Chapter 11

Reese didn’t waste a second worrying about what the Ratcliffs would think if she skipped Robbie’s birthday party. She had bigger things to focus on. The next morning, just like she and Dominic had planned, she showed up at the institute.
“Reese?” Lyla looked genuinely taken aback when she saw her. “Wow, you’ve got some guts coming here. How’d you even get past security?”
Then her expression shifted, her eyes narrowing as if something clicked. “Actually, it makes sense. You managed to marry rich with your tricks before, so sneaking in here probably wasn’t that hard either.”
“But this isn’t your fancy mansion, Reese. You don’t just get to waltz in and stay as long as you want.” Lyla gave her a pointed look. “If I were you, I’d just go back home and enjoy being a pampered wife.”
Standing at the entrance, Reese could feel the heat rising in her cheeks as people walked by, shooting her looks full of judgment and gossip. Lyla’s words stung, but she stood her ground.
“I asked her to come.” Dominic’s calm voice cut through the tension as he walked up the steps. “She secured an investment from Iron Financial. I agreed to give her an interview.”
Lyla stared at him, disbelief written all over her face. Reese landed Iron Financial? That company was notorious for being impossible to win over. How could someone who’d been out of the Al field for so long pull that off?
“Did you bribe them or something?” Lyla said with a sneer. “Professor, you should really rethink this. Letting her in could ruin the institute’s reputation.”
Dominic glanced at Reese. She stood tall, her gaze steady and stubborn, just like she had years ago.
“Nobody’s made any progress on the Emotis project, right?” Dominic said. “So why not let Reese take a shot? If she can make a breakthrough in three days, she stays. Simple as that.”
Lyla just smirked and turned away, heading inside. Even Sofia couldn’t crack the Emotis challenge. There was no way Reese could solve it in three days. Lyla figured Dominic was just being polite because of the investment. He’s setting Reese up to fail on her own.
When the hallway cleared, Dominic gave Reese a curt look. “Your old lab is still the same. All your materials are on the desk. Figure things out yourself. Don’t come bothering me unless you have to.”
“Thank you, Professor. I appreciate the chance,” Reese answered quietly but firmly.
If Dominic was willing to give her an opportunity, she was going to give it everything she had. She wouldn’t be able to face herself if she didn’t.
Inside, Reese pushed open the door to her old lab and froze. It was almost exactly as she remembered from seven years ago, right down to the messy pile of documents on the desk.
She’d dreamed about this room so many times. Standing in it now, her vision blurred with emotion.
But there was no time for nostalgia. She forced herself to focus and dove into the project headfirst.
For three days, Reese worked nonstop, barely sleeping. She rewrote and optimized the emotion recognition algorithm and fed new micro-expression and voice data into the system.
Neither Sebastian nor Robbie reached out during those days. They seemed just fine without her.
On the third afternoon, Dominic called everyone to the conference room.
Reese paused at the doorway, nerves fluttering in her stomach. The rıghtful source is
Zach was already there, lounging at the head of the table, chin propped on his hand, spinning a pen between his fingers.
“This is Mr. Wiles, founder of Iron Financial,” Dominic announced. “He’s here to choose one of your projects for investment. Who wants to go first?”
He looked at Reese, but before she could move, Sofia stood up. “I’ll start, Professor.”
She hooked her computer up to the projector. “My project is called Mindwave. It uses big data modeling for highly accurate predictions
Sofia’s presentation was polished and professional, packed with examples of how Mindwave could be used in finance and healthcare. Her logic was flawless, if a little stiff. Dominic nodded in approval, then shot Reese a sidelong glance, sighing in disappointment.
Reese knew her hesitation had let him down. She took a slow breath and curled her hands into fists.
When Sofia finished and sat back down, Reese stood. The chair wheels made a soft scraping sound against the floor.
Sofia glanced up, a slight smirk on her lips.
Reese didn’t notice. She steadied herself, launched her system, and started. “My project is called Emotis. It uses facial recognition and speech analysis to track users’ emotions in real time and automatically adjusts how it interacts
Her pitch was clear and focused. The system’s speed and emotional accuracy blew away the competition. She’d even solved the technical problem that had stumped everyone else.
When she finished, Reeseturned to Dominic. His face was unreadable-serious, almost stern.
But the atmosphere in the room had changed. The usual dismissive looks were gone. Even Sofia seemed to be sizing her up with something new.
“What do you think, Mr. Wiles?” Dominic asked when the presentations ended, turning to Zach.
He watched as Zach circled the Emotis project on his notes, a small smile playing at his lips.
Reese had been out of the Al field for years, but she still knew how to blend technology with real needs. If she could secure this investment, maybe she really did deserve a place here.
But Zach wasn’t looking at Dominic. His eyes stayed locked on Reese—sharp, cold, and curious, as though he was seeing her for the very first time.