Chapter 402: The Elevator Doors Slid Shut

The elevator doors slid shut.

Clara Whitmore stared at the flickering floor numbers, suddenly realizing something—she hadn't run into Elias Mercer in the elevator for a long time.

At this hour, she used to always see him in workout clothes, ready for his evening jog. Sometimes they'd brush past each other; other times, they'd walk together for a stretch.

But for the past two weeks, the door next to hers had been eerily silent, as if no one lived there.

She pulled out her phone and opened her chat with Elias. The last message, sent ten days ago, was her asking about some lab data. It remained unread.

"Must be busy with his project," Clara murmured to herself.

At 8:15 PM, the library's closing melody played. Clara packed her bag and walked home under the cool night breeze.

Just as she reached her building, a familiar figure dashed past her.

"Profes—"

Before she could finish, the figure vanished around the corner. The jogger didn't even glance back, as if he hadn't heard her at all.

Clara stood frozen, staring at the empty street.

This wasn't right.

She hurried home and changed into workout gear. If Elias was jogging, she could catch up.

More importantly, she desperately needed a CPRT analyzer. Professor Miriam Caldwell's condition had been unstable lately, and she didn't want to bother her. As for Connor Hayes...

Clara's fingers paused on her shoelaces at the thought of that man's knowing smile.

Elias's help, in contrast, always came at just the right moment—never burdensome.

The campus at night was unusually quiet. Clara searched their usual jogging route three times but found no trace of Elias.

By the time she got home, it was 9:30. She left the door slightly ajar, prepping breakfast for the next day while listening for any movement in the hallway.

Yam slices fell neatly under her knife; millet swirled in clear water. Even as the clay pot began to simmer, the corridor outside remained silent.

"Professor Mercer?" She knocked on his door. "Are you there?"

No answer.

Meanwhile, the biology lab blazed with light.

Theo Marsh nearly dropped his test tube when Elias suddenly reappeared. "I thought you went home to sleep?"

"Last-minute data to process." Elias didn't look up.

"You call working 72 hours straight 'last-minute'?" Theo snatched the pipette from his hand. "Out with it—who are you avoiding?"

Elias's hands froze imperceptibly.

The motion-sensor lights in the hallway flickered off, plunging his expression into darkness.