Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 128313 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 642(@200wpm)___ 513(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128313 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 642(@200wpm)___ 513(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
Forrest nodded. He threw me my wax jacket. He and Felix put on their coats too, and I followed them outside, where an older man who I presumed was the fire chief was waiting.
“Mr. Knighton?” he said as I shook his hand. I nodded. “Sorry about your barn. But I was doing my assessment and wanted to flag a few things up to you.”
“Of course,” I said.
“We’ve got the inspector out here, and he was checking over the barn. You have the best fire-suppression materials, but on initial testing, it looks like someone painted on some kind of accelerant.” My stomach dropped to the ground.
“What?”
The fire chief nodded. “Luckily, because your barn was so high tech, the materials underneath the accelerant slowed it enough for your horses to make it out okay.”
I looked to Forrest and Felix. “It was an internal job?” They looked as furious as I felt.
“I can’t verify that. Seems you have a lot of day workers and deliveries et cetera coming to the farm. It could be anyone. Or,” the fire chief said, “it could be an inside job. The police will take over that investigation.”
I would also be talking to every member of staff myself. If someone was working here under nefarious reasons, I’d flush them out and try my best not to kill them.
“It seems as though someone took an open flame to a concentrated area of accelerant that quickly spread. Again, the saving grace was that the alarm and sprinkler system worked, and the treated wood and insulation underneath slowed the flames enough for your staff to get the horses out before they inhaled too much smoke.” The fire chief held out his hand again. “When we have the final report, we’ll be in touch.”
“Thank you,” I said, and turned back to my cousins. “Gather all the staff, we need to vet them all. Immediately.”
Forrest nodded and turned away to make a phone call to Victoria, our estate manager.
“Where are the horses?” I asked Felix.
“This way,” he said.
We headed for the stables to the west of our house. “We got one of the fuckers who started it,” Forrest said, catching up to us, and I stopped dead in the field we were crossing.
“One of the arsonists?” I asked.
Forrest nodded. “The police have him in custody.”
“He stabbed one of our security team, but we managed to subdue him until help arrived. We’re pretty sure he wasn’t working alone, but there was no one else on the premises, and the twat isn’t talking.”
“I need to tell Phillip,” I said, and pulled out my phone.
“I’ve already done it,” Forrest said, and I exhaled. Fuck. “Here. Read this.” Forrest passed me a photocopy of a new threatening letter.
It read:
If I can’t get you, I will destroy what you love most: your horses.
Lord Henry and the rest of the family’s pets will fall, as will your empire.
“When did this arrive?” I asked Forrest. My voice had lost its edge. What they’d done to poor Dahlia—twice now—was terrible, but to burn down an entire stall block with all the horses inside was on another level of evil. Thank God for the security team, the yard staff, and the fire-suppression upgrade on the barn, or they would have killed them all. I needed to make sure the injured guard and his family were well compensated for what had happened.
I rubbed my head. It was throbbing.
“It came yesterday. The police have taken all the previous letters. I shared our concerns that the last officer on our case was too dismissive. I may have also been a privileged cunt and reminded them of our social standing.” Forrest hated pulling that shit, but I agreed, needs must. “I’ve pulled some strings for our concerns to be taken much more seriously, and let’s just say that our case will now be in the hands of Scotland Yard.”
“Fuck, Forrest,” I said, and put my hand on his shoulder. “Thank you.”
He dropped a kiss on my head. “Look what happens when you let your family help.” Forrest pointed at Felix. “But it was Felix here who got us an in at Scotland Yard. We’re a family, Jasper. We all face what comes our way. End of story.”
Felix’s phone rang. “It’s Atticus,” he said. “I said I’d call him to explain once we’d spoken to you.” I nodded and Felix stepped away to catch up Atticus on everything.
“Fuck,” I said, when the stables came into view. “This was a close one.”
“Too close,” Forrest said. “Whatever fuckers are coming for us . . . I want their heads to roll.” Forrest blew out a long breath. “The horses were so scared, Jas. I keep thinking of what could have happened if the perpetrator hadn’t been stopped. He was clearly a paid assailant, but he’s keeping mum about who hired him. Someone has something over his head that’s assured his silence, for sure. I gave Phillip access to his phone details before the police got here. Hopefully he’ll be able to pull something from it. Though it looks like a burner, so I’m not sure how much information that’d hold.”