Chapter 418 The Plan Falls Through
Max leaned in close to Katniss, lowering his voice. "Hey, did you notice anything weird about the manager?"
Katniss whispered back, "Yeah, she was acting all respectful when Emma walked in. Super strange."
Max's mind raced. "Don't eat anything she hasn't touched."
Katniss's eyes widened. "You think she messed with the food?"
Max nodded. "Could be."
Katniss's expression hardened.
They could just leave, but if someone was trying to mess with them, she wanted to hit back somehow.
Even if she couldn't get revenge, she at least wanted to see their opponent squirm.
She shared her thoughts with Max, who mulled them over before they continued their hushed conversation.
With Emma sitting across from them, they leaned in closer.
Katniss's eyes lit up whenever Max spoke, making it seem like they were sharing some juicy secret.
Emma watched them, her gaze turning icy as she saw Katniss practically leaning on Max.
To Emma, Katniss was doing this on purpose. Right in front of her.
She was fed up with Katniss's antics.
Eventually, Emma's patience snapped. Instead of causing a scene, she kicked Desmond, who was sitting beside her.
Desmond flinched, looking at Emma with fear. He was terrified of her and didn't dare make a sound, even with Max and Katniss right there.
Emma mouthed, "Are you mute?" urging him to speak.
She didn't want to waste her energy interrupting them herself. Plus, she didn't want to make Max dislike her even more.
So, she forced Desmond to do it.
Desmond, unable to refuse, called out softly, "Max?"
Max didn't respond, not even looking up. Katniss glanced at the two across from her and then said, as if suddenly remembering, "Didn't Ms. Kate have something to say earlier? Go ahead."
She was reminding Emma, who had been interrupted by the arrival of the food.
Thinking of Max's suspicion, Katniss had lost her appetite. She didn't want to cancel the meal, but she wasn't eager to eat either.
Emma saw Katniss pass the conversation to her and, noticing that Katniss was no longer leaning on Max, smiled. "It's nothing important. Let's eat first."
Katniss, still deep in thought, glanced at Emma's face. Emma's smile seemed genuine, but it only made Katniss more cautious.
"Ms. Kate, please, go ahead."
Emma, feeling confident and impatient, picked up her utensils and started eating.
Katniss followed suit, and Max did the same.
The atmosphere was unusually calm, a stark contrast to the earlier tension.
Desmond, initially too scared to eat, started picking at his food after Emma nudged him.
Emma avoided the tampered dishes but noticed that Katniss and Max were also steering clear of certain plates. She frowned, puzzled.
One of the tampered dishes was ordered by Katniss, and Emma had an idea.
Just as she was about to speak, she heard Katniss put down her utensils.
"I'm full," Katniss said.
Emma looked up and saw Katniss taking a napkin from Max to wipe her mouth.
She had barely eaten anything.
Emma didn't buy it, but Katniss and Max didn't care whether she believed it or not.
Max put down his utensils, too.
Emma suddenly realized they must have figured something out. Her plan had failed. She gripped her utensils tightly, recalling that they only ate the dishes she had prepared, and felt a surge of frustration.
But how did they figure it out?
Emma felt both aggrieved and confused. She saw Desmond eating the tampered food without any apparent reaction. Frustrated, she added more food to his plate. "Eat."
Desmond looked at the food, feeling a chill down his spine. He suspected Emma had ill intentions.
The food was likely problematic, and he shouldn't eat it.
But he remembered he had already eaten some earlier and started feeling uneasy.
It felt like a mix of illusion and reality. What should he do?
As Desmond grew increasingly anxious, Max's voice broke the silence. "Ms. Kate, enjoy your meal. We've discussed what we needed to. We'll be leaving now."
With that, Max stood up with Katniss, waiting for Desmond to join them.
Desmond, eager to avoid eating the food, quickly stood up.
His injured leg made it difficult, and he nearly stumbled.
He steadied himself and took a step forward, but Emma grabbed his shirt.
"Ms. Kate?" Desmond asked, confused and feeling worse than before.
He was certain the food was problematic, likely tampered with by Emma.
Emma frowned, ignoring him, and looked at Max and Katniss. She saw Katniss smiling at her, as if mocking her failed plan and ridiculing her foolishness.
Katniss didn't realize her smile was misunderstood by Emma and continued smiling.
Even if she knew, she probably wouldn't care.
After all, someone who tampered with food deserved to be mocked.
Emma suppressed her frustration and smiled at Max. "Mr. Hamilton, we haven't finished our discussion. How can you leave?"
Max frowned, still holding Katniss's hand, showing no intention of sitting back down. "Ms. Kate, if you have something to say, just say it."
Emma didn't say anything else but asked, "Mr. Hamilton, you won't avoid me in the future, will you?"
Max replied, "It depends on what Ms. Kate wants to discuss."
Emma thought for a moment and released Desmond. "Since Mr. Hamilton said so, let's discuss some matters privately later."
She emphasized "privately," blinking deliberately.
Katniss saw Emma's attempt to provoke her, but wasn't affected. She trusted Max completely.
So, Emma's attempts to sow discord wouldn't make her doubt Max.
Desmond, freed by Emma, quickly limped to Max's side, whispering, "Max,"
"Let's go," Max said, leading Katniss out.
Desmond, ignoring the pain in his leg, hurried to follow, as if Emma were a monster.
Finally, Emma was left alone in the room.
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