bChapter /b214

Still, Elissa couldn’t quite believe Frank was the type to hound someone to the bitter end–unless Marcia had done something truly unforgivable.

Cliff smiled, about to respond, but Elissa spoke again. “Anyway, none of this really concerns me anymore.”

How Frank chose to deal with Marcia was his business. The feud was between them, and Elissa wanted no part of it.

“Right.”

Cliff suddenly felt a wave of relief, as if a taut string inside him had just loosened. He chuckled lightly. “You finished up here? Let’s grab something to eat. My car’s in the shop, so I’ll have to hitch a ride with you to theb.”

“Sure.”

Elissa stood, shrugged out of herb coat, grabbed her bag, and left with him.

Now that the holidays were over, the research project’s schedule had to pick up pace. The two of them, without needing to discuss it, chose a restaurant nearby for lunch.

Once they were done, they headed straight to the Murphy Group’s research center.

The Murphy Group’s research institute was nothing if inot /ivish; everything a team could need was right at their fingertips–state–of–the–art equipment, a full inventory of medical supplies–no time wasted scrambling for resources.

At work, Elissa and Cliff were in perfect sync.

Of the other three people in the Traditional Medicine Unit, only Xavier would asionally lend a hand. The other two, who had openly mocked Elissa before, spent their days pretending to be busy, but in reality, made no progress at all.

They looked down on Elissa, convinced that a young woman like her didn’t deserve to be team leader and wouldn’t aplish anything.

So why would they put genuine effort into the research? Why work hard just to let Elissa walk away with the credit? Not a chance.

After all, in the world of scientific research, stories of people getting their work stolen were a dime a dozen. They weren’t about to be the next cautionary tale.

Elissa was in the middle of her work when Zachary Jones knocked on theb door and called to the Traditional Medicine Unit, “Wrap up what you’re doing. There’s a meeting in the third–floor conference room in thirty minutes.”

“What’s the meeting about?” Elissa asked.

Their team had always had an unspoken rule: meetings were announced at least a day in advance so no one’s workflow was disrupted. Ast–minute meeting like this was unheard of.

Zachary Jones didn’t bother to hide anything. “It’s something arranged by the government.

18:02

Apparently, there’s apany with a new project that aligns with ours, so they want us to coborate–see if we can speed up development.”

“Alright, got it.”

Elissa didn’t mind. In fact, if they could finish the project a day sooner, that meant saving more lives.

She and Cliff wrapped up their work and headed downstairs with the rest of the team.

When they arrived, the otherpany’s research team hadn’t shown up yet.

After about ten minutes, the sharp sound of high heels echoed down the hallway.

As the head of the Traditional Medicine Unit, Elissa stood with Zachary iJones/i, ready to make a good first impression. After all, they’d be working together soon.

Marcia strode in, dressed head–to–toe in a crisp white suit, leading a small entourage–her entrance anything but subtle.

Elissa frowned slightly as Marcia walked straight up to Zachary Jones. “Dr. Jones, it’s an honor. When my team heard you’d be heading up Murphy Group’s side, everyone was eager to learn from you.”

“You’re too kind,” Zachary replied, racking his brain for any recollection of her from the researchmunity, anding up nk. “And you are…?”

“I’m Marcia, head of our team.” Marcia finished her introduction, then turned to Elissa with a small, knowing smile. “Ms. Drummond and I–well, we go way back.”

bChapter /b215