Even the cook stood stunned with stark fear written all over his face. "Don't talk nonsense. If the explosion happened in the kitchen, do you think I could still stand here?
Where did the explosion come from?"
Feeling confused, people started whispering among each other and were immersed in a heated discussion.
But not everyone seemed so chatty. There were some who were so consumed by fear that words wouldn't come out of them. Rick and Marcus were two such people.
After calling the police, Rick had to count the number of people present.
He checked all the way from left to right to ensure no one was missing. Only after he was somewhat convinced that everyone was present, he let out a sigh of relief.
Moreover, he was glad he had received the guests in person when they arrived. Otherwise, he wouldn't have known who left the villa and who didn't.
If someone got hurt here today, the Hawk Pharmaceutical Company and the cooperation case would surely be in vain.
Somebody was sinister enough to have done
this. ■d
The enemy had planned this with an intention of making him a laughingstock. Or perhaps he had a different goal. A goal to have him killed! Such thoughts spiraled inside Rick's head.
His mind wouldn't be put to rest. Relying on his height, he stood on one side of the flower bed and looked around to check if there was anyone missing.
'Hope everything will be fine,' he thought with a tinge of panic.
He then went to Marcus and apologized, "I'm sorry for what happened..."
But before he could finish, he saw Celine and got startled.
He looked around but couldn't spot either Jack or his wife. Anxiously, he asked, "Where's Mr. and Mrs. Fu? Also, where is Mr. Du?"
'We left the villa together. How could they disappear in the blink of an eye?' he wondered.
Wearing a brooding face, Marcus replied, "Rachel is still in the villa. To search for her, Jack and Michael went back in."
"What?!" Hearing that, Rick's face changed instantly. He was overcome by fear. Helplessly, his fear-stricken face glanced at the burning villa. He wondered if there were bombs inside. It was too dangerous for anyone to be inside.
And Rachel... 'She hasn't come out?'
He opened his mouth but was in no position to speak. Under the dire situation, he had one comfort. "The policemen and firefighters are on their way... ■d
They will sort it out. They will bring the three of them back," he said, but sounding very unconvinced. He was trying to cling onto the last ray of hope.
He still wanted add something but decided otherwise. The truth was, he wanted to go inside and check if they were okay. He wanted to be the brave hero who would save them. But he didn't have the courage to do it.
In truth, Rick was a coward who wouldn’t selflessly put his life in danger for someone else.
Everyone present had a different expression on their face. Celine stood silently at the corner, eyes wandering, while Henry stood beside Lea, with one hand on her shoulder, comforting her silently.
Lea looked pale. She felt so heavy in her heart. Rachel's phone wasn't with her. She felt guilty and responsible for leaving Rachel alone.
If something bad happened to her, Lea would never forgive herself. She would spent the rest of her life with guilt.
Two times, she had let her friend alone, and both the times something bad happened to her.
When she was worried and frightened, she heard a voice behind her crying, "Rick..."
All of them turned around. Rick saw his sister coming to him with someone's support. His eyes were glued to Claris that he didn't even see who was holding her.
Instinctively, he strode towards Claris and reached out his hands to hold her. Then he pulled his sister from that man's arms. ■d
Seeing his sister's pale face, Rick asked worriedly, "Do you get hurt? How do you feel?"
Leaning against his brother's chest, Claris shook her head and said in a low voice, "I'm fine. He saved my life."
Rick then noticed the man beside Claris. Earlier, he was so worried about his sister that he could only see her. Before he could thank him, Lea called out, "Lucas, where have you been?"
When he saw her, Lucas breathed a sigh of relief and walked up to her. "Oh, you are here. I lost my phone."
He then looked around, frowned and asked, "Where is Rachel? Why she isn't here?"
Lea pressed her lips into a line, with tears in her eyes. She turned around, pointed to the direction of the villa, and sobbed, "She is still inside."
Lucas was overcome by fear. His face turned
pale.
On the other side, Rachel was walking around in a daze. All of this felt like a bad dream and she didn't know what to make of it. As she trudged through, she was shocked to find that all the carpets were wet.
In other words, all of them had been sprinkled with combustion-supporting liquid. If she failed to leave the villa, she could only imagine what would happen to her.
When she thought of that, goose bumps arose on her body. There was no one upstairs. It was just her and her miserable end! She didn't know where the problem was with the circuit, and the light ■d
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