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Stefan stormed into his room and slammed the door shut.

He couldn't understand how the conversation had ended that way; he had only gone to check on her. He had noticed that she seemed a bit off at the party, and he was concerned.

"Does she really think I'm a cancer in her life? Stefan, you can't feel anything for Katia. Your world is too dangerous for her..." he thought, ruffling his hair.

He began to curse himself, uttering profanities along the way.

Suddenly, he heard scratching at his room door. Surprised, he turned toward the door and opened it. Panda and Booby were there, agitated.

He peered into the hallway and was surprised to see that Katia's room door was open.

At that moment, his phone rang. He reached into the inner pocket of his jacket and was surprised to see it was Mark calling.

"What's going on?" he held the bridge of his nose with two fingers.

His headache was starting to intensify.

"I don't know if you've noticed, but Mrs. Katia has left the house. What would you like us to do?"

"What!?" he exclaimed, surprised.

"This woman gives me a headache. How can she be so stubborn? I told her she could stay here until the divorce..." Stefan thought, with his eyes closed.

He gritted his teeth when a sudden sharp pain in his chest caught him completely off guard.

"Sir?" Mark insisted, noticing the extended silence.

"Follow her... and make sure nothing happens to her," he ordered sternly.

He slumped onto the edge of the bed, looking out the window, furrowing his brow at the unpleasant sensation that began to overtake him.

…

For a week, Katia stayed in a downtown hotel. With each passing day, she felt worse, spending her days in her hotel room bathroom, vomiting or lying on the bed, feeling dizzy.

One day, after a week of seclusion, she decided to go out into the city in search of a pharmacy to buy something to stop the vomiting and dizziness. In the city center, she ran into Jennel and Norbert, who had gone to run some errands. 

Seeing Katia, the woman hugged her, relieved that she was okay. The three of them went to have a mid-morning snack at a café.

"Are you eating well, Katia? You look very pale," Jennel asked, concerned.

"I've had a few days of not being able to eat properly. Everything I eat, I end up vomiting," she replied. She didn't want to lie. "But I'm okay. I was actually on my way to the pharmacy to buy something for the nausea and vomiting."

"Oh, dear... You should see a doctor."

"No, it's not necessary. As long as they give me something to stop the vomiting and dizziness, I'll be fine," she smiled. "I'm so glad to see you, Jennel. And you too, Norbert."

"We're happy to see you well," Norbert said, a bit shy.

"This is from the gentleman. It's the divorce..." the woman said, pulling out some documents from her bag. Katia's expression turned sad. "He gave them to us in case you came to the house, but..."

"I see..." She took the documents and, without reading them, began signing them one by one. "Here you go. Please give them to him."

"But... are you really leaving forever? Now that we've become friends..."

"I'm sorry, but this isn't my place..." She took a sip of water to soothe the lump in her throat and took out some money. "This one's on me. Goodbye, Jennel. Goodbye, Norbert," she said before getting up and leaving the place.

"I should have told her that the gentleman has been even grumpier than usual since she left," Jennel said, with a hand on her cheek.

"It's better that couples sort out their relationship issues themselves," Norbert commented, looking at his wife.

"But the gentleman... he loved her..." she started to say.

"Relationship matters are meant to stay between the couple. I'm sure we'll see Miss Katia again," he interrupted and put his arm around her, touching her back. "We have to wait for him to realize that without Miss Katia, his life is..."

"Boring, incomplete, non-existent... right?" Jennel looked at her husband. He burst into laughter and kissed her on the cheek again. "And that he's become even grumpier, worse than Mr. Scrooge," Jennel said with her arms crossed.

Norbert couldn't help but kiss that woman once more on the cheek.

..

Katia entered a pharmacy and requested something for dizziness and vomiting. While the man was searching for the medication, she started looking at the medicines and other items on the nearby shelves.

When she saw pregnancy tests, she stared at them and began counting on her fingers. Her period had been slightly delayed, but she hadn't thought much of it until that moment. She took two pregnancy tests, not entirely sure if it was the right move, but she had nothing to lose by trying.

Once she had paid for everything, she returned to the hotel. She needed to book a ticket for her return trip to the United States. She would go to her father's house until the dizziness subsided.

Suddenly, a man in his mid-forties stood in front of her. Katia placed her hand on her chest due to the startle Frederick, Stefan's driver, had given her.

"Madam, I have a message from Mr. Schmidt," Fred said seriously. "He has asked me to take you to the airport so that Hank can fly you back home."

"How...?" Although she would rather not know. "Fine. I'll go get my suitcases."

On the jet, Katia couldn't stop thinking about whether to take the pregnancy test or not. Hank had orders to take her to Seattle, and despite her repeated requests to go to Boston, he had refused.

Without thinking, Katia got up from her seat and walked to the bathroom. Three minutes after sitting there waiting, she felt the urge to vomit.

She rushed out as fast as she could and headed to Hank's cabin.

"I don't care if it was an order from Mr. Schmidt. You better take me to Boston, or you'll have to deal with a very angry Lieutenant Colonel," Katia said firmly when she entered. "And I don't advise going up against a Lieutenant Colonel, especially when he's angry."

"As you wish, ma'am," Hank said, glancing at her and then back to the front.

"And you cannot disclose my whereabouts under any circumstances. Although I doubt he'll ask," Katia instructed Hank, somewhat calmer.