At 10:00 a.m., Hawthorne's convoy arrived. Three black SUVs surrounded his personal vehicle as if he were visiting a war zone. Security swept the area, ensuring no undesirables could spoil his inspection.
"Sir, there's a vagrant by the fence," reported head of security Mike Thompson. "Should I remove her?"
Hawthorne's eyes fixed on Zara with laser intensity. Something about her defiant posture triggered his rage. She wasn't cowering or begging; she was watching, analyzing. It reminded him too much of his own hungry childhood eyes.
"You know what, Thompson? Let's make an example." Hawthorne strode toward the fence with predatory confidence.
Employees stopped working to watch; this was about to become a show.
"You!" he barked at Zara. "What gives you the right to squat on my property like some diseased animal?"
Zara looked up calmly. "I'm on public property, sir. Just watching."
"Watching?" Hawthorne's voice dripped with mockery. "Planning your next theft? Figuring out how to break into my company and steal something valuable?"
"No, sir. I'm interested in how your prototype works."
The billionaire's laughter echoed across the parking lot. Several employees pulled out phones to record what was clearly becoming viral content.
"Interested? A street rat like you wouldn't understand the first thing about advanced engineering. You probably can't even spell technology."
"Actually," Zara said quietly, "I've been tracking some patterns in your testing that might—"
"Patterns!" Hawthorne cut her off viciously. "The only pattern here is worthless people thinking they deserve attention from their betters! Thompson, I want this piece of human garbage removed from my sight permanently!"
The security guard stepped forward, radio in hand. "Should I call the police, sir? Have her arrested for loitering?"
"Better yet," Hawthorne's eyes gleamed with malice, "let's call social services. Make sure this little troublemaker gets locked up where she belongs."
As security moved toward Zara, fate intervened with perfect timing. The hypercar's engine died with a mechanical wheeze. Every dashboard light flickered and went dark. The most advanced vehicle on Earth had become an expensive paperweight.
"What the hell just happened?" Hawthorne spun toward his engineering team.
Dr. Vasquez rushed to the car with diagnostic equipment. Her face went pale as she read the results. "Complete system failure across all networks. Engine, electronics, AI processing—everything's dead."
"Then fix it!"