Aveline's face lit up with relief.
She quickly asked, "Has the fire outside died down?" Braden replied, "It's under control now. Please, open the door." Wrapping the wet clothes around herself to shield against any remaining flames, Aveline carefully opened the door.
Braden, covering his mouth and nose with a damp towel, exhaled in relief when he saw she was safe.
"Mrs. Tudor, cwith me!" he urged.
Aveline stepped out and saw the source of the fire-it had spread from the kitchen, consuming the nearby rooms and sending thick smoke billowing through the air.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtZachary, who had woken up early, had already evacuated the children and was now fighting the flames with a fire extinguisher.
Baron, with a team of bodyguards, had hooked up a hose and managed to contain much of the blaze, giving Braden the chance to get inside and lead Aveline to safety. Aveline's room was dangerously close to the kitchen; if the fire hadn't been brought under control, it would have soon reached her.
"Mrs. Tudor, are you alright?" Baron rushed over as soon as he saw her, concern etched across his face.
Aveline shook her head. "I'm fine." Baron breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Please, head over there to rest. We've just destroyed the signal jammer, and we've called the fire department. Help should arrive shortly." Aveline nodded, "Okay." In the courtyard of the orphanage, the children huddled together, their small faces filled with fear as they stared wide-eyed in the direction of the fire. Aveline walked over and checked each child, asking if anyone was hurt. Seeing that none of them were injured, she let out a big sigh of relief.
Zachary, covered in soot, approached and noticed her wrapped in damp clothes.
"Aren't you cold like that?" he asked.
Aveline shook her head. "I'm fine. I was just trying to be prepared in case the fire spread." As soon as she finished speaking, she sneezed.
Zachary chuckled. "You shouldn't keep that on. It's freezing out here; you'll catch a cold." Realizing he was right, Aveline tossed the wet clothes aside and started moving around to warm herself up.
Soon, the sound of sirens filled the air as the fire trucks arrived.
The firefighters arrived, and the blaze was quickly brought under control. By the teverything was settled, dawn had already broken.
Braden approached with two bodyguards behind him, escorting a restrained woman.
"What's going on? Let her go! That's Mrs. Lana!" Zachary's brows furrowed as he immediately spoke up. Lana was the cook at the orphanage, beloved by the children for her meals.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmBraden remained expressionless. "I checked the security footage. Just before the fire, she was sneaking around the kitchen. And when the fire started, she didn't leave; she stayed in the shadows, watching. I suspect she's the one who started it.
"I didn't do it! It wasn't me!" Lana quickly shook her head, denying the accusation, and turned to Zachary for help. Mr. Wills, I swear I didn't do it! I just cback to grab something, and I left right after!" swn yel Zachary frowned. "Do you have any evidence?" Braden replied, "She's the prsuspect for now. Finding evidence is the police's job." He had already called them.
Zachary seemed like he wanted to say more, but Aveline intervened. "If you're truly innocent the police will clear your name." Lana's face turned pale, her plump body trembling with fear. Soon, the police arrived, and Lana was taken away.
Zachary and Aveline went with them to provide their account of what had happened. Meanwhile, Baron and Braden were left to look after the children. The two hors glanced around at the group of little ones, falling into a sudden silence.
Taking care of kids? This was definitely out of their realm of M experience. The content is on e novelenglish.net! X