Chapter 12

SHE looked at Sonja intently and wondered why she was looking pale. Was she scared? But why would she be afraid of such confrontation when she was the one who found and helped her? Unless… she did something she didn’t want her to know.
“I…”
She saw how Sonja’s fists clenched and unclenched.
“You can tell me… I have the right to know everything.” Her voice was full of determination so Sonja would know she could take whatever she had been hiding from her for a long time.
“Sybil, I want you to know that I don’t have bad intentions—”
Her words were suddenly cut off when the bedroom door swung open. They both turned in its direction and found Ace breathing heavily.
“Ace?” Sybil’s forehead knotted.
“What’s the matter?” Sonja asked.
“There’s an emergency at the diner. It’s on fire!” he informed them.
“What?”
Both Sonja and Sybil donned a cardigan and rushed out of the room.
“They need help,” Ace said as he followed them.
“I know.”
Sonja was quick to grab her first-aid kits while Sybil headed to the drawer for the car key.
“Can I come?” Ace asked when they went out of the cabin. “I want to help in any way possible.”
Sonja responded with a nod, and they all got in the car.
“How did you know that the diner’s on fire?” Sybil asked while driving.
“I was out for some fresh air. Mr. Evans’ car passed by, and he told me there’s a fire at the diner.”
“Are there any respondents?” asked Sonja.
“I think there’s none. It’s just them and the other neighbors helping to put off the fire.”
Soon, they arrived at the scene. Sybil parked the car away from the diner.
“Did someone call for help?” Sybil asked when they got closer to the scene.
“Yes, we called for help. It’s on the way,” James told her when he ran past her side.
“Sybil!” Sonja called. “Come here. I need help.”
She found her attending to the injured diner crews.
“Coming!”
A few moments later, they heard the fire truck’s siren. The fire was extinguished in an hour without any casualties. However, the whole diner had turned into charcoal.
“Ace? Where is Ace?” Sybil looked around to search for him.
“There he is.” Sonja pointed in his direction.
He was standing a few feet away, covered in sweat.
“Tired?” she asked upon reaching him.
“A little.” He chuckled despite catching his breath.
Sybil left him for a moment and grabbed bottled water from the chest.
“Here.”
She handed him the bottle that he immediately opened and chugged down the content.
“This is sad,” he said after drinking. “Your favorite diner’s gone.”
“They will be back. Mrs. Collin will rise from the ashes.”
She glanced in Sonja’s direction. She was still busy helping the medics give first aid to the injured ones. Sybil knew it was going to be a long and tiring night. Perhaps she should postpone the confrontation and let her rest once they get home.
“Are you okay?” Ace asked after a while. “If you’re tired, I can get you home and just come back for Sonja. She seems busy.”
“Hm.” She fixed her cardigan. “I think I should go home. I’ll just tell her we’re leaving.”
“Just go to the car.” He patted her back. “I’ll be the one to tell her.”

PRUDENCE and Julian had dinner by the beach. It was a lovely meal, though she didn’t get to enjoy the food since she wasn’t in a good mood. He even had the audacity to come to their villa first and leave her alone at the table. Ah, she should’ve brought her extra phone and used that chance to call her boss and inform him of the happenings. She had to secretly leave the villa in the middle of the night to call her boss. She went to the veranda first, but then she realized Julian might hear her. So, she went to the shore and made the call.
“Boss,” she said as soon as the call connected.
She heard a groan on the other line.
“Fuck it, Prudence. Seriously? Did you even think I might be sleeping at this hour?”
“I’m sorry. I don’t have time to report at a good hour.”
“You better have something good for me.”
“I think Julian has a suspicion,” she muttered.
“What?”
“Call it girl’s instinct. I can feel it.” Prudence heaved a sigh. “He seems to oppose his father’s ideas, but he keeps pushing through Francis’ plans.”
“Watch him closely.”
“Yes, Boss.”
“It seems Julian is far different from his brother.”
“I think the second son is more capable of being a pain in the ass.” She pressed her lips firmly.
“And you’re there to prevent that from happening. If you think he’s about to do something that could ruin our plans, you know what to do, Prudence.”
Her hands clenched.
“I’ve come this far. I don’t want to fail.”
“And so do I, Prudence. So do I….” She heard her boss yawn. “Is that all? Because I’m dying to go back to sleep.”
“That’s all… for now.”
The call ended.
She heaved a deep sigh and pocketed her phone.
The cold breeze and the sound of the waves seemed very calming, so Prudence decided to stay at the shore a little longer. She wasn’t feeling comfortable lying on the sofa. She didn’t know if she could get some sleep; perhaps it would help her get a good night’s sleep.

JULIAN watched Prudence from the bedroom window. She went out of the villa and stood by the shore as she talked with someone on the phone. He wondered whom she could be talking to that she needed to go that far away.
He didn’t know why, but he didn’t like Prudence the first time he met her. His gut feeling kept telling him to be wary of her. And for some reason, that feeling grew even more when she didn’t oppose his father’s idea of marrying them off when his brother Chase disappeared. All those times, Julian thought she had developed an attachment with his brother because they seemed good together. But now, he didn’t know.
He closed the curtains immediately and returned to bed when he saw Prudence turn around. A few minutes later, he heard the hinges creak. She was back in the villa.