Daniel clenched his jaws as he continued stroking Jane’s silky mane. Who was the bastard who defiled Jane when she was in a vulnerable state?
“I’m sorry, I wet your shirt,” Jane mumbled, pulling back from his embrace and wiped her eyes. She had calmed down slightly and was trying to stifle back her sobs. He finally understood why she pushed him away during their first meeting. Deep within her subconsciousness, she was still haunted by the monster.
“It wasn’t your fault,” he said, wishing he could take away the darkness that was eating her alive.
She lifted her head with the faintest smile and even with her puffy reddened eyes, Daniel thought she still looked breathtakingly beautiful. She pointed at his shirt, chuckling a little. “I made you look like you’ve been dunked in a water tank and you say it’s not my fault?”
“You should change out of this. You might catch a cold,” she co
So much about being seen and not heard, Jane thought as she stepped into Daniel Winters’ office. The place was huge! Daniel could easily fit in an extra five more office desks and there would still be more than enough space for everyone to mingle around.Even baby Timmy seemed to appreciate his surroundings. Gurgles of bliss came from his little mouth as Jane laid his carrier down on the sofa. She straightened back up and took a peek at Daniel. With his back facing her, he shed off his dark blue jacket to reveal a perfect V-shaped back and hung them on a silver rack.Butterflies fluttered in Jane’s stomach and she had to consciously peel her eyes away. Strange, was she blushing? Jane quickly cupped her cheeks, feeling the hot flush that pulsated from her skin. She couldn’t understand why she was suddenly so nervous to be in the same room as Daniel Winters. Was it because of last night? She was surprised at how comfortable she had been in his
The glass doors slid open to a luxurious open space that was bustling with energy and activity. All around were staff sketching drawings on large pristine white desktops as luscious green wall plants behind them filled the room with fresh air. Other staff sat around an island table debating over their designs in hushed tones but animated movements while a few others lounged at the bright yellow and light grey bean bags as they worked on miniature models of houses. Next to them, a staff jumped onto an adult-sized slide and zipped all the way down to the floor below. Wayne watched as Jane took in the surroundings, gasping in amazement.“This place is an interior designers’ heaven!” she whispered in bated breath and a smile crept upon him face, happy to see the excitement in Jane.A young man with dyed green hair and a nose ring popped out of a glass encased office cube. It was a sound cancelling corner for designers to think in peace. Pulling down his h
Half an hour later, Jane ran back to Daniel’s office as fast as her feet could carry her and breathed a sigh of relief to see little Timmy sleeping soundly on the sofa without a care in the world.“What? Did you think I’d gobble him up while you were gone?” Daniel stopped typing and peered at her from behind his flat screen desk top.She placed a hand to her chest, feeling her engorged breasts. They were swollen, tender and screaming at her to feed her child.“Oh no, no, not at all,” she said, flashing him a nervous smile and quickly scooped up her baby. Daniel cocked his head and curled his mouth downwards in his trademark frown. “Where are you going?”She spun around, the nervous smile still plastered on her face. “I need to feed Timmy…” she replied sheepishly. The nursing room was two floors down and she would have to carry little Timmy past a great number of departments to reach
Daniel Winters felt like slapping himself silly. What on earth was he thinking trying to kiss Jane? Sure she had looked so vulnerable standing like an innocent lamb in his office, but that was no reason for him to lose his senses!For goodness sake Daniel Winters, she was unwell and you tried to take advantage of her! He blasted himself internally as he stormed into the office pantry only to find the place void of any human presence. The place though simple and sparse was tastefully designed with a lone concrete island table in the middle and an L-shaped countertop at the side which housed a mini bar, a microwave oven as well as an open cabinet full of junk food.Daniel’s eyebrows arched slightly at the sight of stuffed nachos and cheese rings. He had no idea his staff ate junk. He almost never mingled with his staff and usually got Pepper to make his coffee, and therefore had never set foot in the office pantry before.I need caffeine to clea
TWO WEEKS LATER“Prepare dinner, do the laundry and clean the house!” These were Daniel Winters’ daily orders every time they came back to the penthouse after an exhausting day from work.Why on earth did she think that Daniel Winters was prince charming anyway? For the past two weeks, he had been anything but charming. In fact, Daniel was insufferably mean to her, often working her to the bones without giving her any rest whatsoever. The only time she got to sit down and rest her aching feet was when she breastfed little Timmy in the nursing room, but apart from that, she had become his errand girl; making coffee, printing papers, delivering files, ordering lunch and even dusting his office!“Oh, and wash the bathroom too,” Daniel said as soon as she came out from the maid’s room after having bathed little Timmy.Jane blinked. “But..I just washed your bathroom last night,” she answered, frowning. She was ex
“Jane! JANE!” Daniel called from the kitchen. It was a quarter past eight in the morning and she was nowhere in sight. Usually, the island table would be filled with a chockfull of her breakfast creations by now. His stomach rumbled like thunder and he frowned, not happy with the absence of the happy meal. With hard lines set across his face, he tightened the knot of his silken dark green robe and marched to the dimmed corridor which housed Jane and Timmy’s room at the very end. A few raps on the door later and Daniel’s annoyance turned into budding anxiety. Strange, why wasn’t she answering? He could hear Timmy’s gurgles coming from within the room. He rapped his knuckles against the bedroom door again, and this time, his forehead creased with worried lines. A sense of foreboding crept upon him and he called out, “Jane? You there?” There was no answer. Daniel pressed his ear against the door. There was breathing, it was ragged and faint and Daniel’s own brea
It was dark and the moon was up by the time Jane opened her eyes. The soft moonbeam streamed into the bedroom via the glass window and a dimly lit table lamp at the side table helped further brighten the otherwise darkened room. Her head was still spinning. The ceiling above looked like it was orbiting on an endless merry go round and Jane had to close her eyes briefly to stop herself from getting nauseated again. But at least the buzzing in her ear was gone, that was a good sign. The absence of the buzzing in her ear meant only one thing, that the vertigo would soon fade away. And she hoped it would be pretty soon. She would have to be careful though, one wrong move and the buzzing might just come back with a vengeance. Slowly and with great difficulty, Jane turned her head towards the side table only to let out the tiniest gasp. Daniel! Fast asleep in a leather armchair next to her bed was Adonis in the flesh. He was shirtless and deep in s
“Put me down this instant!” Jane yelled, hitting Daniel’s chest, kicking her legs and struggling to get out of his arms. “Or I swear I’ll –“ DING DONG! The penthouse’s doorbell bell rang, and Jane froze in surprise. “Ahh, they’re here,” Daniel chirped. Who’s here? Jane shot him a look of bewilderment, her arms still in the air ready to strike him. Daniel took the opportunity to swing her in the direction of his private elevator and with one biometric scan of his eye, the elevator door slid open to reveal two women. “Good morning Mr and Mrs Winters,” the women called out and bowed their heads in unison. They were both wearing a black and white ensemble of a domestic maid’s uniform, complete with hair pulled neatly into a bun. The older woman sported streaks of white hair while the other was much younger, with a healthy sheen of shiny black hair and a striking pair of purple contact lenses. “The nanny and the maid.
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