Upon hearing the news, Sophie and Colby exchanged worried nces.


    Sophie, taken aback, asked, "What happened?"


    Adler''s face was grim. "There''s been a shooting... it looks pretty bad. The victim''s in the hospital."


    The mention of the hospital sent a shiver down Sophie''s spine. She immediately turned to Colby, whose furrowed brows mirrored her own concern.


    "Let''s go! We need to check it out!"


    Sophie and Colby hurried downstairs, with Adler trailing behind, shouting, "Wait! Wait for me!"


    Angelo, who had just stepped out of his bedroom, was stunned by the scene unfolding before him.


    Odie? The same arrogant and overbearing Odie?


    Could he really be in trouble?


    "Could this be... what James meant by ''a storm of blood and violence''?" Angelo felt a chill run down his spine. If even Odie had been shot, what chance did they stand?


    At the hospital, the two operating rooms were bustling with activity. Sophie and Colby arrived just in time to see the red lights above the emergency room doors.


    "The patients are in surgery right now; you can wait outside," a nurse informed them.


    "Is it serious?" Sophie asked, her voice trembling.


    "Very serious," the nurse replied.


    Sophie''s face darkened at the news.


    "Ms. Sophie, Colby! We... we really don''t know what happened. We were just downstairs when we heard a gunshot. By the time we got up there, Marco was already down! And then, right after, the boss fell too. The shooter, hanging from a window with a steel cable, shot the boss through the ss!"


    "Through the ss?" Sophie echoed, incredulous.


    "Yes, through the ss! We all saw it! After the boss fell, we rushed him to the hospital immediately... afraid it would be toote."


    "Why talk like that? Did you catch the shooter?" Sophie demanded.


    "...No," the men under Odie''smand admitted, lowering their heads in shame.


    Sophie hadn''t expected that, aside from Jonah, everyone around Odie would be so useless!


    "Today was supposed to be Odie''s big day, taking over as CEO of Burke International. The attacker chose today to strike, obviously on


    purpose," Sophie said, frustration


    evident in her voice.


    toFindNovel


    "The Burke family has had three session ceremonies," Colby said, his tone measured. "The first was Elodie, and nothing happened to her. The second..."


    "The second was me, and they tried to kill me too," Sophie interjected, frowning. "And now, the third time, it''s Odie, and the attacker wants him dead." "It''s clear," Colby continued.


    "It''s clear the attacker won''t allow


    anyone outside of Burke


    International to take over. When James was in charge, this person behind the scenes didn''t react,


    which means they had no problem


    with James or Elodie being in control," Sophie said, her face growing paler by the second. "This person wants to control Burke International, and only James and Elodie can be controlled by them... could he be someone within Burke International?"


    "I''ve never seen such a person in Burke International," Colby said, shaking his head. "Not before, and probably not in the future either."


    At that moment, the lights outside the operating room turned green. The doctors emerged, and Sophie and Colby rushed forward.


    "Doctor, how are the patients?" Sophie asked urgently.


    "There are two patients. Which one are you asking about?" the doctor replied.


    "We want to know about both!" Colby insisted.


    "One, named Jonah, isn''t too badlyN?vel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive ? material.


    hurt. The other one, however, is more seriously injured and will need to stay in the hospital for a while," the doctor exined.