Daniel stepped out of his office building just as the clock struck nine and stepped into his car only to realize that his cousin, Wayne had hijacked the driver’s seat.
“What? Did your new business venture go bust? Are you driving for a living now?” Daniel could not help but shoot sarcasm at the man behind the wheel. Wayne turned around, resting his elbow on the armrest and sighed. He looked tired too with dark rings behind his glasses. Not that Daniel fared any better, they both looked like pandas right now. Sexy hot pandas with six-packs.
Wayne cleared his throat. “I came to apologize.”
Daniel leaned against the backseat, crossing his arms. “Oh wow, confession of the century. I’m impressed.”
Another sigh came from the front and Wayne revved the engine. Frowning, Daniel asked, “Where are we going?”
“To Jane’s apartment.”
“The heck we are.”
&ldquo
Jane opened her eyes to darkness, pitch black darkness and the first thought that crossed her mind was her child.“Mmph! MMMPH!!!!!”Both her hands and ankles were bound to the back of some wooden chair with what felt like cable ties and she was gagged with a piece of damp smelly cloth in dire need of a good wash. It was pointless to struggle, but she did so anyway, cutting her own skin in the process.Where was Timmy? Was he alright? The thought of her child consumed her every thought as she continued in her relentless struggle to free herself. As she did, her eyes began to adjust to the darkness, allowing her to see the outline of the room and the furniture around her. A long desk filled with trays, plastic bottles and silhouettes of strange-looking machinery took form as her irises familiarized themselves with the darkness.The darkroom! I’m in his apartment!Jane rocked the chair left to right in an attempt to topple
Daniel blinked as he stared at the phone and took a few deep breaths. If that Philip Summers or Logan or whatever his bloody name was dared to harm even one strand of Jane’s hair, he would personally wring the guy’s neck himself. But what consumed Daniel was not anger, rather it was a gutwrenching fear. It latched upon him the moment he heard Jane’s muffled screams through the phone. God, please let her and Timmy be okay. The taxi driver peered at Daniel through the rearview mirror and cleared his throat. “Sir…are we still heading towards Mangrove Apartment? Shouldn’t we get you to the hospital instead? Your hand’s kinda mangled.” Daniel looked at his bloodied fist. Blood dripped onto the upholstery and his mind started to play tricks on him. It was his fault, if only he hadn’t pushed her away, if only he had kept her safe! What if the bastard bled her like how his hand bled? Stop thinking nonsense! He groaned and sh
MOMENTS BEFORE THE ROAR OF THE THUNDER…The gods must have heard Jane’s cry for mercy that day, for right before Logan could pop the button of her jacket, his very own phone began to ring to what else? Bobby McFerrin's ‘Don’t worry, be Happy’ tune of course.“Hey, Milo! Yeah man, I was just about to call you. I’ve got the money.” He rubbed at his nose again and scratched the base of his throat as if it irritated him. “So you’d better give me my nose candy soon. I’m running low on my stock.”Jane’s eyes widened.He’s on crack cocaine! No wonder he smelt so strange! The man’s a junkie!“Yeah…I got me a big fish,” Logan continued and chuckled. He got up from his crouching position, seemingly having lost his interest in the pursuit of physical pleasures and walked out of the room, leaving Jane lying on the stone-cold floo
Daniel slipped Jane’s phone into his pocket. It was then he noticed an odd odour that smelt like a cross between burnt plastic and flowers at the same time. The smell was extremely nauseating and giddy.Quickly he made his way out the apartment and into the corridor and was trying to locate Jane while warding off a strange scent when suddenly, the blast of a gun shot louder than the rolling thunder rang through the darkened halls.The sound was deafening, and instinctively, Daniel brought both hands to his ears. His eyes widened in both surprise and fear. What the heck was that? And the first persons that came to his mind were both Jane and little Timmy.“Jane! Timmy!’ he shouted, whirling around trying to identify the source from which the blast had come from. Behind him, the door next to Jane's unit opened and an old lady with frizzy permed hair and extremely thick glasses popped her head out.“What the fuck is that? Is it Word W
Daniel Winter’s heart was a vortex of confusion and complex emotions. There was fear, sorrow, grief and anger all coming together at once and in many respects, it was like a roller coaster ride through a darkened tunnel. The mourning and grieving were great, and the fear of living a life without Jane was very pronounced. Then there was pain…so much pain that it felt as if his heart had been pierced with a poisoned sword a hundred times over. Through his tears, Daniel gently lowered Jane onto the ground and shifted his gaze at the man, to the enemy who had preyed on Jane and took everything that he loved from him. “You….YOU!” Daniel roared and leapt into the air, lashing out at Logan with a hammerlike claw. He landed a blow, smashing the side of Logan’s head and brought a string of stars to the man’s vision. Logan tumbled backwards and hit the apartment’s wall with such an incredible force he collapsed to the floor. “YOU BASTARD!” Daniel climbed on top of Loga
The swing doors of the James Norton Hospital’s emergency ward burst open to a world of chaos. Jane McKay clutched her ballooning belly as she was hurried into the ER on a stretcher, whimpering in agony as tears flowed freely down her pain-stricken face. Flashing red and blue lights accompanied by an alarming siren rang overhead. There were doctors, nurses and medical staff tending to patients of all forms.“Please, doctor…help me,” she moaned as another spasm of nauseating cramp claimed her, sending a tremor throughout her body. It felt like her body was splitting into two!“Ahhhh!” Jane cried; she could not take it anymore.At that moment, a short plump hand clamped onto her shoulder with the ferocity of the grim reaper itself.“Shut up will you?” Mrs McKay, Jane’s stepmother hissed at a weakened Jane, ignoring the fact that her stepdaughter’s knee-length skirt was thoroughly soaked with blood.
It was nearly midnight when Jane was finally discharged. As the glass door of the hospital entrance slid to a close behind her, thunder groaned and lightning skirted across the sky, signalling the coming of heavy rainfall.Jane’s baby began to cry at the onslaught of the alien sound.“Shhh, it’s okay, mummy’s here,” Jane whispered, tucking the only cloth that the hospital wrapped her baby with to cover his tiny ears. Gently, she rocked him to sleep as tears raced down her cheeks. Where was she to go? What was she to do?In the chaos, she had brought only her identification card to the hospital earlier. All her belongings were still back home, she had nothing to her name now.She wiped away her tears on the sleeves of her blouse and started to walk, albeit aimlessly away from the hospital’s main building and venturing out into the almost deserted parking lot. The nurse had been kind enough to spare her a new skirt and un
“What are you doing?!” Jane yelled, trying to pull the frightened baby back into her arms when her stepmother backhanded her across the cheek. Such was the brute force her stepmother wielded that Jane stumbled a few steps back. But the sting on her cheek was nothing compared to the confusion and fear that consumed her.Before Jane could even run back towards her baby, the door slammed in her face with a bang.“Open the door! For goodness sake, open the door! Give me back my baby!” she screamed, pounding furiously at the timber door. It didn’t matter if she woke up the entire neighbourhood, all she wanted was to have her newborn back.“We fed and clothed you for two decades. And all you did was to bring shame upon this family!” her stepmother shouted back from behind the door.“OPEN THE DOOR!” Jane yelled, slamming both fists at the door, splintering her porcelain skin in the process. There was no other
Daniel Winter’s heart was a vortex of confusion and complex emotions. There was fear, sorrow, grief and anger all coming together at once and in many respects, it was like a roller coaster ride through a darkened tunnel. The mourning and grieving were great, and the fear of living a life without Jane was very pronounced. Then there was pain…so much pain that it felt as if his heart had been pierced with a poisoned sword a hundred times over. Through his tears, Daniel gently lowered Jane onto the ground and shifted his gaze at the man, to the enemy who had preyed on Jane and took everything that he loved from him. “You….YOU!” Daniel roared and leapt into the air, lashing out at Logan with a hammerlike claw. He landed a blow, smashing the side of Logan’s head and brought a string of stars to the man’s vision. Logan tumbled backwards and hit the apartment’s wall with such an incredible force he collapsed to the floor. “YOU BASTARD!” Daniel climbed on top of Loga
Daniel slipped Jane’s phone into his pocket. It was then he noticed an odd odour that smelt like a cross between burnt plastic and flowers at the same time. The smell was extremely nauseating and giddy.Quickly he made his way out the apartment and into the corridor and was trying to locate Jane while warding off a strange scent when suddenly, the blast of a gun shot louder than the rolling thunder rang through the darkened halls.The sound was deafening, and instinctively, Daniel brought both hands to his ears. His eyes widened in both surprise and fear. What the heck was that? And the first persons that came to his mind were both Jane and little Timmy.“Jane! Timmy!’ he shouted, whirling around trying to identify the source from which the blast had come from. Behind him, the door next to Jane's unit opened and an old lady with frizzy permed hair and extremely thick glasses popped her head out.“What the fuck is that? Is it Word W
MOMENTS BEFORE THE ROAR OF THE THUNDER…The gods must have heard Jane’s cry for mercy that day, for right before Logan could pop the button of her jacket, his very own phone began to ring to what else? Bobby McFerrin's ‘Don’t worry, be Happy’ tune of course.“Hey, Milo! Yeah man, I was just about to call you. I’ve got the money.” He rubbed at his nose again and scratched the base of his throat as if it irritated him. “So you’d better give me my nose candy soon. I’m running low on my stock.”Jane’s eyes widened.He’s on crack cocaine! No wonder he smelt so strange! The man’s a junkie!“Yeah…I got me a big fish,” Logan continued and chuckled. He got up from his crouching position, seemingly having lost his interest in the pursuit of physical pleasures and walked out of the room, leaving Jane lying on the stone-cold floo
Daniel blinked as he stared at the phone and took a few deep breaths. If that Philip Summers or Logan or whatever his bloody name was dared to harm even one strand of Jane’s hair, he would personally wring the guy’s neck himself. But what consumed Daniel was not anger, rather it was a gutwrenching fear. It latched upon him the moment he heard Jane’s muffled screams through the phone. God, please let her and Timmy be okay. The taxi driver peered at Daniel through the rearview mirror and cleared his throat. “Sir…are we still heading towards Mangrove Apartment? Shouldn’t we get you to the hospital instead? Your hand’s kinda mangled.” Daniel looked at his bloodied fist. Blood dripped onto the upholstery and his mind started to play tricks on him. It was his fault, if only he hadn’t pushed her away, if only he had kept her safe! What if the bastard bled her like how his hand bled? Stop thinking nonsense! He groaned and sh
Jane opened her eyes to darkness, pitch black darkness and the first thought that crossed her mind was her child.“Mmph! MMMPH!!!!!”Both her hands and ankles were bound to the back of some wooden chair with what felt like cable ties and she was gagged with a piece of damp smelly cloth in dire need of a good wash. It was pointless to struggle, but she did so anyway, cutting her own skin in the process.Where was Timmy? Was he alright? The thought of her child consumed her every thought as she continued in her relentless struggle to free herself. As she did, her eyes began to adjust to the darkness, allowing her to see the outline of the room and the furniture around her. A long desk filled with trays, plastic bottles and silhouettes of strange-looking machinery took form as her irises familiarized themselves with the darkness.The darkroom! I’m in his apartment!Jane rocked the chair left to right in an attempt to topple
Daniel stepped out of his office building just as the clock struck nine and stepped into his car only to realize that his cousin, Wayne had hijacked the driver’s seat.“What? Did your new business venture go bust? Are you driving for a living now?” Daniel could not help but shoot sarcasm at the man behind the wheel. Wayne turned around, resting his elbow on the armrest and sighed. He looked tired too with dark rings behind his glasses. Not that Daniel fared any better, they both looked like pandas right now. Sexy hot pandas with six-packs.Wayne cleared his throat. “I came to apologize.”Daniel leaned against the backseat, crossing his arms. “Oh wow, confession of the century. I’m impressed.”Another sigh came from the front and Wayne revved the engine. Frowning, Daniel asked, “Where are we going?”“To Jane’s apartment.”“The heck we are.”&ldquo
Everything fell into place. The apartment, the darkroom, the photos… Jane stared at Logan as he continued smiling with a look that made him seem like he wanted to eat her alive. If sadism had a face, then Logan Summers would be the perfect poster boy for it. “Hello Logan,” Jane greeted him back in a steady voice but deep inside, she wanted to kick herself for not recognizing him. How could she have missed those icy blue eyes? They were the same as Timmy’s! Her heart hammered in her chest and she held her child tighter. “Come, come. The food is turning cold. We must eat them while they are still warm. Logan, I made you your favourite pie.” Jane’s eyes flew from Mrs Woolworths to Logan as he shut the door behind him with a kick of his leg. The old woman was obviously unaware of her nephew’s hideous crimes and started to usher them both to her tiny dining table by the window. Jane took in a deep shaky breath and forced a smile at the older woman. “Mrs Wo
Jane buttoned up her coat and was just about to carry little Timmy from his cot when the doorbell rang. Her eyes fell on the door and her eyebrows knitted together. Surely it wasn’t Wayne Winters? She did not want to see his face ever again.But her feet had a mind of their own and soon, Jane found herself standing in front of her own door and peering through the peephole. It was the old lady from next door. With a huge exhalation of pent up breath, she quickly unbolted her door.“Hello Mrs Woolworths,” Jane greeted the ageing widow. They had spoken a few times before and Jane had found the old lady warm and friendly. Mrs Woolworths looked up from her extremely bent posture and flashed Jane a toothy grin through her thick-rimmed glasses. Years of osteoporosis and arthritis had shrivelled her like a withering plant but her megawatt smile brought a much needed warmth to Jane’s heart and she welcomed the old lady into her humble abode.&ldqu
Daniel threw his phone at the wall, smashing his latest gadget against the plagues and flooded his office with an explosion of expletives. “Calm down Mr Winters. Anger won’t serve to help you in any way,” came the voice of a woman in her late forties. She leaned back against her seat and crossed her arms, tilting her head towards the plagues that thudded to the floor. With a sigh, Daniel slumped back into his swivel chair and slammed his fists against the table. The woman rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Mr Winters, I did not come here to see you throw a tantrum.” She tapped at his desk with a large brown envelope. “And I believe you should have listened to your wife on the phone. She sounded desperate.” Daniel felt a stab of anger. “Mind your own business.” “You were the one who sought for my aid Mr Winters, not the other way around. I helped you answer the phone and am merely relaying my observation to you. Anyways, I’ve brought the info