Chapter 1114: Catching Up and a Helping Hand
Luke didnât think much of it. âCarol and I havenât seen each other in a while. If you donât mind, the two of us can catch up on the side first.â
The girl frowned.
Carol, however, didnât hesitate. She took Lukeâs hand and smiled at him. âItâs fine. I trust him.â
They sat down in another corner of the fast food restaurant.
A waitress had just cleaned up the table next to them, and she asked casually, âWhat would you like?â
Luke said, âA cup of coffee. How about you?â
Carol said, âHot chocolate.â
The waitress nodded and left with her notebook.
A moment later, the coffee and hot chocolate arrived, and Luke paid for them.
As they sat opposite each other, Carol couldnât help but ask, âAre you here for me?â
Luke said, âI transferred to NYPD at the end of last year, and Iâm on an outing with my girlfriend.â
Carol couldnât help but look out the window, and could vaguely see Elena.
She was a little disappointed as she looked away, but then realized that she had been overthinking it.
The world was so big, and she and Luke didnât have any special relationship. Why would he look for her?
Luke, however, said, âIâm sorry, Carol.â
She was stumped for a moment. âWhy?â
Luke scratched his head. âI checked a lot of information after I came here, but I didnât find Xavierâs School for Gifted Youngsters.â
Stunned, Carol burst out laughing. âThatâs it?â
Luke said, âYou look fine now, but I pointed you in the wrong direction. Iâm sorry.â
Carol immediately shook her head. âNo; without you, I wouldâve been caught a long time ago. Also, your reminders helped me avoid a lot of danger. I must thank you.â
Luke was relieved. At least he hadnât dragged the girl down.
Thinking that, he couldnât help but smile happily. âThen how are you now?â
After a brief hesitation, Carol nodded. âIâm alright.â
How could she hide her uncertain expression and tone from a detective?
Luke frowned. âYouâre in serious trouble.â
As he spoke, he glanced at the girl, who was secretly paying attention to them. âShe threatened you?â
Carol was shocked.
She remembered how Luke had sent her flying with a kick in Houston. She didnât think that he was as harmless as he appeared.
Also, she was well aware that Luke was a detective.
She didnât want to mess with government people.
It was only because Luke had let her go once and had helped her escape that she trusted him.
She shook her head quickly and leaned in close. âSheâs my partner. That kind of âpartner,â you understand?â
Luke calmed down.
He had seen plenty of people with superpowers, so it didnât matter if another one appeared.
He simply nodded. âI wonât ask her whatâs going on. I just want to know what trouble youâre in. Tell me, and Iâll take care of it for you.â
Carolâs eyes widened. She suddenly felt that she didnât recognize the boy anymore.
Looking at her expression, Luke was amused. âI gave you the wrong information last time, and I feel uncomfortable if I donât make up for it. So, tell me; as long as youâre not a terrorist, Iâll do my best to help.â
Carolâs face darkened, and she didnât say anything.
Luke asked suspiciously, âYou didnât really join some terrorist organization, did you?â
If that really did happen, he would arrest her and the girl without hesitation.
It was fine if they didnât kill innocents, but if they acted against civilians, he couldnât let them go.
Carol immediately shook her head. âN- no.â
She raised her head, only to see Luke frowning at her. She panicked and said in a low voice, âWeâre not doing anything. Weâve just been running. But the people who want to catch us said that weâre terrorists, and have been chasing us.â
Luke turned serious and finally activated Elementary Pheromone Control.
He regarded Carol as a friend. At the very least, those who had given him their abilities out of gratitude could be considered friends.
Also, Carol hadnât done anything bad before she escaped, which was why Luke hadnât used this ability so far.
But now, he needed a concrete answer.
âAre you telling me the truth?â he asked softly.
Carol immediately replied, âYes.â
Luke asked, âThe girl over there hasnât done anything bad either?â
Carol hesitated, before she said in a low voice, âAt least, after she saved me, I donât think sheâs bad, except...â
âExcept what?â Luke immediately asked.
Carol lowered her head. âWe saved some of our comrades. While we were escaping, she used her ability and injured some of the people who wanted to catch us.â
Luke asked, âDid she kill anyone?â
Carol shook her head quickly. âNo, she just injured them. I didnât see anyone die.â
Luke chuckled inwardly.
I have a Knee Breaker at home who can keep a man alive after destroying all five of their limbs.
However, under Elementary Pheromone Control, Carolâs words were very trustworthy.
He stopped feeling conflicted and changed the topic. âSo what problem have you run into now?â
Carol said, âItâs just that people from Sentinel Services have been looking for us, and want to put us in a special prison.â
Luke narrowed his eyes. âSentinel Services? Do they specialize in catching people like you?â
Carol nodded and trembled a little. She couldnât help but hug herself in fear. âYes. I also heard that they perform experiments on people like us after they catch us. Itâll be worse than death.â
Luke wasnât surprised to hear that.
Although Phil Coulson didnât say it outright, it was clear that this country wasnât very friendly toward superhumans.
SHIELD would take action if superhumans were detected, and Fleggâs Joint Advanced Research Unit would also come to arrest them. Now that this Sentinel Services or whatever had shown up, it wasnât a surprise.
Pondering for a moment, he asked, âSo, youâre hiding?â
Carol nodded.
Luke said, âHave you ever tried hiding overseas? Somewhere like Mexico, Canada, or Venezuela?â
Carol shook her head quickly. âNo. I heard that those places are even more dangerous. Here, those people still worry about exposing themselves, but elsewhere, we could die and nobody would know.â
Luke nodded and thought for a moment before he asked, âIf I can help you go into hiding, will your partner be willing to go with you?â
Carol subconsciously looked at the girl and said, âI donât know. Lornaâs a little stubborn.â
Actually, that was an understatement.
The girl called Lorna had a stubborn temper.
Carol wasnât confident she could convince her to accept Lukeâs help.
Luke, on the other hand, was confident, but he needed to make sure that she was worth helping.