A plea for help?
Or was there some other reason?
And why hadn''t he called back after she rejected his call?
Noreen Gilmore had no idea what the truth was.
Nor did she n on calling Seth Harcourt back.
That afternoon, just after Noreen finished a meeting, she passed by the admin office and overheard a few people gossiping.
"That fire was terrible. The entire viplex was burned beyond recognition. What a waste."
"I heard that wealthy families like that have a lot of valuable collectibles. I wonder if any of them were destroyed. That would be the real tragedy."
"Look at us, making pennies and worrying about the richest man in Rivercrest City. A bit ridiculous, isn''t it?"
"The Harcourt family is truly impressive, though. They''ve held the top spot in Rivercrest City for so many years. Their power is immense!"
Noreen''s hand froze on the door.
The Harcourt family?
Which Harcourt family?
She walked over to the office, lightly tapping on a desk to get the gossiping secretaries'' attention. "Where was the fire?"
Noreen was on good terms with them, so they weren''t too nervous about getting caught gossiping by the boss.
One of the secretaries told her, "There was a fire at the Harcourt family''s ce on Meadow Lane. It was really bad; the whole vi was destroyed!"
The Harcourt family on Meadow Lane!
Wasn''t that Wade Harcourt''s home?
A sense of dread washed over Noreen, and she quickly pulled out her phone to call Wade.
The phone rang and rang, but no one answered.
Her heart was pounding in her throat. She hurriedly dialed Evelyn''s number.
This time, the call connected, but the background was noisy. It sounded like a hospital.
Noreen called out Evelyn''s name several times, but Evelyn couldn''t hear her clearly, saying it was too crowded.
Without a second thought, Noreen asked Colby to drive her to the hospital.
Only when she saw Wade did the heart that had been lodged in her throat finally drop back into ce.
"Noreen, what are you doing here?" Evelyn asked, surprised to see her.
Noreen had run all the way and was still catching her breath. "I heard about the fire at the Harcourt estate and couldn''t reach either of you, so got worried. Are you two okay? Mr. Harcourt, are you all right?
Wade waved a hand dismissively. "I had a doctor''s appointment for a routine check-
up today. I wasn''t home, so I was lucky to have escaped."
Evelyn shivered at the thought. "It was sheer luck. Dr. Cole has a business trip next
week, so he asked us toe in a day early. Otherwise..."
She didn''t finish the sentence, but the unspoken words sent a chill down Noreen''s spine.
A cold sweat broke out on her back.
The investigators in charge of the
fire arrived just then. After asking the couple a few questions, they told them in a somber t?ne, This fire may not have been an ident."
The expressions on their faces instantly darkened.
Noreen stayed at the hospital a while longer. Once she confirmed that Wade had another ce to stay and that his security was in order. she got up to leave.
Wade told her not to worry and that he would be careful.
Noreen frowned, ncing at the time on her phone.
It had been five hours since the incident. Not only had Seth not shown up, but he
hadn''t even made a single phone call.
Annoyed, she called Seth as soon as she left the hospital room.
But the automated message telling her the phone was off made her stop dead in her tracks.
Was his battery dead?
Or was he on a flight?
She didn''t know the truth. In the end, she could only send Seth a WhatsApp message, concisely exining what had happened with the fire.
As soon as Seth turned his phone on, he would see the message.
But she waited untilte that night, and still, there was no reply from Seth.
After her shower, Noreen didn''t even bother to dry her hair before anxiously checking her phone.
Still nothing.
No messages, no missed calls.
Noreen had no choice but to dial Seth''s number again.
Switched off!
Still switched off!