The Heiress's Comeback-Chapter 308: [ Volume 1] Chaper - burn alive

Kai stood frozen, staring at the blaze with wide, empty eyes. His chest ached as if the fire were inside him, burning through his ribs and tearing at his heart. "We should have been here," he whispered, his voice barely audible. "We could have saved him..."

The flames began to die down, leaving behind charred ruins and a silence so heavy it pressed on their chests. The once vibrant room was now nothing more than ash and smoke.

Jay looked up, his tear-streaked face filled with disbelief. "He’s gone," he murmured, his voice hollow. "He’s really gone."

Kai knelt beside him, his hand gripping Jay’s shoulder as his own tears fell silently. Together, they sat amidst the ashes of what was, their hearts shattered by what they could never undo.

The police cars pulled up with their sirens wailing, the red and blue lights casting eerie shadows on the walls of the grand mansion. The fire, as if obeying some unseen command, had consumed everything in the room to ash and then simply stopped, sparing the rest of the house. It was unnatural, almost as if the flames had a mind of their own.

Esme rushed inside, her bathrobe trailing behind her, her breath quick and shallow. Her face was pale, her eyes darting to the charred remnants of what had been Ray’s room. Her voice cracked as she screamed, "Honey!" She stumbled, falling to her knees just outside the scorched threshold. Tears streamed down her face, and her hands trembled as they covered her mouth.

For a moment, her grief looked raw, genuine. But in that instant, as her shoulders shook with sobs, her lips curved slightly—just a fraction. A smile. Subtle, but there.

Jay and Kai burst through the doors, their faces pale and streaked with sweat. "Brother! Brother!" they shouted desperately, their voices hoarse with panic. When their eyes landed on Esme, kneeling at the door with her trembling hands, their grief turned to fury.

Kai’s voice roared, "It’s all your fault, you snake!" Jay didn’t wait; he grabbed her by the collar and yanked her up.

"You did this!" he spat, his voice cracking under the weight of his anguish. His hands shook, and his eyes, bloodshot and raw, locked onto hers.

Esme’s tears fell harder now, streaking her cheeks. Her cries were haunting, wracked with visible pain. "No! No! I would never! I—" she choked out between sobs, her voice trembling.

But there was something in her eyes—just a glimmer. If one looked closely, past the tears and trembling lips, there was an emotion that didn’t belong there: satisfaction.

The police intervened, pulling Jay back before he could lash out further. Officers began combing through the room, their boots crunching over burnt debris. The fire had been too contained, too deliberate. The entire room had been reduced to ash, but the adjoining walls were untouched. It was as if the flames had been summoned for this very purpose.

Chief Katrina arrived, stepping out of her unmarked car with the composure of a woman who had seen too much and still wasn’t fazed. Her sharp eyes scanned the scene before she even entered the mansion. She had earned her reputation as a relentless investigator, and tonight, she could already feel the weight of the mystery pressing down on her.

Inside, she surveyed the room, her gloved hands tracing the edges of a scorched monitor still flickering faintly. She tilted her head, her sharp mind connecting threads others hadn’t yet noticed. "The machines... partially burned but operational. The bed? Completely gone. The body? Ashes," she murmured to herself.

Her eyes narrowed. "A fire doesn’t act like this. Not naturally."

Turning to her team, she barked orders. "Mark everything. I want samples of the ash, the bedframe, and these machines. Something’s off."

Her gaze fell on Esme, who sat sobbing on the floor, her head buried in her hands. But Esme wasn’t just crying. Katrina’s eyes caught the slightest twitch of her lips, the faintest flicker of something too calm. Too composed.

She approached slowly, crouching to meet Esme’s tear-streaked face. "Mrs. Esme, I understand this is a tragedy, but can you walk me through what happened? Anything you saw or heard?"

Esme sniffled, looking up, her voice trembling. "I-I don’t know! I was in my room. I woke up to the smoke and the shouting. I ran here, but... but it was too late."

Katrina studied her, her piercing gaze dissecting every word, every tear. There was something calculated in her grief, as if it was rehearsed. But Katrina wasn’t one to jump to conclusions.

Katrina’s sharp eyes remained fixed on Esme and Ryan, her stance calm yet charged with an authority that made the room feel smaller. The smell of smoke lingered in the air, mixing with the faint, sterile scent of the house’s untouched halls. Her lips curled into a polite, almost mocking smile as she addressed Esme again. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

"Ms. Esme, or should I say Ms. Rose?" Katrina’s voice held a subtle edge, her words deliberate. "I’ve read about you—quite the influential figure, aren’t you?"

Esme’s expression wavered, but she quickly regained her composure. She dabbed her tear-streaked cheeks with a trembling hand. "Thank you, officer, but I’m just a writer and CEO. I don’t see how this relates to... this tragedy."

Katrina nodded, her smile tightening. "Of course, I understand. But may I ask you something, ma’am? You mentioned you were in your room during the fire. Your husband’s room is only two doors down. The fire burned everything to dust, yet you didn’t notice anything until it was too late?"

Esme’s eyes flickered toward the officer, her voice steady but tinged with indignation. "Are you... are you accusing me of something?"

Katrina shook her head with a soft chuckle. "Oh, no, Ms. Esme. Everyone knows your impeccable reputation. I’m merely trying to understand. You were the closest to the scene. Surely, you might have heard or smelled something?"

Esme’s tears flowed again, her voice quivering.