Suddenly, a loud crash echoed from the room, causing Charis’s heart to skip a beat. She hurried back to the door and peeked outside to see what was happening. The window rails were being torn from the outside. Charis noticed a rope tied around the bars, connected to a helicopter flying overhead. Natalie was about to be rescued! Charis couldn’t believe her eyes. It was now her turn to pound on the door.
“Who? Who came for you?” At this point, she no longer cared about her own safety. Fear filled her stomach as she helplessly watched Natalie escape.
It hadn’t been long since the fire started. How had she managed to secure a helicopter so quickly?
Finally, the rails were completely removed, and a ray of light streamed into the tiny room. Shortly after, a fully-uniformed rescuer descended from the helicopter. They climbed onto the windowsill and helped Natalie out of the confined space.
Just before leaving, Natalie turned and calmly addressed Charis through the glass window. “You’ve tried to kill me countless times before. Did you really think I would remain defenseless and wait for you to harm me again?”
Not long after Natalie returned to Barnes, she received a call from Brandon, asking her to come back to his villa. Knowing that Brandon was now at Barnes, she was certain that Charis would follow him there. She asked Johanna to monitor Charis’s movements to prevent any emergencies.
Charis was always close to Brandon, clinging to him like a parasite. Shortly after she arrived at Barnes, Natalie thought that Charis must be very anxious. Given Charis’s ruthless personality, she didn’t believe that Charis would sit and watch without doing anything as Natalie got closer to Brandon.
Charis had visited the villa twice, but on both occasions, she did not say much or try to sow discord between Natalie and Brandon. Natalie had a bad feeling that something significant was going to happen. She realized that Charis, who no longer resorted to cheap tricks, was probably creating trouble behind the scenes, possibly even planning to kill her.
Halloween was approaching, and Natalie asked Brandon if he wanted to go with her to a haunted house at the amusement park. When Charis found out about their plan, she suddenly announced that she also wanted to take her subordinates there, which puzzled Natalie. She was almost certain that Charis would take advantage of this opportunity to attack.
Two days before Halloween, Natalie called Johanna and informed her that Charis had already been in contact with the haunted house staff. Natalie knew how cunning Charis could be, so she wanted to ensure her safety and the safety of others by arranging for their men to hide in the haunted house.
Johanna warned Natalie about the risks involved, but Natalie was determined to catch Charis in the act. She wanted to put an end to this game of cat and mouse. On Halloween, shortly after Natalie and Brandon entered the haunted house, a staff member asked them to search for decoder cards separately.
Natalie stepped forward while Brandon walked backward. Not long after they separated, Natalie smelled smoke coming from a room ahead. She wanted to go back, but unexpectedly, the path behind her was blocked by sudden flames. Natalie remained calm and called the White family’s subordinates who were hiding in the haunted house to catch the arsonist.
She then called for a helicopter to rescue her and ran towards the only windowed room in the haunted house while talking on the phone. To her surprise, Charis hurriedly entered the burning establishment, taking Natalie off guard. Natalie couldn’t understand why Charis would take such a risk.
Although the fire wasn’t too serious yet, it would be difficult for Charis to escape now that she was inside. Additionally, it was a windy late fall day, making the flames more dangerous. Charis locked Natalie inside the room, thinking that she would surely die. However, to Charis’s horror, Natalie had escaped through the window while Charis herself remained trapped in the fire.
Charis was stunned for a moment before realizing that Natalie had set a trap.
Looking back at the corridor, Charis saw that the fire had intensified. She had lost too much time. The fire surrounded her, the heat clouding her vision and the thick smoke choking her throat. In that moment, the haunted house felt like living hell. Would Charis make it out alive?
The dancing fire in the haunted house burned in the darkness. The thick smoke and scorching flames surrounded Charis, leaving her with nowhere to hide.
Nervous and scared, she did everything possible to find a way out. Suddenly, a burnt wooden beam just above her head cracked and fell. Charis screamed, dodged, and rolled on the ground desperately. It looked like the haunted house was going to collapse on top of her.
Charis stood up awkwardly and desperately looked at the woman who had just climbed out of the window. “You cheated on me! You wanted to trap me in the fire and kill me, didn’t you? Damn bitch! You will pay for this!”
Natalie was safe and sound while Charis was caught in the burning building. How ironic. Natalie got on the window, shook her hands, and scoffed with coldness. “You asked for it! You are so cruel!” Natalie rolled her eyes. “I can’t believe you have the nerve to call me that. You’re the one who hired someone to start a fire. You’re the one who locked me in this room! Now it’s you who can enjoy the feeling of burning to death!”
Afterward, Natalie climbed the rope ladder that led to the helicopter flying above them. She gave Charis a smug look before leaving.
“Bye!” The helicopter took off and quickly carried Natalie to safety. The sound of the propeller echoed in the air.
“If you were really a capable woman, you wouldn’t have resorted to playing this trick on me! Damn bitch!” Looking in the direction where Natalie’s helicopter disappeared, Charis screamed in pain.
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She knew she was left behind, and the smoke was becoming denser. No, she couldn’t just sit still and embrace death. Looking at the room Natalie had locked her in, Charis had an idea. She could escape through the window that Natalie left open. However, when Charis tried to open the door with the key, she soon discovered that something was wrong. “I can’t open it!” Anxiety and panic ate at her. She turned the key with such force that it broke. She stared at the broken key in her hand and realized that the door had been locked from the inside.
Charis threw the broken key on the ground and stomped with anger. The flames burned higher and higher with each passing second, and the wooden floor beneath her began to crack. Charis rubbed her itchy eyes, feeling the temperature around her continue to rise. She could clearly feel the searing pain on her skin. Coughing and leaning against the corridor wall, she desperately tried to find a place to hide. The fire was so fierce that Charis couldn’t see a way out. The haunted house was about to collapse.
“If I couldn’t get out, I would definitely die here.” She was still young and had a bright future ahead, but she might never see the sunrise. “Natalie could live out the rest of her days happily with Brandon.” Thinking of this, Charis despaired. She had to get out of here! At that moment, another huge wooden beam collapsed. This load-bearing beam blocked the path behind her completely. Now, Charis had only two options: she could try to run through the fire by herself, risking third-degree burns, or she could wait for the firefighters to rescue her.
Charis could feel her skin getting scalded from the heat. Clenching her teeth, she rolled up her sleeves and discovered that her once tender arms were already scarlet. There was no time to doubt; she had to make a decision. It was better for her to take matters into her own hands than to leave her life in the hands of others.
Charis closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She had always been a decisive person, quickly making decisions and choosing the path with less fire to run away.
As soon as she ran into the fire, she felt her skin melting from her bones and her lungs filling with thick, suffocating smoke.
Charis was still a long way from the exit but quickly made her way through the sea of extreme heat, her skin blistering. Soon, the smell of burning cloth filled her nose, followed by excruciating, burning pain.
She let out a piercing scream and looked over her shoulder, discovering that her back was on fire. But she didn’t have time to worry; she could only keep running.
Little by little, she exhausted her last strength, and her consciousness began to cloud over from the lack of oxygen. Pain consumed every part of her body, and even breathing hurt.