Chapter 1
Claire Thompson forgot to clean one test tube, so the new team leader, Sophie Carter, threatened to remove her from the national project and demanded all her preliminary data.
After Claire refused without hesitation, she went to the hospital and saw Nathan Harmon. He hadn't been home in nearly a month.
Nathan wore a long black coat, casually spinning his wristwatch, his tone brooking no argument. He sighed, "Claire, you're not following my instructions anymore.
"It's only some trivial data. What difference would it make to hand it over? Are you really willing to risk your sister's life for it?"
Claire's sister, Zoya Thompson, lay quietly on the hospital bed, her eyes closed and her face pale.
Zoya lay motionless on the bed, eyes shut, face ghost-white. She had cancer, and a costly machine was the only thing keeping her alive. But Nathan's men were already holding the plug. One word from him, and they'd pull it.
He was being so cruel to Zoya because Sophie wanted the data.
Claire's hands clenched into fists, her nails biting into her palms until it hurt.
Those files in her hands mattered.
Sophie was new. Fine. But Nathan? He knew exactly what those files were worth.
*****
Even though Claire was only responsible for a small portion of the data, every bit of it was critical. The results she held could decide the experiment's ultimate success or failure.
And honestly, the main reason she'd joined the lab at all was because of Nathan.
Nathan had a rare genetic disease. If the medical research in Claire's field had been successful, it could have cured Nathan's condition. They grew up together, so Claire knew that Nathan's father had died from the same disease.
With the chance to cure it, she couldn't have resisted trying.
For the past five years, Claire had thrown herself into the lab, working day and night. She'd sworn to give Nathan a chance at life, never imagining he'd end up cheating on her.
And now, not only had he betrayed her, but he was actually helping the homewrecker steal her research data.
Claire let out a bitter, broken laugh. "All because I forgot to wash one test tube, she wants me to write a 1,000-word apology letter, make a public statement, and throw me out of the project? Nathan, am I really that unforgivably guilty?"
Nathan sighed, his gaze indulgent. "Sophie takes things too seriously sometimes, but that's part of her charm. She won't tolerate mistakes from anyone, not even herself."
Claire stared at him in disbelief, unable to accept that this man before her was the same Nathan who had once carried her through a grueling challenge to prove their unique love.
"Do you love her that much?" Claire murmured. That was the final straw for Nathan. His patience finally snapped.
He frowned, enunciating each word. "Claire, don't even think about stalling. Sophie and I made a bet. If you don't hand over the data in ten minutes, you'll have to write a 1,000-word apology letter."
"Well, your time's up." He glanced lazily at his watch. "You cost me the bet.
"You have five seconds left. If you don't hand over the data, I'm pulling the plug, right now."
As Nathan's icy countdown filled the room, Zoya stirred awake, struggling for breath. Her voice was fragile, barely audible. "Claire, don't worry about me. Live your life."
Claire shut her eyes in agony, forcing the words out. "Fine, I'll do it. The data's on this laptop. I'll write the apology. Now, will you let Zoya go?"
Claire handed the laptop over to Nathan and immediately hugged Zoya tightly.
In the next instant, Sophie stormed in, coldly yanking the plug from the life support machine and shoving the laptop's cord in its place. A piercing alarm blared in Claire's ears, sharp and jarring.
Zoya shuddered violently, her eyes snapping open as her vitality faded away, like a flower crushed by a storm. Claire's mind went blank, and after a heartbeat of stunned silence, she erupted in a desperate scream. "Doctor, please, save my sister."
But it was already too late. Once the life support was unplugged, there was no way to reconnect it. Zoya's body was growing cold and rigid, the warmth slipping away forever.
Claire's eyes red with grief, held Zoya close and met Nathan's gaze. "You killed my sister," she said, her voice chillingly calm.
Sophie instantly hid behind Nathan, her voice shaky. "I'm sorry, Nathan. I really didn't think about it. I saw the laptop was dead and couldn't turn it on, so I..."
Nathan sighed, a helpless look in his eyes. "Alright, she didn't do it on purpose."
His response shattered the last shred of attachment in Claire's heart. It was time to cut this twisted tie. She needed to fulfill Zoya's final wish, to be happy. And staying by Nathan's side would never, ever bring her that happiness.
Claire closed her eyes, tears streaming down her cheeks, when Sophie's panicked voice suddenly broke the silence. "Oh no, Nathan. I accidentally hit delete instead of copy, all the data's gone."
Nathan waved it off, still acting unconcerned. "It's some insignificant data. We can always redo it."
A trace of mockery flickered across Claire's eyes. If Nathan knew that the deleted data could actually save his life, would he still think her research was a bunch of insignificant data?