Intense (Dark Hearts)
“I’m trying to be the best man I can. Excuse me, I have to go. Tell my Dad that I’ll call.”
“Okay.” She sips her coffee and closes the front door behind me. I put my suitcase in my rental and then jump in the driver’s seat. I steal a glance back at the house, hoping to see her again, but I know she’s still in our bed. The ride to the airport takes no time at all. I’m on my flight, moving away from my woman, and my heart’s heavy. As soon as we land, I call her.
“Hey, Princess.”
“Roman, you’ve landed?”
“Yes, I’m about to meet my driver. How are you feeling? I hope I didn’t hurt you last night.”
“No. I’m okay. A little tender, but I suppose that’s a given considering your size and my inexperience.”
“Thanks for the compliment. I have to go, but I’ll call you when I can.”
“Take care. I hope everything turns out well.”
“Me too.” I end the call and answer the other line. “What’s the damage?”
“One whole floor was damaged from the sprinklers and the firefighters.”
“I’m on my way now. I’ve just gotten in the car. I’m about an hour out, given traffic.”
“Okay. I’ll let them know you’re coming.”
“No. Don’t say anything. I want to see if we catch anyone by surprise. If they believe it’s arson, that means I have a traitor among my employees.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Is there anything else I need to know?”
“I don’t know if you care, but you’ve received your annual invitation to your favorite charity. Are you interested in attending?”
“Yes, and I’ll have a date,” I state proudly. I wonder if Amelia will be happy to attend with me or if it’ll bring up bad memories of the orphanage, if she has any.
“Yay. That’s very good news,” Inga cheers.
“Good. I’ll be there soon.” I end the call and then shoot a text to my guard on Amelia, asking for an update. If this is arson, I can’t risk something happening to her. Stay close, but you don’t speak to her or touch her.
I feel no relief in my request. She doesn’t have me there to be her personal bodyguard. There are too many dangers worse than the guy trying to steal her from me. Although I don’t trust he’ll try to get close to Amelia, I have to trust that she won’t let him in.
The second I pull up to the building, I say to my driver, “Leave my suitcase in the trunk. I don’t know how bad the damage is.”
As soon as I enter the building, the press and the police are on me.
“Mr. Edwards, Mr. Edwards! Can we get a comment on where you’ve been? How did you learn about the fire? Do you know how it started?”
“Holy shit, why are you all still here? I’m tired and not happy, so I have no comment because I have no idea what happened. The only thing I have to say is to the police. Excuse me.”
“Hello, I’m Detective Walters. This is Fire Chief Randall Miller. Can we have a word with you?”
“Of course.” We move to the security office. “First, how bad is the damage? Are we still structurally sound?”
“Completely. The firewalls are well insulated and the fire was contained.”
“Thank you for that. My assistant said someone was hurt—do you know who or how?”
“Yes. It was one of the guards, but he’s under police observation.”
“Shouldn’t that be medical observation?”
“Yes, and no. He suffered from the blast because he’s the one who started it.”
“What the hell? I knew it had to be someone who worked for me, but I’m not sure why?”
“We don’t know either. Do you have enemies?”
“Who doesn’t have enemies when you buy failing companies? But, I can’t think of anyone who would do this. Where was the fire?”
“In your penthouse and on the fifth floor.”
“What the fuck? I was told it was only on the fifth floor.”
“Most of the damage was on the fifth floor.”
“Son of a bitch. Please tell me my housekeeper wasn’t in there.”
“No. She called the police when she got a notification that the alarm had been set off. She said that since you were out of town, there should have been no one there.”
“Thank goodness. What the hell.” I spear my fingers through my hair. “This is unbelievable.” A sickening feeling hits me. Anna. But why?
Chapter Ten
Amelia
“Mom, I promise I’ll be okay,” I say, pulling her into a hug. I’m leaving tomorrow, and we’re going through my things that I need to take. The plane arrives tonight for rest and refueling. Roman demanded that his pilot get a good night’s rest because he’d be carrying precious cargo in the morning.
“I’m going to miss you,” my mother sobs. It gets me emotional too, but there’s not much I can do about it. We knew this day would come, and in the last week, we made the most of it. I’m going to New York to study Art History. There are plenty of places closer, but this one has everything and a large scholarship.