After the Fall A Leap into a Stranger's Arms novel Chapter 32

Catherine and Lenny sat together near the back of the conference hall. Lenny slid his tablet into his bag and shook his head. “Still no luck tracking down who provided Resonance AI to The James Group. But it’s Shirley doing the demo.”

Catherine wasn’t surprised. Shirley always craved attention. Waldo must have seen something valuable in her, otherwise he wouldn’t have handed her the spotlight.

“It’s starting soon,” Lenny said, zipping up his bag. From a side entrance, a group from Nexus Dynamics filed in. Lenny’s eyes grew huge as he stared at the man walking beside Magee. “Wait. Is that the legendary CEO of Nexus Dynamics? The one nobody’s ever seen?”

Catherine followed his gaze and spotted Lawrence, strolling in next to Magee, completely at ease. He looked every bit the part.

She couldn’t help but laugh, keeping her voice low. “He’s not some mysterious CEO. That’s my husband.”

Lenny’s mouth fell open. He looked at her like she’d just sprouted wings. “Catherine. Are you serious? That guy is your husband?”

She nodded, barely containing her smile. “Yep. That’s Lawrence.”

Lenny blinked, still stunned. “But you told me he was an engineer. What’s he doing with the VP of Nexus Dynamics?”

Before Catherine could answer, the lights in the room dimmed and a hush fell over the crowd. The conference was about to begin.

A spotlight hit the stage. The host’s voice rang out, full of energy, inviting Waldo up.

Waldo, CEO of The James Group, looked especially confident today. He scanned the room, then got straight to the point. “Thank you for joining us at the Resonance AI showcase. I’m proud to announce that The James Group has applied for a global patent for this system. Any unauthorized use will be met with legal action.”

The audience erupted in murmurs. Catherine felt her face go cold, and Lenny leaned in, whispering, “Catherine, this could be bad.”

She steadied herself. “Let’s wait and see.”

On stage, Shirley started the demonstration. At first, everything seemed to work perfectly. But Catherine noticed it, just barely—a tiny hesitation each time the system was pushed into heavy calculations. That was all she needed to see. Catherine’s lips curled into a quiet smile.

A copy will never be the real thing.

Lenny caught it too. He leaned in, whispering, “Catherine, something’s off with her system.”

She nodded, voice low. “It was never finished. Just a prototype with problems.”

Most people in the room didn’t notice a thing. Shirley skipped over the tricky technical parts and wrapped up her demo smoothly. Investors nodded, impressed.

Lenny muttered, “She might have stolen your design, but she’ll never steal your mind.”