Chapter 1199

lan looked at her, on the verge of collapse, and his brow furrowed. He didn’t answer immediately but led her to the sofa and gently pushed her down. “You need to calm down first,” he said in a low voice.

“How can I calm down?” Eleanor slapped his hand off her shoulder, tears finally streaming down her face. “You all knew, and you all kept it from me. So, the person this project is supposed to save is him, isn’t it? Is he in a coma? Or is he in a vegetative state p>

Eleanor tilted her head back, her red eyes filled with pain, questions, and the fury of being deceived.

If that was the case, why hide it from her? Why not just tell her the truth?

lan watched her tear-streaked face, his heart feeling as if it had been stabbed. He knew he couldn’t hide it any longer.

He closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, his gaze was deep and complex, heavy with a difficult honesty. “Yes p>

His answer hit Eleanor like a sledgehammer. She forgot to breathe, her face turning deathly pale in an instant.

lan knelt down to meet her gaze, his voice low and clear. “Major Ellington was caught in an explosion while covering his team’s retreat during his last mission. He’s been in a deep coma for two months p>

Eleanor closed her eyes, and tears streamed down uncontrollably. So, he had already been lying in a hospital bed when she took on this project, and she had known nothing.

“Why—why did you all hide this from me?” Eleanor’s voice was broken.

“It was a direct order from Garth. I had no choice but to follow it.” lan watched her trembling, crying form “He was concerned that telling you Would affect you emotionally and put you under immense pressure, which would hinder your research and judgment p>

lan continued, “He has high hopes for your research. It’s also the best chance to save Mansfield p>

Eleanor’s emotions were at a breaking point. Mansfield’s life depended on her research, and she had been completely unaware.

Eleanor pressed her lips together, her vision blurred by tears. She tried to hold back her sobs, but they kept escaping.

lan remained kneeling, watching her

endless tears, his fists clenching

silently. He knew her pain,

understood her

anger, but there was

nothing he could do. Even though he desperately wanted to pull her into his arms, he no longer had the right.

“I’m sorry,” was all he could finally say.

Eleanor’s suppressed sobs echoed in the spacious office. Ian’s hand instinctively rose, wanting to reach out and hold her, but it froze mid-air. He knew that after this, Eleanor would only hate him more.

Eleanor suddenly wiped her tears

away, grabbed her bag, and tried to

stand. But the emotional turmoil,

Spiel

combined with the sudden movement, made her head spin violently She instinctively grabbed onto the man in front of hel clutching his shirt and leaning against his chest to keep from falling.

And just in time, an arm wrapped around her waist.