Chapter 161 Robert Lights the Fuse
No matter who this young girl was or what connection she might have to Azure, the sight of her was enough to stir a rush of emotion in Trevor's chest.
Over the years, he and Azure had exchanged countless emails—ideas, breakthroughs, fragments of research that had shaped the trajectory of his work. They had never met in person. He didn't know Azure's real name, gender, or age, yet he had come to think of this mysterious mind as the closest friend he would ever have.
If she truly were Azure's granddaughter, he would make sure she was treated with the utmost respect.
He closed the distance between them quickly, his voice betraying the excitement he could not contain. "Miss, you told the guard that Azure was looking for me? How are you related to Azure?"
Amelia's clothes were understated, almost deliberately so. She met Trevor's gaze, pausing before she spoke. "Mr. Lewis, I'm not related to Azure in any way."
"What?" Trevor blinked, thrown off balance. "Then you…"
She kept her eyes locked on his, her tone calm but unyielding. "I am Azure."
Trevor had always prided himself on composure, but now his eyes widened like coins catching the light, stunned into silence. "What did you just say?"
His expression shifted quickly, tightening into something more guarded, even faintly irritated. "Miss, I don't know how you learned that name, but this isn't the sort of joke you should be making."
Amelia had expected his disbelief. She hadn't come here to shock him for the sake of it—she had come because of Michael's grandmother, and the illness that was slowly stealing her life.
Without missing a beat, she asked, "Mr. Lewis, hasn't your British Shorthair already had her kittens?"
Trevor froze mid-breath. He was not a man with many friends, and the fact that his cat was close to giving birth was something he had mentioned only once—offhand—in a private email to Azure. No one else could have known.
Her voice stayed steady. "I know it sounds impossible, but I am Azure. I started studying witch medicine when I was five, and I've always had a deep interest in biomedical science. The first paper I sent you on acromegaly—I wrote that when I was fourteen."
It sounded like fiction, but her confidence left no room for doubt. Trevor's skepticism faltered. Could there really be a seventeen-year-old girl capable of producing the kind of work that had baffled seasoned researchers?
"If you are truly Azure," Trevor said slowly, "then come with me to the lab."
Amelia nodded. Under the astonished gaze of the two guards, she followed Trevor inside.
Identity could be faked. Knowledge could not.
An hour later, after an intense discussion on a specialized topic, Trevor was on the verge of tears. Never in his career had he imagined that the mind he had admired for years belonged to a girl barely out of high school. And yet, in one conversation, she had opened doors in his thinking he hadn't even realized were there.
"You really are Azure…" His voice was thick with emotion.
"Mr. Lewis, call me Amelia," she said with a small smile. "My real name is Amelia Martinez. I'm a senior at Prestige High School."
"Prestige High School?" Trevor knew the name. It was a place where the children of affluent families were groomed, not where one expected to find a prodigy with the patience and brilliance to change the face of science.
Amelia's voice softened, though her words carried purpose. "Mr. Lewis, I'm here today to ask for your help."
"What is it? If it's within my power, I'll do it," Trevor replied without hesitation.
"I remember you mentioning primary pulmonary paralysis in one of your emails. You said there's no effective treatment available worldwide. But in our country, research has been underway in secret for over a decade. The drug is already in Phase II clinical trials."
Trevor nodded. Phase II meant the drug was being tested on patients to determine optimal dosage and measure effectiveness.
"I have a friend whose grandmother has suffered from the disease for years," Amelia continued. "She receives targeted therapy every week in Sulien, but her body is growing weaker. By the standard process, the drug will still need Phase III trials and regulatory approval before it can be released. That could take two or three more years."
She took a breath. "I want to know if you can arrange for her to be included in the treatment and observation group."
Trevor studied her. "This friend… is very important to you?"
"Yes," Amelia said without hesitation. "He's the most important person in my life."
Trevor was silent for a moment, then nodded. "Send me her medical details. I'll need to meet her in person. After that, I'll take care of it. I'll do everything I can to ease her condition. You have my word."
Amelia's smile was genuine. "That would mean a lot. Thank you, Mr. Lewis."
"Don't thank me," Trevor said with a wry grin. "For the paper you sent me back then, and everything you've helped me with since—if you asked me to lie down on the operating table myself, I'd probably do it."
Michael's grandmother had not yet been found, but the possibility of treatment was now within reach. It was enough to lift a weight from Amelia's mind.
She took a taxi back to the Martinez mansion.
The moment she stepped inside, a voice she hadn't heard in some time cut through the air—Robert's voice, sharp with disbelief. "Jenny, have you lost your mind? Rachel is the daughter we've raised since she was a child!"
"We've invested millions into her education and upbringing, and you've sent her to prison?"
Amelia stopped at the corner of the living room.
"You think I'm out of my mind?" Jenny's voice was equally sharp, anger lacing every syllable. "Do you even know what your precious daughter has done?"
"Last night at the party, she paid Orla fifty thousand to deliver a red dress to Amelia, then deliberately caused the chandelier in the living room to explode. While the house was in darkness, she locked Ryan in his room."
"What?" Robert's face went slack, disbelief flooding his voice. "Why would Rachel do something like that?"
"She wanted to trigger one of Ryan's episodes, to make him kill Amelia," Jenny said, her teeth clenched. "And when the chandelier exploded, shards of glass cut Zander."
Robert's breath caught. "Ryan and Zander—are they all right? Are they safe?"
Amelia felt a chill settle in her chest.
In this household, Jenny was not related to her by blood. Her five brothers were only half-related. Robert was the one person linked to her by blood. And yet, hearing that Rachel had tried to have Ryan kill her, and that Zander had been injured, his first instinct was to ask whether his sons were unharmed—not a single word about her.
"They're fine," Jenny said coldly. "But if Amelia hadn't been there, Zander might not be alive right now. And Ryan… he could have relapsed, just like he did all those years ago."
Her meaning was clear—Amelia had not only survived, she had saved two of her brothers.
To Robert, it was something else entirely. "If all three of them are fine, then it was just a false alarm."
His tone was laced with irritation. "If it was a false alarm, why would you call the police and have Rachel arrested?"