Damien is sitting in his room with a book open on his lap. He’s not reading it but rather gazing at a picture of two people in their teens, smiling for a selfie. The boy is Damien himself as a sixteen year old. The other one is a girl who’s slightly younger than him. She has curly dark hair and a sweet smile. Her black eyes are almost sparkling and the two teens seem to be very close. The picture was taken in a hospital and both of them were in their patient garbs.He doesn’t speak for a long time but keeps on staring at the picture with a blank look.His phone rings, interrupting his thoughts. It’s Lance, one of his henchmen.“What is it?” He asks irritably over the phone.“Boss, I think we can break into the girl’s school but it’ll take some time,” Lance claims. “The place is very tightly secured but there’s a loophole!”“Do whatever you have to,” Damien mutters. He doesn’t particularly care about the child. All he wants is for his rival to be out of his way so that he can take over
A black car stops in front of the dilapidated building. It's located on the outskirts of the city, shrouded by thick trees and shade. The building gives off a dark aura, as if life has been sapped from it. Lincoln stands in front of the building, staring at it. His hands are trembling and he's really not willing to enter the place but he has to make sure of something. There are a few people who are idly hanging out in the garden but upon closer look, they don't look normal.The people are in completely plain white garb. Some of them are staring in space, not talking or moving. They seem motionless and some may even perceive them to be dead. But they're breathing slowly, the only signs of life in them. A few of the people are talking mindlessly, muttering and murmuring under their breaths but they're lost in their own world. Lincoln shudders at these people. They're all captives of the asylum, stuck in an endless loop of trauma and mental illness. They scare him the most and he can't
As soon as the car stops, Jo runs out of it.“Jo, careful!” Halsey exclaims and tails Jo while Nathan watches them, sighing. Jo has been so excited for the day out that she can barely hold in her excitement. She has been counting the seconds all throughout the journey, telling stories of what she’s gonna do at the amusement park.Halsey holds Jo’s hand, guiding her through the crowd. Nathan already bought the tickets online so they’re all waiting at the entrance’s queue. “Dad, I wanna go on the roller coaster!” Jo says at once. “And the merry go round then-”“No roller coaster,” Nathan says sharply. “You’re too young!”Jo pouts but Halsey assures her, “We’ll go on the other ones. There are better rides. Look, they’ve got a pirate ship too!”The little girl quickly recovers herself and gapes at the park. There are so many rides that she’s confused on which one to ride on. Several colorful mascots are roaming around, smiling and waving while children gather around them. The stalls are
Lincoln’s car comes to a stop in front of the Lounge. He barges out of it and marches straight for the front door. “Halsey!” He calls out, thumping hard on the door. To his fury, she’s not answering the door. He keeps on pounding on the door, calling out for her but there’s no reply. It only adds to his anger and he shuffles in his pocket. There’s an extra key to the Lounge which he carries with him. Halsey doesn’t know it because he lied to her that he had given her the spare key as well. He unlocks the door and steps inside. There's dust in the air which makes him frown. Everything in the Lounge is almost untouched with layers of dust on them. The furniture also looks unused as if no one has been living in it for weeks. This makes Lincoln more suspicious and he heads for the spare bedroom.To his shock, there’s no one there. In fact, it seems as if no one inhabited it. He opens the closet and there are no clothes in it. The bedsheet is coated with dust and the floor is also dirty.
The rain is pitter pattering all around him. He silently watches the rain, contemplating everything he has done so far. Some people will call him crazy. Others will pity him. But he doesn’t want pity nor does he care what people say.He just wants Halsey.Lincoln is still sitting at the porch of the Lounge, watching the seawater slowly filling the beach. The rain is light but it’s almost like that night. Lincoln’s blank eyes are showing him the memories of what he did for Halsey. “I can do anything for you, Hales,” he whispers. “Anything.”His hands are stained with blood and there’s nothing he can do to cleanse himself but he doesn’t want to. As long as he has Halsey, everything will be fine. Anyone who’ll dare to come in between them, will die.Just like Nelson did all those years ago.…*Five Years Ago*“I know what you did Daniel!” Nelson’s voice roars. He’s in Daniel’s office, furious with what he heard.“That girl…” he whispers. “You didn’t send her abroad! You’ve kept her here
Jamie is staring at the man in front of her with deep curiosity. She has seen many scumbags in life but Lincoln Wright…no. Lincoln Jacobs seems to be made out of an entirely different cloth. A few nights ago, she received his call. He was outside of Halsey’s home, depressed. Jamie picked him up and he was all drenched in the rain which caused him to develop high fever. For the past few days, he’s been at Jamie’s house, battling sickness but now he’s sitting at her dinner table, completely healed. Lincoln didn’t complain. He suffered the illness in silence, thinking only about what he’s about to do. There’s only one goal in his mind now.“What percentage of the shares do you want?” He asks her as he cuts the eggs in front of him. “From the hospital?”Jamie is suspicious. What’s he planning?“Well, I’m aiming for ten percent,” she lies. “It’s enough for me to make a profit.”“Fifty percent,” Lincoln declares. “I can get you fifty percent.”Jamie raises an eyebrow.“That’s a rich promi
Nathan is peering at the asylum with his binoculars. Trent and Parker are sitting in the car with him, waiting for orders.“The place isn’t heavily guarded,” Parker reports. “But the floor where Anita is held captive has a few guards. Lincoln might have told Salvez to guard her in case anything goes wrong.”“Does Daniel know about her?” Nathan asks.“No,” Trent replies. “I’ve tracked Daniel’s locations from the past years. He never came here. Lincoln frequents this place once a month.”Nathan is deep in thought. Breaking into the asylum won’t be a challenge but breaking out a patient is going to raise eyebrows. If Lincoln finds out that Anita has been taken, he’ll get suspicious. “We’ll have to fake her death,” Nathan finally says. “Parker, do you have the uniform?”“Yes!” Parker replies at once. “Good. Trent, hack into the system and disable the sprinklers.The cameras as well. Parker, give me some matches and does anyone have any kinda alcohol?”“Oh!” Trent exclaims. “I’ve got some
Jason is standing in front of the school, worried. He has been waiting for over an hour and there’s no sign of Jo. All the students have left, leaving only her behind.“Where is she?” Gerald asks from the car. “I can’t see her anywhere…”Jason curses out loud. There’s something wrong. He has been trying to reach the guards who were stationed around Jo’s school but none of them are picking up the calls.“I’ll go and check their posts,” Jason says. “You go and look for Miss Jo in the school.”Gerald nods and they set off. Jason goes around the school building, towards an alley where one of the guards is stationed. To his shock, the guard is lying in a dark corner. “The hell?” He snarls and shakes the guard but the guy is out cold. The back door is also open, which alarms Jason. He heads for the other posts around the school and is shocked.Every single one of the guards have been drugged and are unconscious. Their bodies have been hidden in corners, out of sight. Feeling worried, Jaso
*Eight months later in New York*Halsey is crying hard while Nathan looks guilty while Jo is quiet. “How could you do this to me?” Halsey wails. “This…this is…this is such a betrayal!”“Hales, I didn’t mean it!” Nathan exclaims. “It was an accident!”“Dad, this really isn’t right,” Jo adds, shaking her head. “I’m disappointed in you! How could you do this to mom?”Nathan gapes at his daughter. “It was an accident!” He claims. “I swear it was! I didn’t do it on purpose, babe! I-I was seduced!”“SEDUCED?” Halsey shouts at him. “SEDUCED?”She’s now angry and she throws a pillow at him. “SEDUCED? HERE I AM CARRYING A LITTER AND YOU…YOU…”Stopping in between her tirade, she takes several deep breaths. Nathan is ashamed and sad by what he did.“YOU…YOU ATE THE LAST PIECE OF CHOCOLATE?” Halsey shrieks and throws another pillow at him. “YOU KNOW I NEED CHOCOLATES IN THIS STATE!”Nathan is truly ashamed but the chocolate was too delicious to ignore. He thought no one would find out but Jo cau
Lincoln was being carried away by Damien’s men. He’s completely catatonic, his mind in severe shock. They took him to the psychiatric hospital where the doctors checked up on him. For many days, they’ve tried to figure out what’s wrong with him but to no avail.His encephalitis has reached the advanced stage in a short period of time. The doctors have no hope now.“He’s in a sort of a self-induced coma,” the psychiatrist tells Halsey one day. “He can’t comprehend anything. His eyes are open but his mind is shut. It’s as if he had a severe shock which he couldn’t overcome.”“Can he stand trial?” Halsey asks. “There must be something you can do to make him sane again. We can’t just let him off the hook like this!”“We’re trying but in a way, his punishment is this,” the doctor concludes. “He won’t be able to stand trial but he’ll not recover from this.”Halsey glances inside the ward where Lincoln had been kept. He’s staring at the wall, unmoving for hours. His once luscious hair has fa
*Present*“They must’ve found us!” Hastings exclaims. “How? You just said it’s a safe place?“I don’t know!” Lincoln yells. “They’ll kill us. Let’s just kill the kid and-”“ARE YOU INSANE?” Hastings screams. “She’s our only bet! If we take her, we can negotiate with them and leave this place alive!”As soon as he says that, several of Damien’s guards barge out of the elevator. Without any word, Hastings enters the room and grabs Jo before escaping through the fire escape. Lincoln runs off to hide.Downstairs, Nathan, Halsey, Damien and Daniel, are scavenging the floors. Hastings’ guards are being captured by their men, leaving their way clear. “Jo!” Halsey cries. “Jo, where are you?” “Jo?” Nathan shouts. The rooms are empty and they start to ascend the stairs. Daniel breaks off from the group, heading east to find Jo. In the chaos, no one notices him leaving.Halsey is beside herself with fear. Nathan keeps a firm grip on her while Damien instructs his men to spread out. “We’ll loo
Jo is glaring at Lincoln. She’s not crying nor looking scared but rather apprehensive of the man. The guards who were supposed to watch over her that day, had knocked out Jason and kidnapped her while she was on the way to school. They lied to Nathan that she was safe so that he wouldn’t come after them.Now, hours later, she’s tied up in an empty building. They’re on the fifth floor where Lincoln and Hastings are hiding. Lincoln is glaring at the little girl and he wants to push her off the window but she’s his only leverage to get Halsey.“In a few hours, your mother will come to me and we’ll leave this place,” he grins. “And you’ll be dead.”He steps forward, a manic glee in his eyes. “Once Halsey is here, I’ll kill you and take her with me.”“My dad will beat you!” Jo sneers. “Remember what he did to the other guy when he kidnapped me? I’m not scared of you!”WHACK!Lincoln slaps the insolent child. Jo feels immense pain on her cheek and even though her eyes are stinging with tear
Halsey is feeling a little squirmish. Things have been hectic for the past few days and it has taken a toll on her health. Just that morning, she threw up everything she ate. Nathan was alarmed by her condition and insisted that she went to the hospital for a checkup. He’s sitting with her, holding her palm. They’re outside the doctor’s office. Halsey was asked to undergo some tests and now, the doctor is reading the results.“Nate, I’m fine,” she assures him. “There’s nothing to worry about. Go to work.”“No, I won’t stop worrying until I see the reports!” Nathan insists. “I want to stay here.”Halsey smiles and shakes her head. He’s so persistent in every little thing related to her health. Nathan can’t help it. He lost her once and he can’t lose her again. The moment she started to show signs of being ill, he was overcome with paranoia. He’s thinking about the worst case scenarios and his heart is filled with fear. “Is Jo at school?” Halsey asks.“The guard texted me that she’s s
Over the next few days, Daniel is kept under close observation. Hastings and Lincoln are still missing, something which is looming over everyone’s heads. Nathan is trying to find them but to no avail. He and Halsey are trying to maintain normalcy at home so that Jo doesn’t suspect anything.One night, Nathan arrives home late to find Halsey is still awake. She’s curled up on the couch, reading. When she hears the door open, she looks up and smiles.“Any luck finding them?” she asks when he plops on the seat next to her. “None,” Nathan admits. “I can’t find them. It’s like they’ve vanished.”Halsey is now troubled. Where could they be? Nathan puts his arm around her shoulder. “We’ll find them,” he assures her. “They can’t hide for long.”“I hope so,” she murmurs and hugs him.Meanwhile, miles away from Bayers’ Coast, Lincoln is feeling frustrated. He’s angry and annoyed at being locked up in the house all day. Hastings told him that they’ll be implementing their plan soon but he’s lo
CRASH!The vase breaks into thousands of tiny pieces. Standing above the broken ceramic is Lincoln, with wild red eyes. He’s in a murderous rage and he breaks everything in his vicinity. Hastings is on a couch, bored of the man-child’s drama but Lincoln is on a warpath.“I’LL KILL THEM ALL!” Lincoln shouts. “THEY’VE BETRAYED ME-”“You were stupid enough to trust a stranger,” Hastings yawns. “You should’ve come to me instead. Just like your dad did. Your stupidity cost us the hospital. If you had your shares, we’d have been unbeatable today.”Lincoln shoots him a glare but Hastings doesn’t care. They’re at Lincoln’s farmhouse, a property he had purchased a few months back in secret. Lincoln can’t fathom his loss. Jamie and Damien double crossed him but he’s more shocked by Salvez.“My father is a fool! He only wants his business to be safe but I don’t care about all that!” Lincoln yells. “I just want Halsey!”“And I want revenge against Nathan Michell,” Hastings says. “The best way to
Daniel and Lincoln stand up, shocked. They gape at Nathan who’s grinning. “What’s the meaning of this?” Daniel snarls at Salvez. “Why are you withdrawing your support? And isn’t he the head of the Michell family? He’s your enemy!”“My father is merely supporting me,” Damien calmly says. Daniel rounds on him.“Did you forget that I saved you all those years ago? I gave you a new heart!”“By killing the woman I love,” Damien quietly says. This makes Daniel even more furious. Lincoln is glaring at Jamie but she’s smug. Nathan takes charge.“Fifty five percent of the shares have been transferred to me,” he tells his father. “You’re not the chairperson of this hospital anymore. I am. It’s over for you, dad.”Daniel glares at Nathan while Lincoln is silent. He’s too shocked, too numb to say anything. Once again, he has lost. This can’t be happening, he tells himself. It’s all a bad dream!But it’s not. It’s real and it’s happening. Nathan has taken over the hospital and effectively, Linco
Nathan is sitting on the couch, thinking hard. It’s past three o’clock in the morning and he’s not sleepy. On the contrary, he’s feeling agitated about what’s going to happen in a few hours. Even if everything seems to go according to his plan, he’s still nervous. What if something goes wrong? Even one misstep can ruin years of hard work.Halsey stirs in her sleep and rolls over to the side to hug Nathan only to find the spot to be empty. She slowly opens her eyes to find him on the couch, drinking alone. He looks worried and this in turn, worries her.“What’s wrong?” she asks as she approaches him. “Why are you awake at this hour?”“Can’t sleep,” Nathan mutters as he takes a sip from his drink. Halsey sighs and sits next to him. She pours a glass of whiskey for herself. Nathan is slightly surprised.“When did you start drinking whiskey?” He asks.“I don’t drink it,” she admits. “I just wanna give you company right now, that’s all. Why? You don’t like it when I drink?”“It’s up to yo