Elias paused momentarily while fastening his seatbelt, glancing at her with a faint smirk of mockery.
"Hah, weren’t you bold enough to stand up to me? How come you can’t handle a little blood? Is this all you’re capable of."
Juliana was genuinely exhausted and had no energy to bicker with him.
She clutched her chest, her face pale as she leaned against the seatback, closing her eyes to suppress the nausea.
Seeing her unusually vulnerable state, Elias chose not to say more, started the car, and drove away from the construction site.
By the time they returned to Number 17 Darroway Street, it was already deep into the night.
As soon as they got out of the car, they saw Steward Fay leading a doctor out.
"What happened?" Elias asked.
Steward Fay nodded, "Miss Paxton had a high fever, so I had the doctor take a look."
"Is it serious?" he inquired.
The doctor quickly replied, "It’s caused by a cold, I’ve already prescribed medicine for Miss Paxton; she’ll be fine after taking it."
Elias paused for two seconds and said to the doctor, "Come with me."
With that, he took the doctor with him to the study without looking back.
Steward Fay glanced at Juliana.
Seeing Juliana leaning against the doorframe, not in good condition, he quickly came forward and asked, "Madam, are you feeling unwell?"
Juliana waved her hand, "From now on, report everything about Iris directly to him."
Steward Fay was taken aback, "And you..."
"Can’t you tell who your master is more concerned about now? I’ll be leaving sooner or later."
Having said that, Juliana didn’t look at Steward Fay’s hesitant expression and turned back to the car...
The next morning, Elias went to the dining hall with a box of medicine.
Seeing Steward Fay, he handed the medicine to him.
"This is the medicine Iris needs to take three times daily; it’s nourishing for the body, prepare more for her."
Steward Fay took the medicine, "Yes."
This was a box of traditional Chinese medicine oral liquid.
Elias continued, "Her body is too weak, so have the kitchen prepare medicinal meals for her daily, and make sure she eats them every meal. Here’s the recipe for the medicinal meals."
"Yes."
Steward Fay quickly scanned the recipe, his eyelid twitching slightly.
The ingredients in the medicinal meals conflicted with those in the oral liquid. If taken simultaneously, imperceptible trace toxins would form in the body. A day or two wouldn’t matter, but over time, it would be an invisible chronic poison.
Is this what the master intends...
"Is there a problem?"
Elias noticed his subtle change.
Steward Fay calmly put away the recipe, "No problem, I’ll take care of it soon."
Elias looked around, still feeling like something was missing.
"Where is she?"
Steward Fay lowered his head, "Madam didn’t come back last night."
Elias frowned, "Someone outside?"
...
Nivoria Clinical Research Center patient room.
Juliana woke up around ten, still receiving an IV drip.
Sebastian Sinclair and his wife watched over her.
"Juliana, how are you feeling?" Mrs. Sinclair asked with concern.
Juliana felt relieved; the discomfort in her lower abdomen had subsided.
She faintly responded, "I’m okay."
Seeing her trying to sit up, Mrs. Sinclair immediately adjusted the pillow behind her.
"The results are good; your pregnancy hormone levels are normal, and both babies’ heartbeats and embryos are developing well."
Juliana finally felt her heart settle.
A peculiar warmth slowly filled her heart.
In this relentless world, she was about to have two people closely linked to her by blood, her closest kin.
Her heart, gradually growing colder, finally felt a hint of real warmth again.
"Caleb returned," Sebastian stated, "The ones who tampered with the brakes last night were stowaways from The Zenthian Sea, all under someone called Luke. This Luke controls all illicit dealings around The Zenthian Sea and is nicknamed ’General.’ His methods are exceptionally ruthless. Preliminary judgment indicates he himself might have infiltrated Kingsford."
"Does he have any vendetta with Elias?" Juliana asked.
"He’s Samuel Paxton’s sworn brother."
Juliana instantly understood, "Ultimately, it’s because of me."
"Don’t think that way," Mrs. Sinclair said gently, "Eliminating outlaws like Samuel Paxton is Elias’ duty. Don’t take all the responsibility on yourself."
Then, changing the subject, she looked at her husband.
"And you, the authorities are considering canceling your ’Chief Chip Architect’ special qualification due to lack of recent research results from your long illness. Do you know what it means to lose that qualification?"
Actually, even without him answering, Juliana knew what losing the qualification would mean.
This title might not mean much to Sebastian, but losing it meant Dylan Paxton could act against him with impunity.
Juliana was silent for a moment, then said, "So, what accelerated Dylan Paxton’s desires to obtain that USB drive?"
Sebastian sighed, "The latest news is that Clara couldn’t withstand the torment and committed suicide. Dylan Paxton has already discreetly handled her case and likely won’t be informing me as ’father.’ Sean Paxton’s death intensified internal conflicts in The Paxton, with some already planning to emigrate. Perhaps due to this internal instability, Dylan Paxton is eager to secure leverage to solidify his position."
Juliana didn’t engage, "Research findings from over a decade ago are still very important today."
Mrs. Sinclair sighed, "Had it not been for Dylan Paxton, carbon-based chips would have been on the market long ago."
Juliana realized again, sinking into silence.
Caressing her growing lives within, she couldn’t back down.
To ensure their safe birth and growth in a brighter world, Dylan Paxton had to be dealt with.
After finishing her IV drip, Juliana had lunch with her parents in Mrs. Sinclair’s office before leaving with Raine Kane.
Despite her unresolved feelings towards Mrs. Sinclair, the gene therapy plan she formulated for her was undoubtedly effective.
At least thus far, she and her unborn twins remained relatively healthy and stable.
Before leaving, Mrs. Sinclair informed her about the next treatment schedule.
Watching his daughter’s figure disappear into the elevator, Sebastian turned to his wife, frowning, "Why did you say those things to her? Dylan Paxton coming after me is my concern; we’ve owed her enough already, you shouldn’t involve her."
Mrs. Sinclair stepped forward, arranging his collar, gazing into his worried eyes.
"Precisely because we owe her too much, we shouldn’t keep her in the dark. What kind of person is Dylan Paxton? How deep do his connections run? With his capabilities, how long do you think we can hide that Juliana is our daughter? It’s better she knows the situation to be prepared."
Mrs. Sinclair paused, a glint of determined clarity in her eyes.
"She was meant to be a sheltered flower of yours; it’s my failure as a mother that altered her life. Since she’s grown to face the storms, what we can do is provide support to keep her from danger, as our way of compensation."
Sebastian remained silent, acknowledging every word she said.
Yet, his brows continued to furrow deeply.
...
Juliana didn’t return to Darroway Street but went to a café beside The Cardinal Art Club, ordering the only non-caffeinated drink on the menu—osmanthus iced sugar pear.
She chose a window-side table with a view of the club entrance and the parking lot outside.
Raine Kane answered a call, hanging up, then asked her, "Steward Fay wants to know our whereabouts, should I reply?"
Juliana’s gaze still lingered outside the window, her expression calm and unwavering.
Steward Fay?
Merely a pretext to inquire on someone else’s behalf.
"Just say I’m at work," she replied softly.
Raine Kane turned to make the call.
She didn’t mention that, with his wife missing, Elias was preparing to thoroughly search Kingsford, so "at work" wasn’t the best excuse.
Just as the call ended, the café door swung open, and Evan walked in.