Chapter 9: The Fire
The fire spread through the west wing with terrifying speed.
Alarms screamed.
Sprinklers burst overhead.
Guests rushed toward the exits while security officers directed them across the rain-soaked terrace.
Emily tried to move with the crowd, but her injured ankle gave way.
She fell near the library doors.
Daniel saw her.
For one moment, their eyes met through the smoke.
He could have reached her.
Instead, he turned and ran.
Vanessa came back.
She wrapped Emily’s arm around her shoulder and pulled her through the corridor as burning fragments dropped from the ceiling.
“Keep moving,” Vanessa coughed.
“You should leave me.”
“I already made that mistake once.”
They reached the terrace seconds before part of the ceiling collapsed.
Firefighters entered through the east entrance.
The estate archives contained original deeds, mineral surveys, trust documents, and the old partnership agreement Richard had mentioned.
If those records were destroyed, ownership of the mineral rights could be trapped in court for years.
Arthur stood in the rain, staring at the flames.
“The fire started too quickly,” he said. “Someone used an accelerant.”
Agent Hayes ordered the gates sealed.
No guest would be permitted to leave until investigators identified where the fire began.
Daniel appeared among the crowd, shouting that Richard had disappeared.
Richard’s vehicle remained in the driveway.
His phone was found inside the library.
Vanessa looked toward Daniel.
“He knew where the archives were.”
Daniel shook his head.
“My father was trying to save the documents.”
“Or destroy them,” Arthur replied.
A firefighter emerged carrying a metal box.
The outside was blackened, but the lock remained intact.
Arthur recognized it immediately.
Emily’s father had installed the fireproof archive box behind the chapel wall years earlier.
Inside was the original Blackwood deed.
There was also a sealed letter addressed to Emily.
The handwriting belonged to her father.
Emily broke the seal.
The letter was dated four days before his death.
Emily, if Arthur ever gives you this letter, it means the Brooks family has learned what lies beneath Blackwood. Do not trust their promises. Do not trust their fear. Most importantly, do not assume Arthur is innocent merely because he is loyal. Loyalty and guilt often wear the same face.
Emily looked at Arthur.
He stood motionless in the rain.
The final line of the letter was written in darker ink.
The mineral rights do not belong to the Carter Trust. They belong to you alone.
Daniel read the words over her shoulder.
His expression changed.
May you like
The wedding had never been the prize.
Emily was.
