Chapter 482 The Whisper in the Shadows
Eliza said, “I noticed a sophomore girl–definitely not a grad student. She looked like the youngest amon them and also the most nervous. But I don’t think a medical student would be that timid by nature. 1 Dunk she was deliberately acting that way to catch my attention. Drive around the school once, then park by the west gate. I want to go back in and talk to her.”
“I’m going with you,” Nolan said.
“Alright.”
After circling the school, they parked at the west gate. Eliza and Nolan got out and headed straight for the lab building.
Sure enough, the girl was already there waiting, as if she’d expected Eliza to return.
When she saw Eliza, her face lit up with a flash of relief, followed by visible anxiety. Without a word, she turned and started walking toward the campus exit.
Eliza and Nolan followed.
Once outside, the girl finally stopped walking and turned to face them. “It’s not safe here. Let’s go. somewhere more private.”
“Okay,” Eliza agreed.
They brought her to a quiet, empty café. Once they sat down, the girl spoke first. “My name is Jean. I’m a sophomore.”
Eliza asked, “You’re only a sophomore. How did you get into the lab building?”
“I’m Emilia’s assistant. I got good grades, so she took me under her wing. I was only there to observe and learn. There aren’t many spots for grad students in the med school, but each class lets one or two top undergrads help out. The medical school is different from other departments–we need assistants.”
Eliza nodded. “So, you’re not as timid as you looked earlier. You did that on purpose, didn’t you?”
Jean nodded. “I used to be shy. But Emilia told me timid people don’t make good doctors. So I worked on it.”
“Sounds like you really admired her.”
“She was amazing to me–always patient, always kind. If my papers had issues, she’d help me revise them. It’s just… she’s gone now.”
Jean’s fists clenched. “She was murdered. She would never kill Nina. And she would never commit suicide.”
“Why?” Eliza asked, frowning. “What makes you so sure she didn’t do either?”
“I just know,” Jean said firmly. “She and Nina clashed, yes, but she once told me she respected Nina’s talent. Their rivalry was purely academic. As for all that talk online about a love triangle? It’s nonsense. Everyone knew Emilia and Ethan were in love. Nina already had a boyfriend. There’s no way she and Ethan were involved.”
“Nina had a boyfriend?” Eliza asked.
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Chapter 162 The Whisper in the Shadows
“Yeah. Not from our school, so hardly anyone knew. But I saw her post pictures on her social media Linda knew, too.”
Eliza fell silent. That changed things. The supposed love triangle didn’t make sense anymore
She asked, “Couldn’t it still be that Nina had a boyfriend outside but liked Ethan anyway?
Jean shook her head. “No. Nina and Ethan never even interacted. We were in that lab building all the time. I’ve never seen anything suspicious between them.”
“But the research spot went to Nina,” Eliza pointed out. “And on the surveillance footage, Ethan tapped Nina on the shoulder–looked like a sign of approval. Doesn’t that suggest he gave her the spot?”
Ethan, though technically still an undergrad, had already secured his spot in the graduate program. His opinion would’ve carried weight in assigning research slots. That would explain why Emilia argued with him.
Everything pointed back to that.
www
But Jean shook her head. “Ethan was extremely fair. If he chose Nina, it had to be because she was more qualifièd—not because of anything personal.”
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