006. Welcome to the team...

The elevator doors slid open, revealing the long corridor that led to the boardroom. The scent of polished wood and expensive cologne filled the air, a reminder of the power and influence that awaited beyond those double doors. 

Chloe took a deep breath, steeling herself for what was to come.

“Ready?” Adam asked, his hand resting on the small of her back to reassure her.

“Ready,” Chloe affirmed steadily.

As they approached the boardroom, the murmur of voices grew louder. The moment they stepped inside, the conversations ceased, replaced by a dead silence. Chloe could feel the weight of their gazes on her, the curiosity, the skepticism.

But she had a plan. 

She had asked Adam to keep her position low-key, not as an executive or a figurehead but as an assistant to the Research and Development (R&D) department, where she could contribute without being in the spotlight. 

She wanted to start from the ground up, to experience what it was like to work in the company without the pressure of being a Westbrook.

Adam had agreed, though reluctantly, and had arranged for her to work in a position where her blindness wouldn’t be a hindrance. 

She would be responsible for analyzing data, listening to reports, and providing insights based on the information she received. It was a role that required intelligence and intuition more than sight, and Ruby was determined to prove that she could handle it.

The department head, Mr. Harris, a stern man with a no-nonsense attitude, greeted her with a polite but distant nod. “Welcome to the team, Miss Chloe,” he said, using the name Chloe had chosen to go by. “I trust you’ll find your place here quickly.”

“Thank you, Mr. Harris,” Chloe replied in a calm and professional voice. “I’m looking forward to contributing.”

As the day progressed, Chloe found herself in the thick of it, surrounded by research analysts and engineers discussing the latest developments. She listened intently, her mind quickly absorbing the information. 

But it didn’t take long for the murmurs to start. Some of the employees were less than welcoming, their whispers carrying across the room.

“Why did they hire someone who can’t even see?”

“She’s just here because she’s connected, right? What could she possibly contribute?”

Chloe heard the comments but kept her head down, refusing to let them get to her. She knew this wouldn’t be easy, but she had chosen this path for a reason. 

She wanted to experience the challenges of being a normal employee, to prove to herself—and to them—that she could do it.

Unbeknownst to her, Adam had stationed someone within the department to keep an eye on her, ensuring that she was safe and that no one took advantage of her blindness. 

Soon, it was lunch time and Chloe  was about finding her way to the cafeteria when she overheard a heated conversation between two employees. They were discussing a new project that had hit a roadblock, and from their voices, she could tell they were frustrated.

“We’re stuck, and the deadline is looming,” one of them, a young man named David, said. “I don’t see how we’re going to pull this off.”

Chloe's ears perked up. She had been following the project closely and had noticed a potential solution that the team had overlooked. 

But she hesitated, unsure if she should speak up. Will they even listen to me? she wondered.

But the need to help outweighed her doubts. 

Taking a deep breath, she approached David and the other team member. “Excuse me,” she said, her voice steady despite the butterflies in her stomach. “I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation. Have you considered adjusting the parameters of the model to account for the variance in the data? It might help align the projections more accurately.”

David blinked, clearly surprised by her input. He exchanged a glance with his colleague, who looked equally taken aback. “Uh, we haven’t tried that,” he admitted. “But it’s worth a shot.”

They quickly made the adjustments Ruby suggested, and to their surprise, the projections began to align more closely with their targets. David turned to Chloe, a look of genuine appreciation on his face. “That was a good call. Thanks, uh...”

“Chloe,” she supplied, a small smile playing on her lips. “I’m just here to help.”

As she walked back out of the office, Chloe felt a sense of accomplishment. She had made a difference, however small, and that was all she needed to keep going.