Chapter 414: The Result She Wanted

Derek Romano held Lenora Voss's gaze.

"Are you asking me to discard the inconsistent results?"

Lenora leaned back in her chair. "I'm asking you to exercise judgment. Every experiment produces noise. If one group deviates from the expected trend, identify the technical fault and proceed."

"We haven't identified a technical fault."

"Then find one."

The silence between them sharpened.

Derek set the progress report on her desk. "The cultures were prepared under the same protocol. Until we know why the data differs, excluding it would be dishonest."

Lenora's expression hardened. "Dishonest? Be careful with that word."

"It is the correct word."

She rose and walked around the desk. "Do you know how much funding this laboratory has consumed? How many people are waiting for us to fail? Miriam Caldwell's group has new equipment, institutional protection, and students who treat every ordinary result like a revolution. We do not have the luxury of hesitation."

"Verification isn't hesitation."

"Idealism is easy when someone else protects your career."

Derek's jaw tightened. For years, Lenora had presented speed as brilliance and obedience as loyalty. He had accepted the pressure because he believed the work still mattered. This was different.

"I'll repeat the cultures," he said. "All of them."

"That will cost another month."

"Then it costs another month."

Lenora gave a short, disbelieving laugh. "You think Miriam's people will wait politely while you chase perfect certainty?"

"Their schedule doesn't change our data."

He gathered the report from her desk.

Lenora planted one hand on the pages. "Leave it."

"It's incomplete."

"It belongs to my laboratory."

Derek released the file, but not the point. "If you submit a conclusion before replication, my name does not go on it."

For the first time, something like alarm flickered across Lenora's face.

Derek had built much of the team's actual work. Losing his name would draw questions. Losing his cooperation would be worse.

"You are emotional," she said at last. "Go home and think about what you're throwing away."

"I'm thinking about what remains after publication."

He turned toward the door.

"Derek."

He paused without looking back.

"No one rewards the second team to reach the answer."

"A false answer isn't first."

The door closed behind him.

Lenora stood alone beside the scattered pens and broken pencil holder. On her desk, the inconsistent results remained exactly what they had been before she tried to rename them.