Chapter 87 Don’t Be Afraid, I’m Here

Chapter 87: Chapter 87: Don’t Be Afraid, I’m Here

Stella Sutton’s face stiffened. She subconsciously batted away the apple Maeve Walsh offered her. "What went wrong? Why am I being kicked off the team? Shouldn’t they be dealing with that cancer, Sophie Winslow?"

She found it entirely unbelievable, and in the heat of the moment, she didn’t mince her words.

The person in charge at Kingsford University found it hard to explain. After all, Sophie actually had the authority to kick people out. Moreover, the order had come directly from the university’s upper management. Word was that Mr. Caldwell himself had spoken up. He didn’t want Stella ruining the entire project.

But the truth was a bitter pill to swallow.

Plus, Stella was Julian Sterling’s woman. The person in charge could only phrase it tactfully, "This is a decision from the higher-ups. Miss Sutton, you did indeed violate the contract’s time limit. If you have any objections, you can contact the university administration."

Stella stared at her phone after the call ended, unable to snap out of her daze for a long time.

An order from the higher-ups? Had she offended some executive? Over at Helios, she felt she had always been perfectly amicable with Peter Preston. Shouldn’t Peter at least act with some regard for Julian’s reputation?

"What’s wrong?" Isaiah Sutton asked.

"I’ve been asked to leave the project team," Stella said, her expression grim. She found the whole situation utterly absurd. Frustration burned through her veins.

This pharmaceutical research project had a brilliant future. She had stuck with it right up to the brink of a successful clinical trial and the market application! She was one of the core researchers! Once her name was on the final paper, it would be the crowning achievement of her resume! And now, at the final hurdle... she was being kicked to the curb?

"How could that be!" Maeve’s expression changed as she shot up in anger. "Shouldn’t Sophie be the one getting fired? Why are they making you leave? What dirty trick did she pull this time?"

Stella threw the covers back and got out of bed, immediately calling Peter Preston.

BEEP BEEP BEEP—

The call was rejected. He wasn’t answering! He clearly knew what was going on and was refusing to communicate with her.

Before she could even wrap her head around it, a strange landline number called her. Stella hesitated before answering.

"Is this Ms. Stella Sutton? This is the Eastgate District Police Station. We need your cooperation in investigating an intentional injury case. You are claiming that Miss Winslow intentionally pushed you, causing your injuries, correct?"

Stella froze, her heart instantly clenching. "She called the cops?"

"Yes. Ms. Winslow provided an audio recording of a conversation with your side, where you explicitly stated that she pushed you. Ms. Winslow claims this has damaged her reputation and affected her work. If our investigation proves this to be true, Miss Sutton, you will be required to issue a public apology to Ms. Winslow."

Only then did Stella’s expression turn truly ugly.

When Sophie came to the hospital room, she had secretly recorded them? How utterly despicable! And she had to issue a public apology? How was that any different from slapping her own face in public? Who would ever respect her after that?

After the call ended, Stella gripped her phone in silence for a long time. Taking a deep breath, she immediately called Julian.

Julian answered, his deep, magnetic voice floating over the line. "What’s wrong?"

"Julian, the project team isn’t allowing me to participate in the follow-up research anymore. They didn’t fire Sophie. I’ve worked so hard for so long... I’m just so upset," Stella said. She felt wronged and even more infuriated, but she carefully kept her anger hidden from him. "Sophie even called the police. I wanted to resolve this privately, but she’s insisting on blowing things out of proportion. I really don’t want to waste my energy arguing with her over this kind of thing anymore."

Her voice was soft, her sorrow palpable. She knew Julian always took her side. He would feel sorry for her.

The receiver fell silent for two seconds before he slowly said, "Just focus on recovering for now. This matter will be resolved."

Stella’s anxious heart was instantly soothed. No matter how bad the situation was, Julian was her anchor. He would clean up this mess for her. She was completely confident in that.

Sophie wasn’t the least bit curious about how Stella would react. Since the other woman relied on Julian’s backing and completely disregarded the hard work of the other researchers, Sophie had no intention of indulging her.

As for calling the police, in truth, ever since she learned they suspected her of leaking the original footage, she had taken precautions. When dealing with people in society, it was easy to get taken advantage of if you didn’t keep your wits about you. With Stella’s explicit accusation that Sophie had pushed and injured her on record, once the investigation cleared things up, Stella would be guilty of making a false accusation. If things got serious, it would leave a mark on her criminal record.

As Phase I of the clinical trials began, she headed straight to Calyx Hospital.

Upon arriving, she happened to see Stella, who hadn’t been discharged yet, surrounded by concerned, oblivious researchers from Kingsford University.

"Stella, why are you suddenly off the project team? Everyone knows how capable you are."

"We’re almost at the final stage. You’ve put in so much work—are you just giving up your authorship?"

Stella spotted Sophie as well. A flash of coldness crossed her eyes, but she ultimately maintained a composed expression. "There were some special circumstances. As you all know, I was injured a few days ago. I don’t have the energy to do full-time research right now. So as not to drag down everyone’s progress, I decided to withdraw on my own."

At most, the recent events had caused the higher-ups at Kingsford University to form a negative opinion of her. It absolutely couldn’t have anything to do with Sophie! Sophie didn’t have the power to influence the decisions of top management.

Hearing this, the grad students from Kingsford University were instantly filled with gratitude.

"Stella, you’re so selfless."

Endless praises echoed around her. Sophie heard every single word. Sometimes, she really admired Stella’s psychological fortitude. Even at a point like this, she still found a way to save face. She had no interest in exposing the woman.

That morning, Sophie prepared to head downstairs for lunch. Her head was bowed, focused on the research report in her hands. Hearing the DING of the elevator arriving, she stepped inside without looking up.

"Which floor?"

A low, indifferent voice drifted down from above her. A shiver ran down Sophie’s spine. She looked up, meeting Julian’s careless dark eyes.

He was standing right beside her. They were the only two people in the elevator. The custom blend of fir scent on him was aggressively potent, yet faintly intertwined with it was a trace of women’s floral perfume.

Sophie’s gaze flickered. She knew he had just visited Stella. He must have just emerged from the tender embrace of his beloved. Ignoring him, she reached over and pressed the button for her floor herself.

The elevator fell silent once again. Sophie had no idea what to say to Julian anyway, especially since things had devolved to this point between them.

"I heard you asked her to leave the research team," Julian said, lowering his gaze. His tone was indecipherable.

Sophie wanted to laugh. She thought, "It’s finally happening. He’s here to interrogate me. He’s here to demand justice for his sweetheart."

The only thing he didn’t care about was whether she had been framed by Stella and Barbara Coleman.

"She wasn’t asked. She was kicked out, driven away, expelled. No one made her suffer any unprovoked grievances." She refused to accept Julian’s choice of words. He was sugarcoating it for Stella, making it sound as if someone were bullying her.

Julian watched her with one hand tucked casually in his pocket. A moment later, he said slowly, "Your temper has grown."

She couldn’t tell if the remark was meant more as a tease or as a mockery, but either way, it wasn’t a compliment.

A flash of impatience crossed Sophie’s eyes. She glanced at the elevator display screen, only wishing to reach her floor and get out as quickly as possible. She repeatedly checked her watch. The elevator was just about to arrive.

CLANG—

The elevator violently jolted. The interior instantly plunged into pitch darkness.

With nothing but blackness before her eyes, a suffocating feeling suddenly surged up her throat. She had claustrophobia. When Isaiah Sutton had abandoned her in the middle of nowhere as a child, she had survived all alone in a dark, confined room just like this.

Cold sweat instantly drenched her back. Driven by a pure survival instinct, she reached out her hand. "Ju—"

"Sienna, come here."

His deep, calm voice fell into her ears. In the dark, her hand was firmly grasped.

BANG!

The elevator gave another violent shudder. Unable to keep her balance, Sophie crashed straight into his chest. Leaning half against the elevator wall, he wrapped his arms around her, steadying her swaying body.

He wasn’t panicked. It seemed he was always as steady as a mountain.

"It’s an elevator malfunction. We can get out once someone comes for us." Julian looked down at her and reached out to press the emergency button. "I’m here. What are you afraid of?"

Even though Julian’s tone hadn’t changed, Sophie felt as if a lifetime had passed. It was as if only at this very moment could she finally feel that they had been married for years. She didn’t answer. After all, many of the storms in her life had been brought about by him as well.

She had recovered a little by now. Feeling his body heat... it really had been a long time. But she had to admit, Julian reaching out to her at a crucial moment had alleviated most of the uncontrollable anxiety brought on by her claustrophobia.

Seven years of marriage. In the end, he hadn’t just stood by and done nothing.

She tried to stand up straight in the dark. Out of politeness, she opened her mouth. "Thank—"

"Can you drop the police report?"

She couldn’t even finish her word of thanks. Julian’s calm inquiry brutally smothered her fleeting delusion.