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I stared at the dead body in front of me, lying on the floor with his eyes wide open and mouth parted in surprise. Tyler hadn't even given him time to react and took his life without hesitation.

"How do you know he was going to kill me?" I asked him, "He said he was an FBI agent!"

"He was lying," Tyler said, reaching into the dead man's jacket pockets and pulling out his ID and showing it to me. "What kind of agent names himself Brynn Smith? That sounds fake as hell."

"So you killed a man based on your assumption that he's fake because of a name?" I screeched. "ARE YOU FUCKING CRAZY?!"

Tyler pinned me with an incredulous look, "This man was not a fed, Vicky. He was sent here by someone to kill you."

I gave out a humorless laugh, "Why would anybody want me dead? Last time I checked I didn't own a GODDAMN MULTI-BILLION DOLLAR CORPORATION!"

"Of course, you don't, but I do and whoever sent this man here knew that you were connected to me in some way and they decided to take advantage of that. They wanted you dead so they could frame me for your murder. Do you understand what I'm saying, Victoria?"

When Tyler was super pissed, he usually used my full name.

"You probably just killed him because you needed an excuse to kill someone. As far as I know, you have an addiction for murdering people."

"That's not true." He said and muttered something under his breath.

"What?" Had I heard him correctly?

"I said I have a bigger addiction, it's..." his iridescent blue eyes bore into mine, "It's you."

I glanced away because the intensity was too much, "this is not the time or the place."

to be flirting with me, not with a dead body staring at us. I didn't say the last sentence.

"We could sit here and argue all day or I can stop this lunatic from getting us both killed."

"Look who's talking, calling someone else a lunatic." I snapped.

Tyler looked so angry at that moment, I thought he would lash out but he just stared at me like he couldn't believe what I'd said. He clicked the safety of the gun and put it back in the waistband of his jeans. "I have to leave."

"You're planning to leave the body here?"

"If I'm arrested, I'll have to explain that it was self-defense which reminds me I need to call my lawyer too so yes, I plan to leave the body as it is."

"I have to get home," I said, picking up my bag.

"Trust me, Vicky, that's the last place you need to be."

"Archer and Hazel are at home," I argued.

"I know that." He said, glaring. "But whoever is out there is after you so it's safe for you to stay here in the mansion."

"Where's Maya?" I asked.

"She's visiting Mom."

There was a faint smell of something...

Something burning...

"What is that smell?" I looked around.

There was a lot of sound coming from downstairs so Tyler didn't waste any time as he caught my hand in a firm grip and we made a dash downstairs when we saw smoke erupting from a room adjacent to one of the rooms. The maids were scurrying everywhere, screaming and running outside.

"What the hell is going on?" Tyler demanded.

Morgan walked out of the hallway and stopped when he saw us. His face had traces of black soot, "There was a fire in one of the rooms. I think it was caused by an electrical short circuit. I've called the fire department and they should be here any minute. I've tried using the fire extinguishers. Some of the rooms had inbuilt water sprays that activated because of the smoke, but we won't be able to save the older part of the house."

"Remove all the staff from the house right now," Tyler said as he handed me over to Morgan. "And keep her safe for me."

"Wait." I caught the end of his t-shirt. "Where are you going?"

He gave me a look filled with devastation. "It's over, Vicky. Someone wanted to ruin me and they planned all this. But that person is a fucking coward and I'd be damned if I let it destroy me. I need to make sure everyone's evacuated from the mansion, and I'll need to rescue my pets too before the fire gets worse."

He signaled to Morgan. "Don't wait for me. We've been ready for this situation for years. If I don't make it, you know who to call."

My hands shook and I couldn't believe I was going through this, Tyler giving a speech about not coming back. Like ever...

My best friend...the man I loved could leave me again...

Tyler looked down at me; his fingers touched mine as he uncurled them from his shirt front. "I was wrong. You're not safe here. No one's ever going to be safe with me."

"Don't..." I said, the words stuck in my throat. "Don't leave me." I was having shortness of breath but I couldn't take my eyes off him long enough to reach for my inhaler.

"Never thought I'd hear you say that," he touched my cheek. "I love you, Victoria, and you were the only reason I came back to Cold-Bay. I want you to remember that."

"You'll have plenty of time later to tell me how much you love me, okay? So don't say it like it's your last time or some bullshit like that, you're such a dumbass." I said between sobs, cupping his face in my hands. "I'll wait outside, and if you leave me again, I won't forgive you. Ever."

He kissed my palm, giving me one last look before storming through the rooms like a valiant Knight, leaving me with Morgan who led me outside the mansion. I'd tried to stay strong but I was crying full-blown by the time we were in the yard and Morgan had to hold me while I sobbed into his shirt.

"Tyler's going to be okay, right?" I asked.

"He will be." He said, giving me a reassuring pat on my back. "Listen, Ms. Lane, I need to get back to Tyler. Do you think you'll be fine if I left you here?"

I nodded, "Of course."

My phone buzzed. I pulled it out of my bag and checked the screen.

"Morgan, it's my sister. She says she needs me home. I'm scared for her and I have to go but I can't leave Tyler like this."

He shook his head, "If you have to go home, Miss, then you should. I'll be here for Tyler. I've also called Mrs. Lockhart and Maya, and they are on their way so don't worry."

"Thank you. I'll be back as soon as I can."

Morgan hailed down a cab for me. I sat inside and watched the corner part of the mansion as it blazed in the fire.

I'd left at least thirty of my snakes into the woods at the back of the mansion and gotten bitten by a few in the process. I'd removed their venom so it wasn't a big deal and I had a few hands helping me with relocating the dogs and cats in cages into a van. They were going to be transferred to my cousin Phoenix's place.

I was so fucking furious that I would kill someone. Basilisk was curled around my neck like a scarf. He wouldn't leave me, the guy and I shared some kind of connection since the first time I'd got him.

When I heard footsteps, I stopped what I was doing and turned around and it took everything inside me not to take a swing at the old man.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't be firing you right now, Morgan." I hissed at him, unable to keep the venom out of my voice.

His expressions turned grim. For a housekeeper, Morgan had a lot of balls to glare at me, but then he'd earned it. Morgan was in our family for years and his father before him and that made him family. If I was being honest, he was the only man who ever gave two shits about me even when I was a kid. He'd contributed to keeping me in line.

"If I had the chance, I would fire you myself, Mr. Lockhart. I didn't think you would ever stoop this low."

"What the fuck does that mean?" I screamed at him. "I never asked you to set the mansion on fire. You were supposed to fake the smoke and start a fire drill so Vicky could see how brave I was and admit her feelings for me, which in a way she did but I thought I texted you and called it off after the FBI showed up. That was basic common sense, Morgan. Now the body is probably going to burn and I've got a lot of motherf*cking explaining to do to the police, thank fuck you, pardon my French."

Morgan stared at me as if I'd finally gone completely mad. "So you're telling me you didn't start the fire?"

"Of course I didn't. Are you deaf? This is my house; I could never jeopardize the lives of my house staff and my pets. Not to mention the million dollars worth of loss this is going to cause me." I spared a look behind him. "Where's Vicky?"

"She got a text message from her sister asking her to come home urgently."

"What?"

I was paralyzed with fear. Real and raw fear at the thought of losing her, of never bickering with her again. The kind that I'd never experienced before. I imagined Vicky...

My innocent naïve Vicky getting caught up in my mess and dying. Her health already made her weak. If something were to happen to Vicky, there was nothing in the world for me...

Just an empty void.

"That can't be Hazel," I said, my mind running ahead of me. "Whoever messaged Vicky, whoever killed Noah, set the mansion on fire. It's a fucking trap to direct my attention away from her." I handed Basilisk over to one of the boys standing there. "This man or woman; whoever is screwing with me is dead. They better not touch a hair on Vicky's head or I swear this double-crossing bitch...

"Calm down," Morgan said. Yeah, he could tell me to calm down when he had nothing to lose.

"I need to get there fast. Get me the fucking Lamborghini."