From Ashes to Queen: Now I Call the Shots novel Chapter 10

Chapter 10 Mr Fletcher, Ms Joyner

Even though she looked composed on the outside, her trembling hands betrayed her stormy emotions.

Scarlett had always been the kind of person who repaid kindness tenfold.

But in the end, all it ever got her was the old fable. the farmer and the snake.

So when Jasper showed her any kind of kindness now, it only made her more anxious.

“Scissors, gauze, and a special salve for external wounds.”

While she was zoning out, Jasper had already pulled the supplies from a nearby cabinet.

“How did Ms. Joyner’s lab mouse end up here?”

His voice was low, and those cool, deep–set eyes fell on her face like a cold lake freezing over.

If you looked closely, you’d see that his perfectly sculpted features hid something razor–sharp of presence that made you want to stop breathing.

Scarlett slowly looked up.

Her lashes, dark as crow feathers, blinked once.

–

the kind

If she reported this to the school, she’d probably get written up – a disciplinary action that would stick to her record and hurt her future job prospects.

For most people, that would be terrifying.

But Scarlett had offers piled up like fan mail. She didn’t care.

“Mr. Fletcher, your lab animal got loose too. Let’s not have Denton laugh at Eugene.”

Jasper narrowed his eyes.

She was the first person who had ever cracked a joke while under his pressure.

Suddenly-

The black cat leapt up onto the medical table.

Thankfully, the mouse was already bandaged and back in its cage.

But the cat seemed to lose interest in the mouse entirely.

Instead, it sat right in front of Scarlett and licked her palm – clearly trying to be cute.

Human, human, I didn’t mean to, please don’t be mad.

Its amber eyes sparkled like broken glass, and its round head tilted pitifully as it stared up at her.

1/5

Scarlett couldn’t help it – her heart melted.

She reached out and rubbed its head.

“Meow!”

A soft lavender glow shimmered over the cat’s body.

Then, as if taking the cue, it boldly climbed into her arms.

She froze.

The cat moved with a lifelike grace

–

its expressions and reactions so natural.

But its body… was completely without warmth.

This thing was mechanical.

A robot cat?

She stared at the purring creature in her arms, stunned.

So the whole chase earlier had been a misunderstanding?

Her mouse had probably been injured while escaping — caught on a rock or a branch.

She sighed, gently rubbing the cat’s head.

Sorry.

–

She had panicked she cared too much about her research.

―

She’d never imagined a robotic cat could be so convincing.

Then again, it made sense.

Jasper was a genius. Of course he’d create something like this.

And this entire building was reserved just for him. Having a robotic cat patrolling the area wasn’t strange.

He was probably using it for behavioral observation in his own study.

But Jasper looked faintly surprised.

The moment the cat touched Scarlett, it activated soft light mode – something that only triggered in the presence of its recognized master.

He started to wonder: was there something about Scarlett that interfered with the cat’s magnetic field?

“Alright then, go on back. Sorry for the misunderstanding. Maybe we’ll meet again sometime.”

Scarlett gently placed the cat back on the table. The moment she let go, the glow around it vanished.

2/5

Jasper’s gaze sharpened.

Scarlett stood up, lifted the cage, and turned to leave.

“I didn’t say you could go yet.”

His voice dropped

low and dark

–

and the air around them seemed to freeze.

Scarlett turned back, fingers instantly twitching. The needles were already at her fingertips.

Jasper stepped forward.

Every move radiated dominance, like he was breaking straight through her defenses.

A threat. A warning.

Scarlett tightened her grip on the needles, silently counting down.

Ready to strike.

But then-

His voice softened. Just slightly.

“Thirty million. Stay and work in my lab. You can use anything here. But you’ll need to assist with my tech experiments.”

“If there’s a breach–of–contract clause from your old lab, I’ll handle it.”

Scarlett didn’t reply.

Unlike in movies, where characters got offended when money was brought up that.

She was just wondering why fortune was suddenly dropping out of the sky.

Leaving Calvin’s lab meant she needed a new base.

Sure, she could’ve asked James for one. He’d definitely give it to her.

But she knew that would come with endless strings attached.

And before returning to Jandale, she didn’t want any more complications.

―

she was too practical for

She’d also just paid off the Joyner family’s so–called “child–raising expenses.” She was nearly broke and couldn’t afford to rent a lab space.

Of course, she could’ve asked the Lin family in Jandale.

But she was only returning to see the Lin family’s elderly matriarch meet her real granddaughter one last time.

– a dying woman who wanted to

After everything with the Joyners, Scarlett didn’t trust anything labeled “family.”

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So now, just as she hit a dead end…

Thirty million and a high–end lab landed in her lap.

Too perfect.

“You…”

She looked up.

Even when the man said nothing, the pressure he exuded was enough to control the room.

“And you expect me to just take your word for it? No contract?”

She didn’t accept verbal promises

–

not anymore.

She’d learned that lesson the hard way with the Joyner family.

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