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54

"How can I help you?" Jennel asked.

"Is the master of the house in?" the man said.

"Yes... Who should I say is calling?"

"From Jürgen Hoffman," he replied.

"No need to announce me, Jennel. I heard it from the dining room," a male voice said behind the woman.

It was clear that the voice had sounded serious and chilling.

"Then I'll go prepare breakfast for Katia," the woman said, leaving the two men in the grand house's hallway.

"What do you want? You're not welcome here," Stefan confronted him.

"I've come to see your wife," Jürgen said casually.

Stefan narrowed his eyes as if trying to kill him with his gaze.

"Don't you have enough with Gretchen that you have to pursue other men's wives?"

"Yes, I have enough with Gretchen, but to be honest, your wife is much better than her, and I want her to become my wife too."

Stefan looked at him with anger in his narrowed eyes.

"I won't let you touch my wife," he warned the blond man.

"You won't stop me because..." he reached behind his back and pulled out a gun, aiming it at Stefan, "...you won't be able to. Your miserable life is about to end. It's a shame you won't get to say goodbye to your wife," he said sarcastically.

Meanwhile, Katia was beginning to wake up. She lazily stretched her arms and looked towards the window that led to the balcony. The sunlight blinded her, causing her to squint her eyes. Still feeling groggy, she sat up on the mattress and pushed the sheets off her legs.

She gazed at her bandaged foot and sighed in annoyance. Sitting on the edge of the bed, she reached for something on the nightstand and pulled her hair into a high ponytail. Suddenly, two loud bangs echoed from downstairs.

She looked towards the door in surprise but initially chose to ignore it. She started making her way to the bathroom, being cautious not to injure herself and relying on her crutch for support. However, before entering the bathroom, she froze upon hearing a woman's scream.

"That voice... it's... Jennel..." she began to say to herself. "Oh my God! Stefan!" she suddenly cried out in alarm.

Her body had frozen in the bathroom doorway due to Jennel's scream.

Despite being concerned about Stefan, she was sure he was okay... or at least she wanted to believe so. She hoped the woman had screamed for another reason, and the gunshots she had heard had been a product of her mind or the television.

She needed to stop watching Narcos on TV, especially at night, as it seemed to be affecting her quite a bit.

When she realized she could move again, she entered the bathroom.

While showering, being careful not to slip on the plastic bag she had put on her foot to keep the bandage dry, she couldn't stop thinking about that shrill sound that had fully awakened her.

Once showered and dressed, Katia decided to go downstairs for breakfast, but first, she stopped by Stefan's room. She was puzzled to see one of the closet doors open and the clothes on that side missing.

As she reached the stairs, her body stopped.

Jennel, with Norbert's help, was cleaning up a puddle of blood in the living room. Katia's eyes began to fill with tears and widened slowly.

She placed a hand on the black stair railing and let the crutch fall, unable to take her eyes off the bloodstain.

This couldn't have happened. What had happened there? Was that Stefan's blood?

The crutch made a thud as it hit the floor, catching the attention of Norbert and Jennel.

The woman stood up and climbed the stairs until she reached the top, where Katia stood motionless. She didn't know whether to approach the brunette, but she felt sorry to see her in such a state.

She looked at the man watching them from downstairs with a puzzled look, not knowing what to do either. They hadn't expected Katia to show up so soon, as she always came downstairs to have breakfast when Stefan wasn't home.

Jennel eventually approached Katia and said in a motherly tone:

"Don't worry, Katia. Mr. Stefan is…"

"Where 's Stefan? Is that not his blood, right? Tell me it's not his," she pleaded with anguish, returning to reality.

"It's his blood, but…" the woman began to say, her face sad and her hand at her chest.

"Oh my God...! Who did this? Who wanted to harm Stefan?" Katia interrupted her.

She couldn't understand why she was so worried about him.