Eleanor turned to look at him. "What do you want to talk about?"


    He pulled her inside, and she resisted, emotions running high.


    "Ian, let go of me," Eleanor said through gritted teeth.


    "So, just because Dr. Langley kicked you off the research team, you''re already eager to find someone else to work with?"n''s voice was low,ced with scorn.


    Eleanor lifted her head, meeting his inscrutable gaze. The confrontation calmed her, sharpening her resolve. "I have my own ns. You don''t need to worry about me."


    "I told you, I''ll ask Dr. Langley to reconsider,"n said, his brow furrowed.


    "I don''t need your connections. I can stand on my own," Eleanor replied. She reached for the door handle, intent on leaving.


    She turned back to face him. The man who''d just been charming and polite in public now looked like a predator in the dark, untouchable and ferocious.


    Eleanor didn''t answer. She pulled the door open and walked out without looking back.


    She found Jude Vaughn, exchanged a few words, and then left the building. Whenn finally emerged from the lounge, he ran straight into Vanessa. "Ian, where did you go? Mr. Will is looking for you."


    "Mr. Goodwin, could I ask a favor? I have a friend in the medical field-he''s quite interested in meeting a certain researcher from your country."


    "Anyone Mr. Will introduces must be remarkable," Vanessa chimed in with a pleasant smile.<fnf4c3> The rightful source is find[?]ovel</fnf4c3>


    "My friend won the Nobel Prize over a decade ago. He''s done outstanding work in medicine," Mr. Will boasted with obvious pride.


    Mr. Will pulled out a newspaper clipping. "He''s hoping to connect with the author of this article."


    "My friend will being here for a research exchange next month," Mr. Will exined. "He''d like to get in touch with the author in advance."


    "Ian has an extensivework in the medicalmunity. I''m sure he can help you find this author," Vanessa said, her tone reassuring.


    Mr. Will nodded gratefully. "Thank you, Mr. Goodwin. I appreciate your help."


    Not long after,n excused himself to deal with another matter. Henry came over to keep Vanessapany. She felt a pang of disappointment but soon rxed, enjoying Henry''s considerate attention.


    Later,n sat in his car, staring at the newspaper clipping Mr. Will had handed him. His eyes locked onto the name printed below the article.


    Eleanor S.


    He lingered on the name for several seconds, then reached for a pack of cigarettes from the console. Lighting one, he let the smoke curl around him, his face flickering in the shifting light.


    He took a picture of the article with his phone and sent it to Jude Vaughn, along with a short message: "Mr. Vaughn, could you help me look into the identity of the author of this article?"


    At that moment, Jude Vaughn was driving back to theb. When the alert sounded, he nced at his phone and saw the message was fromn-he didn''t dare ignore it.


    Pulling over to the side of the road, Jude zoomed in on the image. The instant he recognized the paper, he burst outughing. Wasn''t this the very article Eleanor had published in the international journal justst month?


    Instead of replying by text, Jude dialedn''s number.


    The phone''s ringtone joltedn out of his thoughts, dragging him back to reality.