Chapter 5

Kathryn finally managed to escape from the office when Markus came knocking with a report for Chris.

Chris looked through the glass at Kathryn, who was outside. The woman was always cautious and obedient in front of him. Whenever she thought she was out of sight, she would drop her calm facade. Chris' lips curled up slightly involuntarily.

Markus followed Chris' gaze and watched along as Kathryn seemed to be searching for something frantically.

"Ms. Michaels, you're as clumsy and careless as ever," he thought.

He turned toward Chris and handed him an envelope. "Sir, it's been confirmed that Mrs. Albert was the one who'd drugged you that night."

After he said that, a loud buzzing sounded. Markus looked down to see a phone vibrating. Seeing the cute panda phone case, he instantly realized that the phone didn't belong to Chris. Outside, Kathryn was looking for her phone.

Kathryn wanted to send Tally a message to let her know that she was done, but she realized that she'd left her phone in Chris' office. She mentally braced herself to go back for her phone.

Just as she reached the office door, she heard Chris ask coldly, "Where's that woman?"

Kathyn had just been about to knock on the door. She paused after hearing that. It turned out that they were still looking for the woman from that night.

Markus answered, "I'm afraid that Mrs. Albert might still be insistent on you marrying someone of her choice. She might've done something to hide that woman from you."

"Someone of her choice? As if!" Chris scoffed, his tone growing dangerous. His tone held no hint of warmth as he said, "Find that woman. You have one month. Make sure not to make a mess of things."

"Yes, sir," Markus replied, his tone cold as well.

Kathryn's face turned paler by the second. She understood well enough what "not making a mess of things" meant. After overhearing their conversation, she was even more certain that if she were ever to be found out, she would meet a miserable end.

Markus opened the office door and saw her. "Ms. Michaels?"

"Hello, Mr. Hunt," Kathryn greeted him politely, putting on a calm facade even though her heart was pounding furiously in her chest. It felt like a stampede was going on inside of her.

Markus glanced at her pale complexion and asked, "Are you sick? Why do you look so pale?"

"I have a little cold," Kathryn said nervously, trying to brush it off.

Markus nodded and advised her to see a doctor before leaving.

The door to Chris' office was open. Kathryn spotted her phone on his desk at a glance.

Trembling, she walked inside. "I'm sorry, Mr. Albert. I left my phone here." Then she reached out to grab her phone. However, Chris beat her to it. By the time Kathryn realized what had just happened, the man had already clicked the power button on her phone to read the message notification she'd received.

Chris asked in a deep voice, "Ms. Michaels, do you have anything to say to me?"

Kathryn was already pale from fright to begin with. Upon hearing that question he'd asked in such a cold tone, her heart nearly jumped out of her chest.

She felt more panicked after seeing the message she received from Tally that read, "Why haven't you finished yet? Did Mr. Albert write you up for …"

The words after "for" were omitted because the text was too long to show up completely on the lock screen.

After reading that, Kathryn's mind nearly imploded. With wide eyes, she looked up at Chris, who was returning her gaze. "What did you do? Why would I need to write you up for anything?" he asked. His tone was colder and sharper than usual.

Kathryn's breathing picked up. She panicked and stuttered, "N—Nothing! It's nothing, Mr. Albert!" Her lips were trembling, making it difficult for her to even hear herself.

Her mind kept going back to the conversation between Chris and Markus just now. Her thoughts were hazy, and she was on the verge of breaking down.

Chris stared at her silently, expecting a reasonable explanation from her.

Kathryn forced herself to calm down despite how weak she felt all over. She lowered her head with closed eyes and said, "I'm sorry for what I did, Mr. Albert."

"Oh? What exactly are you sorry for? You've been nothing but a diligent and meticulous worker."

Chris rarely praised his employees, yet he was complimenting Kathryn. However, upon hearing it, Kathryn didn't feel happy at all. In fact, she was terrified. She didn't know how to explain further.

Suddenly, another message from Tally popped up. It read, "Why aren't you saying anything? Did Mr. Albert find out that …"

The words after 'that' were omitted.

First it was something about a write-up, and following it was another inquiry about Mr. Albert finding out about something. Each text conveyed a seemingly large amount of information!

Kathryn turned even paler, and her breathing grew heavier. She struggled to lift her head. Upon meeting Chris' penetrating gaze, she managed to choke out, "I—I work a part-time job during my breaks!"

"What?" Chris raised an eyebrow at that. Uncertainty flashed in his eyes.

Kathryn dug her fingernails into her palms. She forced herself to remain calm.

"Mr. Albert, the part-time job I took up isn't related to the company at all. It won't affect the company's interests."

Though Kathryn was the assistant to the president of Albert Group, she was also a relief sculptor. She knew that Albert Group's employees weren't allowed to pursue other avenues of work outside of the company. But at this moment, her part-time job didn't seem all that significant compared to the events that had unfolded that particular night.