Chapter 42
I put down my empty cup. Killian scooped up a piece of pie for me, and I looked at it, shaking my head.
“What?”
“I don’t like sweet things,” I said.
“Really?” He put it down, looking at me. “What do you like then?”
“Not sweet things,” I replied.
“You have to give me more than that, love.” He gave me a look–the same one he always did whenever I tried to downplay something. How do I word this without sounding weird or pitiful? I pressed my lips together.
“When I was in the orphanage, there wasn’t much to choose from. And since the day I got into Anderson Mansion, everything I did or ate was chosen for me. I didn’t protest because it saved me a lot of grief, so I never actually thought about it or cared.” My last words sounded like a question to me too. Did I ever think about it? Did I care?
I’ve never tasted something bad. I’ve eaten everything put in front of me, but I’ve never felt the love or enjoyment people seem to have while eating, Thinking along those lines, I realized I was deprived of something so basic. I eat the best food in the world–so why does it feel like something is missing?
“You can start a secret organization but can’t figure out what you like to eat?”
“Hey! That makes me sound disabled. I just don’t care about it,” I shrugged. “This isn’t important.” I diverted the conversation. “We have a plan in motion for Patronus. We’ll meet at the club today. I…” I sighed. All this back and forth was tiring me. “I’ll take my leave.” I stood up.
“Wait a moment.” He grabbed my wrist to stop me and stood up.
“I can’t stay.”
“I know. Just give me a moment.”
He walked toward the desk, opened a drawer, and took out a circular long case. Opening it, he pulled something from inside and came toward me. As it came into view, I saw it was a smartwatch.
“Like I promised.”
He took my left hand and turned it over, tracing the inside of my wrist slowly. His fingers brushed over the tiny scar there, making my heart clench. Without another word, he put the watch around my wrist. I looked down at it.
“Thanks.” I pulled my hand back.
“Let’s go.” He placed a hand on my lower back, leading me toward the stairs.
When we reached the bottom, I began, “I will go-”
“I’ll drop you off where I picked you up. You’re free to go wherever you usually go,” he said.
I nodded, slipping my hands into my pockets and smiling. He could read my mind.
“This is better,” he murmured, touching my cheek with the back of his hand. His dark eyes softened, and with that, my numbness melted away. I breathed, feeling at ease. I stretched onto my toes, and he met me halfway as we kissed. It was slow, gentle–I savored the softness of our lips coming together. When I pulled away, I was breathless.
He circled his arms around my waist, pulling me closer.
“Thank you for saving me from an awful day,” I said, pecking his lips.
“I am ready to be doubted again if, after clearing it up, you act like this.”
I snorted. “Now you’re just pushing your luck.”
“Don’t get lost in your head next time. Ask me anything–I’ll answer you.”
I pulled away, narrowing my eyes at him mockingly.
“What?”
I shook my head, smoothing my expression. I had yet to get used to this awfully accommodating personi I seemed to have.
He dropped me off just a few blocks away from campus. I watched his car disappear into the distance.
It had happened once before–back then, my heart was heavy. Now, I felt oddly at ease.
I knew for sure something would come up to change that. But I was also sure it would never be because of Killian Knight. That was enough. It was good.
I looked down at the watch. It wouldn’t hurt to check it once more. Just one last time. One last little test. I tapped it.
First, I entered the campus and then made my way to the library, finding a lost, abandoned corner. I pulled out a tiny leather pouch and removed the
smartwatch.
After careful inspection, I found nothing. As I closed the back of the watch, I frowned. For a mafia boss, isn’t he a bit too laid–back? Or am I just too stuck
up?
I shrugged and packed my things. I was short on time. At least it was safe to go to the bunker.
The moment I stepped foot inside, the first person to rush up to me was Jina.
“Tong and Misha? Misha isn’t even here right now!” she burst out. She must have been all loaded and ready to explode in a few hours. I glanced at Kevin, who simply shrugged and fixed his eyes back on the monitor.
“Quit being dramatic. I sent Misha a text–he’ll report here before the meeting,” I said, putting my bag down on the workstation. Everyone’s eyes turned
to us.
“Mila, I get that you’re mad about the trainee program happening behind your back, but why would you keep me out of the Patronus rescue mission? This is the day we’ve been waiting for!”
“Yes, but I think Misha, being an all–rounder, and Tong, being tall and strong enough to keep up with the Shadow Knights, are the perfect choices.” I took off my long coat, draped it behind my chair, and sat down catmly, firing up my system. Pulling a few files from the drawer, I opened them and scanned them carefully. Yes, this was it. I nodded. From the corner of my eye, I saw her freeze.
“Look, you’re mad. Punch me.”
“I think getting physical doesn’t suit my temper,” I said.
“You’re petty. This is low.”
“You haven’t seen her being petty yet,” another voice broke into our conversation. The owner of the voice walked down the stairs, black almond–shaped eyes looked down amused.
He was half Korean, nicknamed Misha. His birth name was Gun Min He. He was the oldest member of KJM, having quit the FBI four years ago to work with us. With a lean, muscular figure and a height of about 5’8“, he had a presence that commanded attention.
“What do you mean?” Jina asked, turning to him as he approached my workstation. I gave him a look and tossed the file at him.
He grinned and caught it effortlessly.
“Look at it. I’m only here for an hour, then I have a class to attend,” I said in a no–nonsense tone, turning back to my monitor.
“You’re all work, no play. Didn’t I just come back from a mission?”
“When you got here, you said you wanted to work until you couldn’t think. Well, you got it. Now move.”
He opened the file, his expression turning serious as he scanned the pages. “This is a Patronus rescue mission.” His frown deepened. He had been the main force behind creating a rescue plan a year ago. “Wasn’t this supposed to be transferred to that Shadow Knight of yours?”
Hearing him say that, I turned around to look at everyone. They all immediately focused back on their monitors, avoiding my gaze.
“I can’t believe this,” I muttered.
“What? This kind of thing doesn’t stay hidden.”
“I can see that. Moving on.” My firm tone snapped everyone’s attention back to me. I looked at Jina, left my work to automate, and rolled my chair to the center of the room. Everyone turned to face me.
“Call Tong and Siya,” I told Jina. She shouted for them.
Everyone gathered–some standing, some sitting–all ten of us. I looked at each of them. It felt like I was about to throw them into the lion’s den.
“We knew that Mrs. Anderson was holding Patronus. Until a few days ago, we weren’t clear on who was helping her. That person was Christen Meng,” I said carefully, glancing at Misha.
“I know the specifics. Don’t mind my sensitivities–I’m cool,” he waved a hand dismissively.
“No matter what, we’ve already done significant damage to Christen Meng over the years. Until now, he only had letters as an enemy–KJM, M as the owner. But I’m afraid he now knows exactly where to look. He knows M’s involvement in the Anderson Company. Obviously, Mrs. Anderson and Christen
Meng are allied. He wants revenge.
“We don’t have enough resources in the physical world. That’s why Killian Knight is in the picture.”
“And you like him,” Jina chimed in. She just couldn’t help herself.
“Can we put that aside for a moment and think about this objectively?” I asked, my tone sharp enough to be considered a command. It made Jina straighten her back.
“Sorry.”
“Killian Knight has both the resources and the intention to help us. That’s good enough for me. But whether it’s Christen Meng or Killian Knight, everyone here is well aware of what they’ve done and what they’re capable of.
“This is a dangerous task. I just want you to think about it before we proceed. No matter how we move forward, we’re at risk of exposure to the world. We’re no longer staying behind our monitors. You will all be exposed.”
“We were almost exposed two days ago. We’re not afraid of it,” Matt said.
“Sooner or later, it was bound to happen,” Ria added.
“You’ve made enemies from the FBI to the mafia world. It’s too late to back down,” Misha stated matter–of–factly.
“If any of you want to hide…” I let my words hang in the air.
“You mean jump ship?” Siya asked, sounding a bit surprised.
“You took us in just so we could leave at the last moment?” Sky looked almost hurt.
“I didn’t know how far this would go,” I admitted. “I just feel like i should let you know I’m not here often to clear things up for you. With only a few days left and so many variables changing, this is an option you can choose.”
“It’s insulting,” came a gruff voice. I was surprised to hear Tong speak. He had always been the hit first, ask questions later type. He didn’t talk much.
1 looked at Kevin.
“What? You can’t survive without me,” he said, adjusting his glasses.
Not arguing with that, I nodded. Then I turned to Sky, who blinked.
“I can’t leave a story incomplete. It gives me nightmares,” he said.
I didn’t know how to respond to that. I could only suppress a smile.
Matt shrugged. “If Sky is here, I’m here.”
“lan?”
lan rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, same.”
Before I could look at Ria-
“Don’t ask me. You just wasted eight minutes on a hero speech. I’m in awe.”
“Misha?”
“Move on, please. Why did you call me?” He rolled his eyes.
I turned to J.
“I’m J in KJM. Are you mental?”
Siya just rolled her eyes and started to walk away.
“You have to come back. We need to work on a game plan,” I said.
“Talk, then. I don’t have patience,” Sky said, returning to stand beside Jina.
“We’re about to be caught between two powerful mafia groups, and no one is reconsidering their life choices?” I asked, a bit frustrated. Was I the only one who thought this could go wrong in a hundred different ways?
“No. Are you?” Misha asked.
“Fine, then. Let’s move.”
“Tong and Misha will come with me to the club, where we’ll meet the Shadow Knights.”
“What the heck?” Jina said again.
I turned to her. “Don’t you have people to
“Mila!”
train?”
I cleared my throat, unable to hide my amusement. It was fun messing with her. But then I decided to put her out of her misery.
“This will be the only meeting I attend. I don’t need to elaborate, but there’s only one week left. After that, I won’t be here anymore–I’ll be stuck in Anderson Mansion.”
Is this truly my last week there?
“Then who’s going to steer the ship? Tong and Misha are great at fieldwork, but you have to stay here. Everyone else will be keeping an eye on things, but if any improvisation is needed, it has to be communicated through you,” I said.
I pulled out my phone. “Give me yours,” I told her.
She handed it over, and I programmed the numbers Killian had given me. Then I gave it back.
We worked on the specifics for a while. Everyone listened carefully, then got back to work, giving their opinions on how the plan might change and the possible complications that could arise. We had access to Patronus’s location and the map of the premises where she was being held. We had our own plan–now, what remained was figuring out how the Knights would play into it.
I got up from my chair but then turned back.
“There’s another target we need to focus on while preparing for D–day.”
Everyone’s eyes turned to me again.
“Who?” Ria asked.
“I need everything there is to know about Tommen Anderson–from the day he was born.”
The room went still. No one asked any questions. They simply turned back to their monitors and got to work.
AD
