She Quit Her Family and Found Herself novel Chapter 296

For the rest of the morning, the installation of the monitoring station proceeded smoothly.

Hulda personally led the team, overseeing the setup of the solar panels, sensors, and data collectors.

After a busy few hours, they finally took a lunch break. Hulda was resting in the shade of a tree near one of the base stations, discussing the next phase of work with Dr. Lynch and the others while they waited for the town government's cafeteria to deliver their food.

Once they wrapped up the work talk, Abby leaned closer to Hulda and subtly pointed with her chin toward another tree a short distance away. "Director, look over there. That guy has been standing there staring since we got here. It's been the whole morning."

Hulda followed Abby's gaze and, sure enough, spotted a man loitering in the shade.

It wasn't a stranger. It was the tall, lanky man she had run into when she visited the primary school to find Katherine.

"Him?"

"You know him, Director?"

She shook her head. "Not really. I bumped into him at the school when I went to look for Katherine. I assumed he was a teacher and only exchanged a few words with him."

Abby nodded thoughtfully. "I don't know why, but the way he's looking at us is creeping me out. He's been staring at us this whole time. Wonder what his deal is."

Just then, Zane arrived with the food delivery.

Spotting him, Abby immediately pulled him aside and pointed the man out, asking who he was.

Zane glanced over and smiled. "Oh, him? That's Julian Thorne. He's the only kid from our town who ever made it into an elite university. He couldn't find a job he liked in the city after graduation, so he moved back home. He hasn't been back long; he wasn't here the last time you guys visited."

"He's not a creep, is he? He's been staring at us all morning," Abby pressed.

Zane shook his head. "No, he's not a bad guy. Actually a pretty nice young man. He likes helping people out and currently works at the primary school."

Hearing Zane vouch for him, Abby's unease finally settled.

After lunch, while Dr. Lynch and the others were still resting, Hulda—unable to sit still—headed back toward the base station alone to inspect the progress.

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