“You got a hundred eighty thousand dollars just for signing?” she asked, her voice thin.
“That’s common for senior pharmaceutical research roles,” I explained. “Especially in specialized oncology work. My current annual compensation is about three hundred seventy-five thousand, including bonuses and stock options.”
Somewhere nearby, a glass slipped and shattered against the marble floor. Several guests turned.
“Three hundred seventy-five,” my father repeated mechanically. “A year?”
“Base is two eighty,” I clarified. “Performance bonuses average around sixty, and my stock options vested this year at about thirty-five.”
James raised his glass slightly toward me. “She’s being modest. She also has around four hundred twenty thousand in unvested equity. And then there are the patent royalties.”
“Patent royalties?” my mother whispered, her fingers white around the stem of her glass.
“I hold eleven patents in oncology drug delivery systems,” I said. “They bring in about ninety-five thousand a year in licensing fees.”
Brooke’s raised hand began to tremble. Suddenly, her diamond didn’t seem quite as large.
I watched my parents’ faces. They were seeing me, maybe for the first time, as someone who did not fit the faint, disappointing outline they had created years ago and never bothered to update.
“I don’t understand,” my mother said, her voice breaking. “You’re a pharmaceutical researcher. How can you afford all of this?”
“I’m the director of oncology research at Helix Pharmaceuticals,” I corrected gently. “I oversee forty-seven researchers. We’re currently in phase three trials for a drug that could greatly improve pancreatic cancer treatment.”
“Director,” my father repeated slowly.
James pulled out his phone and scrolled. “Actually, Sophia’s work was featured in Nature Medicine last month. The article called her research groundbreaking and potentially Nobel-worthy. I forwarded it to you, Patricia. Did you not see it?”
My father made a small choking sound.
“Nobel Prize?” he said hoarsely. “They’re talking about Nobel Prizes?”
