Cara’s POV
“Bell Flower Orphanage?” I repeated, a chill running down my spine. That name…
It couldn’t be…
“Yes… he lost his parents in a car accident and has been at the orphanage ever since he was a child. However, it was consumed by a fire five years ago.”
An accident… he also didn’t know his parents.
Could it be?
I mentally calculated… it all aligned. My mind raced.
What was the connection?
“And, the fire?”I asked, trying to keep my voice casual.
“That was awful,” Cecelia said, her voice dropping. “It happened a few years ago. The woman who ran the place, the closest thing he had to family, died in it.”
Could it really be this simple?”
Bell Orphanage was the same orphanage my father and Luca went to check the previous evening. The orphanage that was the last lead to finding Sarah’s son.
“Why do you sound so shaken? Is everything fine?”
“All is well… you said it’s the reason he’s here?”
“Yeah…” she drew out, sounding unsure. “Jacob suspects that the fire wasn’t natural and has been investigating. He got a call two days ago about some men asking around, so we came.”
Men asking around? This felt surreal.
“I’m sorry, but it seems like he wasted his time.”
“What do you mean?”
“Cecelia,” I said, leaning forward, “Those men… they were my father’s.” I was told that much this morning. “We’re the ones who have been asking around.”
Her brows shot up, “Your father? But… why? I don’t understand…”
“What I told you about the last few months is just a skim of the surface. A lot is boiling underneath. We’re searching for a child-a man, to be precise. He used to be a child when he was dropped at the orphanage.”
“A child? Whose child?”
“Sebastian and Tina’s child. Adonis’s… substitute.”
She gave me a blank stare, waiting for me to elaborate further, “Listen attentively…” I started.
And like we’d been doing since breakfast, we got into another round of filling her in on the things she had missed.
Cecelia’s face kept contorting, acting like a platform for the display of different emotions.
Shock. Fear. Pity. Anger. Sadness.
“Wow,” she breathed. “That’s… a much to take in. I thought you were hiding a lot before, this is…” She frowned, struggling to find the right adjective.”… mind-blowing. Do you think Jacob might know him?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “But it’s worth a shot. Do you think you could ask him?”
I didn’t know who the man was either, but I trusted Adonis would find him.
“I can’t say… When he returns.”
“When who returns?”
We both looked over our shoulders.
“Baby?” Cecelia smiled as the man himself walked up to her, placing a chaste kiss on her lips and a nod at me before taking his seat.
“We didn’t hear you come in. I’ve told you not to act sneaky, especially while we’re at someone else’s.” She joked.
“I don’t act sneaky. I just don’t make unnecessary noise.”
I watched the two closely, feeling happy for Cecelia; their simple exchange proved how everything she had said earlier was true.
“So… what are you ladies discussing about?” He urged.
“How was your trip? Any new leads?”
I waited quietly.
“Nothing. The guys did not return. Instead, about three cars were seen wandering about the location yesterday. There’s not a single CCTV around, so it’s difficult to tell who it was.”
Cecelia glanced at me, and I took it as my cue to speak up.
“That would be my father and Luca.”
He turned to me, “Sorry?”
“My father and the guy you met last night. We’ve been the ones asking around.” I confessed.
“You’re searching for something?”
“Someone. And I think you would be of help in our search. Cecelia didn’t mean to, but when I explained this to her, she told me a bit of your past, and it turns out you might know who he is and where he might be.”
Jacob crossed his arm over his chest, pinning me with a fixated look. “Who are we talking about?” He shook his head. “Sorry, the year should come first. What year was it?”
My lips squeezed together, dancing up and down beneath my nose as I did the math. No one ever said anything about the year, but if he was born on the same day as Adonis, then…
“Thirty-four years ago?”
“Hmmm… That was before I was taken to the orphanage or was even born. I moved in at the age of ten.”
“Oh.” My shoulders fell. I had hoped we would be able to get something.
He wasn’t our guy. Relief washed over me. But now, we’d have to start searching all over again.
“If it’s any consolation, I remember everyone at the orphanage at that time, and I still have a group picture that we took together.”
My ears perked up. “You do?”
“Yeah. Back in Seattle. I can have it scanned by my assistant and sent to me if you want.”
“Yes, please, I want.”
“You want what?” Adonis interrupted this time.
“What is up with you guys and listening in on people’s conversations? Can’t you make a sound like normal people do?” Cecelia growled lowly.
“No.” He dropped, then placed a not-so-chaste kiss on my lips before plopping down by my side.
I leaned into him, “Where’s my father?”
“He had something else to attend to… what did you say you wanted?”
“A picture of the children at the orphanage from years ago.”
He arched a brow. “How did you get it?”
“Hello…” I rolled my eyes at him. “I haven’t gotten it yet; that’s the whole point of wanting it. Jacob has it.”
He whipped his head towards the people he had barely acknowledged since he walked in. A brief acknowledgement of Cecelia and a scowl at Jacob confirmed my dislike theory.
“You do?”
Had I never noticed how rude my husband could be?
Thankfully, Jacob didn’t pick an offence and acted like the mature one. “Yes, I do. We’ll receive it by evening. You were really out of it last night. Are you better?”
I felt Adonis stiffen beside me. He didn’t want to talk about it. Another thing I was going to teach him. People knowing about your vulnerabilities do not make you any less respected or strong.
He grunted, darting his eyes towards the window.
“I don’t know who you’re trying to find and why, but do you also think the fire wasn’t by a natural cause as concluded in the investigation?” Jacob asked.
“We didn’t get to check the investigation files. All documents had been wiped out, they said.” My husband grumbled.
“That’s what the police arrived at. It just seems impossible to me. A few months before the fire outbreak, the orphanage took in a new group, and most of them were children between the ages of four and seven. I made sure new air vents and fire outbreak countermeasures were installed.”
“You were involved in the daily runnings of that place,” Adonis commented with a dubious look.
“That place was more than a shelter to me,” Jacob said, his voice softening. He looked down at his hands. “It’s all I have ever known and have. It was home.”
I didn’t miss the subtle movement of Cecelia’s hands as she placed it over his in comfort. And apparently, Adonis didn’t too, as his eyes became hooded.
“Be nice. It is none of your business.” I hissed for him to look away.
“The measures were taken to prevent incidents that might be caused by the children’s hyperactiveness. So I didn’t believe it when they said the fire started from a spark cable in the janitor’s closet and spread through the entire building.”
“It’s possible that the system failed…” I reasoned.
“It isn’t,” Cecelia spoke up. “From what I heard, he was thorough.”
Jacob nodded, his jaw tight. He looked at Adonis, a flicker of anger in his eyes.
“No one is that thorough.” Adonis retorted plainly.
“Not me. Only the best were installed. At the slightest whiff of fumes, the alarm was meant to be triggered. When I arrived at the scene, the place had burnt to a crisp with no survivors.”
Adonis’s eyes glazed over, an expression that showed when he was in deep thought. “Is it possible that no one would make it out alive? The fire must’ve taken a while to spread.”
“I traced the system didn’t work to battle the fire. It made sense that the fire would spread quickly. It was intentionally turned off. Another reason why I find it hard to believe it was a natural.”
Adonis’s eyes narrowed as he looked at Jacob.
His suspicion was obvious and somewhat understandable. Jacob was a stranger who had suddenly appeared in our lives, connected to Cecelia and now to… this thing with the orphanage.
His arm protectively wound around me, “We doubt it too,” he said, his voice low and dangerous. “Just like I doubt you.”
“Adonis!”
Okay, although I partly agree with his attitude, I would never have done that. He didn’t spare me a glance.
“How come you just so happen to fall in love with the ex-fiance of my second-in-command? You could have known all this and been playing us for all we know.”
“Well, excuse me. That’s just rude.” Cecelia frowned.
“I apologise on his behalf.”
“Don’t.” Jacob shook his head. “I’ll be cautious of me too. You can hire a private investigator if you want to.”
“I don’t want to. I’m busy as it is. Whoever is behind the fire is my guy anyway.”
“Your guy?” I glanced at him.
“The culprit that would lead me to my goal.” He jerked his head towards Jacob. “When I’m done, you can have him.”
“You’re offering him willingly?”
“No.” He rose to his feet, pulling me along. “It’s for the picture. I always settle my debts. Whatever it is.”
We all knew those words sounded to ominous to be empty.
“I hope to see it before the end of the day.” Adonis told him, “If you’d excuse us. I’d like to be alone with my wife.”