Chapter 10 Chapter 10
Octavio's gaze followed Katherine to the top of the stairs.
He nudged his brother, excited:
“Hey, bro... did you see how Katherine looked at you? I'm sure she was mocking you. Looks like she doesn't like you very much, huh?”
João Pedro gave him a cold, direct look.
“Are you free? Have you finished your homework?”
Octavio's expression fell.
He laughed, trying to escape:
“JP, we'll talk about that later! First... let's talk about that car...”
“No way.”
The answer came quickly, cruelly, and coldly.
João Pedro walked past him and crossed the courtyard without looking back. Octavio, defeated, went back to pestering his father.
João Pedro walked to the building next door—his private office.
There, no one bothered him.
At the gate, a middle-aged man bowed respectfully.
“Sir.”
It was Marcus, João's driver and personal butler since his teenage years.
At 9:40 p.m., João finished a video conference.
Marcus brought him a cup of hot tea.
“Today, your older cousin introduced himself to the president,” he reported in a low, respectful voice. “He said that the initial plan for the new products has already been defined. The president was very pleased.”
João set down his tea.
No emotion crossed his calm, elegant gaze.
“Let him go,” he said simply. “And my other uncle?”
“He's still in France, looking for a renowned perfumer. He's in quite a hurry.”
Marcus realized that João hadn't heard anything after that. The young man was staring at his cell phone screen—specifically at a sequence of numbers.
“Sir... what number is that?”
João replied without looking up:
“Contact information for Sasha Luz's assistant.”
Marcus smiled immediately.
“If you can get Sasha Luz's help, taking over Cinedim will only be a matter of time. Nothing can stop your success!”
But João slowly looked up, as if revealing something obvious:
“You didn't recognize the owner of that number?”
Marcus's smile froze.
He picked up his cell phone, looked at it closely... and then turned pale.
“That... isn't that the number you received yesterday? Miss Kath's number?”
He swallowed hard. “So... Miss Kath is Sasha Luz's assistant?!”
João put his cell phone down on the table, looking away toward the window.
His voice was cold... but charged with something Marcus had never heard before.
“I saw her at the auction.
Her attitude... was extraordinary.”
The night lights reflected in his eyes—deep, indecipherable.
As if, for the first time, something had really captured his interest.
“Miss Kath is Irene Campos' daughter,” Marcus explained. "Even though she lived far from the city for so many years, Irene never let her be completely isolated. She introduced her to many of her contacts. And since Irene loved creating fragrances and meeting with talented people in the field, it's quite possible that Miss Kath knew Sasha Luz.
João looked up, his gaze as deep as a tranquil abyss.
“Actually, you know quite a lot.”
Marcus lowered his head, smiling.
“Irene was very close to your grandfather. I only knew about these things because I ran errands for him.” He hesitated for a moment. “And, boss... there's something I haven't told you yet.”
“Go ahead.”
João's voice remained calm and steady.
“During the time you were in the countryside recovering six years ago... there was a very pretty girl who sent us freshly prepared herbal medicines every day.”
João's eyes, always unflappable, fluttered slightly.
As if something forgotten in that distant time had resurfaced—a soft, cold whisper, yet clearer and more comforting than anything else in his dark days.
Marcus confirmed:
"In my entire life, I have never seen anyone as beautiful as her. It was definitely Miss Katherine.
This conversation traveled through the air like a distant echo...
And it reached the bathroom of one of the rooms in the building next door.
Katherine opened her eyes.
Hot water ran down her body as her lips curved into a mischievous smile—and dangerously amused.
She heard everything perfectly.
In the other room, there was absolute silence.
João Pedro didn't say a single word.
The air seemed to freeze.
Then Marcus continued, with a slight laugh:
“Speaking of which, boss, back then, you were practically this young lady's junior disciple, you know? The madam took such good care of her... she was adorable.”
Katherine also lost herself in memories.
Her lips curved into a soft, almost nostalgic smile... until she heard João Pedro's cold, sharp, indifferent voice:
“If she were considered adorable... there would be no adorable women in this world.”
Katherine's smile disappeared, replaced by an ironic, cold, and disdainful gasp.
Arrogant to the last hair on his head...
After her shower, she dried her hair, slowly left the bathroom, grabbed a bottle of water, and drank it all in one go.
Marcus's voice echoed again from the office next door:
"That young lady is truly unfortunate. To this day, I don't know why she didn't win Daniel Lutz's heart.
He said she was possessed by an aura of misfortune, so he sent her to a temple for purification. For half a year, fine... but to leave her there for over a decade...“ Marcus sighed. ”A girl born into a powerful family... living like a beggar in the countryside.
That sigh irritated Katherine deeply.
Her face hardened, losing all trace of lightness.
Expressionless, she picked up her hearing aid.
And put it on.
The world fell silent in a second.
Peace.
Stillness.
No annoying voices.
At that moment, her phone vibrated.
She picked it up, looked at the screen... and her eyes narrowed slightly.
The phone vibrated.
\[M: Honey, I'm coming back to Grearon next week!\]
Katherine typed without much interest:
\[Kath: Welcome back.\]
\[M: Would you take me back?\]
\[Kath: There are three houses. Choose any one. I'm not coming back.\]
\[M: I love you so much!\]
She barely reacted before another notification popped up:
\[Mr. Malvares: Kath, are you still feeling sick?\]
\[Kath: I'm fine for now.\]
\[Mr. Malvares: Don't blame me for insisting, but you should meet with João again to confirm. If his body odor really works, it could be a shortcut to developing a highly effective medicine.\]
Katherine grimaced and replied only:
\[Kath: OK.\]
The next message almost made her throw her phone away:
\[Mr. Malvares: If necessary, you can kiss him. The effect may be even greater!\]
\[Kath: ...How cheeky.\]
\[Mr. Malvares: That's how it is in Korean dramas, hahaha.\]
Katherine closed her phone without replying.
After drying her hair, she looked out the window and stared at the house next door—the one that belonged to João Pedro Arbex.
Her mother had left clear instructions: find all of Daniela Arbex's experimental data, electronic or printed.
In five days, she searched every possible place... except that two-story house.
Supposedly, Daniela had lived there for a while.
Tonight would be her last chance.