Female Novel
Chapter 366
Teo's gaze froze as the name escaped her lips. Ford was the Hayes family's butler and the lonecasualty of that devastating blaze years ago.
How on earth could Katherine know him? And why did she have such a vivid memory of that fire?
He stared at Katherine, his expression a mix of shock and curiosity. "Apart from Ford, do you haveany other memories?"
Katherine shook her head. "I don't remember him at all. It's just that his name keeps coming up inmy nightmares. I think he must have saved me, and it was from a fire, no less."
"But the surveillance footage from the time of the fire showed only Ford entering the building."
Teo felt a rush of panic. If Katherine had been there during the fire, it wasn't a simple accident. Itwas arson.
Suddenly, Brodie chimed in, "It's true that the cameras only caught Ford entering, but the footagefrom a week earlier, around two in the afternoon, is missing a crucial fifteen minutes—it wasdeliberately cut."
Teo furrowed his brow at him. "You suspect your mother was locked in there during that time?"
"It's a possibility."
"But a week earlier, our family was in crisis. Ian and his mother were kidnapped. We were all handson deck to rescue them. If that's the case, it wouldn't have been someone from the Hayes family."
Hearing this, a cool shadow passed over Brodie's eyes. "It's not unheard of to create a diversion. I'lllook into this case thoroughly. If my mother was harmed and it's connected to the Hayes family, Iwon't let anyone off the hook."
Brodie was almost certain now that his mother had that accident in that fire. The personresponsible, whether Leonora or someone else, would pay.
Meanwhile...
Clara had a restless night, plagued by nightmares due to the shock she'd experienced. She dreamtof Ian, bloodied and bruised, and her father dying before her eyes.
In just one day, she witnessed Katherine get hit by a falling chandelier. she was kidnapped by avillain, and she watched her kidnapper collapse in a pool of blood before her eyes. Even if shehadn't been pregnant, the trauma would've been enough to haunt her for a long time.
When she opened her eyes, Ian's handsome face greeted her. Fresh from the shower, the scent ofsoap clung to his skin. His hair was still dripping, beads of water trailing down his chiseled jawline,slipping over his collarbone, and disappearing into his muscular chest.
Clara's eyes were bleary with sleep, her voice hoarse and unrecognizable. "Ian." She whispered hisname.
Ian bent down and kissed her forehead, his voice warm with affection. "You're awake? Feeling anydiscomfort?"novelbin
Clara nodded slightly, "Yes."
"Where? Let me take a look." Ian frantically scanned Clara for any sign of pain.
Just as his worry peaked, he heard Clara's husky chuckle. She took Ian's hand, placing it over herheart, and whispered, "It's just here. It's beating a bit too fast."
At her words, Ian's tension melted away. He playfully pinched her nose. "Darling, that's becauseyou're all worked up over me. Haven't I told you this is a delicate time? Why can't you stay put,
hmm?"
Clara's cheeks flushed, her eyes soft and sparkling as they held Ian's gaze. "Then, can I have ahug?"
She wrapped her arms around Ian's cool waist. Her warm lips brushed against his chestunintentionally, igniting a fire within him.
He grasped her face in his hands, his voice a low growl of warning, "If you don't behave, I won'tmind giving you a taste of what we had the other night."
The thought of those intimate moments scared Clara enough to freeze instantly, too afraid to moveanother inch.