Chapter 1005
Chapter 1005:
He exuded a calm that was both disarming and deliberate—one leg bent at the knee, his head tilted slightly as he studied her in the silver spill of moonlight. That glow kissed the sharp angles of his face, painting his features with a quiet, almost celestial severity.
Yelena hesitated for a moment before gathering herself and closing the distance between them. “You’re back,” she said, her voice carrying a trace of accusation, softened only by curiosity. “Why didn’t you come inside p>
A faint smile ghosted across Austin’s lips. He reached out, his fingers threading through a strand of her hair, the touch so light it felt like an echo. His voice, low and edged with weariness, wove through the night air. “Didn’t want to disturb you p>
But leaving hadn’t been an option either. So he’d waited, a silent shadow on the rooftop.
“You’re three minutes late.” He glanced at his watch, the cold blue glow casting reflections in his eyes. “It takes 426 steps from the study to the roof, but you lingered in the specimen room for 47 seconds.” A flicker of something unspoken crossed Yelena’s bright eyes before she leaned back against the damp brick wall.
“Have you been keeping tabs on me?” she asked, her voice a careful mix of skepticism and confusion.
“Only for your protection.” Austin lit a cigarette, the flame briefly illuminating the sharp set of his jaw. “Of the 139 photos Johan took in secret, 12 show you entering the lab p>
The wind thickened, a distant ambulance siren wailing through the city’s arteries.
Yelena recalled a flicker of light from outside her window a few nights ago. She had dismissed it as one of Ellen’s pranks. Now, however, a chill coiled around her spine, winding tight.
“I don’t want him dead.” With a swift motion, she plucked the cigarette from his fingers, the ember tracing a brief arc through the darkness. “I want him alive p>
Austin chuckled, his fingers grazing the pulse point at her wrist. “Interesting timing,” he murmured. “At 3 AM, Johan’s account received five million dollars from Keelland Isles p>
He pulled out a tablet, its screen flickering in the dark.
New updates in gαℓησν𝒆ℓs․cøm
“The sender? Nexogenix p>
Yelena’s fingers curled into her palm, her nails pressing against her skin.
Nexogenix—an overseas biotech powerhouse, a titan in gene-editing research—had just unveiled a groundbreaking study in the Nexus Journal of Advanced Studies last week.
The data bore a striking resemblance to the pages of her stolen notebook, lost three years ago.
“You knew what the Barkers were up to all along, didn’t you? And you were just biding your time, waiting to take them down p>
Austin’s hand hesitated. He had known Yelena was sharp, but he hadn’t expected her to slice through the truth this quickly.
He gave a quiet nod.
“Leonel had dealings with the Barkers. I actually started digging a while back p>
Yelena offered no response, only a steady gaze fixed on Austin.
There was no ripple of emotion in her eyes, no hint of reaction, yet he could not shake the sensation that she was reading him like an open book, seeing past the words he spoke and straight into the spaces where silence held more weight.
He exhaled.
“What I didn’t expect was for Ellen to take an interest in Johan—let alone agree to a blind date with him p>
Austin had been inching forward, careful with each move. He could not afford to rush—if he did, Leonel and the Barkers would catch the shift in the winds.