Silence on the other end of the phone—one which persisted for more than a few seconds—informed Athena that her confession had rattled Aiden, had made him speechless.
She swallowed hard, her fingers tightening around the phone. But she couldn't have lied about it, couldn't have assured the latter that she had things in control, that she would take care of things with more time, like Ewan would—well, Ewan did deliver when he spoke.
She could have if she understood the solution, but she didn't. So even if she was given a week, she didn't think she could deliver.
Her chest rose and fell in a slow, weary sigh. She had spent more than seven hours trying to understand, but to no avail. The gates of wisdom and knowledge of science had been shut against her.
"Athena, are you sure? Maybe you need more time… and you can take as much as you can… you are not the bringer of the virus. Don't let the expectations pressure you…"
