I froze for a brief second when I heard the voice from the phone.
It sounded familiar.
Too familiar.
But I refused to jump to conclusions.
Instead, I calmly took the phone from Ava.
"We are at the ice cream stand not too far from the horror part of the park," I said. "There's a drink stand beside it where you can see most of the park. Come there."
"Thank you, madam. I really appreciate it. I'll be there shortly," he replied.
The call ended.
I handed the phone back to Ava.
"So your name is Ava?" I asked.
She nodded.
"What's your name?" she asked softly.
"Catherine."
Her eyes lit up slightly.
"Pretty name… and you're very beautiful. Lavender fits you," she said before suddenly lowering her head.
I smiled faintly.
"Thank you, Ava. You're beautiful too. That's what caught my attention before those kids started bothering you."
She didn't respond.
Her head remained lowered.
"What's wrong?" I asked gently.
She hesitated… then spoke.
"I feel like I'm always causing trouble," she whispered. "My mom died because of me… my uncle is worried because of me… those kids bullied me… you had to help me…"
Her voice broke.
"What if you had something important to do? I'm just… trouble…"
She wiped her tears with trembling hands.
"Wouldn't it have been better if I died instead of my mom?"
My chest tightened slightly.
Why does a child have to think like this?
I pulled her closer and hugged her gently.
"Ava," I said softly, "you are the most beautiful girl I've ever seen."
She sniffled.
"Your mom didn't sacrifice herself so you could blame yourself," I continued. "She did it so you could live. So the only way to repay her… is to live happily."
She looked up at me slowly.
"When you miss her, look at the sky," I added. "Talk to her. You'll feel better."
She blinked.
"How do you know that?"
I paused briefly.
"Because… my mother is gone too," I said quietly.
Her expression softened.
"I'm sorry," she said.
We both smiled faintly at each other.
That was when I noticed a shadow nearby.
Someone had been standing there for a while.
I thought it was just another passerby.
Until—
"Uncle!" Ava suddenly shouted.
I looked up.
And there he was.
Mr. Handsome.
So… this is his niece.
Interesting.
He walked toward us, his expression softening the moment he looked at Ava.
The way he spoke to her…
Gentle. Careful.
Completely different from the man I met before.
"Are you okay?" he asked her.
She nodded quickly.
"She helped me," Ava said, pointing at me.
His gaze shifted to me.
"Thank you," he said sincerely. "I really appreciate it."
I simply nodded.
"Let's go sit over there," he added, pointing at the drink stand.
I agreed.
We ordered drinks.
As expected, I chose my favorite.
Grape juice with a hint of mint.
When it arrived, I took a slow sip and closed my eyes briefly, savoring the taste.
Even in chaos…
Some things remain constant.
"Once again, thank you," he said.
"I understand," I replied calmly. "Now, can we get to the reason you wanted to see me?"
I leaned back slightly.
"And introduce yourself properly this time. I wouldn't want to call you something troublesome again."
He smirked faintly.
"What did you call me before?"
I looked at him.
"Mr. bad luck."
Instead of getting angry, he laughed.
But beneath that laughter…
There was pain.
"I'm Elvin George," he said. "Nice to meet you, Catherine Mason."
So he knows my name.
Expected.
He leaned forward slightly.
"Let's get straight to it. Why did you tell me to investigate Mr. Mason's trusted aide? How did you know the company would collapse? And yet you still chose to stay close to him."
His eyes locked onto mine.
"Are you a friend… or an enemy?"
I laughed softly.
"I'm neither," I replied. "I'm simply someone who returns favors. Threefold."
I paused.
"If you insist on an answer… then I'd say I'm a friend. For now."
Then I tilted my head slightly.
"But what about you?"
"Are you someone I can trust?"
He didn't respond immediately.
"I don't trust people," I continued. "Not even my own father. So what makes you think I would trust you?"
Silence.
Then I spoke again.
"Let's make a deal."
He smiled.
"I expected that," he said. "But I'll only agree on one condition. Tell me your deal first."
I looked at him directly.
"Who is Elorah to you?"
His expression changed slightly.
"How close are you to her?"
He chuckled.
"I thought you'd propose something bigger," he said. "Do you have another offer?"
I shrugged.
"No. You know what she did to me. So you should understand why that question matters."
He studied me for a moment.
"Fine," he said. "I agree."
Then he leaned forward slightly.
"My condition…"
"You will take care of Ava for two years."
I frowned slightly.
"Why?"
He didn't hesitate.
"Because passing through the process of bringing a mission to you, I would rather strike deal.
My eyes narrowed slightly.
"Mee J," he added quietly.
I leaned back slowly, a faint smile forming on my lips.
"Two years…" I repeated softly.
Then I looked at Ava, who had fallen asleep peacefully beside us.
Then back at him.
"You're really making a dangerous deal," I said.