Chapter 8
Since the fire had broken out so suddenly, the police launched an investigation into the cause. In the meantime, Danny and I were relocated to a nearby hotel.
It had been a long, chaotic night. Fear and exhaustion finally caught up with Danny. At some point, he curled up in my arms and drifted into a deep sleep.
The results of the investigation came quickly. It was arson. Someone had been paid to do it, and the one pulling strings was Francesca.
She only did it because she wanted me dead. That was how deeply she hated me.
The moment I told her that I was staying, she decided I didn’t deserve to stay alive.
Not long after, Francesca was taken in for questioning.
I couldn’t deny that I resented her. But the fact that Danny and I had made it out alive felt like the best ending I could’ve asked for.
I had assumed that Roderick would rush to Francesca’s defence and bail her out.
To my surprise, he made a public statement the very next morning. He was filing for divorce.
And with that announcement came another revelation. He and Francesca had indeed been high school sweethearts. Yet, that love had long since faded.
Their marriage had been nothing more than a business arrangement. They had carefully crafted the image of a loving couple just to keep their stock prices climbing.
Facing the press, Roderick gave a sincere apology. “I’m sorry for hiding the truth all these years. I don’t love Francesca. The woman I truly love is someone else.”
