They Stole My Patents for Their Real Son—Now I Want Revenge

I found out it was just an accident—nothing to do with Mom and Dad at all.

Unable to untangle the mess in my head, I threw myself into my studies.

The school had a rule: invent a top-tier national patent within three years, and you graduate. Simple as that.

The thought of finally getting away from Harrison kept me locked in the lab day and night.

Just when my experiment showed the first signs of success, my dad stepped in. Using research group funds, he set up a "special research team" for me—to help share the pressure, he said.

I knew better than to resist.

I knew exactly what he was doing. Harrison was going to ride my coattails.

The thing was, I was working on an optoelectronics project. Harrison didn't have hands. No matter how nimble his feet were, he couldn't run experiments.

But he refused to be useless. So he volunteered to record experimental data.

Plenty of nights, when a data point wouldn't come through, he stayed up with me.

Mom and Dad felt sorry for him. They'd show up with freshly stewed soup.

"Marcus, I owe you an apology." Harrison's voice was sincere as he set down the milky-white pig trotter soup Mom had made. "What happened during enrollment—that was my fault. I shouldn't have shifted all the pressure onto you. These past few days, working alongside you... I've learned a lot. You don't know how much Professor Thornton and his wife miss you. They stew your favorite soup every day and send it with me. They just want you to eat more."

The pungent smell of pepper hit me, and I froze.

I'd been allergic to pepper my whole life. One accidental bite and I'd have an asthma attack.

I looked at my mom's expectant eyes. Then I took the bowl and drained it in one gulp.

Relief washed over both their faces.

I knew right then—they were already plotting what else they could take from me.

"Marcus, Mom knows how hard you work. And you and Harrison have cleared up your misunderstanding." She reached for my arm. "Why don't you move back home? Dad and I can take care of you properly. Look how thin you've gotten. It breaks my heart."

The way she wiped her tears made me hesitate—just for an instant.

Then her next words dropped me into an ice cellar.

"You're about to graduate. You've got a patent, so Dad and I aren't worried about you. But Harrison—" Her voice cracked. "He lost his hands. And he's been by your side through all these experiments. His graduation thesis..."

She didn't need to finish. I knew exactly what she wanted.

"I'll help him write it," I said. "After all, he helped me too."

My mom smiled—that warm, knowing smile.

During the day, I ran experiments. At night, I wrote Harrison's thesis.

To graduate. To escape the parents who couldn't tell right from wrong. To get away from Harrison, who kept draining me dry.

I worked around the clock.

When I finally submitted the patent application and saw the words "preliminary review approved"—when Harrison's thesis passed after five revisions—I exhaled for the first time in years.

Three years of slaving away in the shadows for him. Finally coming to an end.

On the day of my defense, I submitted my resume to a company near Capital University.

One successful defense, and I could leave these three years of darkness behind.

The moment I sat down in the venue, my classmates were already whispering.

"I heard someone in our group invented a national patent. They're getting offered a faculty position."

"That's insane. No wonder Professor Thornton personally mentored them."

I blinked. Faculty position?

Harrison walked in late, wearing a crisp pressed suit, flanked by Mom and Dad.

When the last defense ended and the extended-graduation list was announced—

For the first time in my life, I opposed my parents in front of everyone.

"So what if you have to extend?" Dad's voice was ice. "Your mother and I are your advisors. You think we won't let you graduate eventually?"