A Second Chance at Forever ( Eleanor Shultz )
A Second Chance at Forever Chapter 1379

Chapter 1379

Yates brushed off Bernard’s questions, continuing to lay down the terms with a sense of urgency that couldn’t be mistaken.

“Once you’ve seen each other, you can’t breathe a word to Eleanor about how Area Opaca’s been messing with your freedom, or that there’s a chip lodged in your head. You’re not to tell her about the forced divorce or our deal. Just play it cool and keep your role as Agent 2-9.”

Bernard, clueless about Yates endgame, knitted his brows as he listened to these bizarre demands. Without spilling the beans to Eleanor, how was he going to explain his 23 days of absence, the lack of contact, and the Sophie incident that pushed her towards divorce?

As the gears turned in Bernard’s head, a sudden realization dawned on him, and his frosty gaze lifted to meet the dark mask before him. “Are you related to Eleanor?” Only a family tie would explain Yates’ fear of Eleanor learning about Bernard’s ordeals in Area Opaca.

Bernard’s sharp insight caused Yates’ fingers, resting casually on his thigh, to twitch involuntarily. “Since you’ve already figured it out, I might as well come clean.”

Yates had never intended to keep it a secret; it was a truth that would be evident the moment they met. Standing up from the couch, he approached Bernard and looked down at him from his greater height. “I saw Eleanor on surveillance, noticed she bore a striking resemblance to my late wife, and sought her out for a DNA test. Turns out, she’s my granddaughter.”

So that was it…

As understanding washed over him, the light in Bernard’s eyes dimmed. “You want me to keep quiet because you’re afraid she’ll despise you if she replaces out about the chip in my brain?”

“You’re a smart man,” Yates complimented, not stingy with praise, even as Bernard’s lips curled into a sardonic smile.

“Shouldn’t you cherish the family you’ve finally found? Why be so cruel to her?” Bernard hadn’t even pondered who Eleanor’s kin was; he was simply heartbroken for her. Having grown up without family, she must yearn for that bond. Yet her own grandfather was using him as an executioner to strike at her heart.

Yates neither confirmed nor denied Bernard’s words. Instead, he extended a gloved hand and tapped Bernard’s temple as if to emphasize a point. “That chip in your head? It’s a ticking time bomb, liable to take you out any day now. If Eleanor knew you died because of it, she’d never forgive me.”

Bernard’s heart clenched. Having already battled a brain tumor and now hosting a chip, even if it were removed, the residual toxins would spread the moment his skull was breached.

From the moment the chip was implanted, his days were numbered. But if Eleanor knew his time was short, she’d be heartbroken.

With his gaze dropping to his trembling hands, Bernard clenched his fists as if gathering all his strength. “I won’t tell Eleanor about the chip. As for your other conditions, I refuse.”

Eleanor loved him; if she knew about the chip, she’d live in constant worry, she would never be happy again.

Bernard was willing to bear the silent slipping away of his life rather than let Eleanor live in sorrow over his impending death.

His reasoning was simple. As long as she was alive and he wasn’t yet dead, there was a chance for them, as long as misunderstandings weren’t deepened. And those misunderstandings were precisely what Yates’ other conditions-about restricted freedom and the coerced divorce–would

cause.

Yates, looking down, saw the man who had not stood up but still exuded an aura of defiance. “You can refuse, but then you’ll never see Eleanor again.”

At that, Bernard’s lips curled into a bitter smirk. “If I’m not mistaken, she must’ve uncovered your identity, realized you’re the founder of Area Opaca. You couldn’t hide it, so you had to agree to let her meet me.”

Yates showing up in the middle of the night, and his absurd conditions were a dead giveaway-he’d been exposed by Eleanor and had no choice but to shut Bernard up before things got worse.

Seeing through Yates’ thoughts, Bernard felt a mix of annoyance and respect. A brief exchange was all it took for Bernard to deduce everything. But Yates wasn’t worried. He was banking on Bernard’s longing for Eleanor, confident that sentiment would eventually lead Bernard to accept his terms.

“Eleanor did uncover my identity, and that’s why I’ve come to negotiate. You know what I’m after, don’t you?”

Bernard’s indifferent gaze drifted past the figure cloaked in black, settling on the rows of glass chambers in the biozone. “You won’t let go of your vendetta against the Siren Organization, and I must avenge my comrades. The war between us won’t end, which is why you don’t want Eleanor and me together.”