How a Dying Woman Rewrote Her Epilogue novel Chapter 618

Elodie didn’t dwell on it.

It was an internal matter anyway—her divorce from Jarrod would never be made public. Nothing about it would jeopardize the terms of their agreement.

Once everything was handled, she retreated to her room for some rest. The industry was bracing for a major shake-up: a high-profile bid was about to be announced, and VistaLink Technologies needed to be prepared for anything.

On the third day, Elodie was heading out to the company’s research facility alone.

Partway there, she noticed an unfamiliar call coming in. She answered it through the car’s hands-free system. A woman’s voice, unmistakably familiar, came through: “It’s me. Reba Harcourt.”

The name made Elodie nearly hang up on reflex. She had no desire to speak with anyone from the Harcourt family; she didn’t get along with a single one of them. There was no reason to keep in touch, and even less reason to wonder about Reba’s motives.

As soon as she arrived, Elodie blocked the number without hesitation.

After passing through a security checkpoint, she made her way to a meeting room on the second floor. Inside, Watts and Lily were already waiting.

Watts looked up and smiled, motioning her over. “This way.”

Elodie gave him a calm glance, already knowing the three of them were meant to sit together. As she approached, Lily gestured to the seat beside her. “Why don’t you sit over here?”

Elodie glanced down; if she took that seat, Lily would be between her and Watts. She didn’t mind, so she sat down without fuss.

Watts seemed a little surprised that Lily had jumped in first, giving her an extra look. Lily’s hand tightened around her pen, her ears flushed, but she said nothing.

Watts didn’t comment, but instead pulled a glass jar from his pocket, filled with handmade candies. He offered it to Elodie, watching her eagerly. “I remembered you like sweet-and-sour things. My family’s pastry chef made these—they’re really good. Thought you might like them. You strike me as someone who gets so busy she forgets to eat, so a little sugar boost can’t hurt.”

He looked almost proud, as if he’d been waiting for the perfect moment to present his treasure.

It was the classic chokehold of technological monopolies—Elodie knew it all too well. The same roadblock had cropped up years ago, an ongoing technical bottleneck. Relying on Solmaris and Verdania couldn’t last forever; the costs would keep climbing. Worse, only three companies worldwide held patents on the mature technologies for this alloy, and if they all refused to cooperate, things could get complicated fast.

Trying to develop a domestic alternative would take time and resources, not to mention all the bureaucratic wrangling that came with getting government approvals. There was no quick fix—this was going to be a long, drawn-out battle.

“But…” Clifford’s gaze suddenly shifted to Elodie.

She looked up, meeting his eyes.

He seemed genuinely surprised. “Ms. Thorne, perhaps you’re the one who can help us negotiate this.”

Watts’s eyes darkened a fraction as he turned to look at Elodie.