ANMELDENFLORIAN'S POVI watched the flames take over the building, the smoke filled the air.My heart was pounding really hard in my chest at the sight in front of me.No, no, no, no, this couldn't be happening.Before I could even process what was happening, my legs moved, sprinting toward the restaurant. My legs were literally moving on their own."Fire, fire," I heard people shouting around me, the chaos of the street growing louder with every step I took.I had left the hospital only an hour ago, my meeting with Fredrik Lance turning out to be a dead end, the man nowhere to be found despite Leo's information about him. My phone had buzzed with an alert about the restaurant, a message from Gabriel, just a single text that made my head spin.‘Come quickly, fire’I'd driven so fast I was surprised I hadn't gotten pulled over.Now, standing there on the road side, watching thick black smoke pour from the windows of the building I'd built with my own hands, all I could think about was her.Ros
ROSELINE'S POV"I need to go speak with him tomorrow," Florian said. It was already really late, so it had to wait until the next day.I stared at Leo for a while before he turned to leave. He was a worker at Florian's dead parents' restaurant. I wondered how Florian had even managed to track him down.Florian turned to face me once the guy left. He held my hands, he had a soft look in his eyes."I think I'm close to finding out who's really responsible for my parents' death," he said."In that tape, the other man said the fortune belonged to him," I said slowly, trying to piece things together. "Do you think this is about money? Some kind of inheritance dispute?""It has to be," Florian said, his jaw tight. "I just don't understand who would be angry enough, desperate enough, to actually go through with something like murder. Killing them over money.""People do terrible things for money, Florian," I said softly. "But I'm confused, if he was dragging something related to inheritance
FLORIAN'S POVI stared at Leo for a while before letting him come in, a black file was placed in his hands. My eyes darted to the file first then to Roseline who had a confused look on her face."Roseline, meet Leo Mormont, Leo, meet Roseline, my wife," I said. The last word sounded a lot sharper, I noticed Roseline's cheeks heat up at the mention of the word."Nice to meet you," Leo said, stretching his hand out to Roseline. She took it politely."Sir, I need to discuss something personal with you, it's about the thing you met me for the other day," he said."Okay, go on," I said.He looked at Roseline, hesitating slightly."Oh, don't worry about her, she already knows everything," I said, gesturing for him to continue.Leo nodded slowly, seeming to relax slightly at that, before pulling out a small, old-looking recording device from inside the black file. "I found this a few years back, cleaning out some old boxes from the restaurant before it was demolished. I always meant to hand
FLORIAN'S POV..She held onto my shoulder, her arms wrapped around me."Babbyyy, I'm sleepy," she said, pouting, the alcohol still heavy in her voice."I know, let's get you to bed," I said gently, trying to guide her toward the stairs.But she suddenly stopped, pulling back slightly, her eyes widening with something that looked like panic. "Florian, my dad. I saw my dad.""You saw your dad?" I asked, confused, exchanging a quick glance with Gabriel, who still lingered near the couch, watching us with concern."He was there," she said, her voice shaking slightly. "Across the road. A car, Florian, a car hit him. We need to go, we need to check on him."My chest tightened at her words, worry flaring instantly despite the obvious signs of her intoxication. "Roseline, your father is at home. He's safe. I promise."I said patting her back slowly.The way she kept pouting her lips looked really funny and cute. I tried my best to hold in my laugh."No, I saw it," she insisted, tears suddenly
FLORIAN'S POVMarcus returned a while later, walking slowly back into the room, his expression normal."Where were you?" I asked, standing immediately, the photograph still gripped tightly in my hand."Bathroom," he said simply, settling back onto the edge of the bed.I studied him for a long moment, unsure whether to believe him given everything else that had happened, the blood trail, the empty room, the panic Gabriel and I had felt searching for him. But before I could press further, I remembered the actual reason I'd come.I walked over and dropped the photograph onto the bed in front of him. "Explain this."Marcus stared down at it, his expression unreadable for a moment before he finally picked it up, studying the image closely."You worked at my parents' restaurant," I said. "And you never told me."He was quiet for a long, uncomfortable stretch of time before finally speaking. "Yes. I worked there. For a while.""Why didn't you ever mention it?" I demanded. "All these years,
Roseline's POV…I chugged down another bottle of alcohol."Roseline, you need to stop, you're already drunk," Nina said, taking the bottle away from me.I pouted, standing up to take it back from her, but I stumbled slightly, my legs feeling unsteady beneath me."I'm not drunk," I insisted, my words slurring slightly despite my best efforts to sound convincing. "I'm totally fine, Nina. Give it back.""Roseline, you can barely stand," Nina said, setting the bottle firmly out of my reach on a higher shelf so I can't touch it."I can stand perfectly fine," I said, attempting to prove my point by taking a step forward, only to wobble dangerously and grab onto the edge of the table for support."Yeah, real convincing," Nina said, rolling her eyes, though concern was clearly written across her face. "Okay, I think it's time we call it a night.""No," I whined, going back down onto the couch dramatically. "The night is still young, Nina. We're supposed to be having fun.""We already had fun,







