Chapter 248

No.1

The three minutes before the committee members entered felt like hours. The dim lighting in the room amplified the nervous tension.

Sitting in her isolated VIP chair across the aisle,Allena was practically vibrating with smug satisfaction. She felt like the queen of the room.

She leaned slightly to her left, targeting Devon Browning, who was sitting in the second row directly behind her. She spoke loudly, ensuring her voice carried across the silent front row.

"I am so exhausted, Devon," Allena sighed dramatically, touching her forehead. "I stayed up until 3:00 AM for the last three weeks, personally rewriting the clinical data models for our new stealth Al.It was brutal."

Devon, eager to play his part, leaned forward."We all know you're the hardest working consultant in the industry, Allena. The project wouldn't exist without you."

Allena giggled, waving her hand dismissively. "Oh,stop. But honestly, if I hadn't caught that massive flaw in the diagnostic models last week, our entire preliminary FDA submission would have been rejected."

No.2

She glanced sideways at August to make sure he was listening.

August's rigid posture relaxed slightly. He looked at Allena with a mixture of pride and affection. He loved this version of her-the brilliant, dedicated scientist fighting for her project. It validated his choices.

Elisa sat at the mnain desk, staring at her tablet.

She listened to Allena's blatant, absurd lies. The core neural algorithm was something Elisa had coded from scratch over six months. Allena didn't even know how to open a command terminal.

Elisa didn't react. She just waited.

The heavy wooden doors at the back of the raised platform swung open.

No.3

The entire room stood up in a wave of rustling suits.

Three committee members walked out. Leading them

was Helena Hawthorne.

Helena wore a severe, dark gray tweed suit. Her silver hair was cut in a sharp bob. She walked slowly,leaning heavily on a black purple-sandalwood cane with a heavy silver handle. Every time the cane struck the wooden floor, it sounded like a judge's gavel.

She radiated absolute, terrifying authority.

Cyprian Thatcher walked two steps behind her. The usually arrogant playboy looked like a terrified schoolboy. He kept his eyes glued to the floor.

No.4

Helena reached the center microphone at the main desk. She didn't sit down. She placed both hands on the silver handle of her cane and stared down at the front row.

Her hawk-like eyes swept over the executives.

Her gaze completely bypassed the isolated VIP chair.She didn't even register Allena's bright white Dior suit.

Helena's eyes locked directly onto Elisa.

A flicker of genuine, intense respect softened the old

woman's harsh features.

No.5

Helena turned her head slightly to look at her grandson. She leaned into the microphone.

"Cyprian," Helena's voice boomed through the speakers, sharp and commanding. "Are you paying attention to the Chief Technical Architect of Project Chiron?"

Cyprian swallowed hard. He looked at August, then at his grandmother.

"Yes, Grandmother," Cyprian said, his voice trembling slightly.

Helena let out a loud, dismissive snort.

"I read her white paper on the encryption protocol.It is the most formidable piece of engineering I've seen in a decade," Helena said into the microphone,her voice a whipcrack. "Mr. Chambers, I trust your business acumen is sharp enough to recognize where the true value of your investment lies, and not be distracted by superficialities."

No.6

The room erupted in a collective, shocked gasp.

Dozens of heads snapped toward August.

The Chairwoman of the FDA had just publicly praised his wife's genius while simultaneously delivering a brutal, thinly veiled insult about his judgment-and his companion. It was a massive, unprecedented breach of professional decorum, executed with surgical precision.

August's face turned a violent shade of purple. He felt the stares of the crowd burning into his skin. He felt like he had just been slapped across the face in front of the entire industry.

Across the aisle, Allena's fake smile shattered.Her mouth hung open. The grand entrance she had planned was completely destroyed.

Elisa sat perfectly still. She looked up at Helena Hawthorne.

No.7

A slow, genuine smile spread across Elisa's face.