Chapter 349 Help Me Once More
A rare smile appeared on Erick’s previously stern face when he saw Catherine in front of him.
“You are finally here.”
Catherine saw that Erick was tied to a pillar and in rags. He was wearing dark clothes, but she could still see the dark brown blood on his clothes.
Catherine was indifferent to the scene she was looking at. Her cold eyes stared fixedly at Erick, and there was no trace of empathy in them. It was all Erick’s choice that led to such a situation.
He had chosen to leave with the guards of the Swanns and not to go with Sean when Sean went to rescue him. He had to bear the consequences the choices brought him, and there was no way back. Catherine just eyed him, waiting for him to speak.
Erick knew Catherine must know the truth of his leaving. He had not knitted his brows even once under Jeremy’s beating, but now, he looked at Catherine with a long, miserable face.
“Are you angry?” Erick asked gingerly, scared and nervous.He feared Catherine would say yes because he did not know how to appease her anger.
“I’m not.”
Her short and emotionless answer caused an emotional collapse in Erick. Compared to anger, what Erick feared more was that she did not care about him. Catherine did not give a damn about him, so she would not be angry with him.
Erick bore the pain in his heart and told Catherine what he wanted.
“Can you help me once more?”
“You want me to stop Xavier from getting back to Casier?” Catherine answered softly. Catherine had almost figured out Erick’s plan on the way there.
Erick was not surprised that Catherine could guess what his plan was. In his eyes, Catherine was just mighty and unfathomable.
He nodded slightly. “Yes. Three days. That’s all I need.”
He did not dare ask for too much, fearing that Catherine might see him as useless.
“Why should I help you?” Catherine’s voice was indifferent. She acted like a businessman negotiating a deal on the bargaining table.
Erick lowered his head. He knew no matter how Catherine treated him, he could not ask her for her forgiveness.
He was the one who had betrayed Catherine, even if he had his reason. Erick gritted his teeth and promised, ” As long as you help me this time, all the Winfreds have will be my honoraria to you.”
His original plan was to destroy the Winfreds. He wanted to take all members of the Winfreds down with his mother.
If Catherine were interested in the Winfreds’ property, he would give it to her readily. A meaningful smile flashed across Catherine’s delicate face. She raised one brow and rested her eyes on Erick, glancing at the chains on his hands.
Her eyes seemed to question Erick. He could not even be sure of his safety. How could he talk so big?
Erick looked seriously at Catherine and made a promise.
“Trust me. I will fulfill my words.”
The Winfreds’ property was not appealing to Catherine. If she wanted it, she could have it anytime. What was more interesting to her was that Erick was poor and powerless. What could he do to fight against the Winfreds and win?
She preferred to watch other people fight against each other rather than do it herself.
“Alright. That’s a deal.”
With that, Catherine strode out of the dungeon. The dungeon that was supposed to be secure against the assault meant nothing to Catherine.
Erick stared greedily after Catherine as she walked away. He wished he could have a chance to be by Catherine’s side like Ronin, even if only as a sidekick.
He believed he would have a chance to do it one day, regardless of whatever he needed to pay for it. It was soon time to go to the semi- finals.
They needed to set off to Oceanvile a day ahead to see the venue. Their school arranged for teachers to lead the teams to the competition and booked hotel rooms. The students did not need to worry. The day before they headed to Oceanvile, Audrey kept nagging Catherine.
“Kathy, I have prepared cold medicine and Band-Aids for you. Do you want some stomach medication?”
Catherine controlled the character in the game to lie down in the grass and looked up at Audrey. She said, “There are pharmacies and malls in Oceanvile.”
The hidden message in her words was that Audrey did not have to prepare those things.
Audrey knew what Catherine meant, but she still said earnestly to Catherine, “I know. Oceanvile is a big, well- developed city, and you can buy anything. But you need to bring these requisite things with you. What if you suddenly need them? It will be inconvenient for you to buy them by then.”
Catherine gave in to Audrey’s constant and considerate chatter. She focused on her mobile game again and let Audrey pack up for her.
While packing, Audrey chatted with her, “Kathy, I told my fan club about your semi-finals. I heard there would be online voting, and my fans all promised to vote for you.
“But don’t be stressed and enjoy the game. The results don’t matter, but the process does.”
Catherine pressed the buttons on the phone. After taking down the enemies, she put on a light smile and responded to Audrey occasionally.
No one knew if she smiled at her victory in the game or the considerate words from Audrey. The doorbell unexpectedly rang just as Audrey was about to continue talking.
Catherine was immersed in her game, so Audrey answered the door.
It was Branden standing outside. Audrey knew he must be there looking for Catherine. Audrey had no guts to be with Branden alone, so she shouted at Catherine inside the house, “Kathy, Mr. Duncan is here.”
“Ask him to wait for a while. I will go out when I finish the game.”
Audrey was almost scared out of her wits hearing Catherine’s response. She looked at Branden with a reddened face and dared not repeat Catherine’s words.
Branden did not need Audrey to repeat Catherine’s words for him. The door was open, and he had heard Catherine. Branden said to Audrey, who was awkward, “It’s fine. I will wait here.”
It was the first time Audrey saw Branden be so gentle and good- tempered. She was envious of and admired Catherine.
No one else other than her sister in Casier dared to ask Branden to wait outside the door. What was more, Branden was willing to wait. Catherine was impressive. Audrey felt the air become thin standing between Catherine and Branden.
She decided to escape from the scene for her safety.
“Kathy, I will go to the room and check for anything else you need to bring.”
She ran away from the door with no intention of delaying.After Audrey was gone, Branden walked into the living room and sat near Catherine. Catherine was halfway through the game. She knew it was Branden sitting and did not even look at him.
She moved closer to Branden and rested her head on his lap. Adjusting to a comfortable posture, she refocused on her game.
Branden did not feel annoyed at all. He gazed tenderly at Catherine and waited quietly for her to finish the game.
The scene looked warm and harmonious.
