Chapter 3

It was as if the entire world had been muted.

Everyone’s expressions froze on their faces. Their minds seemed unable to process the information they had just received.

A few seconds later, a piercing scream shattered the dead silence.

“Ah—!”

My mother’s eyes rolled back, and she nearly fainted.

“How could I have raised such a morally depraved beast like you?!

“Oh, dear heavens! Open your eyes and look at this ‘good older brother’! He wants to burn his own younger brother alive with his own hands!”

Her cries were filled with despair and venom. Every word cut through everyone’s hearts like a knife.

Willa was stunned as well. She stared blankly at me. Her lips were trembling, and she was unable to speak for a long while.

Finally, she looked at me as if I were a monster. Her eyes were bursting with endless fear and loathing.

“Zayne… we’re… getting a divorce!” she shouted with all her might. “I’ll never live with a murderer with the face of a human but the heart of a beast! You disgust me!”

Gavin let go of my collar and staggered back two steps. His eyes filled with disappointment and grief.

He could not believe that the captain he had once admired most had become this way.

“Call the police,” he managed to say with great difficulty to the team member beside him.

“We already have.”

Meanwhile, the crowd of onlookers grew larger by the minute.

Drawn by the commotion, they surrounded and blocked the entire area.

Among them, several people dressed in simple clothes rushed to the front. Their faces were filled with righteous indignation.

“The Luke family are such generous people!” a middle-aged woman said tearfully. “If it weren’t for the Luke family’s ‘Mors Moralis Charitable Foundation,’ I wouldn’t have been able to afford my son’s college tuition!”

“That’s right! My family too! The Luke family supports us every month. They helped us get through the toughest times!” another man shouted excitedly.

“The Luke family members are all living saints. How could someone like you, a jerk, come from such a family?!”

“You’re unworthy of being a firefighter! You’re unworthy of being the Luke family’s heir!”

The police officer who had rushed to the scene turned ashen. He strode forward and slipped handcuffs onto my wrists.

“Zayne, you are now officially under arrest on suspicion of arson and murder!”

I offered no resistance and let him do as he pleased.

Just then, another explosion and collapse echoed from the fire. Flames shot skyward.

Gavin and his team could no longer hold back. They looked at me. Their eyes were filled with pleading and a last glimmer of hope.

I shook my head impassively. “It’s too late.

“That good-for-nothing inside is probably already charred to a crisp.”

“You monster!” The police officer flew into a rage. He grabbed me by the collar and dragged me toward the police car.

“Take him away!”

I turned my head and held out a USB drive to the police captain, whose face was contorted with anger as I flashed him a meaningful smile.

“Rather than arresting me, I think you’ll be more interested in what’s on this drive.”