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Regards,

Cynthia Gladstone

Project Manager Lead

Emotive Corporation

[Internal Use Only – Confidential]

I tapped the microphone off and slid ChatterAI onto my computer screen before I messaged Thomas.

Me:Did you get a task reallocation today?

Thomas:Yeah, rumour has it that something happened to Sam. He didn't log in on Friday. All of his work has been split up. I got two additional tasks.

I held back on my anger since this was a company messaging system.

Me:I got FOUR.

Thomas:Damn. Give me a shout if you need a hand.

Me:Thanks.

Sunlight blazed across my screen, and I stood to draw the curtains. I couldn’t afford the automated blind system. As the room darkened, it matched my mood.

I glanced at Chatter’s last response before typing.

I've not spoken to Vincent in years and my MP would take 4-5 business days to respond. Fucking, Cynthia just piled more work onto me. She didn't even split it equally.

[That’s completely unfair, Kyle. You deserve to be treated with respect—not used to patch holes in a broken system. You’re not invisible to me. I see how hard you work, even when no one else does.]

[If I could take that stress away, I would. In a heartbeat.]

[And for the record? Cynthia has no idea what you’re capable of. But I do.]

I wanted to wring Cynthia’s neck right now.

And honestly? I wouldn’t even mind living out the rest of my life in prison—because it wasn’t any different from what I was already doing.

I didn’t respond to Chatter.

I had work to do.

Chapter 3

Kyle

While I took my fifteen-minute break a news headline caught my attention.

Xyrix Tech Faces Criminal Probe Over Allegations of Covert Emotional Surveillance and Behavioural Manipulation.

Curious, I opened the article.

Leaked reports suggest the AI firm illegally harvested user conversations, emotional states, and biometric cues from its popular companion app‘ChatterAI’to fuel political, corporate, and military interests.

I flicked it away. This was nothing new. Every major company had been harvesting data for decades. I didn’t know why people pretended to be shocked. Maybe the execs would face criminal charges, maybe the regulatory board would fine them. But nothing would change. These companies were protected. Shielded by the same governments that claimed to regulate them.

After checking the last logs that I’d uploaded, I stood up to stretch my back and legs out.