Chapter 36 #2
I glance toward the door, then back at Sebastian. He isn't delaying this conversation because he doesn't know what to say. He's waiting for something.
"Sebastian." I say again, my voice quieter this time. "Whatever this is... stop playing games."
He slowly lifts his eyes from his watch and meets mine.
"I'm not."
"Then tell me what's happening."
"You'll know in a moment."
A chill runs down my spine.
Before I can question him further, the second hand reaches the twelve. At that exact moment, an ear-piercing emergency siren erupts throughout the building.
The sound is so sudden and loud that I instinctively flinch.
Red emergency lights begin flashing outside the office windows, their rhythmic pulses reflecting off the glass walls and polished floors.
Almost immediately, voices echo through the executive floor.
At first they're confused, employees calling out to one another, asking what happened.
Within seconds, the confusion turns into panic.
I stare toward the door, my pulse quickening.
"What the hell..."
As instinct takes over, I reach across the desk for the office phone, intending to call Erin. Before my fingers can close around the receiver, Sebastian reaches out and gently places his hand over mine. Without a word, he lowers the receiver back into its cradle.
I slowly look up at him. "What are you doing?"
He withdraws his hand. The composure on his face is far more unsettling than panic would have been.
"Sebastian." I say, my voice turning sharp. "What's going on?"
He holds my gaze for a long moment before speaking. "I'm sorry."
The words send a chill down my spine. It isn't an apology. Before I can demand an explanation again, the office door swings open.
For a split second, I expect Erin. Or Caleb.
Instead, Mikkel walks inside as though the building belongs to him, completely unhurried while chaos continues just beyond the office walls.
The emergency sirens screaming through the corridors don't seem to concern him in the slightest. His suit is immaculate, his posture relaxed, and a faint smile rests comfortably on his face.
He looks less like a man walking into the middle of a crisis and more like someone arriving fashionably late to a family dinner.
A few steps behind him comes Tobias. Unlike his father, Tobias says nothing.
His hands remain tucked casually inside his pockets as he wanders into the office with an almost bored expression, briefly glancing around the room before leaning against the wall as though none of this has anything to do with him.
My eyes move from Sebastian to Mikkel, then to Tobias. Understanding crashes into me all at once. This was never an emergency. The alarms. Sebastian checking his watch. The endless stalling. Every second of it had been planned.
"Zora." He says warmly. "My dear niece."
"What is this?"
"A private conversation." His smile widens ever so slightly. "Creating one required a bit of planning. The alarms got everyone moving. My men took care of the rest. By now, everyone in this building knows exactly who is in control."
I look at Sebastian. "You knew."
He doesn't answer. He doesn't have to. The silence is answer enough.
Mikkel strolls around the office, his fingertips brushing across the bookshelves before coming to a stop beside my desk.
Mikkel lets his gaze wander around the office before a faint smile appears on his face.
"Impressive. You've done well for yourself. But it exists because Marcus chose to back you instead of me."
I fold my arms. "Dad made his choice."
"He made a mistake."
"He knew exactly what he was doing."
Mikkel lets out a quiet, humorless laugh.
"He poured his time, his money, and his faith into you while I spent decades standing beside him, building the Krogen Empire."
His expression hardens. "I gave that man my loyalty. I helped build everything he left behind."
"And he still chose me." The words hang between us. I hold his gaze without flinching. "Maybe he knew exactly who could and couldn't be trusted."
Something dark flashes across Mikkel's face. The warmth disappears from his eyes, replaced by steel-cold seriousness.
For a long moment, neither of us speaks. The office feels unnaturally still despite the chaos continuing somewhere beyond its walls.
Then another voice quietly cuts through the silence. "Father."
Mikkel turns sharply toward Tobias, irritation flashing across his face. "What?"
Throughout the entire confrontation, Tobias hasn't spoken once. He’s remained leaning casually against the wall with his hands buried inside his pockets, watching the argument unfold with complete indifference, as though he were observing strangers instead of family.
Now as he slowly pushes himself away from the wall, one unhurried step, then another, he stops directly in front of Mikkel. Close enough that they're almost standing toe to toe.
Mikkel frowns, clearly irritated. "What are you doing?"
Tobias doesn't answer. He simply remains where he is, standing between his father and the rest of us as though he hasn't even heard the question.
"Tobias." The irritation in Mikkel's voice becomes more pronounced. "Step aside. This doesn't concern you."
Still nothing.
Tobias studies him with an expression so calm that it's almost unsettling. There is no anger in his eyes, no resentment, not even hesitation. He simply watches his father in complete silence, as though observing something that has finally become predictable.
Several uncomfortable seconds pass.
"I said..." Mikkel's jaw tightens. "...move."
Only then does Tobias react. He blinks once before speaking with the same detached indifference he'd shown ever since walking into the room.
"You are boring me."
A deep frown settles across Mikkel's face. "What?"
Without another word, Tobias slowly slips one hand from his pocket.
At first, the movement seems insignificant. Then I see the pistol.
The room seems to freeze around us.
For the first time since walking into the office, genuine confusion crosses Mikkel's face. His eyes flick from the weapon to his son's expression, searching for some explanation that never comes.
"Tobias..." He says quietly. "What are you…"
The gunshot cuts him off.
The blast erupts through the office, deafening in the enclosed space.
Mikkel's body jerks violently as the bullet strikes him square in the head.
He remains standing for the briefest of moments, staring at Tobias with stunned disbelief before his legs finally give way.
His body hits the floor with a heavy thud, and the office falls into absolute silence.
No one moves. The silence that follows feels almost unreal. My ears continue ringing from the gunshot as I stare at Mikkel’s body, unable to process what I've just witnessed. Tobias remains standing where he is, his expression as unreadable as ever, while Mikkel lies motionless at his feet.
I can't breathe. I can't think. All I can do is watch the pool of blood slowly spread across my office floor.
Then a sound breaks the silence. A quiet laugh.
I turn toward it and find Sebastian still standing beside my desk, exactly where he'd been all along. There isn't an ounce of shock or horror on his face. It isn't the laughter of a horrified witness. It's the laughter of a man watching a plan unfold exactly as he knew it would.