Chapter 181

Ashton squeezed my fingers. ‘Take it easy. I’ll come sit in on the presentation later if I’m free.’ I walked in alone. The registration staff scanned my badge and made me dump my phone, smart watch, even the fitness tracker I never used. No contact with the outside world for the next eight hours. My room was a box, maybe twelve square metres, walls painted off-white, no windows. One metal chair, one worktable, a stylus tablet bolted to the surface. In the corner, there was a toilet tucked behind a sliding door. At exactly nine, the screen lit up. Three sets of words appeared in block text: [Evening gala. Gemstones. Composure.] We had to design four matching pieces—ring, necklace, earrings, bracelet. I stared at those words for a few seconds. Then I smiled. I’d thought of this theme before. Not the exact combination, but close. Lucky guess. Or maybe my instincts weren’t total crap. Either way, I already had two concepts ready in my head. I picked the first. The necklace came out fast. I