Desire Me If You Can-Chapter 33

"Grayson couldn't help but let out a mocking laugh as he remembered the fortune teller's words, which had led him to this ridiculous situation.

“Haha...”

At his brief laugh, everyone, including Ezra, started to glance at him cautiously. Even the driver quickly glanced at Grayson through the rearview mirror.

What’s going on? Is he seriously thinking of setting the fire truck on fire? That’s the one thing we can’t let happen! It’s okay, we lost the fight last time, but this time, if we all rush in together, we can stop it. We’ve got Dane with us today!

In fact, Dane had already turned his head towards the window, completely uninterested. Grayson, on the other hand, was completely absorbed in ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) thoughts of the fortune teller, narrowing his eyes as he recalled her face.

Right, there’s nothing special about it anyway. Fortune tellers always deceive people with their nonsense. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve been fooled by them. Every time I visited a fortune teller, I ended up failing.

But fire... she wasn’t completely wrong about that.

Grayson narrowed his eyes, thinking to himself, I’ll burn that fortune teller to the ground."

"When they arrived at the scene, thick black smoke had already risen high into the sky, filling the air. Even before getting out of the car, the acrid smell of smoke pierced their nostrils. As soon as the car came to a halt, they hastily got out and rushed to assess the situation.

“Damn, damn it.”

Someone cursed under their breath with a sigh. And no wonder, the fire had spread much larger than when the initial call came in. The house where it all started was completely engulfed, and the flames had spread to the three houses on either side. The ground was scattered with broken glass and charred debris. Because of that, people had now stopped trying to fight the fire on their own and were standing further back, away from the danger.

Wilkins shouted at the people gathered a bit further away, anxiously watching the flames.

“Are there any owners of these burning houses? None?”

It was likely that most of the houses were empty, considering it was the time people would be at work. Confirming that no one was stepping forward, Wilkins hurriedly looked over the fire scene. Meanwhile, his subordinates were working efficiently, following the established procedures, taking out firefighting equipment, and running to their positions. Grayson watched them as if it were someone else’s business. And truthfully, it was. He had no intention of foolishly running around getting involved in this.

“Miller, hey! Over here!”

Wilkins, who had quickly assessed the situation and was directing people around, suddenly called for Grayson. Amidst the rush of people, Grayson, who had been standing leisurely by himself, didn’t move and instead responded without budging.

“What is it?”

Wilkins felt his temper flare but, remembering the situation, held it back. Putting out the fire was the most important thing right now.

“We need to create a fire line to prevent the flames from spreading further. You’re in charge from here to there.”

Grayson frowned instead of answering. The term "fire line" was unfamiliar to him. Standing there silently, observing the scene, Wilkins let out a deep sigh in frustration, then grabbed Grayson’s arm and pulled him toward the position.

“From here to here, remove anything that could catch fire. Anything, including electrical devices or anything dangerous. Got it?”

Wilkins explained in the simplest terms, as if speaking to a child, and made sure to look Grayson in the eye while asking. Until then, Grayson hadn’t said a word. After a quick glance to the side, he looked down at the ground, scratched the back of his head, and let out a sigh as if he were annoyed. Thankfully, he started moving without further words. Seeing this, Wilkins breathed a small sigh of relief. At least he wasn’t completely useless. And with that, Wilkins turned back to observe the situation.

All around him, the sounds of crumbling houses, water pouring from hoses, murmurs of conversation, and the vibrations of various equipment filled the air. Passing by Deandre, who was cutting through a garage door with a chainsaw, Wilkins made his way to the next house, quickly moving and shouting along the way.

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“Higher! Lift the hose higher! Aim the water upwards! More, more!”

“Has the second floor completely burned? Damn, the roof’s gone too.”

“Who’s gone inside? ...Alright, no one has been found yet, right? Okay, keep looking.”

Wilkins, directing the operations with a mix of corrections and encouragement, completed his circuit and returned to Grayson.

“Oh.”

To his surprise, Grayson had perfectly completed the task he had been given. While moving things and clearing them away might seem simple, in a first-time situation like this, people often mess up, so Wilkins had prepared himself for some mistakes. But seeing the fire line neatly set up, he found himself seeing Grayson in a new light.

“Well done, not bad.”

He casually patted Grayson on the shoulder and turned to leave, but just then, Wilkins saw someone trying to enter the house. His brow furrowed immediately.

“Dane! Dane Striker!”

Dane, who had been heading toward the door with the hose in hand, stopped and looked back at Wilkins. Wilkins quickly approached him and asked.

“Are you going in alone? No one else with you?”

“As you can see.”

Dane replied indifferently, as usual. With the large fire, everyone was struggling with their own duties.

“Other fire departments will be here soon. Why don’t we go in together? Going in alone is too dangerous...”

It was just then.

“Aaaargh! Agh!”

A man suddenly screamed and tried to rush into the house. Dane quickly grabbed him, but the man kept struggling, ignoring him.

“No, Charlie! Charlie!”

Tears streaming down his face, the man repeated the name over and over. Wilkins quickly asked.

“What’s going on? Are you the owner of this house?”

The man nodded tearfully while still sobbing. Wilkins continued to ask.

“I’m Officer Darius Wilkins. What’s your name? ...Alright, Mr. George Wright. Are you single? Any other family?”

“Charlie, Charlie’s inside, Charlie.”

“Calm down, we’ll help you... Who’s Charlie? Is he inside?”

The man nodded rapidly, tears still falling.

“Charlie always waits for me alone, he’s probably waiting for me inside right now. Let go, let go! I have to save Charlie! Charlie!”

“Alright, alright! Please calm down!”

Wilkins firmly stopped him with a tone sharper than before. Watching the man helplessly crying, Wilkins asked again.

“How old is Charlie? Is he your wife? Or your partner?”

“Twelve... years old... blonde, very pretty...”

“Your daughter?”

The man, unable to complete his sentence due to his sobbing, shook his head quickly.

“No, no, Charlie is a dog... he’s a dog...”

Dane and Wilkins exchanged glances quickly. They soon learned that Charlie was a golden retriever.

“And anything else? Is there a chance anyone else is inside?”

The man shook his head.

“My family is just Charlie. Please, please save Charlie, he’s all I have... Please...”

The man collapsed, crying uncontrollably. Wilkins patted his shoulder to comfort him before quickly looking around. There were still no other useful staff members in sight. The only one who seemed available was Grayson Miller.

When their eyes met, Grayson smiled slyly. It was a smile that had no meaning other than to display his usual social tactics. Wilkins scowled, quickly turning his head and looking around for anyone else who could go inside. But no suitable person appeared.

“This is a real problem. We can’t go in alone.”

The fire had grown too large. If someone inhaled smoke wrong or there was an accident, it would be too dangerous to send anyone in alone without backup."