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Bitcoin Billionaire: I Regressed to Invest in the First Bitcoin!-Chapter 74: Free of Bounds
There were many kinds of news one would expect, but they were usually under the realm of possibility.
What’s possible?
Brooklyn Baker leaving Business Everyday certainly wasn’t possible. She was the top host and journalist for that media for many years.
All the ten years that were to come!
And now they’ve separated?
That singular act of resigning from Gareth’s company, how many new events is it going to cause?
Once again, he was messing with the timeline.
Trying to figure it all out, Darren blinked, his frown deepening. His thoughts continued to stall for a moment before he finally said, "You left Business Everyday?"
Brooklyn exhaled, crossing her arms. "Yeah. Well, technically they fired me. But yes."
"Fired you?" His voice was skeptical, laced with disbelief. "You’re their best reporter. One of the best in the state."
She let out a dry chuckle, shaking her head. "Well I’m glad you think that about me, Mr. Steele. But like my media manager said, I overestimated my power in the company."
Darren’s eyes narrowed. She was being serious. "Why did they fire you?" he asked.
"Tried to do the right thing for a change," she sighed, looking down. "Look at where that got me."
Darren gave her an eyebrow raise, making it clear that that answer wasn’t sufficient. Brooklyn looked up at him then away.
"They’re burying the story. I came to work yesterday, ready to report one of the biggest stories of my career, but I was stopped at every turn. You know me, Steele, I don’t take kindly to people telling me to sit down and shut up. Not when I know a story has to come out. And besides, Gareth’s victims deserve justice."
Darren watched her closely, gauging her expression. This time, unlike her usual, there was no performance in her tone, no exaggeration. She was telling the truth.
"So I used what I thought was my trump card. I put my job on the line," she continued. "I went to my media manager and told her to either fire me or let me do what I needed to do."
A small smirk ghosted her lips. "Guess which one they picked."
Darren’s thoughts churned in his mind.
Was this for real? Brooklyn Baker, walking away from a top news studio? That was unexpected.
He had always assumed she only cared about the win; breaking the story first, getting the biggest audience, solidifying her name as one of the most relentless reporters out there.
And to her credit, she had.
In the former timeline, Brooklyn had become a pillar of news and business. Everything she said was seen as gospel, especially in the business world.
He wondered if she would still reach those heights now she didn’t have the Everyday News backing.
But even more surprising, he had never thought she actually cared about the people caught in the mess of her headlines.
"I thought you didn’t care about that," he muttered.
Brooklyn’s gaze flickered with something unreadable before she shrugged. "Turns out I do."
Darren tilted his head slightly, studying her. He wasn’t sure whether to believe she was truly changing or if this was just another move.
Brooklyn noticed the look and immediately scowled. "Hey, don’t start thinking I’ve gone soft or anything. I’m just doing what I think is right in this situation."
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Darren didn’t respond, just stared at her for a second before she sighed and moved on. "Anyway," she said, shifting her stance, "I’m going independent. No more answering to a studio. My name’s got enough weight to pull its own audience. At least I think so."
Darren folded his arms. If she was that invasive when she had the rules of a company holding her back… how much worse was she going to be now that she was completely unrestrained?
He also had another question.
"Why are you telling me all of this?" he asked, his voice as cool as smoke. "Why call me a dozen times just to say you’re quitting your job?"
Brooklyn immediately turned red, her lips parting before she clamped them shut. Her eyes darted away, and she brought down her hands like a child throwing a tantrum. "What? I just… I wanted you to know."
Darren narrowed his gaze.
Brooklyn turned even redder. She couldn’t bring herself to say it; that for some reason, his words before, when they had first spoken, had actually stung her.
She’d been insulted before. She’d been called worse things by people she exposed. But somehow, when he said it, when he said he disliked her and other journalists, it had felt different.
She quickly cleared her throat. "As I was saying, to get started, I need to feature some of my stories somewhere first. A magazine, something with reach, before I can build my own platform fully."
Darren lifted a thinking brow. "A magazine, huh?" His mind flickered to Sophie. "I think I can help with that." Then he added firmly, "But that’s all you’ll be getting from me."
Brooklyn smiled weakly at his face, shaking her head. "Fair." She said, and amused yet knowing glint in her eyes. "Thinking about it… I probably owe you more than you owe me. But I’ll make it up to you."
Darren wasn’t sure he wanted to know what she meant by that.
She smiled brighter now, then gave him a lazy salute. "See you around, Steele."
With that, she turned, got into her car, and drove off.
Darren watched the taillights disappear before he exhaled, rubbing his temple.
What a damn headache that woman is.
Shaking his head, he finally turned back toward his house, stepping inside.
Rachel stood in the middle of the grand living space, her arms folded, one leg crossed over the other as she took in the sight around her.
The awe in her expression was subtle, but he could see it. She was admiring his home.
She looked almost small standing there, but something about the way she held herself kept her from being swallowed by it.
At the sound of his footsteps, she turned to him. Darren noticed something in her eyes once she looked at him.
It was an apology, guilt for not listening to him about coming along today.
"Hey," she said softly.
Darren let out a slow breath. "Hey."