Wren had successfully yanked the meeting's focus back to the real issue.
By the time The Langford Recovery Symposium ended, the sky outside had already darkened.
The attendees left one after another, their voices hushed in the corridors.
Some discussed Langford Medical's old archives.
Some discussed Apex.
And some mentioned the name Warren Stafford for the very first time.
Gavin Shaw was the last to leave.
As he passed Wren, he paused.
"That was quite a beautiful play you made today, Ms. Whitaker."
Wren slipped her documents into her bag, not bothering to look at him.
"Were you satisfied with what you heard today, Mr. Shaw?"
Gavin let out a chuckle.
"Satisfied isn't the word. I just think you must be exhausted trying to keep the old case and your current project so distinctly separate."
Wren finally looked up.
"It can't be easy for you either, Mr. Shaw, keeping your public relations, outsourcing, and shady medical channels so cleanly separated."
A chill flashed in Gavin's eyes.
Robert stepped up beside Wren.
"Mr. Shaw, you should have received the legal letter from Quasar Business Consulting by now. I'd advise you to say less. It'll make things easier when we cross-reference your future testimonies."
Gavin glanced at the two of them, the smile returning to his face.
"Alright, I'll wait for your evidence, then."
With that, he turned and left.
Standing not far away, Lawrence had heard the entire exchange.
He didn't step forward.
Nor did he speak up for Wren.
She didn't need him to.
Just moments ago in the conference room, she had used a single evidence summary to redirect everyone's crosshairs away from Stellaris's model sourcing and squarely onto the unsigned data flow connected to Vivian Vance.
Lawrence watched her pack her files.
For a moment, it hit him with agonizing clarity—the man Wren once loved was perhaps that young Lawrence, the one who would have eagerly listened to her establish boundaries in a room like this.
But today, the person standing firmly at those boundaries was Wren herself.
And all he could do was provide the facts he was obligated to present when she demanded answers from Langford Medical.
The night breeze felt cold as they walked out of Langford Recovery Center.
Robert went to fetch the car.
Standing on the steps, Wren unlocked her phone to check the Stellaris group chat.
Maya sent version 4 of the review package.



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