Chapter 411 Connections
Branden went to pick up Catherine from school. After getting her homework, winter break had officially begun. The winter in Casier was a bit cold, so he planned to take Catherine to Oceanvile.
Besides, the business of the Swann Corporation and the Duncan Corporation had been doing well there lately. The man had it all planned out in his mind, but he still needed to ask Catherine’s advice.
“Do you have any plans for winter break? If not, how about I take you to Oceanvile for the winter?”
Catherine might have regarded Branden’s arrangement favorably if she hadn’t taken the training mission to Scorpion Island.
Rodge had messaged her a couple of times for help, and Dr. Dunn had been urging her to make a trip over there.
“No!” Catherine instantly rejected the man. “I’ve got to go to Alton to tutor those brats… I promised and took the money. It can’t be refunded!”
In her opinion, training those rookies was just like tutoring little kids!
“For how long?” The smile on the man’s face was already fading.
Catherine casually replied, “About a month!”
Although it wouldn’t take a month, Catherine preferred to grant a wide range of time to cope with all sorts of changes.
The winter break was less than 40 days, and Catherine would be gone for a month. Three days was long enough for Branden, and when he heard this, his brows instantly furrowed.
“Can’t you not go? I’ll pay for the tuition. Double!”
The man’s generosity took Catherine by surprise. She clicked her tongue and thought, “He offers double without asking me how much the tuition fee is?”
“No, I have to go!” Catherine rejected and winked at the man, a naughty and adorable look on her face.
“I’m not the kind of person who gives in to money. I am a person of principle!
It sounded like a joke, but the man knew that Catherine had made up her mind. Knowing that he couldn’t persuade her, the man could only reach out and embrace Catherine into his arms, letting her sit on his lap and hug her tightly.
After all, they were about to be separated for a month, and the thought of going through such a long period without seeing each other made him feel irritable and depressed.
“The Duncan Corporation has a branch in Alton. Can I arrange for someone there to take care of you if you go over there?”
Catherine could see the man’s depression and held back her laughter inside. As compensation, Catherine agreed to his request. “Okay!”
After returning to the apartment, Catherine ran into Audrey, who rarely had free time at home, and Catherine told her that she would be going abroad for a month during her winter break.
Audrey immediately shouted, “Kathy, you’re going abroad for a month alone? How can that be?”
Then she added, “Kathy, how about I go with you? It’s risky for you to be alone in a foreign country.”
Images of crises instantly flashed through Audrey’s mind, scaring her pale!
Catherine repeated inwardly, “Risky to be alone in a foreign country?”
Catherine could not understand why Audrey was worried about her being in danger. She felt that Audrey should be more concerned about the brats she would train. After all, they were the ones who were in danger.
Hearing Audrey say that she would accompany her abroad, Catherine looked at her with a raised eyebrow and a playful look in her eyes.
“Don’t you have an audition next week? After that, you’ll likely be on the set getting ready for the shoot, so how can you go with me?”
Catherine’s words instantly put Audrey in a tangle.
Kim had said that there was a good chance that she would be selected this time, and it would be a waste to miss out on a movie as good as Cloudy World.
But Audrey still felt uneasy about Catherine going abroad alone and surrounding herself with danger.
After a long time of struggling, Audrey made her final decision.
“Kathy, I’ve made up my mind. I’m going to go with you to Alton. That movie is a big production, and the chances of me being chosen are slim. Besides, compared to your safety, a movie is nothing.”
“Nothing?” thought Catherine.
She stared at Audrey, and for a moment, Catherine felt that she had never understood Audrey.
She clearly knew how much Audrey cared about this movie. Otherwise, Audrey wouldn’t sacrifice her sleep to read the script.
But now, Audrey was giving up this opportunity to accompany her abroad.
And she even said her safety was more important than the opportunity!
Audrey’s words kept echoing in Catherine’s mind as she gradually returned to her senses, her initially blank eyes lighting up.
“You don’t have to accompany me to Alton. The Duncans have a company over there, and Branden will arrange for someone to take care of me.”
After that, she added, “Focus on your practice. I believe you’ll be in a position to be selected!”
It was rare to hear Catherine say so much at once, and Audrey was a bit surprised.
She almost forgot that Catherine had a big shot like Branden beside her. After all, the Duncans’ industries were spread all over the world.
Since Branden said that he would arrange for someone to take care of Catherine, Audrey could rest assured.
“Kathy, do you really think I’ll be able to succeed in the audition?”
Catherine nodded her head without hesitation. Although movies were not what Audrey was good at, she had seen Audrey’s performance at home, and it was indeed not bad.
Catherine’s affirmation gave Audrey the greatest encouragement, and Audrey’s eyes crinkled as she smiled.
“Kathy, that’s really nice of you. Thanks for your affirmation, and I’m super happy!”
“There is still a long way to go, but I’ll work hard. Kim said that those like me who passed the second round of auditions would have a chance to show their faces in the movie. But only if no one among the competitors has a strong background or connections.”
The entertainment industry was complex, and making a name without a background or backer was incredibly difficult.
It always took a while to start to matter. But if it was impossible to start, everything after that was a fantasy. Looking at Audrey’s silly smile of pleasure, Catherine could not help curling her lips upward.
She didn’t intend to tell Audrey that the person with the strongest connection in the entire Cloudy World crew was no one else but herself.
Although the Cloudy World project was the biggest project of Triston’s entertainment company next year, the financier behind it was the Duncan Corporation.
And the Duncan Corporation was willing to fund the project only because Audrey would be acting in the movie. As long as Audrey’s acting skills were up to par, no one could snatch her role!
Anyway, no one dared to stand against the Duncans in the whole of Zerwick. After talking about Catherine’s trip abroad, Audrey thought of another crucial thing.
“Kathy, if you’re going abroad for a month, will you return in time for Christmas?”
For people from Zerwick, Christmas was a very significant day, and they would go out of their way to return home for Christmas no matter where they were.
For Catherine, however, Christmas was a somewhat foreign word.
As far as she could remember, she didn’t seem to have celebrated Christmas, but looking at Audrey’s eyes full of expectation, Catherine couldn’t bear to refuse her.
“It depends. I’ll try my best!”
“Okay!” Audrey excitedly held Catherine’s arm. “Kathy, it doesn’t matter even if you come back on Christmas Eve, as long as you can be there. We’ll spend Christmas together as a family!”
“Family!” Catherine muttered inwardly.
Frowning slightly, Catherine mumbled in a hoarse voice, “Okay.”
