Chapter 13
Tyler wasn’t exactly fluent in speaking Caledonian, but it was easy enough to understand him.
Winifred didn’t even have time to wonder why he knew her name when he stood up and stretched out a hand, gesturing for her to recreate the results of her experiment.
The advisor wanted to help get Winifred out of this predicament, but Tyler stopped him with an icy look.
Tyler was young, yet his presence was daunting. “If you want an experimental result to gain recognition in academia or industry, verifiability is fundamental. Or do you want people to accuse your entire lab of academic fraud?”
The advisor didn’t dare make another sound. He could only watch as Winifred was dragged to the lab bench.
She knew she couldn’t recreate the experiment. She was about to reject Tyler when he warned, “You’ve committed academic fraud if you can’t recreate the experiment. The media is already waiting downstairs. Everything you put others through will ultimately come back to bite you.”
Winifred had no choice but to pull on gloves and pick up a test tube shakily. She started acting based on instinct, and her hesitation dragged out the
process.
Other students who saw what was happening soon spread the word. When Kendall burst into the lab, he saw Tyler holding Winifred’s wrist tightly and asking coldly, “How can you say that the results of this experiment are yours when you don’t even know the basic sequence for adding reagents?”
“You, Winifred Court!” Tyler turned to look at the advisor, his gaze as sharp as a knife. “And you! All of you stole Isabel Court’s research results! You’re Jall accomplices in academic fraud!”
Everyone was stunned by his presence. The advisor swayed on his feet before collapsing into his seat. He knew he was dead meat.
Kendall, who had always been calm and composed, charged into the lab and grabbed Tyler’s shoulders. He cried, “You know Isabel? Did she send you here? Where has she gone?”
Tyler shook him off. “How is it any of your business where she’s gone? All you need to know is that she’ll never be back.”
Kendall looked like he’d been dealt a devastating blow. “That’s impossible! How do you know Isabel? How are you related to her?”
Tyler looked at him, disdained by his arrogance. Kendall had treated Isabel like she was trash when she was by his side. Now that she would no longer return to Caledon, he started acting like he cared. A man like him was unworthy of her.
Tyler sneered. “It doesn’t matter who I am. What matters is that I’ll get back at every one of you for all the things you did to her!”
He turned and left. Kendall wanted to go after him, but Winifred grabbed his arm from behind. She trembled uncontrollably as she looked at him. “What should I do, Kenny? That guy said that the media is downstairs and that he’d make me go through everything Isabel did. He’s out to get me! I’m scared. I don’t want to go down there!”
Kendall wasn’t in the mood to answer her and pushed her away. Shortly after, the reporters burst into the lab with their cameras aimed right at Winifred.
Tyler hadn’t just acquired the lab. He’d also invested in the college, so he was now its largest shareholder. Per his instructions, the reporters asked Winifred detailed questions about the experiment.
She curled up in a corner and trembled violently, unable to answer a single question.
In the end, the headlines of that day’s news talked about how she had committed academic fraud and falsely accused Isabel of plagiarism just so she could get her hands on the latter’s research results.
The reporters also dug up things that the Court family had kept buried over the years. They exposed Gordon and Linda for pretending to be kind. They also revealed their bias against Isabel and how they’d hurt her without a care.
People pointed fingers at Winifred everywhere she went, and she was a mess. Ultimately, she had to hide in the restroom and wait for her family to save her.
A driver picked her up. She started howling as soon as she stepped into the house.
Meanwhile, Gordon almost had an aneurysm when he saw the news headlines. Linda screamed in fright and hurriedly got him something for his blood pressure. For a moment, the house was filled with howling and screaming. There was chaos everywhere.
The door swung open, and Felix strode in with a stack of documents, his expression hideous. “I found out what’s going on. Tyler Lodge is the son of Medina Corporation’s chairman. The chairman and his wife are both Caledonian. It seems they’ve recently been reunited with their daughter, who has turned out to be Isabel.”
“How’s that possible?” Winifred snatched the photo Felix held, looking incredulous.
In it, a family of four smiled happily. Isabel stood in the center with Tyler on one side. On the other side was a middle–aged couple who looked graceful and elegant. They were most likely the chairman of Medina Corporation and his wife.
Winifred started wailing again. Felix couldn’t be bothered to console her as he continued telling Gordon about the information he’d dug up. “More importantly, I found out that Tyler has started purchasing our company’s shares.
“Our stock price has plummeted after today’s news, and Medina Corporation has plenty of money lying around. If things go on like this, they’ll soon swallow us whole!”
Linda paced the room as regret washed over her. “How did things end up like this? How did Isabel become the daughter of Medina Corporation’s
Chapter 13
chairman and his wife? She must’ve sent her brother to get revenge on us after the way we treated her!”
Gordon’s heart throbbed painfully, and he could taste the metallic scent of blood in his mouth. He swallowed it and shut his eyes before making a difficult decision. “Felix, find out where Tyler is staying. We’re going to visit him and apologize to him in person.”
