Chapter 641

Chapter 641

Given Eleanor's sudden shift in attitude,

Bodhi worried the baby might have been switched again.

He urged the lab to move faster and reconfirm the child's blood samples and DNA.

The final results came back accurate—the baby he currently had was indeed the biological child of Lucas and Eleanor.

This should have been good news.

But Bodhi couldn't shake the feeling that Eleanor's every move had an ulterior motive.

He gazed at the sleeping infant, wondering silently: What is Eleanor planning this time?

Had she really accepted her fate?

Eleanor certainly had no intention of giving up.

After leaving William, she went straight to Phillips and confirmed again: "You're absolutely sure the child's current physical condition won't be affected by the toxin? Nothing will show up in tests?"

Phillips assured her, "I can guarantee that given the child's current state, no one will be able to detect anything wrong."

In other words, the baby was completely normal right now.

He finished speaking, glanced at Eleanor's expression, and ventured carefully, "Does this mean the child will be returned soon?"

Eleanor wasn't that optimistic.

She shook her head. "He was capable of doing something as insane as stealing the baby in the first place. He might not be willing to let go so easily. I'm more worried that even if he can't find anything wrong, he'll still forcibly keep the child."

If that happened, and one day the child's condition could no longer be hidden...

That would be truly disastrous.

Phillips sighed heavily, lamenting the child's ill-fated circumstances.

Eleanor had no time for grief.

She had to act quickly before the worst-case scenario arrived.

What Eleanor could do now was find a way to contact Clarence and continue building leverage for herself.

To reach Clarence, Eleanor decided to ask Aiden for help.

When Aiden heard Eleanor needed Clarence's contact information, he didn't hide it. He handed her a phone number, but added, "I don't think he'll answer, though. You should prepare yourself mentally."

Sure enough, after Eleanor dialed and barely introduced herself, the other end hung up immediately.

This was within Eleanor's expectations.

She wasn't too disappointed. Instead, she used her company email to contact Clarence's team.

Clarence didn't respond.

Apparently, he was abroad on a business trip with his team and hadn't returned yet.

Hearing this, Eleanor suddenly thought of something, her expression turning grave. "You said he's on a business trip abroad? When did he leave? Where is he now?"

Eleanor's sensitivity wasn't unwarranted—she suddenly remembered that when she'd contacted Austin before, he'd mentioned someone trying to gain access to Grace's lab.

At the time, Eleanor had guessed it was either Bodhi or Clarence.

Now, learning that Clarence was abroad...

The memory clicked into place.

She immediately contacted Austin again, cutting straight to the point: "The person who called you before asking for lab access—do you remember any characteristics of his voice? Did he reveal any clues about his identity?"

Austin was puzzled.

But sensing the urgency in Eleanor's tone, he thought for a moment. "It was a young man, but he was very cautious. He didn't reveal any identifying information."

As he spoke, Grace's voice came through the phone.

When Grace learned it was Eleanor, her expression grew complicated. "Beyond that, we really don't have any other leads."

Austin worried Eleanor might misunderstand, so he explained on Grace's behalf: "We're also in hiding right now. Someone's trying to summon us back for a court hearing, and if we go to trial, things could go very badly for Grace."

So they hadn't had much time to investigate anything else.

Therefore, they couldn't give Eleanor many useful clues.

Eleanor understood.

Grace's case was already complicated. If someone in power was determined to put her away, her situation would be extremely dangerous.

These two were abroad and had indeed been overwhelmed lately.

When Eleanor remained silent for a long time, Austin asked, "Why bring this up suddenly?"

Eleanor snapped back to attention. "Nothing. I just have some new theories."

She'd initially assumed the person inquiring about lab access must be whoever had taken the child.

But now it was basically confirmed that Bodhi had taken the baby, while the person interested in the lab was most likely Clarence. These two people...

She now questioned whether Clarence's position was really as firm as Aiden had claimed.

He truly hadn't made a move against the child.

But with such enormous leverage in his opponent's hands, would a politician really not be tempted?

Or rather, was he willing to just watch as Bodhi—that insurmountable obstacle—became even more unshakeable?

Eleanor didn't doubt his current unwillingness to harm the child.

But at the same time, she understood people's multifaceted nature.

Even if Clarence himself didn't want to act, his current position and status probably wouldn't allow him to remain completely uninvolved.

Eleanor sighed quietly and asked Austin for the phone number that had contacted them.

This string of digits was different from the contact information Aiden had given Eleanor.

Eleanor wasn't surprised.

It was just a phone number—it didn't prove anything.

In fact, Eleanor suspected this was Clarence's private number, while what Aiden had given her was merely his public line, not one he'd use for sensitive discussions.

Eleanor found a quiet spot, her fingertip hovering above the number, and took a deep breath.

She pressed down decisively.

After several rings, the call connected. It was indeed a young, composed male voice.

Eleanor's heart sank as she instinctively gripped her phone tighter.

"Hello?"

The voice on the other end was somewhat gentle, not off-putting, with a hint of warmth: "How can I help you?"

Eleanor fell silent for a moment.

She glanced at the photo she'd pulled up from a website.

Clarence—trained as a physician, had worked for years as a clinical doctor, then became the youngest regional medical director before entering politics.

His solid professional knowledge combined with innovative vision made him formidable, and he was currently riding high.

Everything indicated this was an ambitious, reform-minded individual.

The warm, modest voice now was probably just a façade.

Eleanor chuckled softly and said directly, "Secretary Fisher, you're certainly hard to reach. As one of the many beneficiaries of Secretary Fisher's reforms, I'm honored to speak with you."

The other end paused briefly. "You're Eleanor."

He wasn't surprised Eleanor had tracked him down.

But his originally warm voice grew colder and more rigid, tinged with perfunctory politeness: "I received the email from your company. Please wait patiently for a few days. I'll handle it when I get back."