The sound of sirens filled the air as police cars arrived at the scene. Sebastian got out of his car and immediately saw the vehicle parked ahead.
“We found it! That’s the suspect’s car!” he shouted.
Felix and the others got out of their car and noticed thick smoke billowing from the nearby warehouse.
“The warehouse is on fire!” Felix exclaimed.
“Caitlin might be inside!” Sebastian said, panic rising in his chest.
He spotted the smoke and, in his frantic state, grabbed a fire extinguisher from his car and ran toward the warehouse door.
Felix and the others waved and quickly directed their team to locate nearby firefighting equipment.
At the warehouse entrance, flames could already be seen inside. Sebastian desperately searched for Caitlin’s figure, shouting her name repeatedly, “Caitlin! Caitlin! Are you in there?”
“Caitlin…” came her faint voice.
Her consciousness was fading, but she could barely hear Sebastian’s calls. Was it a hallucination? It sounded so unreal!
Sebastian, on the other hand, was sure he heard her voice. He aimed the fire extinguisher at the flames, spraying down a section before charging into the warehouse.
Inside, thick smoke filled the air, and the fire surrounded him. He continued shouting, “Caitlin… where are you… Caitlin… Caitlin…”
Suddenly, something caused him to trip and fall to the ground. When he looked closely, he saw it was Caitlin!
He found her!
Sebastian’s heart leapt with relief as he lifted her up, shaking her gently. “Caitlin, Caitlin, wake up…”
“Caitlin…” she responded weakly, before falling unconscious.
“Caitlin! I’m getting you out of here! Right now!” Sebastian cried as he scooped her up into his arms. But by now, the old fabric inside the warehouse had caught fire, flames reaching toward the sky. The situation was critical.
They couldn’t break through the flames directly.
Just as he was starting to lose hope, a water jet burst through the door from the outside. Felix and his team had managed to set up a fire hose and were spraying water on the flames near the door.
The fire at the entrance was extinguished. Seizing the opportunity, Sebastian rushed out with Caitlin in his arms.
As he ran out, the burning fabrics inside collapsed, with a wall of flames spreading rapidly on the floor.
If they had been just a minute later, both Sebastian and Caitlin would have been consumed by the fire.
Felix breathed a sigh of relief as he saw Sebastian carrying Caitlin to safety. “How is she?”
“She’s unconscious,” Sebastian replied quickly, carrying her to the car.
“I’ll drive. Let’s get her to the hospital!” Felix said.
He handed the scene over to his team, who had already notified emergency rescue services. Rescue vehicles arrived shortly after.
They rushed to the hospital in the shortest time possible, and Felix made sure they got there safely.
Sebastian carried Caitlin into the emergency room, his eyes wide with worry.
“Doctor… Doctor… Please, save her…” he pleaded, almost frantic with worry. His heart ached at the thought of losing her.
Sebastian placed Caitlin on a mobile stretcher and grabbed the doctor, shouting, “Save her! You have to save her! Hurry!”
The doctor, stunned by his forceful tone, nodded quickly. “We’ll do everything we can!”
Medical staff pushed the stretcher into the emergency room, and the door slammed shut behind them.
Sebastian waited outside, nervously running his hand through his hair. Overcome with guilt, he slammed his fist against the wall.
*Thud…*
His knuckles cracked on the tile wall, blood trickling down the white surface. But even the pain didn’t register in his mind because his heart was hurting too much.
Felix, seeing his distress, walked over and tried to comfort him. “Mr. Vanderbilt, don’t do this. Caitlin should be fine.”
“It’s all my fault! If I hadn’t left her in the car, this never would have happened!” Sebastian’s eyes were red, full of regret.
“It’s the killer’s fault. He’s too crafty! Stay here. I’ll organize the manhunt now. I’ll get in touch with you later.”
“Alright.”
Felix patted him on the shoulder and quickly left the hospital. He had already contacted the New York police station, and a full-scale operation to catch the fugitive, Black Hawk, was underway.
Sebastian remained by the emergency room, his thoughts a whirlwind. Not long after, Tyler Vaughn King and Xavi arrived with their teams.
“Mr. Vanderbilt!” they both called, hurrying toward him.
“Mr. Vanderbilt, what happened? We heard Caitlin’s in trouble!” Xavi asked, clearly concerned.
“She’s in the emergency room,” Sebastian said, his brow furrowed.
Tyler reported, “Mr. Vanderbilt, we’ve confirmed that Black Hawk left the Moro organization years ago. They have no idea who his new employer is, but it’s clear he’s working for a private contractor.”
“Send the order down to launch a full manhunt for Black Hawk! We need to capture him!” Sebastian barked.
“Yes, sir!” Tyler and the others quickly got to work. Xavi stayed behind to keep Sebastian company.
Simon happened to walk by the emergency room and saw Sebastian. He approached and greeted him.
“Mr. Vanderbilt, what are you doing here? What happened?”
“Caitlin’s in trouble. She’s in the emergency room,” Sebastian explained without hiding anything.
“Caitlin’s in trouble?” Simon asked in shock, his concern evident. “Let me go check on her.”
Simon entered the emergency room, and upon seeing Caitlin lying unconscious on the operating table, he quickly asked a colleague about her condition.
“She was injected with a sedative and inhaled carbon monoxide. Her COHb saturation is at 8%, which indicates mild poisoning,” Simon explained. “We’ve already started her on hyperbaric oxygen therapy to counteract the lack of oxygen in her system. It won’t have much of an impact on her life, and she should recover in a day or two.”
When Simon emerged, he pushed Caitlin’s stretcher out of the room.
Sebastian rushed to her side, his heart pounding. “How is she? What happened?”
“She has mild poisoning from the sedative and carbon monoxide. She’ll be unconscious for a while, but it’s nothing serious. Don’t worry!” Simon reassured him.
Hearing this, Sebastian let out a deep breath, relief flooding him. “Thank you, Dr. Smith,” he said sincerely.
“No need to thank me. It was my colleagues who acted quickly. Anyway, you should stay with her. If she wakes up, let me know,” Simon said before heading out of the room.
Sebastian sat by Caitlin’s bed, holding her hand gently, pressing it against his cheek as he gazed at her with tenderness.
“Caitlin, I’m so glad you’re okay. If something had happened to you, I wouldn’t have been able to forgive myself.”
“I should have protected you better. Do you know how much it hurt me to see you in danger? I’m so sorry…”
Lost in his guilt, Sebastian held her hand tightly, his head hanging low.
Hearing his voice, Caitlin stirred and slowly opened her eyes.
She recalled, in her foggy state, the last thing she remembered before passing out-Sebastian charging into the flames like a hero to save her.
Her heart stirred with emotion.
“Sebastian…”
Hearing her voice, Sebastian’s head snapped up in astonishment. “Caitlin, you’re awake!” he exclaimed.
Caitlin nodded weakly, looking at him. “Thank you.”
“Don’t say thank you! I don’t need your thanks…” He gazed at her lovingly for a moment, before slowly leaning closer, inch by inch…