Ashes a World's Fair Saga by Timothy Lyon Jr

Author:Timothy Lyon Jr
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Timothy Lyon Jr
Published: 2021-11-11T00:14:49+00:00

Chapter Thirty-Three

The sun, red and gracious, radiated through thick clouds on Well’s Peake’s horizon. Harvest trees were barren, with only a few leaves resting on their branches, the rest collecting on the weathered roots.

The leaves crunched under Aleksandar’s footsteps as he walked the cobblestone path leading to Kenneth’s house. Natalia trailed at his side in her navy-blue jacket; her hair pulled into a messy bun. Only a few charred beams supported the remaining frame of the manor, the rest under mounds of hot coals and ash.

Aleksandar clenched his shaking hand, focusing on his broken breath as he neared the destruction. He paused on the front steps, the same place he was a weekend ago. Then, a night of grandeur, but now, a place of death and suffering. It was all gone. Kenneth and Amia were nowhere in sight, and Aleksandar’s heart sank as he looked to the constables that investigated the property.

Nicoli and Lydia searched the premises with several others, Owen standing on the mangled balcony. Aleksandar made eye contact with Owen, who stared back at him, holding his hand to the morning light.

Lydia May patted Nicoli on the shoulder, and they looked towards Aleksandar. Owen stepped forward, and Nicoli waved him to stay in place, Owen never taking his eyes off Aleksandar. Constables searched the debris, Nicoli wrote in his journal, and Lydia shuffled through the ash.

“You have nothing to be nervous about.” Natalia checked the estate. “Best to be calm and collected until we have answers.”

“I’m afraid I already do.”

Aleksandar waited, his chest tightening and thoughts stumbling. The red drapes, the candles, the marble pillars, all crumbled and destroyed. What if it was his invention that burned down the house? It had to be—first Abel, and now the Forbeses.

Lydia reached the steps, and Aleksandar folded his arms, pulling on the wool of his brown jacket. The manor smelled like scorched leather and was so thick that Aleksandar tasted the ash on his tongue. Nausea settled in his stomach, causing him to shudder.

“Mr. Scott,” Lydia said. “Thank you for coming. Miss Arlen, we were not expecting you.”

“I asked her to come,” Aleksandar said, swallowing hard, touching his hat. “I don’t see Mr. Forbes. Is he in the hospital? Where is he?”

Lydia eyed Natalia for a moment and shifted to Aleksandar, clearing her throat. “Mr. Forbes and his wife did not survive. We found them this morning.”

Aleksandar shut his eyes.

Even with his hands under his arms, they shook, and the thought of Kenneth and Amia burning alive flashed through his mind. Their pain, the suffering. He didn’t want to cry but felt the pressure behind his eyes. He’d expected the worst, but nothing prepared him for the truth.

Aleksandar opened his eyes to Lydia on the bottom step.

“Mr. Scott, I have a few questions regarding the invention you installed for Mr. Forbes,” she said.

“I understand.”

“Would you prefer to do this alone?”

“Miss Arlen can stay. That’s fine.”

Lydia pulled out a notepad and pencil. “Where were you last night?”

“I was home.”

“Is there anyone who can confirm that?”

“Yes.

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