CHAPTER 927: ORION AND KATE (PART-7)

A crisp woman’s voice answered on the other end, belonging to none other than Kate. "Can your crew take care of them?" It seemed quite casual, as if she were used to ordering such things regularly.

The man’s eyes flicked to the street entrance. "Kill or capture?"

"Kill them all if possible," the woman said. "But the one who met Mark — capture him alive." There was a beat. "If you need more resources, name your price."

The man hesitated for a fraction, then spoke. "But the one you told me to capture is a Rank-7 and he has eight more in his gang. It’s a high-risk job. So, an additional 3 million will be charged."

A slow click on the line. "I’ll give you five million if you bring me that one alive. But do not fail at any cost, and it has to be done by tomorrow evening." Kate’s voice hardened into command. "And one more thing about Mark — don’t kill him yet."

"Should I leave him or imprison him?" the man asked.

"You’ll get the instruction later. But for now, keep him with you. You can also use him as a bait to draw them out, too... I don’t care as long as he is alive and remains healthy." Her voice was flat and final.

The man’s jaw set. "Understood."

He checked Mark with a gloved hand, pulsing slowly from the sedative but steady. "Alright. I’ll call you after completing the job." With practiced efficiency, he slipped a pair of anti-soul energy cuffs around Mark’s wrists and hauled him toward a waiting van parked nearby. Two figures stepped out silently and loaded Mark into the back like merchandise.

Hotel Mariotte;

Late in the evening, after dinner, in the corner of the room, Kate was busy with some work while Orion sat on the couch with his head slightly lowered as he scrolled through his phone. A message from Luna blinked at the top of the screen.

Luna: Will you return by tomorrow for sure?

Orion typed back calmly.

Orion: Yeah. Once the job is finished and send the client away, i will return.

Luna: I wonder what dad is thinking, sending you for a mere bodyguard duty.

Orion: Who knows...

He hit send with a smile. But then in the next second, he leaned back, letting out a small breath. "I don’t feel good lying to her like this... It’s not like I’m cheating on her, but it feels like I am... Sigh..."

Meanwhile, Kate scrolled through endless documents and chat threads as she was discussing things with her company soul energygement, regarding the items going to be displayed in the auction. Her brows furrowed slightly, then she let out a low groan and shut the laptop with a snap.

She took off her glasses, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Ugh... So troublesome..."

Orion turned slightly from the couch at her groan. "Everything alright?" he asked.

Kate smiled faintly, brushing back a strand of hair. "It’s fine... the auction list just got released. My team is arguing about the closing bids again. Since the first round is a blind auction, we can’t see our competitors’ prices, so... we have to make sure to win them and yet not at a price that we make a loss."

Orion tilted his head. "Sounds tiring."

"Tiring is an understatement," she muttered, stretching her arms. "But that’s how it is in business. Everyone merely looked confident on the surface while secretly biting their nails."

He almost asked more, but stopped himself. The world of auctions and corporate bids wasn’t his interest anyway. So, he simply nodded in silence.

Kate noticed his restraint, her eyes softening for a moment. Then she yawned, stretching her body as she got up. "Anyway, we need to catch the early flight tomorrow. Go to sleep, Orion. No need to play night guard again."

Orion blinked once. "Alright."

It was then that Kate finally looked around the room and realized something.

Unlike the luxurious Oasis Hotel suite they had stayed in before, the Mariotte was far simpler. The executive suite they booked without thinking much had a small couch, a work desk, and one queen‑sized bed, which is clearly for couples.

"Oh," she said, her tone somewhere between surprise and amusement. "Seems I didn’t check the room details properly."

Orion looked at the single bed, then at her, "I can just sleep here on the couch—"

"Don’t be ridiculous. Look at yourself and the couch. There is no way you can fit in, much less sleep comfortably," she cut in, patting the empty space beside her as she sat down on the bed. "It’s big enough. Come on."

He didn’t move right away. His expression froze, staring at the bed space. Kate caught it and couldn’t help but grin.

"What?" she teased, carrying that playful voice again. "Don’t tell me you’re worried you’ll take advantage of my body or something?"

Orion cleared his throat quietly. "That’s not—"

She laughed softly, waving her hand. "Relax. I’m not drugged or delirious this time. And I know that you won’t try to do anything to me either." Then, lowering her voice just a touch, she added, "If you were the type to be tempted, you would’ve done it yesterday when I was most vulnerable."

Her tone might sound teasing, but her eyes held quiet sincerity. "Don’t overthink it," she said, lying back and patting the bed again. "Come and just sleep. We have a long day ahead."

Orion hesitated one last second before he exhaled and walked to the bed. The mattress dipped slightly as he lay beside her, keeping a careful space between them. The faint scent of her perfume lingered in the air. Orion, nevertheless, calmed down his heartbeat and shut his eyes.

Kate turned away from him, resting her head on the pillow. A tiny smile tugged at her lips. She murmured under her breath, "He’s cute sometimes..."

As the lights were switched off, both of them had gone to sleep. Outside, the city lights flickered, and the quiet hum of the night carried them both into a small stillness.

The next morning.

As the rays of the first light fell through the curtains and filled the room, Orion slowly opened his eyes, only to feel a grip on his body. As his eyes glanced to the left, he was taken aback to see that the blonde beauty was hugging him like a teddy bear beneath the blanket they shared, her bosom touching his side while her leg was over his pants. "Wha..."

Sensing the sponginess, Orion instantly sprang up from the bed, jumping away. That sudden movement stirred her up, but not much. As she continued to sleep, hugging the blanket, Orion shook his head, murmuring, "Man, if I stayed with this girl too long, I might end up doing something that I will regret. Let’s just do the job and send her away. Today is the last day."

An hour later;

In the dining hall, as Orion and Kate were enjoying breakfast, the latter had one eye on a few notes on her tablet while Orion scrolled through his phone, checking out his social media account, which currently has generated over 12.7k followers.

A message notification then blinked across the screen. It was from Selene.

Selene: Luna and I are already at the railway station, ready to depart. Are you sure you cannot reach Ashford City by the time?

Orion typed right away.

Orion: Sorry.

Selene: It’s fine. Luna is with us anyway.

Orion smiled faintly at the screen — a small, genuine smile that even Kate didn’t notice. And barely ten seconds later, another message popped up. This time, it was from his secret girlfriend of three months.

Luna: I will act as if i don’t know you at Ashford City. Let’s meet after the auction, Darling.

He chuckled quietly and typed back.

Orion: You can look forward to the date, wifey.

Pocketing his phone, he turned his gaze toward the passing clouds in the sky. "How long has it been since we went on a date. I’ll make sure it will be perfect."

Originally, Orion had a crush on Selene since the moment he saw her, but after accepting Buddhist teachings, he became some sort of a celibate who didn’t care about relationships anyway.

But after getting into the tower of Abel, under Gideon’s teachings and spars with Ziz, Orion’s personality slowly changed over time. For the outside work, he still acts as if he is a haired-monk but inwardly, his personality reached some sort of equilibrium between the celibate and the lusty one he was, before.

Roughly a few weeks after his entry into the tower, Luna joined the Tower to study in the library. At first, Orion took her as Selene, and over the time, he fell in love with her. He found the truth right when Estella came to the tower to argue with Gideon about Selene’s marriage with Azzy, but Orion forgave her in understanding and proposed to her. For three months, they were dating each other in secret.

*

By the time their plane landed in Ashford City, it was already past 10:30 a.m.

Unlike at White City, where the weather has been typically cloudy with moderate temperatures for the past month, here, the weather looked quite crisp, with the temperatures being warm.

Kate could already sweat a bit as soon as she stepped out of the Airport. They didn’t roam around and went straight from the airport to the Four Seasons Hotel, where Kate booked the only Presidential suite. But the moment they reached the reception desk, her expression changed.

"What do you mean the suite isn’t available?" she asked, sharply raising her brows.