Chapter 29
Chapter 29:
June picked up her iPad and logged into her offshore account in the Cayman Islands. The balance looked back at her: $142,000,000.00.
“I can afford him,” June said. “Tell him I want to sue for everything. Intentional infliction of emotional distress. Medical negligence. Fraud p>
Sloane grabbed her phone and dialed.
“Easton? Put the golf club down. I have a client for you, and you are going to love this — it’s Cole Compton’s ex-wife p>
Easton Hahn was reviewing a deposition when his phone buzzed, his pen making sharp, decisive marks in the margins of the transcript.
He was bored. He had won his last three cases before they reached trial. He needed something with teeth.
He listened to Sloane’s pitch. His pen went still.
𝗥𝗈𝘮aոc𝗲 𝗇𝘰𝘃𝖾𝗹𝗌 𝗼ո.с𝗈𝘮
“June Erickson?” Easton said, leaning back against his mahogany desk. “Compton’s ghost of a wife? The one who never appears in public?” He straightened slightly. “Now that is interesting p>
“She’s not a ghost, Easton,” Sloane said. “She’s a dragon who just woke up. Cole had her served in the ICU p>
The amusement left Easton’s eyes. He despised bullies, and he had despised Cole Compton specifically since they had rowed against each other at Harvard — arrogant, entitled, and sloppy, even then.
“In the ICU?” Easton said. “That’s low, even for him p>
“Will you take it p>
Easton looked out the window at the skyline. The Compton Tower was visible from here, rising above the city like a declaration.
“Tell her I’ll be there in an hour,” Easton said. “And tell her to stop worrying about the money. I’d take this case without a fee just to see the look on Cole’s face p>
He hung up, reached for his jacket, and checked his reflection.
“Game on, Compton,” he said quietly.
Monday.
June walked into Apex Bio.
She was not supposed to be here. Her discharge papers were explicit: bed rest for two weeks. But the apartment felt like a cage, and her mind was moving too fast for stillness.
She wore a loose silk blouse to conceal the bandages and the slight swelling at her abdomen. Her face was pale, but her eyes were sharp, burning with a feverish clarity.
The lab was quiet. Too quiet.
Leo Miller, the lead engineer, was standing at the whiteboard with the expression of a man on the verge of defeat.
“It doesn’t work!” Leo said, pressing his hands against the board. “The molecule is too unstable. Every time we try to bind the protein, it falls apart p>
Miles stood nearby with his arms crossed, his expression grim. “If we don’t resolve this before the Summit, the investors will walk. Cole’s smear campaign is already moving our stock in the wrong direction p>
June walked past them both. She picked up a black marker.
The room went silent.
She did not say hello. She did not ask permission. She drew a line connecting the Carbon-4 atom to a nitrogen ring, then added a double bond.
“Methylate it here,” June said, her voice raspy but steady. “And add a sulfur bridge p>
Leo stared at the board. He reached for his calculator, his lips moving faintly.