The helicopter''s rotor whirred to life, the deafening noise it made so loud. ire and Matthew were sat in the back, fastening their seatbelts and sorting out their headphones. The pilot nced back, giving them a quick nod to make sure they were all set, then, with a smooth motion, he lifted the helicopter into the air.


    It did not take them more than ten minutes, as ire insisted on using the helicopter for speed. As soon as the helicopter touched down onto the helipad, ire unbuckled her seatbelt, stepped out, and thanked the pilot with a quick nod. Matthew was right behind her, easing out his long legs as they walked toward the building. Employees greeted ire as she made her way inside. They clearly were all surprised to see her. One of them, a young man named Simon, smiled as he approached her. "Ms. Peterson! We don''t see you at the headquarters much these days."


    ire gave him a small smile, trying to remember his name. "I''ve been busy," she said, which was the understatement of the century.


    Simon nodded vigorously. "Well, good to see you again, ma''am."


    ire only smiled in return and resumed her progress to her office, Matthew still following in her wake. Once inside, she dropped down into her desk chair with a contented sigh. "It''s been ages since I''ve been in Cryptonic," she said out loud, turning to Matthew. "I rather miss it."


    Matthew leaned against the doorframe, chuckling. "You mean you were too busy with Metacortex to remember Cryptonic even existed," he teased. "Honestly, I was starting to think you''d forgotten how to hack."


    ire rolled her eyes at Matthew''s theatrics. "Please, as if I''d ever forget," she replied, turning on herputer. Her fingers flew across the keyboard, sending a quick notification to Stephen''sputer.


    Matthew raised an eyebrow and sat down in one of the chairs in front of her desk. "What are you up to now?" he asked, curious.


    "I just sent a notification to Stephen''sputer," ire replied, without looking up from her screen. "I need him toe to my office."


    Matthew grinned, leaning back in his chair. "So, you do remember how Cryptonic works. Impressive."


    ire gave him a look. "Say that one more time, and I''ll fire you," she said, though the corners of her mouth quivered in amusement.


    Matthew raised his hands in mock surrender, still smiling. "Alright, alright. I won''t say another word."


    Meanwhile back at Metacortex, Alexander was busy observing the building''s robotic systems. He couldn''t help but be impressed. ire had indeed seeded in assembling a team that wasposed of some very talented people, not just one or two, but ten of them. Each one was even more talented than thest.


    He called over to Abigail, who fiddled with some equipment. "Abigail," he said, catching her attention.


    She looked up, raising her brows. "Yes, Alex?"


    "I think I''ve seen enough for today," Alexander said, looking at his watch. "I really need to be going. I still have lots of work to attend to."


    Abigailid down her tools and looked slightly disappointed. "Are you sure you wouldn''t like to stay a bit longer? Maybe wait until ire gets back?"Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.


    Alexander shook his head. "I am unable to; my work has no holidays," he said, though part of him had wanted to stay on. But business was business, and priorities had to be kept right.


    Abigail nodded, understood. "Alright then, safe travels, Alex," she said with a polite smile.


    Alexander nodded back and turned to leave. Down in the lobby, he caught sight of Adrian Saint Laurent standing near the entrance. Alex frowned, not knowing what Adrian was doing at Metacortex.


    But then again, ire had always been close to the Saint Laurent family. Alexander couldn''t help feeling slightly jealous that Adrian could get close to ire and even have a decent conversation without any arguing, whereas he? He always ended up in an argument. Alexander starting to think that it''s kinda impossible for him to be on good terms with ire. Till now Alexander himself still can''t believe that he is working with ire Peterson, his ex-wife, which he treated badly in the past.


    That''s understandable why she hated him, Alexander would probably do the same thing if he was in her shoes.


    He thought about going up to Adrian and asking him what he was doing there, but his phone started buzzing in his pocket. Alex pulled it out; Christian''s name was shing on the screen.


    "What now?" he growled with a frown etched on his face as Alexander walked out of the building and stepped inside his car.


    At Cryptonic, ire was sitting


    behind her desk, staring straight into Stephen''s eyes. He was seated across from her, looking decidedly ufortable. His hands were fidgeting, and he kept adjusting his


    sses every few secon


    obvious to ire that he


    nervous.


    It was


    "Stephen," ire began, cing both hands firmly on her desk, her tone calm but authoritative.


    "Yes, Ms. Peterson?" Stephen replied, his voice shaky as he met her gaze.


    "I''ve had a chance to look over your CV," ire said, leaning back in her chair slightly, giving him a small smile. "I couldn''t help but notice that you were once involved with a robotics team. Could you tell me more about that?"


    Stephen stammered at first, his


    wordsing out in a jumbled mess. He cleared his throat and tried again. "Well, since I was in elementary school, I''ve always loved robots: mean, who doesn''t, right? I used to take apart my toys and try to put them back together, but better. Inchigh school, I joined the robotics club, and we did pretty well. Then in college, I joined the robotics team and, um, we won a national roboticspetition."


    ire nodded, her eyes not leaving his. "I saw a picture of you online," she said. "You and your team holding that big trophy. I''m impressed."


    Stephen blushed, adjusting his sses again. "Thank you, Ms. Peterson."


    ire gave a quick nod, deciding to get straight to the point. "I won''t take up much of your time, so let''s cut to the chase. Have you heard about Metacortex and Harris Company working together?" Stephen nodded eagerly. "Yes, I have. Everyone''s talking about it. It''s a huge deal."


    ire''s eyes sparkled as she


    continued. "Good. Well, as you might know, part of the n involves integrating some robotic elements into our projects. Alex''s hotel in Las Vegas, for instance, will have a futuristic, Matrix-like theme


    Stephen''s eyes lit up at the mention of robots. ire could see the excitement bubbling in him, and she had a feeling she''d found the right person. He was a bit quirky, sure, but he had the passion.


    "So," ire said, leaning forward, "how would you feel abouting to work at Metacortex? We could use someone like you in our robotics division."


    Stephen''s eyes widened, and his jaw dropped slightly. "Are you serious?" he asked, disbelief written all over his face.


    ire nodded. "Completely serious."


    Stephen blinked, trying to process what was happening. "But... what about my work here at Cryptonic?" he asked hesitantly.


    ire waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, don''t worry about that. Matthew will handle your work here."


    At the mention of his name, Matthew, who had been lounging casually on a couch nearby with hisptop, turned to ire with a look of disbelief. "Excuse me?" he said, raising an eyebrow. ire ignored him, keeping her focus on Stephen. "So, what''s your answer?" she asked, her tone expectant.


    Stephen looked back and forth between ire and Matthew, clearly conflicted. "I... I don''t know," he stammered. "I mean, I love my work here at Cryptonic, but robots... That''s my dream."


    ire understood his hesitation. It was a tough choice. "I get it," she said, her tone softening slightly. "But I need a decision, and I need it fast. I don''t have much time."


    Stephen''s mind was racing. He loved his job at Cryptonic, the team, the projects... But the chance to work with robots, to be part of something as big as the Metacortex and Harris coboration, was almost too good to pass up. "I think I''ll..."


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    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!