Chapter 793

“We don’t know. If you want answers, check the hospital,” the investigator said.

Awesome. Just what I needed—another dead end. The only silver lining? At least Jace was okay. Or…was he? I’d tried calling him again, but no answer. A pit formed in my stomach. What if he was hurt?

I drove straight to the nearest hospital. The place was chaos—nurses and doctors darting around. Fire victims were being treated under some emergency protocol, so finding the right area wasn’t hard. And there, in the middle of it all, was Jace.

He looked like he’d just walked out of a disaster movie—soot all over, ash smudged into his clothes. He was moving nonstop, coordinating, talking to staff, looking totally…normal?

Wait. Normal? This wasn’t the Jace I knew—the one who screamed “rich boy energy” with his arrogant smirks and designer everything. This guy? He was all in, like he actually cared about something bigger than himself.

It was so out of character, I had to blink twice to believe it. But there wasn’t time to process this new, selfless Jace. I was too worried about Mrs. Drago.

“Jace!” I called, weaving through the chaos.

His head snapped up, surprise flashing in his eyes. “Rea? What are you doing here?”

“I saw the news!” I said, breathless. “I tried calling you, but no answer. I even went to Cloudscape Monastery, and—” My voice faltered as my gaze swept over the injured victims. “What about Mrs. Drago? Is she okay?”

Jace’s silence said everything.

“Jace,” I pushed, panic creeping into my voice. “Why aren’t you saying anything? Is Mrs. Drago…?”

Before he could answer, Cole burst in. “Where’s my mom? MOM! MOM!”

Cole—always so smug, always acting like he was untouchable—looked like a wreck. His fear was written all over his face.

“Jace, where’s my mom? Tell me!” he demanded, turning to him just as I had.

Still, Jace said nothing.

Chapter 793

And just like that, my heart sank. Images of Mrs. Drago flashed in my mind—her wrapping me in her expensive coat, her soft reassurances, her promises to help. My chest felt like it was caving in.

Cole wasn’t stupid. He staggered, shaking his head like he was trying to erase the truth. “No. No, that’s not true. It can’t be true.”

He started pacing, grabbing at doctors, demanding answers. “WHERE IS SHE? If you don’t help her, I swear—”

The doctor, clueless about who his mom even was, just stammered nervously.

When no one gave him what he wanted, Cole spun back to Jace, trembling with rage. “You know something! Tell me! Where’s my mom?”

Jace’s jaw clenched tight. Still, no words.

Cole lost it. He grabbed Jace, fist raised, ready to swing.

“Stop!” I shouted and quickly held him back. “Cole, this isn’t Jace’s fault! Hitting him won’t fix anything!”

Cole’s eyes flicked to mine. For a second, I thought he’d ignore me. But then he exhaled shakily, dropped his fist, and let go of Jace.

“Fine. Fine,” he mumbled, voice breaking, before storming out of the room.

I turned back to Jace. His face was pale, his shoulders slumped. He looked…broken.

But what could I say? There was no Hallmark card for this kind of loss. The cries of the injured echoed around us, a grim soundtrack to the moment. And for those who didn’t survive…

“The news said there were two fatalities,” I said softly. “Does the other victim have family?”

Jace’s voice was flat. “No.”

No family. The words hit hard—an unspoken reminder of my own orphaned past.

And then Jace added, “Abbot Levinsky didn’t make it.”

“What?” My heart stopped.

This couldn’t be happening.