38 Revenge and wishes were different, Who would save you; who would kill you? It all came down to that ― SAKURASE AYAKA

Cat knew where it had been going and since she had no intention of leading Nate on after Alex and she-well, that wasn't going to happen again. But still, Nate was a suspect and she treated him as such. Even if Jerry didn't consider Nate capable of murder.

"Yeah, we went out for a few dates but nothing ever clicked, you know? So we mutually decided to keep it professional. I hope whoever is behind this gets caught soon. In fact, I had a date the night Claire was attacked and to think I'd just spoken to her about it a few moments before."

"That's why you left early that day?"

"Yeah. Claire seemed a little upset about it and I felt like an asshole. I was so nervous and excited about it. But, to think if I'd just waited and explained more, maybe this wouldn't have happened to her."

"You don't know that, Nate. It's pointless to think about what-ifs."

"You're right. Everyone's a little nervous after last night. Though Alex has increased security there are some that feel like there's a killer on the loose waiting to strike at the first opportunity."

Since she couldn't really share her rising concerns, Cat thought to get more information about the ultra-secretive Project Theta and the Board members. She still had suspicions about Rick Shore and the way Alex had acted afterward, just fueled her imagination. And not in a good way.

"I'm sure the NYPD is more than equipped to solve this crime. It will soon ease everyone's minds once we get more news on the case. I hope for her family's sake her murderer is caught quickly."

"You're right about that. I think they're going to release the body soon." She nodded in agreement and he smiled at her asking, "How's work going? Do you need any help with your report?"

"Actually, yeah. I was thinking about this project that I've been reviewing. Knight Inc. spent months and millions of dollars developing some application software but was abruptly shut down. Could that be-?"

"What project are you talking about?" He asked nervously.

Cat's sixth sense was screeching in alarm at Nate's sudden discomfort. Not wanting to spook him she tried a different tactic.

"You know the Theta Project that Mr. Shore and Alex were discussing about. It was supposed to have widespread telecommunication applications, but was suddenly scrapped. Mr. Shore sure did seem angry about that."

"Rick isn't a man whose motives can be trusted, Cat. Promise me you'll be careful with him." Nate looked into her eyes with a serious, sincere expression and saw a hint of fear behind them. She couldn't be sure as he looked away quickly. But as she thought about how she had been warned away from the man in twice as many days, it grounded her instincts even more.

"Why not? He's a member of the Board after all and Alex's grandfather's close friend."

"He's a very diabolical and manipulative man, Cat. When the company was in trouble a few years ago, he offered Sebastian the resources to help out in exchange for becoming co-owner. But the old man refused, saying only a Knight would own the company. They had a rift since then and things never went back to normal."

"So he wants this company from Alex now? That's what he's been trying to do with the Board to get them on his side? To discredit and question Alex's decisions."

"Yeah, what with all the stuff that's been happening here, the market being in the biggest slump since the Great Depression and now... last night, it seems he'll be hitting harder for Alex's job."

"Hmm... so, why does Shore want to restart a risky project?"

"Cat, as you know I was the project manager and it was completely out of budget from the start. The production and risks in manufacturing the system was greater than the potential reward."

"So this was before Alex's time?"

"Yeah, the old man was in charge of the Project and contracted from the Government with Shore acting as liaison."

"So what really happened? One day you all were working on it and the next day it was scrapped?"

"I guess you could look at it that way. Actually, now that you mention it, it was pretty eerie how after Alex took over, the first thing he did was shut it down."

"So what do you-"

"Ms. Banning? Mr. Knight requests your presence in his office. If you'd kindly follow me?"

She looked up to see Jason standing beside their table. His approach had been so silent that Cat was a little shocked to not have noticed him. He looked down at her with a solemn expression.

"I'm in the middle of-"

"He said it's urgent. If you want me to tell him that you are otherwise occupied?" There was a slight hint of disapproval in his tone that Cat found amusing and a little presumptuous so she decided to have a little fun.

"But, Jason your master can't just whistle at people and expect them to drop everything and come running."

"I never implied that, Ms. Banning. I apologize if I've offended you in any way." Jason said stiffly.

"Oh c'mon, Cat. Give the man a break. Not everyone gets your wacky sense of humor. Let it go, Jase. She's just being a pain in the ass." Nate huffed half-exasperatedly.

"Thank you, Nate for clearing that up. So the boss calls and I'm expected to show up." She raised her brows and gave a fake smile to Jason then turned to Nate taking the last sip for her mug. "Thanks for the coffee, Nate. See you later."

"Bye Cat. See you around and don't give Jase a hard time. He's one of the good ones." Nate winked at her and left. She got up to follow Jason and was soon shown inside Alex's office.