Chapter 29
It felt as though an invisible rope had tightened around Elara’s neck, stealing her breath. Tobias stood before her, wearing a deep navy cotton–linen robe.
His frame was thin and frail, his hair was now entirely white, and his back was slightly hunched.
Elara opened her mouth, instinctively wanting to call out to him, but the word caught in her throat. She no longer deserved to call his name. She wasn’t worthy.
Her vision immediately blurred with tears.
“Hello, sir!” Bambi’s childish voice broke through the tension like a gentle spring
Fain.
“Are you the wise and brilliant Dr. Tobias Snapp my mom always talks about? She says you’re a great educator and an outstanding mathematician!”
Tobias‘ stem expression softened as he gazed at the adorable, round–faced Bambi.
“Your daughter?” he asked.
Elara nodded quickly. “Yes, my daughter, Bambi.”
One of the young men nearby chimed in excitedly, “Dr. Snapp, she solved the problem you wrote!”
Tobias paused for a moment before heading toward the side hall. Elara noticed that his steps were steady, belying Theodore’s claims about his failing health.
Standing before the whiteboard, Tobias studied the formula Elara had written. His bony shoulders trembled slightly.
“I guess you haven’t forgotten what I taught you,” he murmured.
The fact that she remembered it all so vividly only deepened his sorrow, amplifying his unwillingness to forgive this foolish woman who had thrown away a promising future.
Elara looked at the whiteboard and said softly, “I thought I had forgotten everything I learned in university, but when I stood here, the formulas just came back to me.”
“She really was Dr. Snapp’s student, wasn’t she?” one of the young men whispered.
“No, she’s not!” Tobias snapped in a resolute voice.
When Elara had chosen to forgo her doctoral program, Tobias had made her swear never to mention his name when asked about her academic background. Their relationship as mentor and mentee had ended the moment she Jeft with only a bachelor’s degree.
The students fell silent under Tobias‘ icy glare. Finally, he turned to Elara, and said in a low voice, “Let’s talk
inside.”
He didn’t want to speak with her in front of the students was too humiliating.
Inside the sitting room, Tobias settled into a chair and asked without preamble, “I heard you divorced that Fisher fellow.”
Elara lowered her gaze. “Yes, I’ve left the Fisher family.
“What are your plans now?”
“I’m looking for a job,” she admitted her predicament. “But I only have a bachelor’s degree and I’ve been a
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Chapter 29
housewife for years…”
Once, Tobias had placed great hopes in her, only to be profoundly disappointed. His students were all extraordinary talents–nationally recognized, and socially accomplished.
Elara was the sole exception: a star pupil who had abandoned her career for love, spent years out of the workforce, and now struggled as a divorced single mother.
Tobias let out a derisive snort. “You brought this upon yourself!”
“I know,” Elara replied quietly. “I did this to myself.”
She forced a bitter smile. “There’s something else I wanted to ask of you today.”
Tobias immediately stiffened. What right did Elara have to ask him for help?
“I have a few patents that I’d like to sell for a good price,” she explained.
Although there were buyers for her patents, she lacked the leverage to negotiate. Only by leveraging Tobias” reputation could she gain wider recognition for her work.
Tobias scoffed. “I won’t help you sell your patents.”
Elara lowered her gaze. She was unsurprised by his refusal Tobias had his pride and principles; he would never lower himself for money.
“Dad, why are you sitting here? Let me help you to bed.”
A deep, magnetic voice interrupted their conversation. Tobias‘ brow furrowed in confusion as his son approached them, looking unusually radiant.
Theodore passed by Elara without sparing her a glance,
Elara noticed that the back of Theodore’s white T–shirt was damp. It was clinging to his toned body and revealing a faint, rosy hue beneath the fabric.
