He Was But A Failed Detour
The doors of elite research institutions aren't open to the unknown. But Rick Allen pulled Beth out of nowhere. He poured everything into nurturing her talent and promised her the world.
The Allen family's compromise was simple: the Chief Young Scientist had to be Summer Belden—someone from their own social circle. From that day on, the words Rick said to Beth most often were, "Just wait a little longer."
He told her to wait when her groundbreaking paper was published under Summer's name in exchange for research funding. He told her to wait again when the research she'd perfected over three years was packaged as Summer's signature work, paving the way to major awards. "The bigger picture comes first," he said. "The next Nobel Prize—I'll make sure it's yours."
But when the paper credited to Summer—though written by Beth—was exposed for fabricated data, everyone reached the same conclusion: Beth, as a core member of the project, had tampered with the data to steal the credit.
Locked in a glass-walled archive room, Beth looked at Rick standing outside the door. His gaze was ice-cold, full of disappointment.
"Why did you touch the data?" he said. "You've ruined everything I've built."
She remembered how he once told her, "In this world, yours is the only talent I truly recognize."
He had promised, "I'll make sure achievements with your name hang among the stars."
Now he stood with the others, judging her. He looked at her the way people look at a ruthless, ambitious fraud.
When she was finally released, Beth dug her nails into her palm until blood ran down.
This time, she wouldn't wait any longer.