Chapter 74 The walls have ears

"Innis is a likable young man."

That's how the restaurant staff all described the new blond waiter. And so, this friendly, hardworking, and efficient man quickly became friends with everyone around him without breaking a sweat.

The customers who came to dine also had a good impression of the blond waiter, and he earned a considerable amount of tips over a few days.

"Mr. Lig is so popular everywhere!" Mr. Cat complimented.

"No matter what, he can't possibly be compared to Mr. Ferris," a waiter who was taking a short break in the kitchen retorted.

"Huh? Mr. Lig hasn't won that lady's favor yet?"

Unfortunately, she didn't come today. It seems I'll have to wait until next time to see her.

Why did Catherine cancel her appointment at the last minute?

Bourbon had many guesses. Perhaps the timing was just bad. Perhaps there was some urgent matter to attend to, or perhaps this meal was no longer necessary.

However, as it turned out, all his guesses were wrong.

Although Catherine canceled her reservation, she still arrived at the restaurant as agreed: the reservation was made by another young woman.

In other words, it was originally Catherine who invited the other party to dinner, but now the roles have been reversed.

Bourbon couldn't understand why they couldn't just explain such a simple matter to the front desk and change the appointment! Why make it so complicated?

Through this detail, Bourbon vaguely sensed that the relationship between the two was somewhat subtle. He sized up the unfamiliar woman:

Catherine's usual dinner patrons were all men in suits, mature and composed, and women shrewd, capable, and adorned with jewelry. But this man before her was young and somewhat immature. Although she could tell he had dressed up, his clothes were too plain, making him look like a college student who hadn't yet graduated.

"He doesn't seem to be someone connected to any legislative election campaign."

This woman greatly intrigued Bourbon. He calmly walked into the private room where Catherine was, served drinks to the two guests, and while they were ordering, he casually hid a listening device under the table.

Bourbon then continued serving the customers while eavesdropping on their conversations.

At first, the two remained silent, leading Bourbon to suspect that the listening device had malfunctioned. Just as he was about to re-enter the private room under the pretext of confirming the menu, he finally heard voices.

"Do you come here often?" It sounded like the young woman.

"Yes." The answer sounded dry, and perhaps Catherine felt the atmosphere was a bit too cold, so she added, "It's close to my house, so it's very convenient."

"Oh really? But I live far away from here."

"I'm sorry, I don't know."

No need to apologize.

The atmosphere of the conversation plummeted to freezing point once again.

Bourbon, who was eavesdropping nearby, was getting anxious for them: Can't they just talk properly?

Just then, the kitchen served the food, and the blond waiter composed himself, smiling as he entered the private room. As expected, he immediately saw two women glaring at each other with obvious dislike.

This only fueled my curiosity: what exactly are they here for?

Dinner officially began, and the atmosphere of the conversation warmed up slightly.

"Mia, I heard you got a scholarship at school?" Catherine asked.

"Yes." His tone was slightly proud.

Where do you plan to work after graduation?

"I haven't decided yet."

Have you encountered any difficulties in your life recently?

Bourbon heard the sound of knives and forks cutting beef, and then Mia said coldly, "Don't pretend to be a loving mother in front of me. Have you ever cared about me all these years?"

"Mia, I've made the best choice for you."

"You dumped me in someone else's care and then abandoned me, and you say that's the best option? Well, looking back now, it's not so bad. At least I didn't end up on the streets, and I even went to university!"

Bourbon was still in shock when he finally came to his senses.

According to the file he found on Catherine, the warden was unmarried and had no children. Based on their ages, Catherine gave birth to this daughter when she was roughly the same age as Mia.

"Could Mia be an illegitimate child?"

Bourbon carefully compared the mother and daughter's appearances in his mind and found that, apart from their eyes, there were no obvious similarities elsewhere:

Catherine has fair skin and red hair, while Mia's face looks more Asian.

"So Mia probably looks more like her dad?"

A whole host of related questions also arise:

Who is Mia's father, and where is he now?

Why didn't they get married?

Why send your child to be fostered?

Why is the relationship between the mother and daughter so strained, as if they've never had a proper conversation in their lives?

...

Bourbon dared not speculate; he instinctively felt there was more to the story and decided to continue listening.

"Mia, if you invited me to dinner just to start a fight, then I'm leaving," Catherine said, quite displeased.

"Wait! I haven't gotten to the important matter yet!" Mia asked in a low voice, "I have a money-making opportunity, do you want to join?"

"Mia, you're a college student, don't fall for these charlatans."

“It’s not a scam, it’s real! I’m not stupid, how could I fall for it so easily?” Mia said firmly.

Catherine seemed somewhat intrigued by what she heard, and asked with a hint of doubt, "So, what exactly is it?"

"Only you can do this; it requires the people under your management..."

"No! Prisoners must be properly kept in prison. Don't even think about doing anything shady."

"I haven't finished speaking, don't interrupt me!" Mia shouted, clearing her throat and continuing, "Don't worry, we won't let them escape, we just need them to conduct experiments."

"Human experimentation?"

"It's pretty much that kind of thing. Some research institutions urgently need experimental subjects. The compensation is generous!"

Catherine hesitated for a moment before replying, "That won't work either. Aside from the fact that they'd have to go in and out of the prison, what if the experiment failed and the prisoners died?"

“So what if they’re dead?” Mia retorted indignantly. “Prisoners who haven’t taken a few lives don’t even deserve to go to your place! Don’t you know what kind of people they are? Why would a prison support them? Rather than letting them rot in jail, it’s better to let them make a last contribution to science before they die.”

“Mia, you are not a judge, and you have no right to change the verdict. The law did not sentence them to death, so they have to stay in prison, understand?”

“My dear warden, could you please stop putting on that air of incorruptibility and sanctimonious integrity? Do you think I don’t know how much illicit profit you’ve been making and how many kickbacks you’ve taken? What? You’re unwilling to cooperate with me because you’re worried about unfair pay distribution? Or are you afraid I’ll report you and affect your career?”

“It’s different. Prisoners can only stay in prison. If they die under unclear circumstances, it’s the guards’ fault. I have to do my job: to ensure that prisoners serve their sentences smoothly. As for other non-essential issues, they can naturally be accommodated.”

"In the end, isn't it all about running for parliament?!"

"So what if it is? In short, let's not talk about this anymore, I will never agree to it." Catherine's attitude was very firm, and then she changed the subject and asked, "Where did you find out about all this nonsense?"

“Liam told me that he works at the Laiyeshan Rehabilitation Center, which collaborates with many research institutions. He heard that there are a lot of these clandestine human experiments. But it’s hard to get test subjects, so it would be great if the prison could act as a go-between. The price is fair, and it’s a sure thing.” Mia thought this was a sign that her mother’s attitude had softened, so she spoke with great enthusiasm.

Who is Liam?

"My boyfriend."

"You have a boyfriend?"

"Is that not allowed? I'm already 20 years old!"

"You haven't turned 20 yet, Mia."

"Oh my god, did I hear that right? You actually remembered my birthday? In which year did you celebrate my birthday with me? You've never even given me a birthday present, have you?"

The conversation fell silent again. Bourbon thought Catherine was building up her anger and was about to explode, but the warden just said earnestly, "Mia, I hope you will keep yourself pure and not easily believe men's sweet talk."

But her mother's words clearly angered Mia: "Keep that to yourself! My taste in men is much better than yours! Don't compare that scumbag to Liam!"

"Really? Someone who would think of using prisoners for human experiments is probably not a good person. I advise you to stay away from him."

"Don't give me that! This is the one thing you have absolutely no right to lecture me on!" Mia yelled, then calmed herself down and said, "Fine, let's not see each other again. Since it always ends badly anyway, it's better not to meet at all! Since you've never acknowledged me as your daughter, I'll just pretend you're not my mother. Goodbye!"

Bourbon then heard the sound of a chair scraping against the floor. Immediately afterward, there was a bang as the door slammed shut, and Mia strode out of the private room in her high heels, completely unaware of the blonde waiter lurking in the corner.

Bourbon felt a moment of excitement upon hearing the name "Kuraiyama." This was because Kagemitsu had mentioned to him that this rehabilitation center was on D-Lab's list of partner institutions.

"If it's not just a coincidence of names, then it's highly likely that D-Lab needs experimental subjects."

"However, there's been no word from the organization. I wonder why?"

"Starting with Mia and her boyfriend, we should be able to find some internal information about D-Lab, right?" Bourbon couldn't help but marvel at how small the world was; across the Pacific Ocean, the clues had actually converged here.

The father cat volunteered to take his kittens to investigate, saying, "This kid's been so bored lately, he's even learned to climb trees."

Bourbon readily agreed to his partner's request, and his attention shifted to Catherine.

"I think I've found the warden's weakness."

However, this was not what Bourbon had envisioned.

In that short meal, he witnessed a broken family. A mother and daughter who didn't know how to communicate, incredibly stubborn, seemingly arguing with no one in particular.

He even made the baseless speculation that it was precisely because Mia looked more like her father that Catherine was unwilling to see that man's face in her daughter.

Bourbon sighed softly. Other people's family matters were none of his concern; his job was to gather as much intelligence as possible and devise a feasible prison break plan. But he couldn't help but recall Mia's face, feeling he could glean something familiar from it: "Who exactly is Mia's father?"