- 8.
A fire broke out at Sterling Villa. The maids said it was fortunate they discovered it early, or Chloe, who was still locked in the confinement room, might have lost her life.
I leaned against my hospital bed, cradling a warm bowl of millet porridge.
“Mrs. Davis, your porridge is still the best. I’ve been craving it ever since you left!”
Mrs. Davis smiled without speaking, carefully applying medicine to my lower leg.
“Ow!”
Mrs. Davis immediately pulled her hand back. “I’m so sorry, Miss Blair, did I hurt you? You must take good care of yourself. What if this burn leaves a scar? Maybe we should ask a doctor to take a look?”
“It’s fine,” I said softly, comforting her. “You know, no one else can find out about this.”
I had set the fire at the villa. Luckily, because Chloe had changed rooms, the side water pipe in her room was a blind spot for surveillance cameras, making it easy for me to enter and exit the villa. I used my hospitalization as a solid alibi. It was just a pity she only sustained minor
injuries.
I saw my brothers, whom I hadn’t seen in days, outside Chloe’s hospital room. I had never seen such weary expressions on their faces, a kind of defeated despondency. They were discussing the progress of the past few days.
Ryder said he had been trailing the girl for several days but found no sign of the forces behind her. Julian was also suspicious about the fire; he suspected a rival was making trouble in the shadows, trying to take down the entire Sterling family. Sebastian sighed softly. “I’ve asked many friends, and it seems like prison time is inevitable for Dominic. We should start preparing.”
I quietly snuck back to room and pretended to be asleep. My brothers glanced at me, saw I was resting, and left without another word.
I had never felt so happy to be ignored. No need to feign anything, no need to pretend to cater to their whims.
That evening, the head nurse, Nurse Jenkins, came to check on me. She carried her rounds report book and briefly inquired about my condition. I initiated a conversation with her. “Nurse Jenkins, I heard you have a son. Does he look like you?”
Nurse Jenkins’s hand trembled slightly. She didn’t answer me, frantically placed her report book down, and quickly left.
