I was hired by a small company that had just been bought out, and I thought my job would include helping the two teams communicate and establish new processes.
During the interview I was told I was a good candidate because I seemed aggressive* and it turned out the smaller company hired me to be a spy for them and push back against their new corporate overlords (the people who were actually paying me).
After hiring me they told me to report back privately after every meeting.
Another time I was hired to support a manager, but it turned out he wanted me to secretly replace him and do his entire job while he tried to convince the company he wasn't needed there so he could transition to lead a different department.
Once he got set up where he wanted to be I was let go. I didn't even realize I was a pawn until much later, but being given an associate title while doing a manager role should have clued me!
*actual word used was “bitch” because I'm a woman