The Supreme Soldier in the City
Chapter 427 - 434: Caught by Emily Berns

Chapter 427: Chapter 434: Caught by Emily Berns

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The women’s restroom was quite occupied; out of ten or so stalls, most were taken. Emily Berns scanned each one carefully. Several stalls soon became vacant, but there was no sign of John Brown. However, the last two stalls remained locked all this time.

Each stall had a door that could be locked from the inside, with a gap below the door allowing one to see the occupant’s feet. In one of the last two stalls, there were indeed feet visible, wearing high heels, while the other had no signs of feet beneath the door.

Emily walked to the second-to-last stall. Seeing no feet inside, she knocked on the door. Hearing no response, she pushed the door open, only to find the stall empty.

Emily frowned slightly and tried the last door, but it was locked.

"What are you doing?" came a woman’s voice from inside.

"Oh, just checking if someone’s in here," Emily explained quickly.

"Are your eyes not working? Can’t you see whether someone’s inside or not?" The voice sounded annoyed. "What’s wrong with you? Can’t even poop in peace."

Emily frowned again. The woman’s voice was quite pleasant, but her words were crude. Apologizing softly, Emily turned and walked away.

The occupant of that stall was Lucy Campbell, and accompanying her was James Brown. The two were currently contorted into an odd position: Lucy was seated on the toilet, while James appeared to be sitting on her lap. In reality, he wasn’t sitting on her lap—his legs were stretched straight against the wall behind him, his hands braced against the cubicle walls, holding himself up in mid-air.

Lucy, however, had her arms wrapped around James’ waist, her face adorned with a mischievous smile as she looked at him.

"Finally gone!" James exhaled in relief. His feet touched the ground, intending to stand up, but Lucy hadn’t released her grip on him, causing him to inadvertently sit directly on her lap.

Lucy frowned. James quickly stammered, apologizing profusely, "Sorry! Sorry! I didn’t mean to."

"You’re so heavy, you’re going to crush me!" Lucy rolled her eyes and released her hold.

James hastily stood up. Being in the same restroom cubicle as Lucy was immensely embarrassing, especially recalling the moment he barged in earlier. James didn’t even dare make eye contact with Lucy now.

Earlier, when Emily turned her back, James knew trouble was coming. He dashed into the restroom without hesitation. Going into the men’s restroom would have been fruitless—knowing Emily’s personality, there was a ninety-percent chance she would barge in to check. Thus, he quickly opted for the women’s restroom instead.

There were other women in the restroom at the time, but James moved so quickly, employing tricks to ensure none of them saw his face clearly. To them, it was as if a figure had rushed in, neither distinctly male nor female. By the time James entered a cubicle, they were left clueless.

James happened to enter Lucy’s stall just as she was standing up, with her pants down at her knees. Lucy wore a petite, cropped top that barely covered her navel, leaving everything below exposed since she hadn’t pulled up her pants.

Despite being barged in on under such circumstances, Lucy didn’t scream. That was entirely thanks to her extraordinary composure. Quickly pulling up her pants, she recognized James, and all traces of anger vanished instantly as she scrutinized him with her gaze.

James saw things he shouldn’t have, feeling intensely awkward. However, remembering Emily, he pushed aside the embarrassment for now, leaned close to Lucy, and even brought his face near hers.

Lucy looked even more confused. James’s actions resembled an attempt to assault her, yet she utterly refused to believe he would do such a thing, so she remained unmoving, simply watching him.

"I’m hiding from someone, so I ran in here. Help me cover for it," James explained.

Lucy was utterly stunned. James was scared enough to hide in the women’s restroom, barging in while she was preoccupied. That alone showed how intimidating this person must be for him. Lucy couldn’t fathom who this woman could be to frighten James to such an extent.

Lucy didn’t ask further questions for now and merely nodded.

James breathed a sigh of relief, listening closely to the sounds outside while the two stayed in the cramped space—he standing, she sitting.

Glancing at Lucy, James saw her mischievous grin. He could only let out an awkward laugh. He knew she wanted to ask about the person causing him to hide, but he could only grin in response, promising to explain later once Emily was out of the picture.

When Emily finally came into the women’s restroom to inspect, James immediately adopted his odd position to avoid being discovered.

James listened near the door, urging Lucy, "Take a look. See if anyone’s outside."

Lucy nodded, opened the door, and stepped out. Aside from the occupied stalls, the restroom appeared empty. She gestured to James, who hurriedly dashed out, with Lucy following behind.

Not long after they left, James felt an intense gaze fixed on him, making his heart race. Pulling Lucy aside quickly, he realized someone was pursuing him. Shocked, he instinctively knew it was Emily—the girl refused to give up, stationing herself close to the restroom doors to wait for him.

This girl’s schemes had grown deeper than before, and she’d become much harder to deal with.

"Ouch!" Lucy suddenly yelped, tilting to one side and grimacing in pain. "I twisted my ankle!"

James felt utterly helpless. Of all times, Lucy chose to twist her ankle now. Trying to rush with her in this state was impossible unless he carried her—drawing attention and making it harder to escape Emily.

"This way." Lucy pointed to a nearby emergency passage.

James hurriedly helped Lucy into the passage, but froze in shock upon entering—it was blocked off, an absolute dead end. Meanwhile, Emily hurried toward them. Trapped, James had no escape route.

Suddenly, Lucy flung her arms around James’s neck and pressed her lips onto his. James’s eyes widened in disbelief, staring at Lucy, utterly stunned. He never expected her to kiss him at a moment like this.

Lucy, however, winked at him repeatedly. James quickly understood her intentions—she wanted to cover for him through an act of intimacy. A couple caught in a secluded place kissing wouldn’t likely be scrutinized closely.

James considered there might be other solutions, but with Lucy noticeably invested in her plan—hugging him tightly and already kissing him—there wasn’t much he could do. He hugged her back, pretending to kiss her.

Though James and Lucy had kissed before—for survival purposes while underwater—it was different this time. It felt real, intentional, and Lucy even added authentic touches to the act. As Emily approached, Lucy deepened the kiss, letting her tongue slip into James’s mouth, making soft humming sounds indicative of passion.

James felt dazed. Lucy’s commitment to the act seemed excessive. This was a kiss—wasn’t she giving him a huge advantage?

Having a woman as stunning as Lucy, who resembled a goddess, kiss him so emotionally left James, though still aware of Emily’s presence, unable to suppress his reaction. His lips and tongue inadvertently began to intertwine with Lucy’s.

From behind, Emily saw the figure entering was undoubtedly James. Without hesitation, she pursued him. Upon entering, she saw only a couple passionately kissing. The man’s outfit matched the one worn by the scoundrel she was chasing, so she immediately identified him as James—or, as she referred to in her mind, Albert Plant.

"Albert Plant!" Emily wanted to see James’s face. But as she moved her steps, James and Lucy, seemingly lost in their kiss, shifted their heads continually. Emily couldn’t catch a clear glimpse of James’s face, so she tentatively called out.

"Albert Plant, I know it’s you!" Emily called again, testing.

Lucy knew continuing to pretend kissing wouldn’t suffice. She released James, turned to Emily, and berated her furiously, "Are you insane? Can’t you see what we’re doing? Do you have no decency?"

"Uh... you..." Emily was left speechless, staring at Lucy in disbelief.

Lucy hadn’t really twisted her ankle earlier; she feigned it solely out of curiosity about the woman who had caused such fear in James. Upon bringing James into the dead-end passage, she spontaneously decided on the kissing strategy to help him hide. Once initiated, Lucy fully committed. Perhaps fueled by prior imagination about intimacy with James, she grew more invested—more emotional in the moment. Emily’s interruption genuinely angered her.