Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Dustin seized the moment and stepped closer.

"That's my brother! I knew you'd understand what I went through!"

He downed the rest of his whiskey, his face flushed red as his confidence soared.

"Now that our farm has built a stellar reputation, bulk orders are pouring in from all over the state!

At this rate, we're going to double our profits next year!"

He paused, looking at me with eager, calculating eyes.

"That proprietary feed is our bread and butter, Nolan. It's our main edge over the competition!

You're our technical backbone here.

Moving forward, you'll need to handle the formula upgrades, quality optimizations, and all the ongoing testing.

If we keep working together like this, we'll make a fortune. Don't worry, your big brother will always take care of you!"

Uncle Wayne nodded vigorously in agreement.

"That's right, Nolan! You're the scientist, and we can't run this operation without your technical support.

You just keep doing your research at the lab, and whenever Dustin needs adjustments or new batches, you whip them up.

With Dustin leading the business on the front lines and you backing us up with the tech, our family business will dominate the entire region!"

Aunt Brenda added with a sweet grin.

"Think about it, Nolan, this gives you a steady side income!

You help family, and you get some extra cash on the side.

As the formula gets better and Dustin makes more money, he'll definitely share the wealth. That's how a real win-win works!"

They took turns praising me, smiling broadly as if they hadn't just robbed me of over three hundred thousand dollars and degraded my year of hard work.

I listened quietly, keeping that polite, harmless smile plastered across my face.

After dinner, Dustin's family walked my parents and me to our car in high spirits.

Just as I reached the driver's side door, my phone started ringing.

It was Joe Miller, the head technician at the farm.

Assuming it was about the feed batch, I answered the call.

Joe's anxious voice came through the speaker.

"Dr. Reed, I'm so sorry to bother you this late.

The new batch of base ingredients we mixed today isn't reacting properly, and the animals in several barns are looking weak and refusing to eat.

Do we need to recalibrate the chemical ratios, or did our crew mess up a step in the process?"

I opened the car door and sat in the driver's seat.

The car was dead silent, and my breathing remained slow and steady.

I stared into the dark night outside the windshield and interrupted him.

"Joe."

"Yes, Dr. Reed, I'm listening!" Joe replied instantly.

"You don't need to ask me about the formula ever again."

There was a stunned silence on the other end of the line.

"What? Dr. Reed, did we do something wrong?

Please tell us, and we'll fix it immediately!

We can't lose this formula―the entire farm depends on it!"

I cut him off, speaking slowly, clearly, and coldly.

"I mean you don't need to worry about the formula anymore.

That farm is going under tomorrow. Start looking for another job while you still can."

"What?! Going under?!"

Joe's voice spiked with sheer panic.

"Dr. Reed, please don't joke about this! How is that even possible?

Everything was fine a couple of days ago, and our orders are booked solid through next month!

The boss just told us tonight that we're expanding next year!

Why would we shut down?

All of us stayed because the pay is great and reliable, which is rare in this county.

Did something happen to the formula?

Dr. Reed, what is going on? You have to tell us! We have families to feed!"

His voice shifted from shock to absolute desperation.

I could picture his panic on the other end, but I owed him nothing.

"There's no why," I said flatly without an ounce of emotion.

"I'm done."

Before he could plead or question me further, I hung up.

The call ended, cutting off all the noise.

I tossed my phone onto the passenger seat and started the engine.