Chapter 435 Trash
Alex had been wanting to ask Katniss about her special skill for a while now, but with Ethan always by her side, he never got the chance to approach her.
Today, Ethan was absent, and Alex saw an opportunity to probe into Katniss's background.
"What do you want?" Scarlett snapped, stepping in front of him. "Katniss has nothing to do with you. What do you want?"
Tyler also glared at Alex, clearly on guard.
Katniss felt a warm surge in her heart seeing how protective they were of her.
Maybe it was because they had overheard Ryan's plan to target her yesterday, but their attitude towards her now was almost like they were protecting an endangered species.
Feeling awkward under Scarlett and Tyler's hostile stares, Alex rubbed his nose sheepishly.
"I just wanted to ask Katniss something. Do you need to act like this?" Alex felt he hadn't done anything wrong, so why were Tyler and Scarlett looking at him so strangely?
Scarlett snorted, "Yeah, we do."
"We're going to lunch. Katniss doesn't have the time or obligation to answer your questions," Tyler added coldly.
Alex looked at Katniss.
Katniss also responded coolly, "Alex, we're going to lunch. Goodbye."
With that, Katniss, Tyler, and Scarlett walked away.
With the conversation ending like that, Alex knew he wouldn't be following them to the cafeteria.
Alex didn't follow them, but he was quietly fuming.
He should have asked Katniss earlier.
He had planned to ask her during lunch, but without Ethan around, he hadn't expected Ethan's friends to be so protective of Katniss.
Meanwhile, Maximilian received the information Patrick had gathered.
Patrick insisted on staying for lunch, promptly sitting across from Maximilian.
"Is this the Ryan you wanted to investigate?" Patrick pointed to a photo of Ryan attached to the report.
"Let me check," Maximilian said, snapping a picture of the photo and sending it to Katniss.
Katniss received the photo just as she, Scarlett, and Tyler arrived at the cafeteria.
Seeing Maximilian's message, she quickly asked Tyler.
Tyler had seen Ryan before and recognized him immediately.
"That's him!"
With Tyler's confirmation, Katniss replied to Maximilian.
After a few more messages, Maximilian ended the conversation by reminding Katniss to stay safe.
Patrick got the confirmation from Maximilian, "It's him. Keep an eye on him."
Yesterday, Scarlett had called Katniss to warn her that Clara was encouraging Ryan to target her.
Even though the investigation showed Ryan was a nobody, Maximilian wasn't taking any chances.
Anything concerning Katniss's safety made Maximilian particularly anxious.
Patrick had no choice but to agree.
Still, he couldn't resist teasing, "Maximilian, you care about Katniss."
Maximilian shot him a look, a satisfied smile playing on his lips.
"Lunch is here." Chris personally brought in the food instead of having an assistant do it.
Patrick was taken aback. "Is this what we're eating?"
He hadn't come all this way for a work lunch.
"Don't want it?" Maximilian glanced at him.
Chris smiled, "We've been really busy lately, so we're making do with work lunches."
Seeing how busy they seemed, Patrick reluctantly agreed, "Fine, but you owe us a proper meal later, Maximilian."
Maximilian agreed, and the three of them sat down to eat.
Chris and Maximilian discussed their upcoming plans without excluding Patrick.
When the conversation turned to the Kate family, Patrick chimed in.
"Maximilian, your move against the Kate family was spot on. They still haven't figured out who did it, right?"
"Correct. Emma should be quiet for a while."
While the three of them enjoyed a harmonious meal, the atmosphere at the Kate family estate was grim.
The Kate family had been shifting their business resources for years, but some of their underground dealings couldn't be stopped.
They had been discreet, greasing the right palms, and had never encountered any issues before.
But unexpectedly, two days ago, their operatives were caught red-handed.
And the ones who caught them were connected to the Murphy family, which had ties to the military.
The Murphy family had placed someone in a low-ranking position, a mere squad leader, who showed no respect for the Kate family.
Not only was their shipment seized, but several people were also arrested.
Although the layers of obfuscation would prevent the authorities from tracing it back to them immediately, losing that shipment was a significant blow.
They had recently secured an opportunity, and the funds from that shipment were crucial for their new business plan.
Missing this chance meant it could be a long time before they had another shipment of that size.
"Have we found out who tipped off the Murphy family?"
"No."
The middle-aged men in the Kate Villa exchanged anxious glances.
"Where's Emma? She's been gone for days. This is unacceptable."
Emma wasn't any of their children, but she was the only young person in the Kate family.
The previous heir, Emma's brother, had died, leaving Emma as the only one to take over the family.
Even though she was a woman, she was the only option.
"Gage, didn't you go to bring Emma back?" one of the men asked.
Gage quickly replied, "Yes, Ms. Kate should be back soon."
Sure enough, Emma arrived shortly after.
"What's the matter, uncles?" Emma asked lazily as she walked in.
She reeked of alcohol, her hair a mess, as if she had just rolled out of bed.
"Do you know how serious the situation is? And you're out partying!"
Emma rolled her eyes indifferently, "What's the big deal? Did a smuggling operation get busted? Or are we about to be raided?"
She would love for the Kate family to be raided.
She wondered if the little bit of information she had leaked had been picked up by someone bold enough to use it.
Even though she was the heir, she didn't know much.
Her uncles were furious, pointing at her and stammering.
"What did I do? I just got back. If something happened to the Kate family, it's not my fault," Emma said innocently, shrugging.
Her uncle Idris tried to calm things down, "We're not blaming you. But Emma, you've been back for a while now. It's time you started taking over some family responsibilities."
"Take over? Idris, are you in such a hurry? Is there a big problem you want me to take the fall for?" Emma smiled sweetly.
They were pushing for her to take on some responsibilities so quickly; they must have ulterior motives.
It seemed the information she had leaked had indeed been used, causing significant damage to the Kate family.
But she didn't know who the lucky person was.
She couldn't take on this responsibility now. She'd rather continue her carefree life, dating and having fun.
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