Chapter 567

Anastasia overheard a few of the comments, but she didn’t so much as flinch.
With steady, unhurried steps, she walked onto the stage.
Facing the sea of faces below, she remained composed, her presence commanding. “Good morning, everyone. I’m Anastasia Sterling, the Chairwoman of Unison Pharma, and today—”
“Wait!”
A furious shout erupted from the back of the room.
The audience, startled, turned in unison toward the source of the sound. The man who had yelled was standing near the back, without a seat. He wore a wrinkled white lab coat and his hair was unkempt, giving him the disheveled look of a downtrodden researcher from some forgotten lab.
His face was contorted with grief and indignation. As all eyes fixed on him, he raised a trembling hand and pointed directly at Anastasia on the stage.
“Anastasia Sterling!” he boomed. “You forcibly bought the new drug from my lab and passed it off as your own! That’s despicable enough, but now you have the gall to present it at this conference! Have you no shame?!”
The accusation sent a shockwave through the hall.
“What did he say?!” someone demanded.
“Is he saying Anastasia’s new drug isn’t hers? That she stole it from him?!”
The single stone had created a tidal wave of outrage, and an uncontrollable commotion swept through the audience.
In an unnoticed corner, Lauren’s lips curled into a triumphant smirk. Her malicious gaze was fixed on Anastasia.
*This is my gift to you, Anastasia. I hope you like it.*
“I knew it! Develop a new drug in one week? Impossible! But stealing someone
else’s research? That sounds much more plausible!”
“Why would she do that?”
“Isn’t it obvious? To build a
reputation as a genius! You all know Lauren, right? The prodigy who’s
been making waves for the last two years
always thought her medical talent was unmatched. But just the
other day, a rumor started the
circulating about some ‘unparalleled genius’ who made Lauren look like nothing!”
“I later found out that this so-called ‘unparalleled genius’ was none other than Anastasia!”
“I didn’t know what she was capable of before, but now I do. Her entire reputation is built on lies and theft!”
Listening to the rampant speculation, Murray’s face fell, his disappointment palpable. Had he been wrong to hold out hope after all? Anastasia’s reputation was plummeting.
The distraught researcher, seeing the effect of his words, grew even more agitated. “Isn’t this conference supposed to be about evaluating a company’s true capabilities?! So what is this? Does Unison Pharma get credit for stealing someone else’s work?!”
The event organizer, Mr. Cooper, broke out in a cold sweat.
“How did this man get in here?” he hissed to his staff. “Get him out of here, now!”
At the same time, he turned fearfully to the man beside him. “Mr. Lancaster! This has nothing to do with us, I swear! I had no idea someone was planning to frame Ms. Sterling!”
Harrison’s handsome face was like stone. He ignored Cooper, his gaze fixed solely on the young woman on stage, who had remained perfectly calm through it
all. The rıghtful source is
“Mr. Lancaster?” Logan asked, seeking instructions.
“Not yet,” Harrison said. “Anastasia can handle this herself.”
Though his words were calm, his tone was glacial. He then added to Logan, “Lock down the venue.”
Anyone who dared to scheme against his Anastasia today would not be leaving so easily.
Logan immediately complied.
m. Mr. Cooper was
Beside them,
trembling, constantly wiping sweat from his brow. He tried to reassure himself that Mr. Lancaster was only after the fools who had targeted his wife. Surely, he wouldn’t punish innocent bystanders like them.
***