Chapter 8

Markus couldn't understand why Chris had kept Kathryn as his assistant for this long. Was it because Kathryn was afraid of him and didn't act infatuated like his previous assistants? He thought that was a huge possibility.

Kathryn turned back nervously. "Sorry, I dropped something. I think it'd be best if I took the employee elevators!" After telling that white lie, Kathryn tried to make a run for it.

"Just get in," Chris demanded in a cold tone.

Kathryn hesitated for a moment but didn't dare disobey. She walked into the elevator stiffly.

She stood on Chris' left as the elevator ascended. Her back was pressed against the elevator, and she tried to make herself seem as inconspicuous as possible.

Chris looked at her with a frown. "Go get me a report from the finance department."

"Yes, sir." Kathryn straightened her back.

When the elevator reached the finance department's floor, Kathryn sprinted out of the elevator. The way she ran resembled that of an escaped convict. Chris and Markus were rendered speechless.

The elevator doors closed behind her, and a cold gleam flickered in Chris' eyes. Tension filled the air. Markus couldn't understand why Chris had gotten angry again. He also couldn't help but wonder about Kathryn's athleticism. "She was probably really good at sports when she was in school," he thought.

Kathryn stood in the corridor outside the finance department. She patted her chest to calm her racing heart. It turned out that rules were meant to be followed. She vowed to herself that she would never attempt to take the president's special elevator without permission again.

By the time she got the report as requested, Kathryn had calmed down for the most part. Just as she was about to head into Chris' office, Markus called out to her.

"Ms. Michaels, I have a few questions to ask you. Come with me to my office."

"But Mr. Albert told me to—"

"Mr. Albert went to attend a meeting earlier." Markus interrupted her right away.

Kathryn glanced in the direction of Chris' office and nodded before following Markus. When they got inside his office, he said, "Shut the door behind you."

"Alright." Kathryn closed the door and walked up to Markus' desk. Markus nodded at the chair next to her, indicating that she should take a seat, and Kathryn did just that.

"Mr. Hunt, what's this about?"

Instead of answering her question, Markus lit a cigarette. His demeanor seemed cold, and he exuded a noble aura.

When Kathryn had just started working at the company, she remembered thinking that Markus didn't look like someone who should be an Albert Group employee because he looked like he was from a wealthy family.

At this moment, Kathryn was even more convinced that she was right.

Markus took a drag from his cigarette and asked, "Did Mr. Albert ask you to check the surveillance footage from that night at Agatha International Hotel?"

Kathryn remained silent. Startled by the sudden question, her hands, which were holding onto a folder, started to shake. The files contained in the folder fell to the floor.

Her heart started to race out of control. She hurriedly bent down to pick up the papers.

Markus furrowed his brows as he watched Kathryn try to hide her panic.

After she picked up all the files, she nodded. "Yes, he did. Mr. Albert asked me to look for someone, so I checked it."

"Is it true that no one entered his room?"

"It is. I'm sure," Kathryn nodded firmly.

However, she couldn't see just how pale her face had become. Her heart almost stopped, and it looked as if she'd lost a significant amount of blood.

Markus' sharp eyes seemed capable of piercing through Kathryn. Feeling his intense gaze, she grew even more anxious. However, she couldn't help but think about her and Tally's predicament. As such, she had no choice but to persevere. "I went through the whole footage. I'm certain no one else went into his room," she said resolutely.

"Is that so?" Markus asked in a profound tone. He withdrew his gaze and looked down at the lit cigarette in his hand. "That's strange because there was indeed a woman in Mr. Albert's room that night," he said.

Kathryn's breath caught in her throat. She turned even paler. At this moment, she prayed that a hole would open up beneath her and swallow her whole. She could do nothing but listen as Markus continued, "What did you do after watching the surveillance footage?"

"Nothing. After I confirmed that nothing was out of the ordinary, I left the surveillance room right away."

Markus' gaze sharpened as he regarded her for a long moment. Kathryn got more and more anxious under his scrutiny. She had lied because that wasn't what really happened. After she and Tally watched the footage, they had it destroyed. Tally had even bribed the security guard in the surveillance room with a thousand dollars to keep his mouth shut about the matter.