Chapter 4 THE ECHO OF FLAMES.

The morning air was cooler than usual, laced with the scent of rain that hadn't yet fallen. Helena stood by her window, watching as gray clouds crawled across the sky. Her mind was no quieter than the wind outside. The pieces were starting to fall into place, slowly, painfully.

And Elias... Elias was beginning to feel like the center of it all.

She didn't want it to be him. She hoped it wasn't. But if she didn't face the truth now, the truth might bury her.

Today, she would test him - nothing obvious. Just a few carefully chosen questions. A few details only someone involved might know.

And she would watch. Closely.

At the door, Elias was his usual calm self. That easy smile. That spark in his eyes.

"Are you ready to dig up some more ghosts?" he asked, holding up a small notebook.

Helena forced a smile. "Always."

They drove in silence for the first few minutes. The hum of the engine was the only sound between them. Elias tapped the steering wheel lightly, glancing at her once or twice.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I didn't sleep well," she said honestly.

"Nightmares?"

She nodded. "Same one, over and over. The fire. I can never stop it. I just... stand there. Watching."

Elias's hands tightened on the wheel, just for a second. Helena caught it. There it is.

"I'm sorry," he said, voice soft.

"I keep thinking," she continued, "about how fast it happened. It's like the fire knew exactly where to go, where to spread. Almost like someone helped it."

She watched him from the corner of her eye.

Elias's jaw twitched. "Fires are like that. Unpredictable."

"Not always," Helena said gently. "Especially not when accelerants are used."

His grip on the wheel loosened. "You think it was intentional?"

"I don't know. But someone was seen near the house that night."

Elias turned his head slightly, curiosity in his voice. "By who?"

"A neighbor," she said. "Said it sounded like a teenage boy. Someone familiar."

Silence.

Helena could almost hear his heartbeat.

"Did you ever go to my house back then?" she asked, tilting her head.

Elias nodded, not hesitating. "A few times. Your dad liked me. I thought I was different from the other boys."

"Were you there the night of the fire?"

His brows furrowed. "No. Why would I be?"

Helena stared out the window. "Just asking."

She didn't press it further. The silence between them wasn't empty anymore - it was full of unspoken things.

They visited the library archives next, searching through articles about land deals and council meetings from a decade ago. Dusty papers, yellowed pages, forgotten minutes. But somewhere buried in it all, the truth waited.

"Your dad really went up against them," Elias said, scanning an old council report. "He voted against three major development projects."

Helena nodded. "He said they were destroying the town's history."

"He was right," Elias murmured. "But people like that don't forget when someone stands in their way."

She paused. "Do you think they would've gone as far as... burning the house down?"

Elias didn't answer immediately. "I think people are capable of terrible things when money and power are involved."

"Even kids?" she asked quietly.

He looked at her, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Sometimes kids get caught in adult plans. Or they're used. Manipulated."

Elias sat back, his eyes studying her. "What are you really asking, Helena?"

She met his gaze. "Nothing. Just talking."

But in her chest, a war was raging.

Later that afternoon, they returned to the site of the old house - now just a ruined foundation buried beneath overgrown grass and ash-stained stones. Helena walked ahead, her boots crunching the gravel. Elias followed quietly.

"You never told me why you stayed in town," she said.

He shrugged. "Didn't have anywhere else to go. My dad passed. I took over the shop. It was simple."

"But you were always smart," she said. "Didn't you want more?"

Elias smiled faintly. "Maybe. But part of me felt like I had to stay. Like... I owe something to this place."

"To the town?"

"To someone," he said.

She turned toward him. "Who?"

He hesitated, then answered, "You."

Helena's breath caught.

"You saved my life once," he said. "That day at the lake. You don't remember, do you?"

She frowned. "I... no."

"I almost drowned," he said, smiling softly. "You pulled me out. I never forgot that."

A flicker of guilt twisted in her stomach. She had come here to test him, to question him - and yet, here he was, offering her something real. Something tender.

But truth and trust could not exist in the shadows. And there were too many shadows around Elias Hayes.

That evening, back in her room, Helena paced.

She pulled out her father's journal again. Her fingers brushed the edges of pages filled with notes, numbers, and names. One entry stood out this time - half-torn, smudged with ash, but still readable:

"Meeting at the Hayes garage. Unexpected visit from M. He's not a boy anymore. He asked about the plans. Eyes too sharp for a kid his age."

M?

She read it again. Then a third time.

M... could be Mason? Marcus?

But her father had underlined he's not a boy anymore.

What if M stood for... Elias's middle name?

She grabbed her phone and opened his profile. Elias Matthew Hayes.

Her stomach turned.

So he had been involved. Not just by accident. Not just as a bystander. Her father had met with him. I was worried about him.

She sat down hard on the bed, heart pounding.

It was real. The suspicion, the signs. All of it.

A knock on the door startled her. She quickly hid the journal under her pillow.

Elias peeked in, holding a small box of pastries.

"Thought you might be hungry," he said with a smile.

"Thanks," she said, keeping calm.

"Mind if I sit?"

She nodded, though every muscle in her body wanted to run.