"Have you been waiting long?"
The man's attention immediately shifted towards the source of the voice. There, he saw a blonde-haired woman standing and looking at him.
"Where are the others?" Kate asked, approaching Jim, who had been waiting for her.
"Infero Ravens said they were instructed to go straight back to the headquarters after helping us clean up the mess in the club."
"Good that they've gone home. Now, can you take me to meet him?"
"Of course." Jim got up from his spot, walking ahead, with Kate following from behind. The man led Kate into the club through the back door in the alley. Once inside, Jim turned on the lights so they could see. The club looked deserted. There was no one inside except the two of them.
Jim approached one corner of the room. There, he then approached a wall decoration that concealed a secret button to open the door to the secret room where the club owner resided. As the button was pressed, the ceiling in that part of the room vibrated, and slowly a staircase descended, stopping right in front of them. Jim and Kate then ascended the stairs, heading to another part of the second floor that had never been known to anyone.
"Young master, someone wants to meet you," Jim said as they arrived in front of the door to the club owner's room. Kate asked Jim to step aside. She promptly pushed the door in front of her until it opened. Inside, the two of them could see a young man sitting in a chair, as if waiting for their arrival.
"We haven't met in a long time." Kate walked towards the sofa and sat down, crossing her legs. She acted as if it were her private space. Jim could only follow her and sit on another part of the sofa. It was common for him to see Kate behaving like this towards his boss.
"You must have come because of today's events, right?" the young man said as he got up from his work chair, then walked towards Kate and Jim, who were sitting on the sofa.
"Of course. I came to ask for an explanation about what just happened. Both of you owe me an explanation!" Kate folded her arms in front of her chest, looking at Jim and the young man alternately.
"Please explain what really happened while I was away and why such an incident could occur?"
"That..." Jim hesitated with his words. He suddenly became nervous because Kate emitted an aura strong enough to make everyone around her feel pressured.
"Do you have a problem with the Bloodhound Cartel?" Kate stared at the club owner with a sharp gaze. Right now, numerous questions are popping up in her mind.
"And you! Haven't I ordered you to report everything happening in this club while I'm away? I entrusted you with this task because I thought you could handle it well! But what's this? It's only been a few days since I came here, and something like this happens? Why can the Bloodhound Cartel break windows with a threatening letter attached to the stone?" Kate pointed at Jim, causing his face to turn pale.
"I-It's..."
"Calm down, Kate. It's not Jim's fault," the owner said, trying to soothe her.
"Calm down? How can I calm down when I know you just received a threatening letter from the Bloodhound Cartel? If Percival finds out about this, he'll be furious and might forcibly close this club!"
"That's why, please calm down so we can handle all of this peacefully, and please ensure that this doesn't reach my grandfather's ears. I beg you..."
"Sigh~" Kate sighed deeply. "Listen, Rossi. If you don't want your grandfather to worry, then you must always tell me what's happening here so I can always help you! Your grandfather assigned me to ensure your safety and to avoid getting involved with any mafia or gangsters while running this business."
"Forgive me, Miss Kate... it's all my fault for not informing you of the latest information," Jim mumbled with his head bowed.
"No! It's not Jim's fault. I'm the one who prevented him from contacting you because I didn't want you to report everything to my grandfather." Rossi tried to defend Jim. After all, it was him who had forbidden Jim from providing information about all the incidents in the club to Kate so that it wouldn't reach his grandfather, Percival.
In reality, Rossi was the grandson of the club owner. Due to Percival's declining health, Rossi was asked to run the business. Initially, Rossi wanted to refuse, but due to his grandfather's insistence, he reluctantly had to comply with his grandfather's wishes. However, while running the business in place of his grandfather, Rossi chose to conceal his identity as the club owner and disguise himself as a regular waiter to directly observe who came to the club.
Furthermore, his goal in disguising himself was to find out who was behind the person who had made his grandfather ill. As far as Rossi knew, his grandfather's illness was caused by someone attempting to poison him. However, since the poisoning attempt failed, Percival suffered severe illness due to the side effects of the poison.
"I'll only inform Percival once the issues you're facing are resolved! I can't tell him about the problems before they're sorted out; if I do that, it's the same as killing him! You know that Percival's current condition is not good. His health is deteriorating," Kate explained.
Kate had come to regard Percival as her own friend, even though, in reality, the old man was only an acquaintance from her days as a mafia member in Neotopia, her homeland. However, since deciding to retire from the mafia, Kate left Neotopia and moved to Sciencetopia to start a new life. Unfortunately, who would have thought that even here, she would still have to get involved with the mafias she knew.
Although refusing to engage in illegal activities like mafia work, Kate decided to accept jobs given by Percival to look after his grandson. However, this arrangement didn't last long because Kate eventually delegated the task to one of Rossi's trusted individuals, Jim. This was because Kate had already established another business that required her to focus more on it.
And because Kate had made a promise to Percival to look after Rossi, she asked Jim to inform her about every incident and everything happening in the club while she was away. Typically, Jim would provide information once a month. However, if unexpected events that could pose a threat occurred, he would send information more than once.
"I know that..." Rossi lowered his head. The condition of his grandfather made Rossi feel anxious.
"If he finds out you have a problem with the Bloodhound Cartel, he might suffer a heart attack and die!"
"We mustn't let that happen!"
"That's why I ask you both to always tell me, so I can help! Now, explain what happened while I was away and why such an incident could occur. What did you do to make the Bloodhound Cartel send that threat to your club?"
"I don't have any issues with them, and again, I don't know their purpose for sending that to me," Rossi explained.
"What the young master said is true. He doesn't have any issues with the Bloodhound Cartel, and it seems the threat letter wasn't intended for the young master, but for someone else," Jim chimed in.
"Why do you say that?" Kate inquired.
"That's because the Bloodhound Cartel has been seemingly targeting someone else who appears to be working at our place."
Wait, if that's the case, does that mean the person they're referring to is Theo, not Rossi? My earlier suspicion was correct. They were trying to harm Theo. But because they threw the threat-laden rock at the club, I ended up thinking the threat was for Rossi. Now that it's confirmed, I feel more certain.
*
The night grew deeper, and the air became increasingly chilly. Kate walked with a calm demeanor, her hands now tucked into her pants' pockets. She intended to return home as all the tasks she needed to handle tonight were completed. Throughout the journey, Kate couldn't stop thinking about the club incident. She was still pondering the window-shattering incident caused by a Bloodhound Cartel member hurling a rock with a threatening letter to warn Theo.
"I'm relieved that Rossi isn't involved with the Bloodhound Cartel. But I'm still thinking. If they're after Theo, doesn't that mean they could continue terrorizing the club? I hope this doesn't get Rossi into trouble. Because if Rossi gets involved with the Bloodhound Cartel due to Theo, it will trigger a clash between Zayn as the Infero Ravens' leader and Percival as the club owner. Anyway, Theo is now part of Infero Ravens."
Kate took a long breath. Thinking about all of this weighed heavily on her. Moreover, if it comes to pass, it will be a significant problem that will be hard for her to resolve.
She lifted her head, gazing at the starry night sky. Seeing all the stars up there reminded her of someone. "Is it so enjoyable to watch everything happening here while you just sit there silently? Cheater! While you put me in a situation like this, you're just sitting there, enjoying the show!"
Kate halted her steps. She found herself getting even more irritated thinking about it all. Just when she was trying to calm down and intending to continue her journey, Kate accidentally spotted someone who seemed familiar standing at the roadside, facing a lake near the park she was passing through. Kate scrutinized the man standing there before running towards him to get a closer look.
"You! I suspected it, and it's really you!" Kate exclaimed as she reached him. The man shifted his attention, looking at Kate, who now stood before him. He smiled upon seeing the blonde woman.
"How have you been, Kate?"
***