The rain finally stopped after pouring down all night.


    Morning sunlight broke through the clouds and spilled into the kitchen, warm and bright. Reese spread jam on a piece of toast and handed it to Annie.


    "Eat up. I''ll drive you to school," she said.


    Annie took the toast and finished it in just a few bites. She slid off her chair, slung her backpack over her shoulder, and headed for the door.


    Maybe it was everything that happenedst night, but Annie looked tired today, her eyes a little dull and heavy with sleep.


    Reese reached out and gently ruffled Annie''s hair, then took her small hand as they stepped outside together.


    She walked Annie to the school gate and watched her disappear into the building before turning and heading to ckOak.


    With Matthew back on base, all the pressure at the research centernded on Reese. She barely stepped out of theb all day. Her world was just lines of code shing on the screen andplicated equations filling the whiteboards.


    It wasn''t until the sky outside started to darken that Reese finally rubbed her aching temples and sent off thest piece of research data.


    She grabbed her coat, ready to head home and check in on Annie first. With Matthew gone, it was just Annie and the housekeeper at home, and Reese couldn''t help but worry.


    But as soon as she stepped out of theb, she spotted ning over with an easy smile.


    "Reese, I was just looking for you. There''s an industry event tonighte with me?"


    Reese frowned. n knew she didn''t like these kinds of gatherings, so if he was asking, it had to be important.


    "What''s up?" she asked.


    n didn''t bother hiding anything. "That ssified incident from before? Big X got dragged into it. Now there are rumors we''re not on good terms.


    "Management suspects Leslie might be involved, but there''s no actual proof. They don''t want things to get too tense, so they''re waiting to see her next move.


    "She''s on the guest list tonight, so I want you toe with me."


    Reese raised an eyebrow. Leslie had been quiettely, so it made sense that management wanted to keep an eye on things.


    "Okay," she agreed.


    There was still time before the event, so she had dinner with n.


    rware he waited for herse


    getting ready, and then they beaded out to the g together.


    The event was at a private club on the edge of the city. The ballroom glittered under crystal chandeliers, and soft violin music floated through the air.


    As soon as Reese walked in with n, she felt eyes on them from all corners of the room. Before she even had a chance to react, a group of men in suits came


    over.


    "n, I''ve heard so much about you! I''m Daniel from Skyblink Systems. I''ve been hoping to talk about a technical partnership with ckOak..."


    "n—and is this another member of the de team? I''m Wade from Intelligence Al. I''ve got a few questions I''d love to ask..."


    Reese nced at n, who gave her a look that said, What can you do?


    Clearly, word about the National Security investigation had gotten around. Everyone in the industry _seemed to know ckoak was now involved in military projects; evenpanies that had cut ties before were suddenly eager to reconnect.


    "Yes, this is Ms. Reese Meyer from the de project. She''s leading our integration with Ratcliff Global''s Vault system, n said, taking the chance to introduce her and boost her profile.


    Reese didn''t miss a beat. She held her wine ss and shed a professional


    smile, answering questions smoothly as they came.


    Some of her ideas and insights really impressed the crowd, and soon people were hanging on her every word.