Chapter 228 - Playing as Katherine Young

"Damn it. What time is it?" Katherine shot to her feet and whipped out her cellphone, pressing the on button.

"It's half past four. Why?" Styles asked, wondering what made Katherine stressed so suddenly.

"I was supposed to call Grandpa an hour ago." She was already on her way towards the bedroom to get some privacy, racking her brains thinking about how to talk to the old man when she calls him.

Leaving Styles and Amelia at the living room, Katherine closed the bedroom door and breathed deeply before dialing her grandfather's phone number. It only took one ring and her call came through right away.

"Katherine! Where have you been? You said you were going to call me an hour ago. I was so worried—"

"Sorry, Grandpa. I fell asleep and only woke up just now. I called you as soon as I did," Katherine lied so smoothly, even faking a yawn as though she really had just woken up. She wished. She was so tired that she probably would fall asleep as soon as her back hits the mattress.

"Is that so? That's okay. I was just worried. That's all. How have you been? When are you coming back?" he asked. His last question was a constant one every time he and Katherine spoke over the phone.

"I'm fine, Grandpa. About that… I may be coming back soon. I don't know when yet but I will see you soon for sure."

"Really? That's great news! I will prepare for your return! Tell me right away when you're coming back so I can welcome you properly."

Katherine silently sighed. Like always, she patiently reminded her grandfather, "Grandpa… I don't want anything grand… Also, please… don't—"

"I know, I know… I'm not going to announce it. Don't worry. But you can't stop me from preparing the house for you upon your return. I have to at least welcome you properly at home."

Home. The Young Mansion was going to be her home.

Katherine let out a smile, shaking her head as she imagined what her grandfather was planning. The two of them talked for a few more minutes with Katherine telling her grandfather what she saw in California. She had been telling him about the beaches most of the time. Though for the weeks that she had been away for bounty hunting, traveling from state to state, she had only seen the beach twice and it was a few days ago in California — on the airplane when it was about to land… and the second one was shortly after takeoff.

Her grandfather started talking about what they could do when she comes home. He sounded so excited as he enumerated the things that they could do together, most of which were the things that the two of them enjoyed doing when she was still a little girl. Her heart warmed at the thought that after all these years, she was finally going home to her family.

However, it wasn't going to be easy. Once she comes out of hiding, Shadow will definitely know about her being alive. 

She had to figure out how to pacify that nefarious organization or she would have to keep watching her back for bullets and sharp knives all the time.

In her case, it will most probably be a bullet in the head.

…

Katherine went back to the living room and found Styles and Amelia in deep conversation. Styles had set up a mini work area, his ultra high-tech laptop running a complicated-looking software.

She couldn't understand everything but it looked like Styles just hacked into the police's database. "What are you doing?"

"Mmm…" Styles's fingers danced on the keyboard as he spoke without looking up. "I'm running the software to check if there are APB 1 on us. I have to check it every couple of hours since we arrived in Esmea just to make sure we're in the clear and the popos aren't out to get us."

Katherine narrowed her eyes for a brief second and studied the monitor. There were a bunch of tabs opened but the screen that they were watching at the moment contained information about wanted suspects or a person of interest that the law enforcement officers need to look out for. Styles was making sure that they would know immediately if they were going to suddenly pop up on the police's watchlist.

"So… Tell me, why do I need to be Katherine Young? I mean I am her, but what did you mean when you said that?" Katherine strolled towards them and sat on a chair facing them.

Amelia dragged her gaze away from the monitor and faced Katherine as she answered, "This is going to be a rather bold move but this will also ensure your safety at the same time."

"You're not telling me to announce to the whole world who I am, are you?"

"That's exactly what we need to do, Queen." Styles closed his laptop and sipped on his cold drink. "A grand entrance."

"You're kidding…" Katherine raised a brow at him and couldn't help but chuckle upon hearing what he just told her. However, Styles only gave her a shrug while Amelia had a stoic expression. "You're… not kidding."

"No."

"Now, hold on…" Katherine took a deep breath and cleared her throat. "Just to make sure that we're on the same page… You two are telling me that I need to announce to the whole world… make a grand entrance of who I am…"

"That's right," Amelia confirmed, her face still devoid of amusement.

"Now… Why the hell would I do that?" Katherine crossed her arms in front of her chest as she tried to understand where they were getting at. "I'm supposed to be under the radar in order not to attract Parker's attention. Isn't having a grand entrance just the opposite of that? It's like requesting an immediate airstrike."

"Darling," Amelia started, "Whether you go back out there lowkey or even the ostentatious way, we're pretty sure that Parker will get a whiff of it one way or the other. After all, your identity isn't just that of a commoner – you're the heir of Young Corporation. But, if you announce it in a grand way, we can at least gain control of what is about to come. Rather than not knowing if someone is coming after you, we will know what to anticipate and even prepare for it.

"For sure the media will feast on this story. Where have you been for the past sixteen years of your life? How come you only appeared now? In order for this to work, we need to sell the story that you had indeed been in an accident and you have no recollection of your past. When Parker sees this news, he will be cautious about his movements."

Katherine tried to imagine the future and all she could see was blood. She could take care of herself but what about her grandfather and her aunt? How was she going to protect them while trying to stay alive at the same time?

"If you're worried about your family, you can rest assured that Parker wouldn't touch them. As bad as he is, he lives by his code. As long as they don't pose a threat to him, they won't be a target… He will be likely to focus on you instead."

"Huh… That sounds reassuring…" Katherine swallowed.

"There's one more thing..." Amelia held up one finger and continued, "You need to make sure you can get into Young Corporation. In order to take down Shadow, we need connections. If you have a position in your family's company, that will be a great disguise for you — at the same time, it will be easier for us to see who was behind Operation Scorpion."

The room went silent as Katherine thought about their plan. Compared to her previous missions in Shadow, this was the most dangerous one because she wasn't posing as someone else. 

She needed to play her part well… as herself.

As Katherine Young.

An all-points bulletin (APB) is a broadcast issued from any American or Canadian law enforcement agency to its personnel, or to other law enforcement agencies. It typically contains information about a wanted suspect who is to be arrested or a person of interest, for whom law enforcement officers are to look. (Source:Wikipedia)