Chapter 11: Arcana?
The day Lara was sad passed, and all I could do was be there for her until she stopped crying. After that day, I never saw her joyful smile again.
Three days went by, and I haven't seen Lara in the office. I tried asking our lead about it because I was worried. However, he just told me that Lara is on vacation leave and won't be back for a while.
In my thoughts, Lara might be taking time to recover, or perhaps her father in prison is making arrangements.
I still feel an overwhelming sense of guilt for my actions. At that time, I didn't consider the consequences when I manipulated her father. It was only later that I realized she would bear the blame for Red's death.
During those moments, I had no empathy, thinking that all police officers had corrupted minds, so I didn't care about their fates. However, now I regret my actions, seeing how deeply Lara is affected by the situation.
I need to find a solution, but it seems like it's too late for everything. If I confess that I am the reason behind that incident, it will surely bring more sadness and anger to Lara. It will also render my cause meaningless. I have to come up with something to make Lara's father appear innocent in my efforts to avoid causing further harm.
After my work hours that day, I walked home, lost in thought about finding a way to help Lara's father. While I was not focused on my surroundings, I accidentally bumped into a woman. Her bag fell, and I helped her pick it up. I apologized for not paying attention to where I was going. Surprisingly, she didn't get mad or irritated. Instead, she smiled at me as if she had something unique to say.
"Hehe, found you!" she exclaimed while I couldn't understand why she said that.
"Sorry, Miss?" I replied with a hint of confusion.
"By the way, I'm Katherine. You don't need to address me formally; I'm sure we'll get along. I've been looking for you for a long time, and finally, I found you. So, my decision was right, and my investigation bore fruit," she said, smiling with a hidden meaning.