LOGINShare
Chapter 6: Smoke and Secrets
publish date:
2026-04-10 21:12:53The smell of burning silk is something you never forget. It is thick, sweet, and suffocating. I stood on the other side of the stone door, pounding my fists against the cold surface until my knuckles bled. Smoke began to crawl under the crack of the door like a living thing, reaching for my throat.
"Darlington!" I screamed. My voice was raw. "Open the door! Darlington!"
There was no answer. Only the sound of heavy thuds and the roar of the fire growing on the other side. I was in a narrow, dark tunnel. This was the secret passage behind the portrait of Floral. It was supposed to be a way out, but it felt like a grave. I felt around the walls with my shaking hands. My fingers found a small lever. I pulled it, and a panel slid open.
I wasn't outside. I was on a small balcony overlooking the library. Below me, the room was a nightmare.
Orange flames were licking the tall bookshelves, turning years of history into ashes. In the center of the room, two shadows were locked in a struggle. Darlington had Maurice pinned against the desk, but Maurice was fighting like a cornered animal. Stacy was near the door, her eyes wide as she watched the fire she started. She wasn't laughing anymore. She looked terrified as the flames cut off her only exit.
"The ledger, Maurice!" Darlington yelled over the roar of the fire. "Where are the original Thorne deeds?"
"They’ll burn with us!" Maurice laughed. It was a high, crazy sound. "If I can't be a king, you'll be a ghost!"
I looked around the balcony. There was a heavy brass bust of a scholar on a pedestal. I didn't think. I grabbed it. It was heavy, but the adrenaline made me strong. I leaned over the railing. Maurice had managed to grab a letter opener from the desk and was pressing it against Darlington’s throat.
"Goodbye, billionaire," Maurice hissed.
I threw the brass bust with everything I had. It didn't hit Maurice’s head, but it smashed into his shoulder. He cried out in pain and dropped the blade. Darlington didn't waste a second. He delivered a punch that sent Maurice crashing into the burning curtains.
"Vivian! Get out of here!" Darlington looked up and saw me. His face was covered in black dust.
"Not without you!" I yelled.
He looked at Stacy, who was screaming as a beam fell near her. Darlington ran through the heat and grabbed her by the arm, dragging her toward the secret door. He threw her into the tunnel where I was standing. Then he turned back for Maurice.
"Leave him!" I cried. "The roof is coming down!"
Maurice was crawling away, but he wasn't trying to escape. He was reaching for a small metal box that had fallen from a hidden compartment in the desk. The Thorne Ledger. Even with the world burning around him, his greed was stronger than his fear of death.
A massive crash shook the villa. The ceiling above the library began to sag. Darlington grabbed the metal box just as Maurice’s fingers touched it. He kicked Maurice away and ran for the balcony stairs.
We tumbled out of the secret exit at the back of the estate just as the library windows exploded. The cool night air felt like a miracle. I fell onto the grass, coughing and gasping. Stacy was curled in a ball nearby, sobbing into her hands.
Darlington stood there, his clothes torn and his skin blistered. He held the metal box tight against his chest. He looked at the burning villa, the symbol of his family’s power and he didn't look sad. He looked relieved.
"It's over," he panted, walking over to me. He helped me up and pulled me into a hug. He smelled like smoke and sweat, but he was alive.
"The police are coming," I whispered, seeing the blue and red lights reflecting off the glass walls of the estate.
"Let them come," Darlington said. "We have everything now. The ledger. The proof. The Blood Debt ends tonight."
But as the fire trucks pulled into the driveway, I noticed something. Stacy had stopped crying. She was staring at the burning house with a strange look on her face. She looked at me, and for the first time, she didn't look scared. She looked self satisfied.
"You think you won, Vivian?" she whispered, her voice low so Darlington wouldn't hear. "You think Maurice was the only one with a plan?"
I felt a cold shiver that had nothing to do with the night air. "What are you talking about, Stacy?"
"Maurice didn't hire that delivery man at the club," she said, a small, cruel smile appearing on her soot-stained face. "Neither did I. And neither did Lis."
I froze. I remembered the man’s voice. The brakes are already cut, Vivian. See you at the cliff. "Then who was it?" I demanded.
Stacy leaned in closer. "Ask Darlington about his mother. Ask him why she really left Mavick City twenty years ago. You’re not the only one who came back from the dead, Vivian. And the person who sent you back is tired of waiting for their reward."
Before I could grab her, a police officer walked up and put Stacy in handcuffs. She didn't fight. She just kept smiling at me as they led her away.
Darlington put his arm around me, but I felt stiff. I looked at the metal box in his hand.
"Darlington?" I asked, my voice trembling. "Where is your mother?"
He went very still. The warmth in his eyes vanished, replaced by a deep, dark shadows. "She died when I was ten, Vivian. You know that."
"Did she?" I asked.
He didn't answer. He just looked at the fire. At that moment, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out. It was a text from an unknown number. It was a photo of the metal box Darlington was holding, but the photo had been taken from inside the library only minutes ago.
The text said: He’s not protecting the deeds, Vivian. He’s hiding the murder weapon. Run.
Latest chapter
REBORN BRIDE Chapter 8: The Price of Silence
The dark was not my friend, but it was my only cover. I could feel the cold fingers of the person who had grabbed me, their palm pressing hard against my lips. I struggled, my heart drumming against my ribs like a trapped bird. The smell of the person was familiar, it was the smell of the Archives.The old paper, damp stone, and a hint of cheap tobacco."Quiet," a voice hissed. It was Ben, the old security guard from the Historical Society.He let go of my mouth and pulled me into a small janitor’s closet. The lights in the police station were still out. Outside the door, I could hear the heavy footsteps of Darlington’s mother’s men searching the halls."Ben? What are you doing here?" I whispered, my voice shaking."I’ve been watching you since you came back, Vivian," Ben said. He looked older in the shadows, his face full of deep lines. "I worked for your father long ago. When the Caldarians started th
REBORN BRIDE Chapter 7: The Web of Lies
Trust is a fragile thing, like a glass bridge. One crack,and everything falls.I stood in the back of the police car, wrapped in a blanket, watching the remains of the Caldarian Villa smolder. Darlington was talking to the detectives a few yards away. He looked like a hero. He had saved the "Reborn Bride." He had captured the villains. But the phone in my hand felt like a piece of hot coal.He’s hiding the murder weapon.I looked at Darlington. He was pointing at the metal box, explaining to the police that it contained the evidence of Maurice’s crimes, but he hadn't opened it. Not yet."Miss Scott?" A young officer tapped on the window. "We need to take you to the station to give a statement. Mr. Darlington said he would follow in his own car.""I'll go with him," I said quickly."He insisted you go with us for your safety," the officer replied.I didn't argue. I needed a moment to think. As the polic
REBORN BRIDE Chapter 6: Smoke and Secrets
The smell of burning silk is something you never forget. It is thick, sweet, and suffocating. I stood on the other side of the stone door, pounding my fists against the cold surface until my knuckles bled. Smoke began to crawl under the crack of the door like a living thing, reaching for my throat."Darlington!" I screamed. My voice was raw. "Open the door! Darlington!"There was no answer. Only the sound of heavy thuds and the roar of the fire growing on the other side. I was in a narrow, dark tunnel. This was the secret passage behind the portrait of Floral. It was supposed to be a way out, but it felt like a grave. I felt around the walls with my shaking hands. My fingers found a small lever. I pulled it, and a panel slid open.I wasn't outside. I was on a small balcony overlooking the library. Below me, the room was a nightmare.Orange flames were licking the tall bookshelves, turning years of history int
REBORN BRIDE Chapter 5: The Blood Debt
I found Darlington in the garden behind the club. He was standing over a man he had pinned to the wall. Darlingtons knuckles were bleeding over the place. When he saw me he let the man go and ran to me fast."Vivian what happened to you?" he said. He sounded really worried about me. "I saw someone following you " he said."The car is not safe " I said. I grabbed his coat tightly. "Do not get in the car. They cut the brakes. Maurice is trying to kill me. Like before when I died."Darlingtons face turned into stone. He pulled me into his SUV car. His own security guard was driving the car. "Get us to the estate now!" he ordered the driver.As we drove away from the club I sat in the seat. My hands were shaking really bad. Maurice, Stacy and Lis were all working together just to hurt me. They were not just trying to shame me, they were trying to finish what they started in my life back when I was alive."Vivian look at me " Darlington said. He took my hands in his hands. His hands were w
REBORN BRIDE Chapter 4: The Ghost in the Mirror
The invitation was like a warning, all gold. I was holding the card staring at the letters: A Celebration of Legacy Hosted by Lis Brad. This was a bold move. Lis was inviting me the woman who had just taken her fiancé to a tea at the Caldarian Club. It was not an invitation, it was like a challenge."Do not go " Darlington said. He was standing by the window of the study. The morning light was shining on his shoulders. He looked like a statue made of ice."If I do not go, then she wins " I replied. I was smoothing out the gold dress I had chosen. "In my last life I hid in the dark. I let Stacy and Maurice decide who I was. But not this time."Darlington turned around. His green eyes were searching mine. He was looking for the girl who used to work in the basement.. He did not find her. "Lis is not like Maurice " he said. "Maurice is a manipulative person, but Lis? She is like a queen. She has all the people in Mavick City in her pocket. She will try to embarrass you in front of ever
REBORN BRIDE Chapter 3: The Broken Door
The morning after the gala felt different. I woke up in a bed that cost more than my old car, surrounded by silk and silence. Sunlight streamed through the floor to the ceiling windows of the Darlington estate. For a second, I forgot where I was. Then I remembered the look on Maurice’s face when he realized he owed two million dollars he didn’t have.I got out of bed and walked to the kitchen. Sonia, the head of the house, was already there. She was setting out a breakfast that could feed a small army."Mr. Darlington is in the gym," she said, not looking up from her task. "He says you should eat. You have a long day of 'being seen' ahead of you."I sat down and picked at a piece of toast bread. I wasn't hungry. My mind was back in that hospital room, hearing the flatline of the heart monitor. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Maurice’s hands.
You may also like
A Dangerous Atrophy
Qi River's Old Stream781.3K viewsPunished by His Love
Suzie4.4M viewsAccidentally Married
Swiftpen123941.7K viewsTo Be Yours Again
Taylor1.0M viewsThe Billionaire’s Stolen Bride
Josh OA27 viewsBound as the Alpha king's Slave
Fashola Ifedolapo225 viewsTHE BODYGUARD MY HUSBAND HIRED FOR ME
Elite Writer123 viewsSleeping with my boyfriend’s father
Alicia380 views
