The Alchemists

Nicolae frowned and clicked in surprise. This had never happened before, he thought. He had tried searching the little girl's face in various databases in France but could not find anything.

Had this child has never been to a public place that had CCTV cameras? Why wasn't there a recording of her face anywhere?

Who she really was?

Nicolae raised his face from the tablet and watched the little girl with a pair of narrowed eyes. Did she really never leave the house? Or .. this child was indeed hidden by her parents or they deliberately always made sure she would avoid the camera?

There were many ways to avoid cameras that were installed in all major cities in the world today. People could deliberately use hats in public places, avoid areas that had cameras, or use infrared.

But why did her parents do that? Did they really protect their privacy? Or were they avoiding something?

There were so many questions that filled Nicolae's mind. Finally, he gave up after 2 am. The young man decided to go to bed and ask the child who she was after she woke up.

***

Nicolae intentionally woke up very early in the morning. He did not want the little girl to wake up first and felt panicked because she did not recognize the place. At 7 am he was sitting back on the couch in the room where the child was sleeping and waited for the little girl to wake up from sleep.

At 8 am, he finally heard a soft whimper from the bed. The man immediately approached her and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Good morning," he said kindly in French. His face was filled with a smile, Nicolae wanted to make sure the little girl was not afraid of him and knew that she was with a good person. "I found you on a boat. How are you feeling?"

The child blinked her long, curly lashes and then opened her eyes slowly. For a moment, Nicolae was mesmerized and could not take his eyes off the little girl's face.

This child had a pair of stunning purplish-blue eyes. The shape of her eyes was like a small peach and made her face look very unique because her tiny nose and slanted eyes were in contrast with her full pink lips.

If they were still alive, his child must be of this kid's age...

The little girl had opened his eyes completly and was now staring at him without blinking.

"My name is Nicolae, you can call me Uncle Nic. What's your name?" Nicolae asked again.

The little girl frowned and then looked around the room. Nicolae touched the child's forehead and heaved a sigh of relief. Her fever had gone down.

"Where is this?" Finally, the child's voice was heard talking in French. Ahh .. her voice sounded so melodious. Nicolae smiled again.

"This is the Nobel Hotel. Do you remember what your name is and who your parents are? I will take you back to your home," Nicolae said soothingly. "I found you on a boat and brought you here."

"My name is Summer," the child finally answered.

"Oh ... that is a lovely name," Nicolae said with a smile.

"Mom said I was named Summer because I was born in the summer," the child added.

"Oh, really? What a coincidence. I was also born in the summer." Nicolae nodded. "How are you? Are you hungry? I'll make breakfast for us. What do you want to eat?"

The little tried to sit up and then nodded. Nicolae helped her remove her blanket and then examined Summer's hands and feet to see if the blisters on her wrists and feet had improved.

"Hmm ... I'll treat your feet and hands first, then we go to the dining room. Wait a minute." He then walked to his room and took a small bottle that contained Lauriel's wound healing medicine. He had applied it last night, and the abrasions on the little girl's body had improved, but they still looked red.

He then sat next to Summer and painstakingly applied the oil to her wrists and feet. Summer just looked at him with round eyes without saying anything. After Nicolae finished, she nodded and thanked him.

"Thank you, Uncle Nic."

"You're welcome, Sweetheart. Now, let's have breakfast," Nicolae was very pleased to hear Summer's voice. She sounded fine. He then carried the child with his right hand and took her to the kitchen.

After arriving there, he sat Summer on a high chair near the kitchen counter.

"I'll make pancakes and boiled eggs. Do you like strawberry pancakes?" Nicolae asked, putting an apron on his waist. Summer nodded. "All right. Strawberry and egg pancakes will be here soon."

He took the ingredients from the refrigerator and immediately prepared the dough for pancakes while boiling eggs. He then took out some fruits and sliced ​​them and arranged them on a plate. He also poured a glass of juice for Summer and a cup of espresso for himself. Summer watched him do all those attentively.

Ten minutes later, the two of them had faced breakfast at the dinner table. A thick curtain in the large floor-to-ceiling window had been opened, and they could see the Eiffel Tower from there. Summer seemed fascinated by how beautiful the view they saw from this dining room.

"Do you like the view?" Nicolae asked. Summer nodded. Nicolae asked again. "Have you ever been to the Eiffel Tower?"

"I have," said Summer.

Nicolae nodded. In his heart, he thought that Summer was not a child who was hidden at home by her parents, evidently, she had gone out to see the Eiffel Tower.

This means that this child was not caught on camera because her parents deliberately prevent her from being captured by cameras in public places. In that case, her parents must have a high level of privacy awareness.

Who were they really?