Chapter 63 Children's instincts, after all, were sharp.
When she returned to the car, Nísia found Daniel looking even more somber. He had seen everything. “Dad, she’s not coming. She... seems to already have plans with her boyfriend.”
“Boyfriend? What boyfriend?” Rosana feigned dramatic shock.
Daniel Lutz raised his eyebrows, astonishment crossing his stern face. “It's Gabriel Park, from the Park family,” Nísia informed him, dripping with venom. “They've been together since yesterday.”
Rosana grabbed her husband's arm with feigned concern. “Honey, should we try to persuade her? Why doesn't that girl ever learn how to behave?”
Daniel seemed lost in thought. There was something deeper in his gaze than just anger. Two seconds later, he asked in a muffled voice, “How is her academic performance?”
Nísia hesitated before delivering the final blow. “I'm not sure, but today she was the main topic of discussion on the school forum. Everyone is outraged by possible favoritism...”
“What post? Let me see!” Rosana took Nísia's cell phone and placed it in front of her husband.
The post was a dossier against Katherine, listing her “crimes,” her lack of interest, and protesting her transfer to the advanced class. Daniel read everything in silence.
“Honey, Kath never cared about her studies,” Rosana commented.
“Why would the school want to promote her now?”
Daniel closed his eyes for a moment. “What were her last exam results?”
“Ah...” Rosana began, with a tone of pity. “She barely passed Portuguese and English, failed Chemistry by ten points, and got less than a third of the grade in Physics.” Biology was a little better, but she still didn't pass. Of course, these are university-level exams, but...
Daniel frowned, the vein in his temple throbbing. “What shameful results. She's embarrassing me!” He took a deep breath and stared at Nísia. “What about her homework?”
“I don't know, Dad. She's very cold to me, she doesn't want to talk.”
“If she doesn't want to talk, you're the one who should seek her out!” Daniel's voice rose in tone, laden with sudden displeasure. “She's the older sister, and you're the younger one. Learn to deal with her.”
Silence fell like a bomb inside the car. Rosana and Nísia were frozen, shocked by Daniel's unexpected reaction. He wasn't just angry with Katherine; he was angry at his lack of control over the situation.
Inside the Rolls-Royce, Rosana tried to appease her husband with her velvety voice: "Honey, you're blaming Nísia unfairly. She really cares about Kath, but the girl is a wild animal; there's nothing we can do if she isolates herself.“
Daniel's expression softened slightly, but his order was pragmatic: ”Nísia, your grades in math and science are excellent. Find time to teach your sister. I want her to be at least above average so she doesn't tarnish my name."
Nísia hesitated, her heart racing. “But, Dad... the test is tomorrow...”
“Don't worry, you still have your competition. Rosana,” Daniel turned to his wife, “hire an elite tutor. I want this girl's grades to be presentable by the end of the semester.”
Rosana nodded, although the idea of spending money on Katherine irritated her deeply. Nísia, wanting to sow more discord, whispered, “What about... her boyfriend?”
“Leave them alone,” Daniel narrowed his eyes, absorbed. “That may be useful later.”
At the end of the afternoon, Katherine waited for the school to empty before leaving. In the silent hallway, the scent of Gabriel Park's perfume betrayed his presence even before he appeared.
“What are you doing there, sneaking around like that?” Katherine asked, without stopping.
Gabriel emerged from the shadows with a look of pure guilt. “Katherine... I'm sorry. I lost the notes you lent me.”
Katherine stopped, her eyes narrowing. “Lost?”
“I don't understand!” Gabriel was frustrated. “I used them at lunch. When I went to review them in the afternoon, they were gone from the book. What can I do to make you forgive me?”
“Let's see about that now.”
They went to Room 25.
Gabriel rummaged through the drawer, the backpacks, everything, but the paper with João Pedro's handwriting had vanished. Katherine didn't waste time looking on the floor; she looked directly at the room's surveillance camera.
Minutes later, in the security room, the image on the screen left no doubt: the slender figure of Nísia Oliveira rummaging through Gabriel's things when the room was empty.
“Her?” Gabriel let out an incredulous laugh. “But she's one of the best in school, why on earth would she steal your notes?”
Katherine didn't answer. Before Gabriel could call to confront Nísia, Katherine's cell phone vibrated. It was a call from Nísia herself. Katherine answered, but remained silent, just listening.
“Sis,” Nísia's voice sounded sweet and fake on the other end, “if you have some time, come home. Dad found a high-level private tutor for you. Come meet him.”
Katherine hung up without saying ‘hi’ or “bye.” “Let's go to the Lutz mansion.”
Gabriel drove her there quickly. As soon as the car stopped at the entrance, a little boy ran out of the house, his face lit up with a genuine joy that didn't match the rest of the family.
“Sis! Sis!” Heitor Lutz jumped for joy, running towards her.
“Wow, is this your little brother?” Gabriel laughed, getting out of the car. “He looks just like you, a mini heartthrob.”
Katherine kept a neutral expression, but her gaze softened when she saw Heitor. There was a restlessness in her, an unfamiliarity with that affection, but she did not reject him. Heitor jumped and hugged her tightly.
“Sis, you're back! I asked them to make all your favorite foods. Mom said you're picky about food, right?”
Katherine coughed, slightly uncomfortable with the effusiveness, and gently pushed him away. “Stand up straight, Heitor.”
The boy immediately stood at attention, saluting. “Yes, ma'am!” He then turned to Gabriel with an inquisitive look. “And who are you?”
“Me?” Gabriel took a deliberate step closer to Katherine, wanting to mark his territory. “I'm a good friend of your sister's...”
Heitor sighed with relief, measuring Gabriel from head to toe with childish disdain. “Oh, just a friend? Phew! I was afraid you were her boyfriend. You're no match for the Arbex brothers.”
Gabriel froze in place, his smile instantly fading. Katherine, on the other hand, felt a twinge of amusement. Children's instincts, after all, were sharp.