Chapter 8

"Dr. Morton?" Graham scoffed, a strangled laugh escaping his throat. "You're delusional. Elise is a graduate student. She couldn't be a director, or a Dr. Morton, or whatever you're rambling about. You've clearly been paid off by her manipulative family. Tell her the charade is over. Tell her to stop this ridiculous game."

The researcher looked at him with pity, then a flicker of defiance. "Mr. Harvey, with all due respect, Dr. Morton left a message for you. She said... she said to tell you that sometimes, the most dangerous lies are the ones you tell yourself."

Graham' s face twisted in a mixture of confusion and growing fury. "Lies? What lies? She's the one who's been lying! What does she have against Keeley? Why does she always have to make everything about herself?" He paced the empty lab, his anger simmering. "She's just jealous, isn't she? Jealous of Keeley's talent, her beauty, her success. And she's dragging you all into her pathetic little drama!"

He pulled out his phone, his fingers flying across the screen. `Graham: This has gone too far, Elise. You think I don't know you're behind this? I'm warning you. If you don't show up, if you don't stop this, you'll regret it. I will show you no mercy.`

He stormed out of the lab, almost colliding with Keeley. She stood by the entrance, her eyes fixed on the staff directory board, her face utterly devoid of color. On the board, under the "Directors" section, a photo of Elise, listed as "Dr. Elise Morton, Director of Research and Innovation."

Keeley hastily pulled down the board, her hands trembling. She grabbed Graham's arm, forcing a brittle smile. "Graham, darling! What are you doing here? I thought you were waiting for Elise at the hotel." She tried to lead him away, her voice light, but her eyes were wide with panic. The image of Elise, so composed, so powerful, had been burned into her mind.

Elise Morton. Director. The youngest in the institute' s history. The words echoed in Keeley's mind, a chilling whisper. She had always dismissed Elise as a weak, unassuming woman. A substitute. A pawn. But a director? A Morton? The implications were terrifying. She tightened her grip on Graham' s arm, pulling him faster. She couldn't let him see. She couldn't let him know. Not yet.

She remembered fleeing the country years ago, after her academic fraud had been exposed. Graham, so smitten, had funded her "research" abroad, oblivious to the truth. She remembered painstakingly crafting her new persona: the prodigy scientist, the groundbreaking researcher. All lies. All to impress him, to cement her place in his life, and in his fortune.

"Did you find Elise?" Keeley asked, forcing a tone of innocent concern.

Graham's face was grim. He tried calling Elise again, but it went straight to voicemail. His frustration mounted.

"Oh, Graham," Keeley said, a tear welling in her eye. "I saw Elise earlier. She was with some man. He was touching her. They looked very... intimate." She squeezed his arm. "I know how much she hurts you, darling. But please, don't let her get to you."

Graham's eyes, dark with rage, snapped to his phone. He stared at the screen, then, with a guttural roar, he hurled the device against the wall. It shattered into pieces. He didn't doubt Keeley for a second. His mind, already poisoned by her lies, latched onto this new accusation. Elise was a cheat. A manipulative, deceitful liar. His last shred of affection for her, buried deep beneath layers of bitterness and betrayal, evaporated.

He pulled Keeley into his arms, holding her tight. "It's okay, my love," he murmured, his voice laced with a possessive fury. "She's nothing. You're everything. You'll start at the institute tomorrow, right? They're so lucky to have you. Your data is going to revolutionize everything."

Keeley's eyes flickered, a momentary flicker of fear in their depths. "Yes, darling. Of course. Tomorrow." She leaned into him, burying her face in his chest. His data. The data she had so carelessly tampered with. She felt a surge of panic.

"You know," Graham continued, a triumphant gleam in his eyes, "I was so worried about my condition, about the cure. But with your genius, Keeley, I know everything will be fine. We'll show Elise what a real scientist can do."

Keeley mumbled a noncommittal response, her mind racing. She had to keep Graham convinced. She had to ensure he never found out the truth about the data.

Just then, the junior researcher from before rushed back, a thick file clutched in his hand. "Mr. Harvey! Are you absolutely sure you want to proceed with the modified data? Dr. Morton specifically warned against it. She said it's incomplete, riddled with errors. She said if used, it could accelerate your condition, not cure it!" He thrust a document at Graham. "She said to give you this. It's a formal waiver. The institute will not be held responsible if you choose to proceed with unverified data."

Graham's face turned beet red. "Don't you dare accuse Keeley of incompetence!" he roared, glaring at the researcher. "You're in league with Elise, aren't you? Trying to sabotage us! I'll have your job! All of you!" He snatched the pen from the researcher's hand and, without a moment's hesitation, scrawled his signature across the waiver.

Keeley, seeing the waiver, felt a jolt of alarm. She grabbed his arm, her eyes wide. "Graham, darling, maybe we should just... double-check? Just to be safe?"

Graham looked at her, his eyes filled with a blind adoration. "Do you think I don't trust you, Keeley? Do you think you would ever lie to me?"

"Of course not!" she protested, her voice laced with false sincerity.

"Then I'm not worried," he declared, his voice ringing with a false conviction. He signed the document with a flourish, then looked at the researcher, a triumphant smirk on his face. "There. Now, get out. And tell Elise that her pathetic attempts to undermine me are over. I'll trust Keeley's data over hers any day."