331 A New Member or a New Leader? 5

Christopher Curtis had been knocked out for a little over two minutes and when he gained back his consciousness, he groaned, feeling the pain at the back of his head where Damien had hit him. He raised his hand to feel the sore spot only to find out that he was restrained with handcuffs to a chair and so were his ankles.

He squinted his eyes, both from feeling the pain and also the sunlight that cast down his face from the open window. His vision was slightly blurry and he had a hard time making out the figures that were in front of him. He could sense that he was still in Katherine's living room because of the same lavender scent that he smelled when he walked in earlier. And when he finally managed to open his eyes—though a bit hazy—he saw several men in black suits all over the place.

Chris's eyes landed on Katherine who sat in front of him, placing one leg over the other and crossing her arms in front of her while she leaned back looking like a lady boss. Her brows were furrowed but her expression showed a few emotions at a time. He swore he could see a hint of worry amidst the hate written all over her face. And because of that, he felt a tiny bit better.

It hadn't been a few seconds when Chris became conscious and Katherine had already flicked her foot to his shin. "Start talking!" she hissed.

It made him chuckle seeing her like this. Typical Queen… Impatient, haughty, yet still so attractive. "Was it really necessary to knock me out?"

"No, but I don't want to take any chances."

Chris turned his head to the left where the voice who just spoke came from and saw Damien casually leaning against the wall with no hint of worry in his eyes like Katherine, except his was full of rage. It was the first time that he saw Damien face to face and right from the start he already sensed the latter's dominating aura. The man's coal-black eyes stared back at him with obvious threats and he wondered how Katherine could be with someone like Damien. 

Damien crossed his arms and his muscles bulged from the pose, but Chris believed that he didn't lose in terms of physique—even if the former was an inch taller, the latter thought that he could totally take him. Chris just had to get out of this stupid chair and handcuffs first.

Ignoring Damien, Chris turned to Katherine and gave her a serious look. Judging by what was happening, Chris assumed that Damien must already know Katherine's identity. "Why is your boyfriend here? Have you already broken your code?" 

"I don't live by the code anymore," she answered almost instantly. There were a lot of codes to live by in Shadow but one of the most important ones was to always keep everything about Shadow a secret from people outside of the organization. This was to protect the agents, the organization, and the outsiders. The moment that these outsiders know about Shadow's existence, it could be dangerous for everyone.

"What are you doing here, Chris?" Katherine interrupted his speech. She already knew what he meant and the reminder just painfully clawed her insides. Last night… when she decided to tell Damien everything, it was the most difficult thing she had ever done. And until now, she was still unsure about what she did but she laid her trust in Damien, not that she couldn't, but she had to. 

Hearing what Chris just said, Damien drifted his gaze to Katherine and wondered what the guy meant that she had protected him for so long. He had a feeling that it had something to do from five years ago. 

"Let's not waste our time. Tell me why you're here," she forced.

Sighing, Chris shook his head. "I'm just here to warn you about your little plan of trying to go against Parker."

"Yeah, you already said that last time."

"You don't get it, Katherine." Chris glanced at Damien, wondering how much he knows.

Realizing what Chris was thinking, she told him, "You can say what you need to say to me in front of him."

Damien shot his men a look and without even saying anything, his security detail left the room.

When it was only the three of them left in the living room, Chris continued, "Parker isn't the same as he was five years ago before you blew up Castle. Similarly, Shadow isn't the same. So if you think you can handle it alone, you're delusional. Walk away from this, Katherine. Have a new life and never look back."

"She's not alone." Damien clenched his jaw. His eyes darkened and his face hardened. "She has me."

Katherine's heart throbbed because of Damien's words. She already knew that but the way he said it just now made her feel confident. He's right. She wasn't alone. She has him. If Chris wasn't in the room right now, she would have probably flung herself towards him and kissed him smack on the lips for being so charming.

Contrary to Katherine's adoration, Chris scoffed at Damien's arrogance. He knew about his wealth, and the Park Family's capabilities but what was his money going to do? Hire an army? Knowing that Damien left the Park Family's influence and did not want to associate himself with them, moreover, his uncle was involved in the assassination of Katherine's parents, Chris knew that the other would most definitely not use the backing of the Parks. 

So wherever Damien's confidence came from, Chris found it laughable. "Really?" He chuckled. "And what are you going to do? Do you even know who you're up against?"

"It doesn't matter who they are. My family is the only thing that's important to me."

"The Parks? Those—"

"I'm not talking about my uncle." Damien walked over to Katherine and stood next to her. He already knew that Shadow knows about his family's business and he figured that Chris may have thought he was referring to them. "I'm talking about Katherine. She's my only family." He wanted to include Nana—maybe even his mother—but he didn't have to lay out his weaknesses to his enemy. "So, I don't care if you think that Shadow is invincible. Even the strongest will fall."

Chris stared at Damien, studying his determined expression and shrugged. "I must admit… You have a very strong resolution. However, only time will tell who will win. That is… if Parker doesn't get to you first."

Katherine uncrossed her legs and leaned forward, her heart raced as she studied Chris. "What do you mean? What are you planning?"

"Not me. Parker. I told you I can only do so much for you, Katherine. The moment I reported back to him last Saturday, he gave me an assignment." Chris looked at Damien. "A thorough research about Mr. Damien Park. You know what that means, right? Queen?"

She balled her hands into fists, shaking in rage at the thought of having Damien under Parker's radar. This was what she was most afraid of. Even after trying her best not to put his life in danger, her fear still happened without her knowing.