Chapter 579 In the Fire
Nicholas scrunched up his face.
Lisa kept going, "But I know someone who might have it."
"Who?"
"I got a buddy who used to run an orphanage too. She was the head honcho at City H Hope Orphanage, but she's retired now. She's into collecting kids' photos."
Nicholas thought, 'City H? Caroline still has ties with City H's Hope Orphanage?'
Nicholas felt a hunch and quickly asked, "Can you tell me how you adopted Caroline? Why would the director of the orphanage in City H have photos of Caroline?"
Lisa went quiet for a moment, hearing his question.
Nicholas clearly cared for Caroline, so she figured there was no point in keeping secrets.
"Before I adopted Caroline, she was actually in..."
Caroline's room door suddenly swung open, and Lisa's voice cut off.
Yawning, she walked out, squinting her eyes, not noticing who was in the living room.
"Mom, didn't you take a nap?"
She stretched her arms and suddenly saw Nicholas there.
"What are you doing here?"
Nicholas grinned at her, his eyes full of affection.
"I came to see you during my lunch break."
Caroline went silent.
She thought Nicholas was flirting with her, but she had no proof.
Nicholas glanced at his watch.
"I've got a meeting this afternoon, so I gotta bounce. Lisa, we'll chat next time."
Lisa smiled kindly and nodded.
Nicholas looked at Caroline. "Can you see me off? Sharpe went out."
Nicholas pleaded, and Caroline couldn't resist. She almost instinctively reached out to see Nicholas off.
Nicholas's lips curled up slightly.
Sharpe was waiting downstairs. Seeing Caroline pushing Nicholas out, he immediately stepped forward.
Caroline decisively handed Nicholas over to Sharpe.
"Take care."
With that, Caroline turned and went back to the elevator.
Nicholas pouted, "Caroline, the heartless woman!"
Sharpe chuckled softly.
Caroline got back home to see Lisa holding a cup of coffee, lost in thought.
She vaguely heard that Lisa and Nicholas were talking about something.
Out of curiosity, she asked, "Lisa, what were you talking about with Nicholas?"
Lisa put down her coffee. She thought Nicholas's discovery might be a good thing for Caroline. She actually hoped Caroline could find her biological parents.
"Nicholas was asking about your childhood. He said he saw a photo of a little girl who looked a lot like Josie. He said it might be your sister, so he wanted to check your childhood photos."
Hearing this, Caroline lost interest and leaned back on the couch, squinting her eyes.
"There are tons of people who look alike. That person is definitely not my sister."
Lisa could see she didn't want to dig into this topic. In Caroline's heart, she always believed she was abandoned, so she had no interest in finding her family.
Lisa sighed inwardly.
"I used to think you were too young, so I didn't dare to tell you. But now you're a mom, you can handle family responsibilities and take care of me. You've grown up, and there are some things I must tell you."
Caroline's eyes moved, but she didn't open them.
Lisa knew she was listening and said, "I also thought you were abandoned. When you were rescued from human traffickers, all the other kids were taken back by their families, except you. No one came to find you."
Back then, there was no DNA database. Most of the rescued kids were from City H. The traffickers got busted before they could move them.
So, those kids got scooped up by their families real quick, except for Caroline. She couldn't even talk right, scared out of her mind, and so hungry she was just skin and bones.
Since they couldn't find her family, Caroline ended up at Hope Orphanage.
"But later, the orphanage mysteriously caught fire, and you almost died in that blaze."
Caroline remembered bits of it. Even though she was young, she had some memories, but they were fuzzy.
After going through so much, it didn't seem so bad anymore.
Always dwelling on it would just bring more pain.
Caroline stayed quiet, listening to Lisa.
"The cops figured out the fire started in your room. Turns out, those traffickers did it to get back at you."
Thinking of that fire, Lisa got choked up.
Many kids lost their lives in that fire.
"After that, my friend and I talked about how you were the only one left from the rescued kids. Why didn't the traffickers go after the other kids' families but only came for you?"
"So we suspected someone specifically targeted you, trying to kill you. This person might be an enemy of your parents."
"The fire burned down the whole orphanage. After a long talk, for your safety and the other kids', I quietly took you to City B."
"After everyone thought you were dead, you and the other kids who survived grew up safe and sound."
Caroline didn't know when she had opened her eyes, staring at Lisa with wide eyes.
Lisa held her hand.
"I've been holding onto this stuff for years, too scared to even talk about it. I didn't want to put you back in danger."
Lisa continued, "But now you have Nicholas to protect you, so I'm relieved."
"So if you want to find your family, I will fully support you."
Caroline's mind was spinning. She instinctively picked up the glass of water Nicholas had left on the table and drank it all.
The cold water cleared her head.
She summed up what Lisa had just said.
Caroline thought, 'So I wasn't abandoned. It’s likely my parents' enemies who kidnapped me and tried to kill me? Do my biological parents think I was dead and haven't found me all these years?'
Caroline grabbed Lisa's hand. "You said Nicholas saw a photo of a little girl who looked like Josie?"
"Yes."
"Mom, I want to find Saskia."
Lisa nodded, "Okay."
Caroline's eyes welled up with tears.
Lisa hugged her tightly.
Caroline wanted to go right away, but she couldn't.
Caroline mused, 'How would I explain to Josie if I suddenly left City B? I have to settle Josie first.'
Nicholas probably didn't have time to take care of Josie. It would be better to let Josie stay at The Lancaster Manor with Emma for a few days.
Having decided, Caroline immediately called Sophia, saying she wanted Josie to stay at her house for a few days.
Sophia replied, "No problem, but what are you gonna do?"
"I'm going to City H to take care of some things. I'll explain when I get back."
"Okay."
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