Ariana had no choice but to rely on the flashlight of her phone.

Many of the bodies were so mangled that they were nearly impossible to recognize, forcing Ariana to look for distinguishing features instead. Thankfully, none of the bodies she had inspected belonged to Holden or Adrian.

But her relief was fleeting. She pressed on with her grim task, and after checking several more bodies, she stumbled upon the bodyguard who had helped her escape. His body was pinned beneath a rock, his limbs torn away. Fighting her fear, Ariana checked for signs of life but found none.

Tears welled up in her eyes as her trembling intensified.

It seemed that these people had all been part of Holden's team, likely caught in the chaos of the escape.

Ariana tried not to dwell on it, knowing that focusing on it would only deepen her fear. She prayed she wouldn't find Holden or Adrian among the deceased.

Despite her dread, she continued her search.

The driver also got out of the car to help, but there was still no trace of Holden or Adrian.

This gave Ariana a small glimmer of hope. If their bodies weren't found, maybe they were still alive.

“Do we have any wireless headsets in the car? Maybe we can use them to contact Holden or Adrian," Ariana said to the driver, desperately hoping to establish contact with Holden or Adrian.

"Yes," the driver replied, nodding before quickly returning to the car. He tried to reach out for help using the wireless headsets but couldn't get through. He shook his head at Ariana. "I can't get a signal."

"What about a phone?" Ariana's hope faltered, but she quickly collected herself and told the driver, "See if you can call for assistance."

The driver followed her instructions, but the signals were jammed. He couldn't make any calls.

Ariana was now feeling a sense of helplessness, but she knew giving up wasn't an option.

Going back to the manor was out of the question, especially since she didn't know what had occurred between Holden and Bennett. The explosion was a sign that Bennett was behind this; only he was crazy enough to do this.

Ariana suspected Holden and Adrian had encountered something nearby.

Holden was not one to abandon his team, so if they were here, his vehicle had to be close.

But it was already dark; Ariana couldn't venture too far to search.

She decided to check the nearby area first. If she found them, they could work together to figure out their next move. If not, she would resume the search tomorrow and explore other options if needed.

Her only hope was that Holden and Adrian were still conscious and able to respond to her.