BEVERLY’S POV Small pieces of memories come back to me, one by one, like a picture slowly forming itself from broken glass. I’ve gone three years without them, forced them to the back of my mind. Perhaps because that was the person I wish I was; the person without these memories. They keep coming
BEVERLY’S POV The memories take a jump, leaping through the good ones I had for thirteen years and settling on another one that’s just as painful as the first. I am eighteen, burdened by the news that everyone in the orphanage is still trying to recover from. Josephine is dead. Her death has taken
But he’s patient, and slowly, I feel my anger start to wane. Maybe he has changed. Maybe he really does want to be a father to me again. I start to talk to him more, open up more. We bond over a few things and it’s starting to feel like how I’d always imagined it would be if he was around. It goes
BEVERLY’S POV I stare at the stack of unpaid bills spread across the tiny table in my dimly lit apartment. The once-bright place now feels like a suffocating cage. Each envelope represents a weight, heavy and unyielding, pressing down on my chest. The worst part? This is not my debt. I never asked
I turn on the lights and I find Joe seated in the middle of my living room. Fear tears through me at the realisation that he’s been in my house, waiting for me. “Hello, Beverly.” He grins sinisterly. “Joe.” I say breathlessly, shakily. “What do you want? I’ve been paying back my debt. I’ve been
BEVERLY’S POV The dim, pulsating lights of the club envelop me as I step inside, the bass thumping through the air like a heartbeat. It’s a world I never wanted to be a part of—loud, chaotic, and filled with an energy that feels foreign and suffocating. I take a deep breath, trying to summon some c
“It can’t be called selling it if you’re in a relationship with the person, can it?” I’m lost, still unable to understand what he’s saying. “You are not making any sense.” He sighs, “Listen, if you are desperate to survive, this is the only option you have. And like I said, you won’t be selling y
LESLIE'S POVThe past month has felt like both a blur and a lifetime. Each day demands more of me as we work to relaunch and rebrand Kian’s company, inching closer to the day we finally return home. It’s like building something from scratch—aligning the details, refining our approach, and making sur
LESLIE’S POV I join Kian’s mother outside the room, closing the door behind me. She is still stewing in anger, face red with rage that’s waiting to be unleashed. Usually, I would do anything to pacify her so I wouldn't be at the receiving end of that unbridled rage. Now? Irritation is all I feel at
LESLIE’S POV (One Week Later) “If the police show up again, spray them in the face with the fire extinguisher or something.” Cole’s irritated voice filters through my phone’s speaker and it makes me crack a smile for the first time in a week. “Pretty sure I would get arrested for that.” “Not
LESLIE’S POV My reflexes work faster than they ever have. Fast enough to help me roll away, and bump into Beverly in the process. Mike relentlessly stalks towards me and that’s when I get a good look at his affected leg. I time his movement and before he can take another angry swing of his weapon
LESLIE’S POV Seconds after Beverly crumples to the ground, my breath is still caught in my throat. I’m still trembling as I watch her sprawled on the floor, body jerking uncontrollably. I’m amazed at my strength to still remain standing despite the traumatising scene in front of me. To still grip t
LESLIE’S POV Our hearts are already in our mouths before we see what jumped at us—a ginormous rat, every bit as scared as us. It runs at full speed and scurries into the nearby bush. “All clear.” She mutters and we both step into the shed using her phone’s flashlight. It’s a full shed; a bunch of
LESLIE’S POV We’re barely two minutes away from the abandoned school gate when the engine starts to sputter, the entire truck shaking with the intensity. “No…no…no…no, not now!” Beverly lets out a panicked groan. I am preoccupied with looking behind us to make sure we’re not being followed but at
LESLIE’S POV Kian doesn’t know it—the name of Mike’s sister. I can tell from the way his entire face has gone even paler than it was before. Earlier, it had been pale from the pain of the injuries from the accident that I still don’t know the extent of. Now, he has turned ashen from something m
LESLIE’S POV The sound of my name reaches me from somewhere distant. The sound is repeated just like the throbbing ache in my head. When I finally manage to pry open my eyes, the feeling of deja vu washes over me. My hands and legs are bound tightly just like three years ago in that warehouse.
BEVERLY’S POV The familiar beeping sound that comes from my phone causes me to jerk upright. My eyes train on the screen, following the movement of a blinking red dot on the map. He’s on the move. I slam a couple of bills on the coffee table before hurrying out of the cafe where I had been havi