"Good afternoon, sir," Gabriel greets, approaching the hotel manager's counter. The man nods as he fills out a form before handing it to a customer seated at the wooden bar. "I'd like to know if a woman came to see you. She's a young woman with long dark hair, gray eyes, and fair skin.""We have many women coming through here all the time," the man replies gruffly, not giving it much thought. "They all look the same, just walking cunts. I don't pay attention to the color of their eyes when I'm fucking them."The other man laughs at the innkeeper's rude comment. Gabriel finds it in very poor taste but doesn't argue. The last thing he wants is to pick a fight with him."She probably came here to send a message," he insists, inventing an excuse to get information out of him without realizing he's actually telling the truth. "She usually wears a blue coat. I want to know if there's any response.""A young woman matching that description did come here. It was about two days ago, but the le

Petra spends the whole day nervous and locked in her room again, her mood is terrible and she doesn't even feel like eating anything after reading that letter.She was very lucky that the envelope ended up in her hand, she doesn't even want to imagine what would have happened if it had fallen into Egil's hands. Most likely, he would have looked for her and that is something she absolutely refuses to allow after everything she did to keep him away from her. She already has enough to deal with the redhead, having to put up with the sister too would be too much. Having both of them at the estate stealing Egil's attention would be too much.There is no turning back now, Nadia's fate is sealed.Egil, still in pain, gets up and starts writing down some notes he has in mind while Gage is checking some things with the suppliers. He must be more alert than ever from now on and watch his workers more closely.He still doesn't understand how someone was able to poison Adelaide. Did they do it be

In the morning, Gage's cell phone receives a call with news from Zhufun. He answers immediately after his tour of the central offices."Mr. Gage, we've captured one of the rebel leaders. We request your presence in Zhufun immediately for the interrogation," the man on the other end of the phone says.Gage feels some relief upon hearing this. It's a significant step toward restoring order on the estates."I'll leave for there in two hours," he responds before hanging up and heading to his boss's room.Egil grows impatient as the hours pass. Being confined to his own room is unappealing and suffocating, although, of course, no one except his trusted people knows about it.He walks to the window but refrains from drawing the curtain to avoid being seen. Today is a radiant day, but for some reason, he doesn't feel in harmony with the surroundings.His shoulder still aches, and he must keep it bandaged for several more days, according to the doctor, to prevent the wound from getting infect

At the Arrabal estate, Egil decides to visit Adelaide in her room after two days without doing so. His aunt's words are still vivid in his mind, confusing him. Although it's in his nature to be cruel to people he hates or defies him, there are actions he simply can't bring himself to do to her, and that's the real reason she's still alive; otherwise, she would already be six feet under.The path that used to take him several minutes to walk to her room is now easier. Slowly, his body is recovering the strength he lost due to the wound, and in the next few days, he will likely be fully recovered to resume his duties without having to hide in his own room.He looks out the window and makes sure there is no one in his wife's room before entering. He learned from his aunt this morning that Adelaide no longer has a fever and is finally responding favorably to the medications the doctor is administering.It's well past midnight, and the young woman is sound asleep, as she is every time he e

Egil wakes up early, opens the main door of his room, and the guards stationed there are surprised to see him. No one knew he had returned from Zhufun and was inside his room. They all straighten up as he exits, impeccably dressed in a petrol blue suit, and heads straight to his office.He takes his car that drives him there. Two of his men follow closely in another car, and two more are in front.He arrives at the building, and as the guards open the door to the boardroom, four of the guards enter with him to take strategic positions. The employees all stand up, surprised by his sudden arrival, especially Vítor.Everyone greets him as he approaches his place at the board table."We didn't know you had arrived, Mr. Arrabal," Vítor speaks first, embarrassed but also annoyed with his informants who didn't notify him of anything. "It's a big surprise to see you at the office this morning.""I arrived last night," Egil replies tersely, taking his seat. "Let's begin with the agenda since I