jersey had square spirals as its print. It was climbing from the bottom to the upper side of the jersey. Kate’s fingers traced the spiral from one square until it revealed that it formed into a C. Kate said,”

C.”

Her fingers climbed up to the second box spiral, and while the letter did not curve, one could now tell that it had an S. Kate said, “S.”

On the box spiral above, Kate found the last one, saying, “K.”

The reporters and cameramen gasped at the revelation. Before they could utter a word, kate went to the subsequent sports garments, pointing out where the CSKs were. They were hidden between the spirals, whether squares, rounds, or waves, but after Kate pointed it out, everyone realized it meant to spell CSK, only that the letters were spread out.

“Moreover, we have also trademarked these designs as part of our logos,” Kate declared, and then Carlos also showed a copy of the trademark filing of various spiral designs showing CSK on it.

Murmurs quickly filled the air as they eyed Monet, judging her and the SWEAT IT designer.

“Oh, my god! Why would SWEAT IT print CSK on their own clothing design?”

“How stupid? They copied everything, including the brand logo of CSK?”

“And lastly, these were part of my old designs, which I have sketched. I just added CSK to them, hiding them in between spirals,” Kate revealed. “You can study my sketches, and you can see the aging in the paper, too. I also had some posted on my social media years back.”

“What do you have to say about this Monet? Why did you steal CSK Apparel’s designs?” The reporter from the BNC media sought.

Monet gulped, her eyes finding the door. She replied, “I – 1.”

‘No! This is his fault! He made me do this! I can’t – I can’t -‘Monet ran out of the store and headed for the parking lot. She did not dare look back!