a biomedical patent attorney.
And while Daniel spent years chasing prestige in academic medicine, I had quietly built something of my own.
A medical technology investment company.
Northstar Biomedical.
Daniel knew the name.
Practically everyone in his field did.
What Daniel did not know was that I owned seventy-two percent of the company.
My role had never been heavily publicized because much of my legal practice involved companies operating in the same sector.
My managing partner, Marcus Lee, represented Northstar publicly.
Eighteen months earlier, Northstar had invested $4.8 million into a gene-therapy program at Daniel’s research institute.
That investment had kept several projects alive.
Including his.
Daniel sat across from me and opened a folder.
“What do you want?” I asked.
“The house sold.”
He began listing demands.
“Half the equity. Half your retirement savings. Temporary support while I establish myself here again.”
Vanessa looked pleased.
Daniel continued.
“My
