Chapter 29
TWENTY-NINE
The meeting room at Elysium headquarters, despite its sleek and modern design, is suffocating.
The walls, all glass and steel, seem to close in around me, the air heavy with tension.
My heart pounds in my chest as I sit at the long conference table, the polished surface reflecting the dim lights above.
It’s a setting meant to impress, but today, it only adds to the weight pressing down on me.
Every member of the management board sits across from me, their expressions stern and unreadable. Langley is there, too, his demeanor easier to interpret as he tries to intimidate with his cold, calculating gaze.
But I’m not alone. Oliver, Misha, and Grey sit beside me, and all it takes to ground myself is a quick look in their direction, which soothes me in a way nothing else could. Hendricks stands off to the side, ready to testify.
I take a deep breath, trying to calm the remaining nerves that threaten to overwhelm me.
This is it—the moment of truth.
Two days of preparation have led to this. Two days of gathering everything we could use to prove that the AR project they’ve announced as theirs belongs to me.
My fingers brush against the edge of the table as I try to steady myself, and Oliver catches my eye and smiles softly at me. He had been nervous, too, when he saw the police arrive, leaning close to whisper to me with a wry smile that now he’ll feel like a criminal on the run forever.
The thought makes me suppress a smile of my own.
Walking into Elysium earlier was a moment of quiet triumph. Every cylindrical aquarium we passed was empty.
What matters to me matters to them.
And they’re proving it to me now once more, sitting in this office next to me, fighting for my work.
Fighting my fight with me.
The board members exchange glances, their eyes occasionally flicking toward Langley. I can almost hear the unspoken words hanging in the air, the weight of the accusations about to be laid bare.
Grey leans toward me. “Ready?”
Ready as can be.
I nod, my grip tightening on the edge of the table. “Ready.”
“Mr. Donovan, could you please explain why we were all summoned to this meeting?” The CEO’s voice slices through the tension in the room.
“It’s Doctor Donovan,” Grey corrects him, and I have to bite my lip to keep from laughing.
Not the time, Amelia.
Grey leans forward, his gaze steady and unflinching. “As we outlined in our invitation email, this concerns the lensless AR project you recently announced.”
The management board exchanges glances, confusion mingling with concern.
The CEO, his expression tight, asks, “And what does the AI Department have to do with this, or better yet, the Smart Home Development Department, of whom some are not even working for us anymore?” His gaze flicks toward Hendricks, disdain clear in his eyes.
I take a deep breath, feeling the weight of the moment.
It’s time.
“We’re here to prove that Dr. Langley stole the AR project from me,” I state simply. “It is my work, my innovation, and neither he nor you are authorized to publish or profit from it.”
Silence falls over the room. Then, Langley laughs, a sharp, mocking sound that grates on my nerves.
“You’re accusing me of stealing that project from you?
” he sneers, his tone dripping with contempt.
“You work in the Smart Home Development Department, Miss Stanley. You don’t have the…
mental capacities to invent such a thing. ”
Oliver’s face darkens as he leans forward, ready to defend me. “Doctor Stanley has a PhD in AR and—”
But I don’t let him finish. “Oh, and you do?” I shoot back at Langley.
Langley’s mocking laughter echoes in the room again, but this time, it’s hollow. “No, but I never said I did,” he retorts. “I’m just the middleman, helping a friend bring his project to market. You know how geniuses are. Shy, introverted, not privy to everything that comes after the invention.”
He glances at Oliver, who balls his fists, muttering under his breath, “I’ll show you who’s shy.”
“That’s a lie.” Hendricks’ voice breaks through the tension, trembling slightly as he steps forward, drawing everyone’s attention. “I’m here to testify on behalf of Dr. Stanley.” His words gain strength as he confesses. “Dr. Langley gained access to her apartment with my help and stole her work.”
The room falls into a stunned silence. Langley’s gaze burns into me, but I keep my focus straight ahead on the board members who hold my fate in their hands.
“Edward, is this true?” one of the board members asks Langley, his tone sharp, cutting through the quiet.
“This is absurd.” Langley snaps. “She’s lying. They’re all lying. Do you really think I’d—”
“We have proof,” Grey interrupts him. “Emails, security footage, and the testimony you just heard. If you allow Dr. Stanley access to the project, she can show you the copyright marker embedded in the code. It’s the only way to settle this without involving the police any further while avoiding any negative press for Elysium. ”
The mention of the police and the press sends a ripple of unease through the room. The board members exchange uneasy glances, a silent conversation passing between them.
Yes, we have you by the balls.
The CEO narrows his eyes. “We can’t just let her access the project. If you say you have proof, we’re all ears, gentlemen.”
And lady.
Dickheads.
Oliver rises from his seat and grabs his laptop, connecting it to the conference room’s projection system. The screen flickers to life, and Jamie’s interface appears. The executives shift in their seats, their initial confidence wavering as they eye the screen with a mix of curiosity and unease.
“Good afternoon,” Jamie’s voice fills the room, unnervingly lifelike.
A shiver runs down my spine, even after all this time.
There’s something almost eerie about how real he sounds, and that’s exactly what we need right now—something to shake them, to make them realize they’ve underestimated us.
“I’m Jamie, Joint Assistant for Meaningful Interactive Engagement.
I was developed by Dr. Harwood, Dr. Niarchos, and Dr. Donovan to make interactions with technology more intuitive and meaningful.
Dr. Stanley was selected to beta test me before the official launch, giving me access to her home systems and cameras over the past few weeks. ”
Jamie pauses for just a fraction of a second, the silence in the room stretching thin. Then, with calm authority, he continues, “Today, I will present evidence proving Dr. Amelia Stanley’s rightful ownership of the AR code and exposing the unethical actions of Dr. Edward Langley.”
The screen shifts, and the room darkens as the security footage from the night of the break-in begins to play.
My heart tightens as we watch a figure dressed in black moving through my apartment with calculated precision, rifling through my belongings as if they have all the time in the world.
It’s a jarring experience—watching the violation of my privacy unfold in such a public setting.
The footage continues, showing me entering the apartment. I turn on the lights, unaware of the danger lurking just out of sight. There’s a look of contentment on my face—a dreamy smile.
I glance over at Oliver, who’s already watching me. He gives me a small, sad smile.
Even though the night turned out to be one of the scariest of my life, it started as one of the best.
On the screen, I approach the couch in search of my laptop, oblivious to the threat behind me.
The camera captures the figure in black emerging silently from my bedroom.
Then he stumbles, pulling the bookshelf down with him.
Just as I begin to turn toward the sound, he’s behind me, hitting me over the head with one of my own books.
The sickening thud as he strikes me reverberates through the room, even though the sound is muted.
It’s not the first time I’ve seen this footage, but the impact is just as visceral, sending a cold shudder down my spine.
Beneath the table, Grey’s warm hand finds my knee, his touch steady and reassuring, grounding me in the present.
I’m safe.
“We’ve just witnessed Dr. Langley assault Dr. Stanley and steal her work,” Jamie’s voice cuts through the tension, and a red dot on the screen highlights my laptop under the intruder’s arm as he unlocks the door and flees the apartment, leaving me unconscious on the floor with the door wide open.
Langley cuts in, sharp and defensive. “I already told Miss Stanley that I’m sorry she was hurt by an intruder, but to accuse me of this is outrageous! This could have been anyone! There’s nothing that identifies this person as me, or that what was stolen is the lensless AR project.”
The CEO nods, his expression cautious. “There’s no definitive evidence linking Dr. Langley to this incident. As it stands, there’s no way to conclusively prove that he was the one involved. This is a case for the police, not for a meeting.”
Grey’s hand tightens just a fraction on my knee, a silent signal that he’s with me, that we’re not backing down.
Jamie rewinds the footage to the moments just before I walk inside. “This is a critical moment,” he says matter-of-factly. “Listen carefully.”
The audio plays, and the room holds its breath. The intruder is silent, but when there’s the click of the door as I unlock it, a single word slips out, clear as day.
“Fuck.”
The guys weren’t able to catch it despite watching the footage over and over. It wasn’t audible to the naked ear, but Jamie was able to detect it and enhance it until Langley’s nasal voice was unmistakable.