Date The CEO.com

Chapter 225: Eve? What? PREGNANT?!

News spread about the fire in Eros' new studio. People inside the site and outside of it gathered to watch the commotion. The flames broke out of a window, sending the pieces onto the street and alerting passersby as well as vehicles.

"We had no idea!" One of the cafe staff workers said. "Suddenly, there were people running and we were confused. Then, we see this narrow cloud of smoke spiralling up the sky."

An interviewed street sweeper stated, "HQ had moved one of the crew from the old site to this new one. I think it was them in the building. They asked help in moving props."

"That studio is for the exclusive use of the new series, Define Love," a maintenance man shouted when he saw the smoke from another building. "It had been inspected more than once because it's the company's most important project. How could a fire ignite from there?"

A Mercedes-Maybach S650 sped for the front gates. 

Wen opened the window and waved her pass in the air. Cameras flashed and reporters shouted at the top of their lungs. Security hustled to move the crowd out of the way in favor of the vehicle. They barricaded the outsiders from using this chance to get inside. 

Upon entering the premises, a fire truck and an ambulance were also on their way. More security moved bystanders off the streets so they could reach Studio Z. The Mercedes-Maybach parked beside a BMW M3.

Its backseat door flew open.

"It's the CEO" A woman gasped under her breath.

Ambryan marched right into the scene. Wen caught up to him, followed by the rest of his security team. They blocked the horde of people flocking around the studio. Fire fighters cleared out the main location of the fire and its surrounding area. 

A number of them stormed inside while the others circled the hose around to aim for openings.

"SAM!" Ambryan roared.

The director jumped 50 feet in the air. He fidgeted from head to toe as he turned to face the CEO. Blood had drained from his face, making him ghostly pale. "M-Mr. Hathaway! We had no idea what happened! You can ask Ms. Hart! I was with her"

"Ms. Hart? I received a report that she ran to the fire to put it out and almost died," Ambryan breathed down his neck. "As the person beside her, how could you let her do that? Don't you know a studio's emergency protocol?"

"I-I"

Wen stepped in and shot her arm out between the two men. "Mr. Hathaway, I think it would be best to check on Ms. Hart's condition as well as other victims. We'll find out the cause of the fire once the fire department has tamed it."

The director was close to peeing his pants. Ambryan was right. He had panicked. Because Eve took charge, he forgot his role as the leader of his crew. It was like the taxi crash all over again. 

He had displayed incompetency today.

The project could slip off his fingers because of it.

Mikael sat near an unconscious Eve. She lied on a bench. Her face covered with soot. He held her wrist, checking on her pulse. A rough head count showed that there could be people stuck inside. The ambulance had given her a portable oxygen mask as she sustained no injuries. 

They reserved the vehicle for worse case scenarios.

Relief seeped into his shoulders, letting them relax. The medical team advised him to stay close but he had been cleared. The smell and taste of smoke lingered in his senses. He couldn't even begin to imagine what would have happened if he left Eve to extinguish the fire.

'How stupid!' He cursed in his thoughts. Fire spread easily. By the time it took for her to grab the extinguisher and run up the stairs, it had grown far too big for her to control. 

What had gone in her head?

"How is she?"

Mikael slowly shifted his face to his upper right. Ambryan's tall frame blocked the sun rays from his eyes. The cold expression could throw anyone off but Mikael knew better. This man's studio was on fire. That would cost repair damages and would attract negative press.

Yet, here he wasasking about his secretary.

"She's going to be fine," Mikael assured him. He could probably take the oxygen mask off now. The smoke should have completely left her lungs. But he thought better of it and waited for the medical team's advice.

Ambryan knelt beside the bench and reached for his handkerchief. He used it to wipe off the soot on her face, careful not to touch the oxygen mask. Her eyeglasses had fallen somewhere during her escape with Mikael. Tips of her hair had been scorched by the fire.

She looked better once her face was clean.

Wen stood nearby while she listened to her bluetooth earpiece. Regular updates filled her ears. Her gaze flickered towards the unconscious secretary and narrowed. She surprised herself by being worried about Eve's condition. 

Even after her suspicions, she still cared about the latter greatly.

She would get to the bottom of this.

"Thank you," Ambryan suddenly spoke.

Mikael blinked, raising his eyebrows. "For what?"

"For looking out for her. I shouldn't have let her go alone. A call for a potential company collaboration came up suddenly and she volunteered to go by herself. I should have expected something like this after the taxi crashed the set."

Ambryan scowled as he remembered that day. They had used public places for film shooting before but it had been the first time a vehicle went astray. They had interviewed the driver but the latter couldn't recall why his breaks suddenly malfunctioned.

Their investigation didn't end there.

But results were yet to be drawn up.

"If she wasn't here, the fire could have still happened," Mikael responded as if he could read the CEO's thoughts. He had a feeling Eve wouldn't like how he viewed the situation. "The taxi also could have still happened. If anything, everyone is grateful that she was here. She was the one who pulled the fire alarm to alert you and the authorities."

At that, Ambryan scrunched his eyebrows deeper. "That should have been automatic."

"Well, the sprinklers weren't working as well."

"Damn it," he cursed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "It's been tampered with."

Mikael nodded. "I suspected the same. Eve too, I believe. She looked at the sprinklers and noticed how they didn't turn on. The smoke detector failed but it could be because the fire happened in a room. But the alarm should have triggered them."

The CEO took a deep breath and released his nose. The culprit might have just made a mistakeor, at least, one of his lackeys did. His violet eyes snapped towards his bodyguard. Wen acknowledged the look, speaking to her earpiece. 

"She must be really important to you." Mikael coughed. 

It wasn't his best acting moment but the concern the CEO had over his secretary went beyond a superior and his subordinate. Based on his personality, it also went beyond general worries and/or friendship. 

Ambryan sat on the ground and leaned his back against the bench. "I rarely find good people to work with. Even among the board of directors and other executives, I am aware that not all of them have the best impression of me and could go behind my back to stab it."

A fire at the new studio site? Ambryan wouldn't put it past his enemies to do such a thing. The security protocol was tight. If someone tampered with anything in the studios, they needed permission from the higher ups. Only trusted employees could get away with loopholes.

And whoever that was just made his/her choice. 

"For that, I need my allies to always trust in me," Ambryan concluded. "Eve has not only shown her loyalty but has also displayed the same kind of ideas as I do. She's an important individual in the companywhether she or the others know it. I wouldn't be able to find someone as capable."

All his years as the CEO, he hadn't offered a promotion to any of his secretaries. They did their job well but only Eve managed to go further by proposing ideas and speaking her opinion whenever he asked about them after meetings. 

Then, he'd find out their thoughts were on the same page. It was fascinating to experience. If she moved to a more powerful position then, he could have less worries. 

Mikael made a face. So the CEO's point was because she was a valuable employee? More so than most? It should be flattering to hear but he found it underwhelming instead. 

He looked at the cafe to his right and muttered, "How blind can someone be?"

Ambryan turned his head. His violet eyes stared off into space. A coy smile teased the corner of his lip. He matched Mikael's voice, saying, "Don't tell her."

"Tell her what?" The male model whirled his attention back on the CEO. "That she is employee of the month again? I won't ruin the surprise. Don't worry. I'll even distract her if you want."

Ambryan chuckled, appreciating the sarcastic humor. He bent his leg and rested his elbow on its knee. "You know that they're the same person, right?"