“Mr. Slater has instructed that as long as it’s Ms. Loren’s research, the Slater Family will fund it—no matter the cost. There is no budget limit.”
The atmosphere changed instantly.
Industry experts, people who had built their careers on rigorous research and data, looked around in confusion. Everyone could sense something wasn’t right—but when capital speaks, who questions science?
The room buzzed again, but this time, all the flattery, all the attention, swirled around Loren.
“Mr. Slater? He’s been out of the industry for seven years! Why return now—and for Loren’s team?”
“Looks like he’s fallen for her, huh?”
“Genius recognizes genius.”
“Loren’s luck is unreal!”
Loren stood in the glow of it all, radiant under the spotlight. She gave me a deliberate smile—sweet, smug, triumphant.
“Mr. Slater really has good taste,” she said with a self-satisfied tilt of her head. “He knows our project has the most market potential.”
She turned to the assistant. “I wonder when we’ll get to meet Mr. Slater in person? Our team would love to thank him.”
The assistant bowed slightly. “Mr. Slater is currently unavailable. When the time is right, he’ll meet you.”
Then, turning to me with mock sympathy, Loren added with a soft sigh, “Oh, sister… I guess your team won’t be getting any investment. That’s such a shame.”
Her voice dipped into false concern. “After all, who in Las Vegas doesn’t know how powerful the Slater Family is? I mean, business is business, but you’re still my sister…”
I turned to Arthur, desperate for even a flicker of explanation.
But his eyes never left her.
They were filled with warmth, with admiration—the tenderness I’d begged for in silence for years. The tenderness he never once gave me.
The rest of the seminar might as well have been a scripted farce. One by one, investors tripped over themselves to praise Loren, like she was the only light in the room.
I couldn’t take it anymore.
Fury boiling in my chest, I slammed the research report down in front of the assistant. “Is the Slater Family trying to crush every other team here?”
The assistant glanced at Arthur. He gave a tiny nod.
The assistant’s face immediately shifted into practiced indifference. “I’m sorry, Ms. Lora. This investment isn’t about research. It’s a personal gift from Mr. Slater to Ms. Loren. His only hope is that she’s happy. The rest is irrelevant.”