The Grandbell Legacy - Chapter 27 Mariotte 1

Ci-ci walked out of Kazimir’s office and into the disorderly lobby area. He was still quite absentminded about the things they had discussed, but he could only let it go for now.

Milana was a year or two older than Ci-ci, which meant that this mystery had bothered Kazimir for more than 20 years already. Considering this was the case, how could Ci-ci solve it so easily?

The weight of Kazimir’s words did cause him to pause, though. Could he really get involved in something like this? Especially now?

On the other hand, did he really have much of a choice? By Ci-ci’s estimations, Kazimir was looking at the world with rose colored glasses if he thought that he could keep this from Milana all her life. Even if she wanted to stay out of it, in all likelihood, others wouldn’t be so apt to let it go.

“Lucius.” Nellie called, snapping Ci-ci out of his thoughts. “Will you take Milana to her apartment to pick up the things she needs? I don’t think she should stay alone for a bit.”

Ci-ci blinked awake. “Of course. I was planning on doing this anyway. But, what about you?”

Nellie waved her hands. “Don’t worry about an old lady like me, I have my own means.”

“Mm.” Ci-ci nodded, before following Milana out of the building.

From beginning to end, no police officers showed up, but Ci-ci wasn’t surprised. Considering the nature of what happened, calling the police would likely only make things worse. For now, Ci-ci could only allow this to slip As Lucius Grant, anyway. Ci-ci Bell, though? He’d have a few things to say before all of this came to an end.

**

Milana’s apartment wasn’t in East Algood City, instead, she resided in the West. Although she liked the ambience of the East, the downtown area was also more dangerous. So, for a young lady like Milana, since she had the money to do so, the West was a better option.

Her apartment was quite similar to Frae’s in that it was actually a condo in a tall building, but it was clearly on a much smaller scale.

Although this was the case, it had a simple elegance to it that matched Milana very well. Minimalistic, yet adorable.

“It might be a little messy.” Milana said with a slight blush. Usually, when she invited Ci-ci over, she would spend hours cleaning, making sure everything was in place. But, this visit was far more abrupt than the others.

Ci-ci only chuckled lightly as they walked in. Just as he expected, the apartment was spotless despite Milana’s nervousness. There wasn’t even a single dish in the sink.
for visiting.

“I’ll be back in a moment, you can relax. The remote should be somewhere on the couch if you’d like to watch some TV.”

“Take your time.” Ci-ci smiled, waving off his nervous, petite girlfriend to lounge on the couch.

It wasn’t long before the two of them settled in calmly. One watching the news while the other shifted around in one of the two rooms of the apartment.

When Ci-ci heard the water of the shower turn on, he could only sigh. It hadn’t been more than an hour or two since they left Ci-ci’s house, so there wasn’t a need for Milana to take a shower. The only reason she’d be doing so is because of how uncomfortable she felt having her place of work ransacked. It wasn’t something she’d get over so easily.

‘I’ll have to find a way to take her mind off of it’ Ci-ci thought absentmindedly.

He was far too bored to listen to the news seriously. It hadn’t been more than even a week since the Grandbell Award scandal, so the various stations were still milking it for all it was worth.

Unlike what one would expect, Ci-ci didn’t feel uncomfortable at all listening to his name being smeared for the world to see. Instead, he sneered, looking forward to the day he could slap each and everyone of them in their faces.

‘At least this anchor woman is pleasing to the eyes’

Ci-ci’s eyes left the TV, scanning the room before his gaze landed on a large vase of flowers that caused his eyes to narrow. Under normal circumstances, it wouldn’t mean much. However, Ci-ci was very much aware that Milana was very allergic to this particular kind.

On their second date, Ci-ci had bought Milana some carnations for the occasion, but it had ended with a trip to hospital. What should have been a romantic evening was completely destroyed and it took a long time for Ci-ci to forgive himself for that.

The issue was obvious. Milana would never decorate her apartment with a flower she was allergic to, so who the hell did?

Ci-ci’s frown deepened. He stood and walked to the flowers, checking them quickly before he found what he needed.

A holographic card projected a small message.

‘To the woman I adore.

I invite you to dinner at the Mariotte, tonight at 8. I hope to see you there.

Abram Latka.’

“Anabelle, scan this room for unidentified devices.” Ci-ci’s gaze became so cold that the air before him seemed to freeze in place.

A moment later, a slight and satisfactory beep sounded as an elegant voice spoke. “8 formally unclassified objects found.”

Ci-ci grit his teeth. “What are they?”

“4 video capturing devices coupled with 4 audio capturing devices.”

The vase that Ci-ci held in his hand shattered. Despite how thick the glass was and how impossible it should have been for a normal man to destroy it so completely in a single hand, it didn’t matter.

“Destroy them.” Ci-ci voice could very well have been mistaken for a demon rising from the depths of hell. Suddenly, a situation he gave little thought toward had become one he’d pursue to the ends of the earth.

“Sending out targeted EMPs in 3 2 1” After Dyon’s personal assistant AI completed her tasks, she disappeared as though she was never there.

Having heard the shattering of glass, Milana ran out of her room wearing two rubber gloves and a cleaning brush. “Lucius, what happened?”

Seeing Milana, Ci-ci sighed in relief.

The truth was that Milana was going to take a shower, but when she thought of the possibility of Ci-ci sneaking in along with her she panicked and began to clean, just in case. In true fashion, her bathroom was actually quite clean, but she still wanted to make sure it was in the best condition for Ci-ci.

She had no idea how that one decision had saved her from one of the worst situations of her life.

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