Chapter 19
As expected, Gideon left.
Josephine enjoyed her solitude, reading through documents until she fell asleep. The next day at the company, she immediately went to Marshall's office, only to witness him and the deputy director in an intimate embrace. They were locked in a passionate kiss, as if the world had disappeared, leaving only their breathing and heartbeats.
Josephine's arrival disrupted their moment. Marshall showed no embarrassment, just irritation. "What are you doing? Don't you know how to knock? Where are your manners?"
"I can't compare to you. I thought you'd installed a bed in here."
Marshall, annoyed, slapped the deputy director's backside and sent her out. "What do you want?"
Josephine had no interest in their affair; she had more important matters. "Look at this." She placed the documents she'd organized last night on his desk.
Marshall glanced at them. "Is there a problem?"
He didn't see it at all.
Josephine took a deep breath. "You altered the medical imaging recognition algorithm. You reversed the grayscale values for fatty tissue and tumor tissue in CT images!"
Marshall tugged at his tie and snickered. "And that's worth shouting about?"
Idiot!
Josephine couldn't take it anymore. She opened the medical imaging projection.
On the left was a real CT scan: light gray fatty tissue surrounding a small dark tumor, labeled benign.
On the right was the AI diagnosis: dark areas covering half the breast, labeled advanced cancer.
"Your code mistakes fat for cancer cells and magnifies it tenfold."
Marshall scoffed, crossing his legs. "It's just an imaging rendering discrepancy. Have the graphics team adjust the color. What's the big deal?"
Josephine displayed screenshots from the system monitoring panel.
[July 18, 23:07 - Account: Marshall Kelly - Disabled double-blind verification module] Red warning: Missing verification will increase malignant misdiagnosis risk by 300%.
Her finger pointed to the audit report. "To meet Gideon's launch deadline, you pushed an unverified model nationwide. In the past two weeks, three thousand hospitals have produced sixty thousand incorrect reports."
Marshall laughed, tugging at his tie again. "Ms. Kennedy, we're in business, not charity. Machines working ten times faster than humans is what matters. As for accuracy... women get misdiagnosed with breast issues by the hundreds of thousands every year. Besides, Mr. Getty approved this."
Josephine laughed bitterly. Gideon knew nothing about research. Of course he believed whatever his subordinates told him.
And Marshall, this fool, understood nothing either.
She pulled out a document labeled "Medical Imaging Safety Protocol." "This is the agreement you personally signed."
The seventh clause stated: [Double-blind verification must not be disabled for ≥3 days.[ The violation counter showed an alarming figure: [Disabled for 17 consecutive days.]
Josephine looked at him coldly. "I could report this to the FDA right now."
"Go ahead."
Marshall was fearless. He even turned it around, warning Josephine, "Don't meddle in this. Mr. Getty and I discussed this decision. He said company profits come first, and if any problems arise, he'll handle them."
Josephine gave him a cold look and decided not to waste any more time talking to him. She would go straight to Gideon.
This wasn't a small matter. If the data was wrong, the consequences could be devastating. Thinking about it made her own problems with Gideon seem insignificant.
When Gideon saw her, he smiled. "What brings you here? Didn't you say you didn't want anyone knowing about our relationship? Not worried about that anymore?"
He stood up and tried to take her hand.
Josephine stepped aside to avoid him.
Gideon's smile faded. "What's wrong?"
"Marshall..."
Before she could finish, someone knocked on the door and entered without waiting for a response. It was Marshall.
He spoke first. "Mr. Getty, I need to discuss something with you."
Gideon nodded. "Go ahead."
"This morning, Ms. Kennedy lost a document, causing data loss. Several colleagues have already complained to me."
Josephine realized her earlier thought that "maybe he's coming to admit his mistake" was completely absurd.
Gideon frowned at Josephine and said calmly, "I understand. You can go back to work now."
As Marshall left, he glanced at Josephine, his eyes flashing with malice and triumph.
By speaking first, he ensured that no matter what Josephine said afterward, Gideon wouldn't believe her. He'd just think she was trying to cause trouble.
Once he was gone, Gideon didn't scold Josephine but sounded resigned. "I told you not to come to the company, but you insisted."
"You believe him?"
That idiot somehow had Gideon's trust. Who was the real fool here?
Gideon gently but firmly pulled her into his arms. "Jojo, this isn't about believing anyone. We need to trust the professionals—you taught me that."
She had said that. When she decided to leave research and focus on family, she'd worried her team would be mistreated by Gideon and had hinted at this.
She never imagined those words would be used against her.
"Forget it."
It was pointless. Whatever she said now would be meaningless. Gideon wouldn't believe her.
As she left, she told Gideon, "You'll regret this."
Gideon watched her go, his gaze heavy.
Josephine didn't give up. This system was originally developed to benefit women. She couldn't stand by and watch her "baby" be destroyed.
She gathered her team members and decided to investigate several major hospitals first. "Let's check if there have been any misdiagnosis cases recently."
"Got it."
They split up, each going to a different hospital.
Josephine went to the largest hospital downtown, which claimed a 90% cure rate for breast cancer. Being a major hospital, it was the first to implement the Hera System. With the longest usage time and countless patients coming in, this was where accidents were most likely to happen.
She knew the chief physician well and caught him at lunch. Thinking she was there as a patient, he gave her some time, and they talked in his office.
"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
Josephine got straight to the point. "Doctor, have there been any misdiagnoses recently?"
She asked this way to catch him off guard.
It worked perfectly.
"What are you talking about?" The physician stood up abruptly, his expression darkening. "If you're here as a patient, I'll examine you. But if you're here to spread rumors, you're not welcome."
Even with their good relationship, when it came to interests, his attitude changed instantly.
Josephine was prepared for this. "I'm not here to cause trouble. I'm here to solve problems. If there really are misdiagnoses, you know better than I do what consequences that could have."
The physician's expression turned somber.
"You don't have to answer now. I'll give you time." Josephine placed her business card on the desk. "Contact me when you're ready. I think we share the same goal—to prevent anyone from losing their life due to misdiagnosis."