Chapter 12
“This house has been empty since it was bought. There shouldn’t be any issues like this. Let me go in and check it out first. The security guard was in his fifties, but his attitude was decent.
The key turned a full circle, and the door swung open. Rachel stepped in first. The security guard took out his tools and began to inspect the electrical box by the entrance.
Rachel was sitting on the shoe–changing stool. When the light came on, she felt something flicker in the mirror.
She immediately stared hard at the mirror, but it was empty. “Did I just hallucinate?” she thought,
“The fuse is fine, and I don’t see any issues with the wiring. Maybe we should wait until tomorrow morning and get a professional electrician to check it out?” the security guard suggested.
Rachel glanced at her phone and agreed that it was too late to find anyone. “Alright, thank you, sir,” she said.
After the security guard left, Rachel deliberately paced around, keeping an eye on the mirror. Sure enough, she saw a dark shadow appear in the mirror.
She immediately turned off the light and rushed out, slamming the door behind her. She then hurried down the hallway.
She ran down the stairs in one breath and saw a crowd gathered downstairs. People were pointing at the building and talking animatedly.
Following their gazes, Rachel’s eyes widened in horror as she saw thick smoke billowing from a room on the top floor.
That’s my place! How could this happen?‘ she thought, her heart pounding in fear.
Suddenly, she remembered something and, ignoring the protests of the onlookers, she started running back towards her apartment.
“Hey, young lady, it’s on fire! You can’t go in!” a passerby shouted.
“It’s my home, and I have to go back!” Rachel insisted.
“Material possessions are replaceable. You’re still young. You’ll have plenty of chances to start over,” someone else reasoned.
“Exactly, the smoke is so thick. Everything inside must be burning. You’ll risk your life!” another person added.
Rachel didn’t have time to explain. She shook off the well–meaning hands and was about to rush in when someone grabbed her arm. She turned around and saw Charles, who scolded her, “Are you crazy?”
“Charles, I have to get back the wedding gift my parents gave me,” Rachel said firmly.
“Nothing, no matter how valuable, is more important than your life,” Charles argued, trying to pull her back.
“The gemstone pendant is one of the few things my parents left me. I have to get it back. It means the world to me!” Rachel’s face was set with determination.
Charles sighed and finally relented. “Alright, I’ll help you find it.”
“No, it’s too dangerous. I can’t let you take that risk. I’ve already troubled you enough,” Rachel protested.
“Don’t worry,” Charles said.
Rachel shook off Charles’s hand and took a few steps forward when suddenly, she felt a sharp pain in the back of her neck. Everything went black, and she collapsed backward.
Charles handed Rachel over to his assistant and then, without looking back, he charged into the building.
“Boss!” Eric was frantic, trying to stop his reckless boss. But Charles didn’t give him a chance to intervene.
The building had a total of nine floors, and Rachel’s apartment was on the eighth floor. Charles pushed through the thick smoke, going against the flow. He encountered several panicked residents in the stairwell.
As he passed a man dressed in thick, protective clothing, Charles felt a strange vibe but didn’t dwell on it and continued upstairs.
By the time he reached the eighth floor, the firefighters had already broken down the door. The living room was the most heavily engulfed in flames. The firefighters quickly stopped Charles. “It’s very dangerous inside. Please don’t interfere with our work.”
“I’m not trying to cause trouble. I just need to retrieve something important from my home,” Charles explained. He then put on a gas mask and charged into the burning apartment.
Rachel woke up to see Jenny sitting by the bed, engrossed in a game. As if she had eyes on the back of her head, Jenny iminediately sensed something and turned to ask, “Hey, are you okay? Do you feel any discomfort?”
“Where am I? L…” Recalling the moment before she fainted, Rachel quickly asked, “Where’s Charles? My pendant…“”
“He just went to bandage his wound. He should be back soon,” Jenny said.
“Is he hurt?” Rachel asked.
Jenny locked her phone, about to answer, when the door to the ward was pushed open. Charles walked in, holding a paper bag. Seeing Rachel sitting up in bed, he raised an eyebrow and said, “How are you feeling? You should eat something.”
As usual, he was dressed in a black shirt and black trousers. Rachel noticed that he, who always used his left hand, was now using his right to pour water for her.
“Where is the wound? Is it serious?” Rachel asked.
Charles poured a cup of warm water and handed it to her. “It’s just a minor scratch. It’s nothing serious. The only problem is that I didn’t find the item.” He spoke nonchalantly, as if it were nothing.
Jenny, who was on Charles’s side, couldn’t help but snort. She cared about her boss, and that was only natural.
Rachel now felt a wave of fear in retrospect. The fire had been so intense, and Charles had gone back into the burning building to look for her. Fortunately, he was fine. If anything had happened to him, Rachel would have felt even more guilty.
After taking a sip of water and seeing Charles’s seemingly unfazed expression, Rachel felt even more indebted.
She thought for a moment and said, “It’s okay if you didn’t find it. Thank you so much this time. If it weren’t for you, I might not have made it. I promise I won’t let you do this for nothing. I’ll find a way to repay you.”
Charles looked at Rachel’s touched and sincere expression, feeling both annoyed and amused..
He pulled out a chair, sat down, picked up an apple, crossed his legs, and skillfully began peeling it. He raised an eyebrow and said, “Is that so? And how do you plan to thank me?”
Rachel thought for a moment. Empty words wouldn’t do. She needed to offer something substantial. She said earnestly, “I’ll pay you extra for your legal fees.”
Rachel held up three fingers. “90 thousand dollars. How about that?”
“Is that all?” For some reason, Charles’s eyes suddenly turned cold.
‘Maybe he thinks it’s too little, Rachel thought, reluctantly held up five fingers, and tentatively asked, “Maybe 150 thousand dollars?” Charles didn’t speak, just continued peeling the apple. His fingers were long and slender, and the apple in his hand seemed like a piece
of art.
After peeling the apple, Charles held it up and, without looking at Rachel, said, “Ms. Sampson, if you really want to thank me, you should show some sincerity.”
Charles had a point. He had helped her so many times. Rachel asked, “So, how much do you think is appropriate?”
Charles tossed the apple back onto the plate, stood up, took out a piece of paper, looked down at Rachel for a few seconds, and then coldly said, “300 thousand dollars.”
300 thousand? Is he serious?‘ Rachel thought to herself, feeling a pang of pain at the thought of parting with so much money.
“What? Don’t want to pay?” Charles stared at Rachel’s hesitant expression. “If that’s the case, don’t go around making big promises next time. With that, he turned and walked out of the ward without looking back.
Rachel asked Jenny, “Is Charles angry?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Jenny replied, still engrossed in her game with her legs crossed.
Rachel was left feeling bewildered. “Why is Charles angry? If anyone should be angry, it should be me. 300 thousand dollars! That’s a lot of money.”
Meanwhile, Charles walked out of the ward, stood at the stairwell, and took several minutes to calm down before he could suppress the irrational anger boiling inside him.
“Boss, we’ve found the black–clad man!” Eric called over the phone.
“Got it. I’m on my way,” Charles said.
