FreeNovelJust as Angelo was scrambling for words, one of Colby's men burst in from outside. He hesitated for a moment when he spotted Sophie, then awkwardly sidled up to Colby, looking like he wanted to share something in private.
"Boss..." Seeing everyone's curious gazes, Colby said, "No need to whisper, just say it." "Yes, sir!" The man straightened up and reported, "The Burke mansion caught fire. The flames spread quickly, and the place is completely burned down!" A heavy silence fell over the room.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtColby shot his man an icy look.
The man felt a shiver run down his spine.
Hadn't the boss just said there were no outsiders here? While no one dared to break the silence, Angelo suddenly exclaimed, "The Burke mansion? On fire? Oh my God, that's huge! Wasn't Mr. Burke Mrs. Costello's ex-husband? We should definitely go check it out If someone really died, we should at least help with the arrangements..." Another awkward silence ensued.
Sandy shot an embarrassed glare at Angelo and said, "Brother, could you have picked a worse moment to bring that up?" The Burke and Russell families were already at each other's throats, their feud was infamous.
Meanwhile, Devonport was still buzzing with the scandal of James's affair with a college student while he was married.
Sophie spoke up calmly, "The Burke family still has Bea in charge. Besides, as Mr. Pei mentioned, I'm the ex-wife. Handling the aftermath isn't my responsibility." "You're right, that was thoughtless of me," Angelo sighed. "Fate always seems to frown on the bold. It must have been a gas leak at the Burke mansion. Speaking of which, I just remembered I left the gas on at home. We should head back. Sandy, say our goodbyes to Mrs. Costello and Colby. We need to leave!" Angelo, clearly in a hurry, started pulling Sandy away. Sandy, still bewildered, was dragged along.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmAs he was pulling her, Angelo waved back at Sophie and Colby, "Colby! Boss! We're taking off!" "Brother! Why are you dragging me? What's the rush?" Sandy clearly didn't want to leave. Meanwhite, the man continued, "However, the fire has been put out, and the police found a charred female body, presumably the Burke family's new bride." Colby glared at his man and gave him a swift kick. "Why didn't you mention that earlier?" The man, looking aggrieved, said, "Boss... the timing didn't seem right." Sophie remained expressionless.
How could someone like James get caught up in something like this so easily? Still, the fire at the Burke mansion that conveniently killed Nichole was suspicious.
"By the way, there's a hidden back door filled with gambling machines. I checked it out earlier. I've seen those machines before in Summerfield." Sophie pointed at the door they had entered through, now making it impossible for the arcade's staff to escape, even if they wanted to.
Initially, Colby could have rounded everyone up, but without knowing the true nature of this arcade; acting rashly could have alerted legitimate businesses and been counterproductive.
Now that they confirmed the place was shady, they could shut it down quickly and efficiently, ensuring none of the staff could escape. "Boss, we've brought everyone from inside here." CH/F-PSE 1010 Peter Gril
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