Page 44 of Island Rescuer

“The security office is fine. The lobby and front desk are smoky, but they tell me that’ll be easy to clear out. There’s no lingering damage there.”

“And everyone in the rooms near my suite got out?”

“Yes,” Bruce reported. “Not a single personal injury.”

That was the most important detail. Everything else could be replaced or adjusted.

“Affected guests have been relocated, compensation for belongings and things like that is coming through,” he added.

“I want to talk with anyone who has been displaced,” Harper said. “A personal apology.”

“Not tonight, um, this morning.” Bruce’s jaw set. “Trust me. It’s under control. You being here is enough right now.” He gave her a long look. “Possibly too much? That was your home. You need to take the time and process the loss.”

Her home, yes, but also their family legacy. “Well, unless you’ve got something for me to cook, being here, following up with guests is the most useful thing I can do.”

Bruce closed his eyes for a moment. “Follow me.” He pulled out his phone. “I’m sending Knox the full list of who was displaced and where they are now.” He held up a hand when she started to protest. “He’ll help you keep your promise not to reach out to anyone until this evening.”

“Come on, Bruce.”

“I mean it, Harper. It’s been a hell of a night for everyone. Give the folks some time to rest. We both know how to deal with emergencies and still make people feel at home.”

She held up her hands in surrender. “You’re right.” Her parents and uncle did know best. They’d trained her to follow in their footsteps. Unfortunately, he was also right about her being a victim. Although helping others would be an excellent distraction, sooner or later she would need to deal with her own emotions.

“Did we have space to put them up downtown?”

Bruce eyed her warily. “Everyone is covered. Anyone who wanted rental cars instead of ride shares, we’ve provided them. Your friend Trina stepped up big. We had two families and a small wedding party relocated to the Inn on Brookwell.”

“Wow.” Harper was impressed. “I’ll thank her when we get back.”

Bruce took her as close to the damage as they could safely get. The soft glow of sunrise illuminated the building, pouring a sweet light across the harsh reality. The suite she had called home for several years was now a gaping maw.

“Fire suppression kicked in quickly,” Bruce said. “We’ll have a better idea of the extent of the damage in a couple of hours.”

“That doesn’t look like fire suppression to me,” Knox observed.

“Yeah.” Bruce rocked back on his heels. “To clarify, the fire suppressionoutsideof her suite kicked in properly. The fire department is going to be looking at why the system didn’t function correctly in your suite.”

“Because someone didn’t want it to,” Knox muttered.

“It crossed my mind.” Bruce draped an arm around her shoulders. “We know it was deliberate. We don’t know exactly how or who set the fire, but this changes things.”

Harper dragged her gaze from the building to study Bruce’s face. “Changes what things?”

“I’ve advised all Ellington family members who live on-property or are currently visiting to find other accommodations. I’m also ordering extra security details for the entire family as well as more security at all our properties.”

She immediately thought of her brother who lived in a similar suite down at the Ellington Cove in Key West. He would be furious. “Wouldn’t Rhett be safer in his suite with the extra security? Concentrated efforts and all that.” She caught a silent exchange between Bruce and Knox. “Fine,” she grumbled. “I’ll leave the security things to the experts.”

She inched closer to study the damage, giving them a bit more room to chat privately. Not that she was capable of listening at this point.

Very few important things had been lost up there, but the longer she stared, the bigger it felt. How could the resort come back from this? Where did she go to start over?

Of course, the insurance would come through. There would be repairs and restoration to the areas that needed it. But it wasn’t just the few rooms on this end of the building that were uninhabitable. In this condition, the resort was not the lovely escape that it should be.

Even with the lobby cleaned up, the landscaping adjusted, and construction efforts hidden, the resort wouldn’t be as welcoming. Who wanted to pull up, ready to relax, and see a mess?

In this moment she hated whoever was behind this. Maybe as much as they hated her.

This outrageous attack had planted fear and bad memories where only gentle Southern hospitality should have been. She wanted the person responsible to pay.

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