MTLNOVEL Chapter 217: Girlboss Coalition
The meeting room was very silent now, just the sounds of keyboards, the AC and the soft clatter of closing laptops and rustling folders.
Even though Darren had already departed, his usual quiet command lingered like a ghost at the head of the table. This was why Rachel felt slightly uneasy talking about this.
She was one of the three figures standing: Rachel, Sandy, and Lila, huddled near the far end of the room, voices low but charged with urgency.
Rachel couldn't believe what Sandy had just suggested. Keeping something like this away from Darren's ears wasn't exactly the correct thing to do.
Whether it was right or not, that was up for debate.
For Sandy, it was right.
"We should just handle it ourselves," she said, adjusting her glasses as she crossed her arms. Even though she was the oldest in the team, she kept her respect for Rachel's position as Darren's representative.
Which meant whatever she was planning on doing would at least have to get through Rachel.
Her voice was cool, respectable and unshaken. Even though it carried the firmness of a decision already made. "We already know what Tyler's playing at. We were there. If we act now, we might get ahead before he puts another obstacle in our path."
"I don't know…" Rachel muttered, glancing at the door Darren had exited through just moments ago and then at his chair. "Going around him, making moves behind his back is not appropriate, Sandy. This isn't some coffee room dispute. It's a strategic offensive. What if it blows back on us?"
"Then we catch it," Sandy replied sharply. "Rachel, come on. We've sat in on enough of Darren's plans to know that inaction is the most dangerous response. He'd do the same thing if he were in our position."
Lila, hands sunk in her cardigan, leaned forward with a pleading face. "Please, Rachel. Please. This could be our moment to prove we're more than just operators under Darren's command. He needs to focus on other things, you know that. He's so stressed and having us do things like this is why we're his team in the first place."
"Besides, we've worked our asses off for Trendteller, and that smug Tyler Mooney thinks he can just string us along with a fake reassessment?"
Rachel pursed her lips, thinking. Her arms unfolded slowly. Then she nodded once, almost reluctantly. "Alright. Fine. But we do this smart, and we do it clean."
"Yes!"
"Thank you, Rachel."
Rachel let out a sigh, praying this would hit them back. "But we can't do it alone. We need all hands on deck and all minds united. The other girls should be involved."
They turned their heads to the table and watched silently as Simon Wilkes got up, packed his things, offered them a nod, and quietly slipped out the door.
Amelia was right behind him, her laptop under her arm.
But just as she reached the exit, Lila suddenly stepped into her path, blocking her with an innocent smile. Amelia moved to the right. Lila mirrored her. She stepped to the left. So did Lila.
Amelia blinked, then looked at Rach and Sandy. "What's going on?"
From the side, Kara lifted her head from her laptop, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. "Why's everyone in a sudden moment of tension? Did I miss something while optimizing our firewall again?"
Rachel sighed. "Everyone take a seat."
Amelia hesitated. "Okay...?" She glanced around and cautiously pulled her chair back, sitting down gracefully. Lila followed, then Sandy.
Once the last of them were seated, Rachel sat at the head of the table, adopting the same stance she'd seen Darren use so often: back straight, elbows on the table, fingers interlocked. "We have something to discuss."
She looked at Sandy and Lila. "Tell them."
Sandy took the lead, recounting everything. From the delayed entry status on the Gate's registry to the sudden change to 'Reassessment Under Review,' and finally, the all-too-familiar voice that had echoed across the auditorium— Tyler Mooney.
Lila added her observations, describing his character, the new compliance excuse, and the way Tyler had subtly humiliated Trendteller before a small crowd.
By the time they were done, Amelia had her arms folded, eyebrows raised in disbelief. "Why don't we just tell Darren? He'd take care of this in five minutes."
"Five minutes? Okay, Boss is a smart man, but he's not Superman," Kara joked.
"But seriously though. Shouldn't we just tell him?"
"Darren can't fight every battle for us. There are some we should fight for him." Sandy replied enthusiastically.
Lila shrugged. "Besides, he's dealing with enough crap as it is. Didn't Miranda just tell him about that Morrison's play on Holloway?"
Kara nodded, spinning a pen between her fingers. "Also… it'd be kind of nice to fix something ourselves for once. Just us. Girlboss coalition."
"Coalition?" Amelia smirked. "What's that, a cult?"
"I like it," Lila said with mock formality, raising an imaginary glass. "To girlboss workdays."
Rachel finally raised her hand. "Alright, jokes aside. I'm serious. It is a good idea that we try to solve this without Darren. He's carried enough weight. I say we do it to build internal trust, too. We always work individually. This time, we work like an actual team. Other girls have girls' nights. We'll have girl-fight work days."
"Sounds kinda violent," Amelia muttered, though she was clearly amused.
"But accurate," Sandy added, straight-faced.
Rachel smiled faintly. "So now what? We know the issue. Let's find a solution. Tyler's move was calculated. If we want to shake him, we have to think like Darren."
Lila crossed her arms. "Which means what? Public pressure? Aggressive marketing?"
"No," Rachel said, eyes narrowing thoughtfully. "Darren doesn't go for the obvious. He forces choices. Strategic pressure. A scenario where the opponent either caves or loses something more valuable."
They all fell silent.
The hours rolled. Coffee cups appeared and disappeared. Notes were scrawled on shared screens, and half-sent emails were drafted and deleted. At some point, Kara ordered takeout. Lila lay flat on the conference table for a moment in frustration.
Then Rachel's eyes lit up.
"I've got it," she said, straightening.
The others leaned in.
"What if we announce a Trendteller demo in San Navarro? It's a smaller region, but it's been on Moon's radar for digital modernization. If we partner with a couple of local public vendors and offer them free use for a year, we'll stir curiosity and get municipal eyes on us."
Sandy's eyes glinted. "Tyler can't blacklist us there without backlash. That's state-level obstruction. Especially if it looks like we're helping public sectors for free."
Lila nodded slowly. "And if we send the announcement through media partners... it becomes a PR event. He either lets us pass the Gate to avoid bad optics, or he openly blocks public innovation."
Amelia grinned. "That's dirty."
"It's brilliant," Kara added.
Rachel folded her arms. "Then let's do it. Schedule the announcement, prep the press kits. Lila, reach out to the San Navarro vendors you've been eyeing. Sandy, get the financials ready. Kara, make sure the infrastructure can handle a trial load. Amelia, handle the distribution timeline."
Everyone nodded.
Somehow, in mere hours, they'd all become very invested in this plan of theirs. And soon, girl fight-work days began.