Chapter 242 Want to Absorb Her into My Body
Brandon did say that.
However, he only realized later that there was no time to implement those strategies at all.
Because Candice was incredibly busy!
The third phase of research at the institute had begun, and her workload had doubled.
Candice had been stuck in the lab for several days straight, not even having time to eat dinner with the kids.
These past few days, it was almost always Brandon taking care of the two little ones!
That evening, when Brandon came to pick up the two kids again, he heard Elijah muttering, "It's been four days, and Mom still hasn't finished her work."
His little voice carried a hint of concern.
Never mind not going on a date with Brandon, even Elijah had barely seen Candice these past few days.
Candice must be exhausted!
Yasmin patted his shoulder and comforted him, "That's just how it is when Candice gets busy. You'll get used to it."
Elijah nodded, then asked curiously, "Was Mom always this busy before?"
Yasmin shook her head. "Not just this busy, she was even busier the past two years! Back then, when Candice returned from studying abroad and just joined the institute, people doubted her abilities because she was so young. So she had to work really hard on all kinds of difficult projects!"
"Even though Grandpa, Grandma, and her brothers all said they could support her, Candice just likes to work hard on her own."
In Brandon's mind, he couldn't help but picture Candice working so hard.
In that instant, his heart felt like something tugged at it, a sharp ache.
He didn't interrupt them.
Elijah then asked another question.
"Yasmin, you seem to know a lot about Mom!"
Yasmin's heart raced at this question.
But she kept remembering what she'd promised Candice, so she stammered, "Well, we're relatives after all."
"Okay."
Elijah glanced at her and didn't say anything more.
Later that evening, they returned home. Brandon had dinner with the kids, helped them practice writing and do their homework, and waited until they'd bathed and gone to sleep before dealing with his own work.
Before he knew it, it was eleven at night, and there was still no sign of Candice coming home.
Brandon glanced at the clock on the wall and couldn't help but frown.
Why was she getting off work later and later?
Although Candice had a driver to take her to and from work, Brandon still felt uneasy.
Plus, thinking about how they hadn't had a proper conversation in days, Brandon didn't think too long before grabbing his car keys and heading out.
He drove all the way to the institute.
At this hour, everyone at the institute had already left for the day, leaving only Candice still organizing materials.
She was the lead person in charge of this project, and the research direction basically all came from her.
Many details required her personal attention!
The lab was completely quiet, with only the occasional sound of her flipping through papers.
Just as she was about to finish organizing, suddenly, all the lights in the institute went out.
Candice froze.
Why would the power go out like this?
Oh no, many of the medicines in the institute needed continuous cultivation.
This power outage could cause some of their previous results to be completely wasted.
Candice quickly put down what she was doing and planned to check the situation.
Just as she left the lab, she suddenly heard a strange noise coming from somewhere, like the sound of someone picking a lock.
But at this hour, all the internal doors of the institute should be locked!
The sound wasn't right that didn't sound like normal unlocking. The noise was too loud, like someone was forcing a lock!
Candice immediately became alert.
Although the institute, being such an important place, had very secure systems and facilities in all aspects.
But if someone wanted to steal research secrets, they could still break in.
That was what Candice was worried about.
She immediately retreated back to the lab and pressed the protection button.
This button mainly protected the confidential documents in the data library and important research medicines.
After that, Candice contacted the security guards outside the main entrance of the institute.
The guard sounded a bit panicked and reported to Candice, "We just discovered that one of our colleagues seems to have been knocked out. The power outage at the institute is probably a problem with the main breaker - someone might have tampered with it."
"Ms. Elikin, please stay in the lab for now and don't come out. We'll investigate the specific situation."
Candice's heart was in her throat.
At a time like this, she didn't dare act rashly. She instructed the guard, "Be careful. If necessary, just call the police."
"Okay!"
The guard acknowledged and hung up.
Candice sat in her chair, the unknown situation making her heart race uncontrollably, her emotions growing tense.
She waited alone in the darkness, each second feeling like an eternity.
After what seemed like forever - though it was probably just a few minutes - there was suddenly urgent knocking at the lab door.
Candice's nerves went taut! She looked toward the door as if facing a great enemy.
Had the intruder already made it here?
Her whole body tensed, gripping her phone tightly. Just as she was debating whether to call the police, an urgent voice rang out.
"Candice, are you in there?"
Candice's head shot up.
That voice, was it Brandon?
Then Holden's voice also sounded from outside, asking, "Ms. Elikin, are you alright?"
Only then did Candice confirm it really was Brandon and Holden.
She quickly called out loudly, "I'm fine!"
As she spoke, she got up to open the door.
But the power hadn't been restored yet, and the lab was pitch black. Candice tripped on a table leg and fell toward the ground.
Her knee hit first, the pain nearly bringing tears to her eyes.
Candice sucked in a sharp breath, clutching her knee, unable to recover for a long moment.
Brandon, outside, also heard the commotion inside and Candice's cry of pain.
He asked anxiously, "Candice, what happened?"
"I'm fine, just wait a moment, I'll open the door right away."
She endured the pain in her knee and slowly got up to open the door.
The moment the door opened, she felt a figure stride in quickly.
The next second, she fell into a warm embrace.
"Candice!"
Brandon called her name, pulling her tightly into his arms.
The force carried urgency and tension, as if he wanted to merge her into his body!
Candice was a bit confused by the situation before her.
Why was Brandon here?
What she didn't know was that Brandon had actually arrived long ago.
He was the one who discovered the unconscious guard.
He was also the one who called the other guards, and that's when everyone discovered something was wrong at the institute.
After calling the guards, Brandon immediately rushed toward the lab.
But because the door was locked, he was blocked outside, and then he happened to hear her cry of pain.
Brandon was extremely worried, constantly afraid that something had happened to Candice, which was why the moment he saw her, he pulled her into his arms.