Alexander emerged from the vehicle, casting a nce at Walter. "It appears my brother-inw has some spare time on his hands today," he remarked. Walter responded with a grin. "I happened to be in the vicinity. I noticed Quinn and thought I''d offer her a ride."


    "Is that so? Well, your timing is impable. I''ve been meaning to discuss something with you. Shall we proceed?"


    "Certainly, climb in," Walter replied, his smile unwavering.Alexander cast a brief look at Quinn before sliding into Walter''s car. Quinn followed suit. Walter didn''t mind ying the role of chauffeur for the duo. Hefortably settled into the driver''s seat, ignited the engine, and began navigating through the darkness of the night."So, Alexander, what''s this matter you wish to discuss?" Walter inquired.


    Alexander reclined in his seat, responding with a casual air, "The CRISPR project. I noticed you''ve included TOPSUN in your proposal. Any specific reasons for this choice?"Walter rified, "Ah, that. I selected them after a meeting with their team. TOPSUN has a solid reputation in electronics and technology. They''re merely an option, though not a certainty."


    "We''ve coborated with one of their subsidiaries in the past. This time, it''s their engineering headquarters. Their technology is dependable."Alexander remained silent, seemingly lost in contemtion.


    "If you''re hesitant about partnering with them, I can remove them from the list tomorrow," Walter offered.


    "There''s no need. Anypany we coborate with for this project carries inherent risks. My suggestion? We should invest directly. Numerous biotech firms are delving into gene editing. Developing it ourselves would be too time-consuming and energy-draining. Besides, the technology isn''t fully developed yet it''s too risky."


    "You make a valid point. We can delve into this further at the meeting tomorrow."Alexander hummed in agreement, closed his eyes, and fell silent.


    In recent times, Alexander''s influence within thepany had grown significantly. During his presidency, he had effectively marginalized the old guard, particrly those loyal to Wayne. While others may have been oblivious, Walter was acutely aware. Wayne hadn''t diversified the shares for the sake of equality. He had done so to keep Alexander in check, to prevent thepany from falling entirely under Alexander''s control, and to preserve his own standing-it was as simple as that.


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    The remainder of the ride passed in silence. Upon reaching their vi, Walter dropped them off and departed.


    Quinn looked up at Alexander, their eyes locking in a silent exchange."How was work today?" he eventually asked her.


    Quinn nodded and gestured, "Quite satisfactory."


    "That''s wonderful. Keep up the good work," he responded, chuckling.


    With that, he turned and entered the vi, leaving Quinn with a chilling sense of istion. As Quinn crossed the threshold of the vi, her phone buzzed in her pocket. Seeing it was a call from Abigail, her gaze instinctively darted upstairs, thinking, ''Alexander is probably in his study.''


    Quietly, she retrieved her phone and checked her messages. As expected, there was a text from Abigail.


    Abigail: "Why aren''t you responding? Are you nning to ignore me forever?"


    Quinn''s grip on the phone tightened as she read the message, a sense of suffocation enveloping her. She was afraid to respond, yet equally terrified of losing Abigail. She felt torn.N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.


    ''Abigail has other friends and family, but Juliet relies solely on me. Juliet and I are both outcasts, refugees from our own lives. We findfort andpanionship in each other, like wanderers discovering their own kind in a desert,'' Quinn mused.


    Another message from Abigail appeared: "Stay with your man then. It seems you''re not open to reason."


    In the wake of the car ident, the initial chaos had subsided, and Abigail''s true intentions began to resurface, urging Quinn to leave Alexander. Quinn pocketed her phone once more, leaving the message unanswered.