She Was the Treasure All Along novel Chapter 313

“You kids only trusted me because you thought I was law enforcement,” Loyce said with a small laugh. “I’m not a cop, but I do work with them. Once you’re back on land, real officers will help you find your parents.”

Aaron’s eyes shifted, softening. “Thank you.”

…

Far away, the sea lit up.

*BOOM—!*

Repeated explosions tore through the thinning fog. An orange fireball blossomed from the cargo ship’s stern, violent enough to twist steel like paper. Smoke flooded the sky, swallowing half the ship—and the satellite signal tied to Loyce vanished in the same instant.

Lucian stood at the bow of a speeding patrol craft, the blast lighting his hard profile in hellish orange.

Time froze. The fire reflected in his eyes as if something monstrous had ignited behind them. He didn’t shout. He didn’t move. Sound dropped out of the world until there was nothing but blood pounding in his ears and the suffocating sensation of an invisible hand squeezing his heart.

“Loyce…” The name slipped out like a breath—weighty enough to crush him.

Then everything slammed back at once: smoke, salt, burning air, and the thought that she was in there—at the center of it.

“Full speed. Get us alongside. Check for survivors.”

His voice was clipped, cold, commanding—no tremor. But Robert, who’d known him too long, saw the current beneath the surface: something dark and unhinged, fighting to break free.

The patrol craft forced its way in through heat and floating debris. The ship hadn’t fully sunk, but the stern was an inferno.

“Mr. Shapiro!” the rescue lead shouted over the roar. “The fire’s too strong. We can’t approach the hottest zone—”

He pointed toward a section not fully submerged. “Scanner shows life signs in one compartment.”

Lucian didn’t answer. His eyes locked on where the game room should’ve been—now nothing but flame. He grabbed a fire blanket and started wrapping it around himself.

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