[I'm waiting at the building rooftop]

Nicolae sent an SMS to Larkin so that the man would meet him in a place that was big enough but still remained private.

From the 40th floor, people could directly go up to the roof. There was a helipad and a small garden there. Nicolae asked Marie to remain in the penthouse and not show herself even though she felt worried.

"Mischa, they are coming. I'm waiting for them at the rooftop," Nicolae said as he stepped into the elevator.

"I'll be there soon," Mischa replied. He then took two of his favorite pistols and inserted them behind his belt. He got out of his suit and immediately walked to the elevator.

When the elevator door opened, two beautiful girls stared at him with admiration. Both of them then whispered while glancing at him.

Subconsciously, they tidied their hair and clothes, hoping that the man in black would notice them.

Unfortunately, Mischa paid them no heed. He got into the elevator and pressed the 40th-floor button. While waiting for the elevator to go to the floor he wanted, the man rolled up his sleeves and stood upright like a statue.

There was a melancholy in his figure that fascinated the two girls even more. In their hearts, they hoped that the elevator would move very slowly or that time would stop so they could linger and enjoyed the beautiful sight in front of them longer.

Unfortunately, the elevator soon arrived on the 35th floor, their destination. The two girls reluctantly stepped out. When one looked back to see the handsome man again before the elevator door closed, she gasped and almost stumbled.

"What happened?" asked her friend, worriedly.

The other girl had just seen Mischa draw a gun from under his suit and looked up with a ruthless expression.

"That man... he--he had a gun," the girl whispered in terror. Her face immediately went pale and cold sweat trickled down her temples. She had never been this close to someone carrying a weapon before, so today's experience shocked her to the core.

"That person wants to go to the 40th floor ..." said her friend anxiously. "Shouldn't we report it to hotel security?"

"We should. So they can get ready when the shooting starts."

Both of them returned to the elevator and waited for the elevator to open and immediately descended into the lobby. Hurriedly, they ran to the receptionist and reported that they saw an armed man ascending to the 40th floor.

Marion, who had just arrived from the outside, listened to the two girls because she had very sharp ears. Her forehead frowned and she immediately called Nicolae.

"Hey ... I heard that some armed men are heading to the 40th floor. Are you in danger?" she asked. Nicolae told her briefly about Larkin and asked Marion not to worry.

"Hmm ... Mischa is with you, so of course, I'm not worried. But I'm afraid this hotel's reputation will be affected." She thought quickly and then walked towards the receptionist. "Hey, let me take care of this."

"Please send someone to check," one of the girls told the receptionist with an anxious expression.

"Ahem ... excuse me, Ladies." Marion approached them and smiled kindly. She signaled to the receptionist to let her handle this problem. They knew her as a relative of the hotel owner and smiled back, letting Marion take over.

"Who are you?" asked one of the girls in astonishment.

"Let me introduce myself to you. My name is Marion Van Sant, I'm the head of security at this hotel. The man you saw is my man. He is going to check the situation on the rooftop. You don't need to worry," Marion said with a happy face and half laughing. Her attitude was so relaxed that the two girls looked at each other.

Ahh .. apparently they were mistaken. Actually, one of them felt suspicious because Marion claimed to be the head of hotel security, even though she was a woman and very beautiful. Could this woman really be the head of security?

Marion noticed they were a little doubtful, then gave a signal that they should follow her. After they were in a rather quiet place near the elevator, she pulled out a gun from her handbag and showed it to them.

"Now, do you believe my words?" She laughed again. "What you saw in the elevator was my most inexperienced man, his name is Mischa. He often forgets about his surroundings and not care about guests when he is too serious. I will make sure to reprimand him for scaring the guests. We always patrol to ensure the safety and security of all our hotel guests. He was just doing a routine check."

Only then did the two girls nod their heads in understanding, and a look of relief began to appear on their faces. Thank God ... Nothing bad is happening in this hotel. It was just a regular security check.

After making sure the two girls didn't prolong the issue, Marion immediately walked to the elevator. After pressing the 40th-floor button, she called Nicolae again.

But this time her call was not picked up. Marion looked at her cellphone with a frown.

"Hmm ... has it started there?" she muttered.

She then kept her cellphone and waited for the elevator to take her to the 40th floor.

KNOCK

KNOCK

Marie was shocked when she heard a knock on the door. She only breathed a sigh of relief when she heard Marion's voice from outside. She hurriedly put down her tablet and opened the door for Marion.

"I want to check your situation," Marion said. "Are you all right?"

"We are okay. Nic went to the roof, waiting for Larkin. There is another man with him," Marie said, pointing to several camera screens on her tablet. Marion examined Marie's tablet and nodded.

"Oh, good. They're just starting. I'll catch up with them." She walked to the terrace of the penthouse and stared at the roof visible on her right. She immediately took out a gun from her bag and threw the bag on the sofa. Before climbing nimbly onto the roof, she gave a sign to keep Marie in place. "Don't worry, we'll be fine."

In a short time, the girl had disappeared from the wall and was not seen again.?Marie hurriedly took her tablet and watched what was happening on the roof.

***

"Where's Marielle? What did you do to her?" Larkin asked arrogantly, staring at Nicolae, who was standing casually leaning against the wall. His long hair was tied neatly with a red ribbon as usual. His overly relaxed attitude made Larkin a little upset. "Why are you keeping her cellphone?"

There were five dangerous-looking men behind Larkin. Everyone stood with their arms crossed on their c.h.e.s.ts. They all looked at Nicolae with a mocking smile. Apparently, this man is courting death, they thought. Only suicidal people looking for trouble with their boss.

"Larkin, I want to meet you properly and talk like a man," Nicolae said calmly. "I want you to stop bothering Marielle. If you want to go to her, you have to get past me first. I know you posted our identities in Darknet."

Larkin only snorted and laughed contemptuously at Nicolae's words. "So? I wanted to protect Marielle and keep her secret. But she didn't know how to be grateful and instead went with you. I won't be too kind to her from now on."

"She told you her secret because she thought you could help her find Summer, and that obviously didn't work. That means she doesn't owe you anything. You have no right to disclose her secrets to anyone," Nicolae still tried to remain calm. "I heard that you are a friend of Sanna's husband. That's why I'm just giving you a warning. For now on, if you try to do anything else to bother Marie ... I won't let you off so easily."

"Ha. Who do you think you are?" Larkin asked with a sneer. "I won't let you take Marielle away. You left her for years. You have no right to come back and pretend like nothing happened. I've been patient enough all this time ... I was waiting for her to accept me. I won't let her go to a lowly man like you!"

"Ah ... Uncle, you're too patient with this crooks," commented Mischa, who suddenly appeared from behind the door.

Everyone on the roof turned toward the origin of the sound, except Nicolae. When they saw a handsome man coming in with an upset face, five of Larkin's men immediately pulled out their guns.