Bitcoin Billionaire: I Regressed to Invest in the First Bitcoin!

Back to the present:

A stunning silence followed that announcement.

A heavy one too.

Brooklyn stood poised in her heels, a faint smile on her lips, arms resting neatly at her sides. She was used to altercations like this so she wasn't at all flustered or nervous.

Ileana however… Ileana stood still.

Straight-backed. Quiet. Hands clasped neatly in front of her. Eyes not quite meeting anyone else's. She was dressed in her usual black turtleneck and dark slacks, and though her expression was calm, there was a hesitation in her posture.

As if the moment her shoulders dropped, something inside her might come undone.

Rachel stared at her, and then at Darren, utter shock painted on her face. She felt a familiar feeling of being left out.

'He's joking...' she thought. 'He's not joking,' she reminded herself, knowing who Darren was.

Kara let out a low whistle, half-laughing. "Well damn," she muttered under her breath, sitting back. "Didn't think the vault hacker would be walking in as our new neighbor today."

Simon, for his part, looked as if someone had just tossed his blueprint binder into a furnace. He raised a hand — not dramatically, just enough to punctuate his still-lingering frustration.

"So just to confirm," he said, "we're pausing Steele Tech and adding two new salaries? I'm not saying they're not talented. I'm sure they're worth their weight in mystery. But—"

"We're not pausing momentum, Mr Wilkes, bare with me here," Darren cut in. "We're only redirecting force."

He stepped closer to the table, one hand resting on the chair back as his voice dropped into its characteristic gravity.

"Brooklyn isn't here for optics. She's here to control optics. Starting today, she handles all communication with external media, journalists, bloggers, and institutional liaisons. Anything public-facing: I'm talking press statements, damage control, our digital voice. It all goes through her. No more blind quotes, no more risky interviews, and no more leaks from curious partners or employees who don't understand what's at stake."

Brooklyn's smile sharpened slightly, arms folding as she surveyed the room like a general sizing up new territory.

"And Ileana," Darren continued, without missing a beat, "Don't let her looks fool you. She's an extremely talented coder. But coding is not just going to be her only job. She'll be heading our cryptographic defense protocols. Every piece of software that protects our assets — from internal comms to cold wallet firewalls —will pass through her clearance."

There was a subtle shiver in the room when he said it. Rachel's pen stopped mid-scratch. Sandy looked up from her notes. Amelia's brow furrowed slightly, though she said nothing.

"She will also develop our proprietary obfuscation engine," Darren added. "That way, we stay ahead of government surveillance and we stay invisible. No more digital trails. Ever!"

He looked around the room one last time, gaze even but resolute.

"Any questions?"

No one spoke.

Not a real question among them.

Only Rachel, her brows still drawn, that somewhat upset expression on her face.

Darren saw it.

But he said nothing.

He stepped back from the head of the table.

"Meeting's over," he said. "Brooklyn, Ileana— Amelia will send you the onboarding packet. Sandy, coordinate background approval. Kara, show Ileana to her office."

He didn't wait for responses. Just turned, coat shifting slightly as he moved, and disappeared through the door.

As soon the very doors closed, the room relaxed.

Kara stood, stretching with a groan. "Well, that was intense."

Miranda exhaled. "Yeah. Mr. Steele can be stern sometimes, can't he?"

"Tell me about it." Kara made a show of turning to Brooklyn with an exaggerated grin. "So! New boss of media, huh?"

Brooklyn raised an eyebrow.

Kara waved a hand. "I'm kidding. Welcome aboard, whatever. Hope you've got thicker skin than those dumb mics you used to hold."

She didn't walk to her to welcome her nicely, she just walked past and headed to Ileana with a more cheerful attitude.

She opened her arms wide and stepped forward, pulling the girl in with a soft laugh.

"Welcome, girl," she said, hugging her. "You're officially one of us now."

Ileana stiffened, clearly not used to that kind of closeness, but she didn't pull away. When Kara let go, she looked startled in a way that made Brooklyn tilt her head and smirk to herself.

Amelia stood and came over, her smile soft.

"Welcome, both of you. Seriously," she said, then looked at Brooklyn. "I mean it."

Sandy rose too, arms crossed in her usual quiet power. Her eyes lingered on Brooklyn for a second longer.

"You remember when you came to my house," Sandy said. "Snooping around, trying to get dirt on Darren. I'm still mad about that, by the way."

Brooklyn winced. "Right. That… might've happened. Sorry... Just... Journalist stuff, I guess."

Sandy smiled, slow and sharp. "Apology accepted. Maybe."

Brooklyn laughed and held out a hand. "Truce?"

Sandy took it. "Truce."

Kara clapped her hands once, stunning Ileana. "Alright, enough of that. Come on, shadow queen. I'm showing you around before anyone else corrupts you."

Amelia laughed. "If there's anyone here who corrupts anyone, it's you, Kara."

"Oh, shut it."

The two headed to the IT wing which was two levels below the main offices.

Kara moved like she owned the place, pointing things out as they passed: where Kara's workstation was (an organized mess), where the archive server ran (in its own cooled unit), and where never to touch anything unless you liked being shouted at.

A desk clerk walked up to them, holding an envelope. He handed it over.

"Popescu, right?" he asked.

Ileana nodded.

"Here's your badge and ID. Email's already live. Access codes should activate in five minutes."

She took the lanyard from the envelope and slid it over her head. Kara tilted her head.

"Not bad," she said. "You wear 'professional hacker chic' surprisingly well."

They walked a few more corridors until they reached the first of the key card locked doors of the Operations Room.

"Alright," Kara said to Ileana. "It's been five minutes. Let's see if you have access here first."

Ileana reached out, badge in hand, and tapped it to the reader.

Red flash.

Access Denied.

Kara winced, playful. "Oof. Too bad. Looks like Boss's still keeping it safe with you."

She tilted her head. "You do have an office, right?"

Ileana nodded, unsure.

Kara turned the girl's badge around and tapped a small embedded chip. It blinked, showing a small blinking arrow: "Suite C-12. Dev Wing."

"Come on."

She dragged her all the way to the Dev Wing which was quieter and smaller.

Only five desks lined the rectangular room, each one semi-enclosed with monitors and old-school whiteboards hung behind them. Some papers were pinned haphazardly; diagrams scrawled in blue marker. Four men and one woman sat at the workstations.

All of them turned when the door opened.

They saw Kara. Then they saw Ileana.

Suddenly, they started to whisper.

Kara frowned and stomped into the room.

"Hey!" she boomed. "This is Ileana. She's the new Chief Software Architect. Which means she's your boss."

Someone's eyebrows twitched.

"And she's my friend. So if I hear any nonsense, disrespect, or behind-the-back whispering, I will know. And when I know…" She leaned in slightly. "You won't like knowing me."

The room fell silent.

"Got it?" she asked.

All five nodded.

"Great," she chirped, then turned to Ileana and walked her over to the far desk with two monitors and a window that overlooked the side courtyard. Her name was already printed on the placard beside the monitor.

"Your throne," Kara said.

Ileana smiled faintly, but her hands stayed folded. She had something to say.

"Uhm... Do you think… Do you think Darren didn't give me access because he doesn't trust me?"

Kara gazed at her and saw the worry hiding behind the stillness in Ileana's eyes. The question wasn't about access. The question that asked whether she'd earned her place here… or was still on borrowed time.

"Aww," Kara said softly. "Look at you. All vulnerable."

She touched her shoulder. "Listen. You're in. He doesn't say much, but when he gives people a place here, it means something. I mean, Rico's still here for God's sake."

She chuckled. "Darren has given you the start. The rest… that's on you."

Ileana nodded once.

Kara grinned. "I'll check in later, Chief Architect."

Then she was gone.

Ileana stood for a moment longer, then slowly lowered herself into the chair. The weight of the day, of the room, of the title, all settled on her shoulders.

She folded her arms on the desk, leaned forward, and let her forehead rest gently on the surface.

Eyes closed. Silent.