Chapter 0167


    Abby


    The morning sun is barely peeking over the horizon, casting a soft glow on the deserted streets as I


    race toward the restaurant.


    Despite my exhaustion, I couldn’t sleep, and am currently running off of several cups of coffee. My


    mind races, reyingst night''s idental revtion like a broken record.


    Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org.


    I need to find Karl. Now. And even though it’s early, something tells me that he’s already in the kitchen.


    I burst into the restaurant, my eyes scanning the empty tables, the bar, and finallynding on the


    kitchen door, where a dim light is shining through the small window. Pushing it open, I find Karl, knife in


    hand, chopping vegetables with a newfound kind of precision brought about by his apprenticeship


    under John.


    “Karl, we need to talk. Now.”


    He looks up, his eyes meeting mine, widening for a moment before narrowing with concern. “Abby,


    what’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”


    “I wish it was that simple,” I mutter, brushing a stray strand of hair out of my eyes from my mad dash


    across the city. “We need to find those truffles. Thepetition—”


    “I told you, it’s not happening,” he interrupts, his voice taking on a stern tone. “That ce is dangerous.


    I’m not going back, and I’m certainly not taking you there.”


    “Karl, you don''t understand. I got an emailst night.”


    He pauses, cing his knife down on the counter. “An email?”


    I nod, my heart pounding so hard I think it might pound right out of my chest. “From the cook-off judges.


    I wasn’t supposed to see it, but I did. They’re picking the truffle dish for the main course. If I don’t nail


    that recipe, I’m screwed.”


    His eyes search my face, as if trying to decipher whether I’m lying or not before he finally sighs,


    pinching the bridge of his nose. “Abby, as much as I want to help you, I can’t. That ce is the


    headquarters of some dangerous people. They have guards, cameras...”


    His voice trails off, lost in memories fromst night that I can only imagine.


    “Do you think I don’t know that? I know the risks, but I also know what''s at stake here.”


    He leans against the counter, his eyes shadowed. “You might know, Abby, but you don’t understand. I


    nearly got caught. I had to jump into water just to escape. Whatever they’re hiding there, they don’t


    take kindly to people poking around.”


    My mind conjures up a terrifying image of Karl, drenched and running, evading all kinds of danger. My


    stomach churns at the thought, but I can’t let that stop me. Not now, not when I’m so close.


    “I get it, okay? I get that it’s a life and death situation,” I say. “But I have to do this. Winning this


    Karl’s face tightens in annoyance. “I know how important it is to you, Abby. But it’s dangerous. You


    could get killed.”


    I lean against the counter across from him, my fingers gripping the edge till they turn white. “So what?


    We just give up? Let go of this wholepetition? I’d basically be epting failure at that point.”


    He looks up, his eyes meeting mine. I can see a sense of regret in their brown depths, but there’s


    something else there, too. A warning. “Abby, I know it sucks. But I just can’t let you throw your life away


    over a mushroom.”


    “A mushroom that could help me win thispetition,” I whisper, my voice filled with a bitterness that


    surprises even me.


    Karl sighs. “You think I don’t know that? You think it doesn’t kill me to say no to you?”


    My heart clenches at his words. I can see the sincerity in his eyes, feel it in the tremble of his voice. But


    alongside it, I also feel the overwhelming sensation of this victory slipping through my fingers.


    “So that''s it, then? We just let this opportunity slip away? Pretend like we never got close?”