Chapter 1526: And above it… was the penthouse.

"Oh! You guys are early!" Penny flashed them a smile, waving a handful of papers. "Shawn, I need a summary of this. Please send it to my office as soon as you can."

"Also, I need progress reports from you three," she added, pointing at Hayley, Teddy, and Patricia. "Send them to my office right away. I’ll read them while having my coffee."

With that, Penny was ready to head out, but the four of them just stared at her blankly.

"Hello?" she called, raising an eyebrow. "Are you guys okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost or something."

They didn’t respond right away. All they could do was stare at their boss in stunned silence.

Was it weird to say something felt off?

This morning, they’d seen Zoren Pierson in his pajamas. And now Penny, who looked like she had just woken up, was here too—in her pajamas.

What were the odds?

Before they could dwell any longer on how bizarre it all was, their eyes were drawn to something else: the plasters and band-aids scattered across Penny’s skin. The most obvious ones were on her forehead and jaw, with several more on her arms.

"Miss Penny, are you alright?" Teddy snapped out of his trance and walked closer. "Why are you covered in band-aids?"

Patricia sprinted over and beat Teddy to it, standing directly in front of Penny. She tilted her head, scanning her from top to bottom.

"What happened to you!?" she gasped. "Did you get in trouble again!?"

"Miss Penny, were you hurt?" Hayley asked with concern as she also moved closer. Shawn stayed behind, silent but clearly worried.

"Ahh..." Penny touched the strip on her forehead and smiled. "I got into an accident last night."

"An accident?!" they all gasped in unison.

"Mhm. It’s actually in the news. But sadly, our identities were hidden. I was in a friend’s car and he got attacked," she explained casually. "Fortunately, no one died—except the guy who tried to shoot him."

That made the four assistants gape in horror. Their mouths hung open, eyes wide, while Penny talked about it as if it were no big deal.

"It’s not that serious," she chuckled, waving them off. "I just bruised my leg. Want to see?"

They didn’t respond, but she still pulled up her pajama pants to show them. The loose fabric easily slid up to reveal a long, dark bruise on her leg—horizontal and huge. Against her fair skin, it looked even more severe.

"Oh my god..." Hayley covered her mouth in shock.

Penny nodded. "It was bad, but it’s okay. That’s all I got. Better than something worse."

"Penny, are you sure you’re okay?" Patricia asked, genuine concern in her voice. "That looks horrible!"

"If you need rest, please let us know," Teddy added.

"Don’t worry about the office work," Shawn said, supporting the others. "We’ll handle everything."

Hearing their determined reassurances, Penny burst out laughing. "You guys... I’m fine. Just a few scratches and bruises, nothing serious. But thank you—I really appreciate it."

"Anyway, don’t forget the reports I asked for, alright?" Penny tapped Teddy’s shoulder since he was closest. Then, after taking a few steps, she turned back to Patricia. "Oh, and Patricia, I don’t want any visitors today. If anyone comes looking for me, tell them I’m not in."

"Yes, ma’am!"

With that, the four of them watched her leave, brows furrowed and minds racing. That didn’t sound like a regular car crash. If anything, it sounded like an attempted murder.

Even if Penny hadn’t been the target... she was still involved.

"At this point," Hayley muttered after a long silence, "making sure she stays out of jail is just our second priority..."

"We need to keep our boss alive," Teddy added under his breath.

The others didn’t reply, but they all nodded in solemn agreement.

They had seen the chaotic, borderline-criminal side of Penny—but now, it was clear that she wasn’t just crazy. It was like she attracted danger itself.

How could she act like nothing had happened after such a traumatic experience?

Well... Penny was drunk. That’s why.

Once she left the office, her four assistants stood still for a moment, dazed. But when they finally came to, they all silently agreed not to dwell on the horrifying elevator encounter with Zoren earlier.

They didn’t want to give Penny anything else to worry about.

If anything, they all believed she should’ve stayed home and gotten some rest. Maybe even seen a therapist, honestly.

---

Moments later...

Knock knock

Penny looked up from her desk and called, "Come in," before returning to what she was doing. She hadn’t changed clothes yet—mostly because she had arrived at the office very early. She figured she’d finish some work first before heading back up to the penthouse to get dressed.

"Miss Penny, here’s the summary you asked for," Shawn said as he stepped in and placed a folder on her desk.

Her brows rose. "That’s fast. Are you sure you’re submitting this already?"

"Yes," he nodded confidently. "I double-checked everything."

"Alright," Penny shrugged, then turned her attention to the others as they placed their reports on her desk one by one. She smiled in satisfaction, clearly pleased by their efficiency.

Then her smile faded slightly. "What are you still doing here?"

"Uh. Right," Teddy cleared his throat and lowered his head. "Patricia will be stationed outside your office, and one of us will take over during her breaks. Please don’t hesitate to call if you need anything."

"...Uh—" Penny blinked, watching them retreat quietly. Once the door shut behind them, she smacked her lips and muttered, "Well, never mind."

Shrugging it off, she took Shawn’s file and started reading while sipping her coffee.

---

Meanwhile...

As the four assistants walked out of her office, they exchanged silent looks. No one spoke as they made their way back to their department—Patricia included, since she needed to grab her things.

Once inside, Shawn furrowed his brows and looked over at Teddy. His voice quiet as he asked, "Hey, Ted. Earlier... did you see where CEO Pierson came from?"

"Huh?" Teddy paused. "No. But considering he was going down—and this is the top floor..."

He trailed off, eyes narrowing as he slowly looked up at the ceiling.

The CEO’s department was already the top floor.

And above it... was the penthouse.