To Love a Shadow To Be the Sun novel Chapter 359

Elara nodded.

Zane realized there must have been a flaw in his previous investigation. He kept his voice soft and steady. "And did you also go to the Breezewater Children's Home?"

Elara nodded again. "I had a bad feeling about it, so I didn't go inside. Summer went for me, but she couldn't find out anything."

Zane closed his eyes, his arms tightening around her. "A fire at Breezewater destroyed all the records of the children who were there at that time. What… what were you trying to find out?"

She felt a bit breathless from his tight embrace and gently pushed away. "Even without the fire, they probably wouldn't have had my records. I was only there for less than a month, and I picked my name out of a dictionary. I doubt anyone would remember me."

"How old were you when you went there?" Zane asked.

"Thirteen."

But the girl from the Grove family had her accident when she was twelve. The years didn't line up. Zane frowned. *Could I be wrong?*

"No DNA match doesn't necessarily mean they don't want to find you. Maybe something happened that we don't know about, or maybe your information was never entered into the system. Misunderstandings happen because of assumptions. Let's find out the truth before we let assumptions break your heart."

His words seemed to get through to her, and she nodded.

"The person who hurt Summer is highly skilled. Even Renata didn't get a clear look at his face," Zane said calmly. "But I'll keep investigating for you."

Elara wiped her face. "Thank you for talking me through this. I was in a really bad place today."

She turned to leave, but Zane caught her wrist and pulled her back. He lowered his head, his gaze fixed on her lips. "Words are a nice gesture, but sometimes they just aren't enough."

No matter what, the attacker had to be found, and Ignition Dynamics had to keep running. That was the only way she could face Summer when she woke up.

The next morning, Elara called a meeting and announced that Summer would be on an extended leave of absence. Effective immediately, all company matters, both internal and external, were to be reported directly to her.

A project lead raised a question. "Director Jules, our collaboration with Cryo-Titan Energy Group is currently using nearly half of our core R&D team. If we continue at this pace, our proprietary solid-state battery research will have to be postponed. Should we focus our resources on ensuring the delivery of the joint project, or should we push forward with our own technology development?"

Elara was at a loss. She excelled at solving technical problems, but making these kinds of strategic trade-offs was new to her.

"The partnership with Cryo-Titan is our most important source of revenue right now. We must ensure quality delivery and maintain a good relationship with them."

Charles was standing at the office door, his calm gaze sweeping over everyone in the room. "However," he continued, "our proprietary technology is the future of Ignition Dynamics, and its development cannot be halted. In the short term, we rely on partnerships for funding; in the long term, we rely on our technology for growth. I will find a way to balance the two."