Her sweet scent is filling his senses, intoxicating him. For a moment, he’s transported back to the night when he first kissed her at the dark alley. He can still remember how the kiss felt, sweet and passionate. Halsey’s eyes are closed but she can taste his lips, a familiar and intense feeling arising within her.She’s about to back off but Nathan presses his lips harder against hers, deepening the kiss. He pushes her until her back hits a wall and ferociously smooches her as if he can’t have enough of her. Halsey is swayed by the moment, her heart thumping against her chest. His tongue is caressing hers and they’re consumed by the flames of their feelings.Her fingers are buried in his hair and he’s holding her by the waist. She moans a little when he nibbles on her lower lip, a crazed heat pulsing through both of their veins. Nathan can feel her soft body leaning against him, her moans are like music to his ears. He can’t deny his own feelings anymore.He missed her. He missed thi
The next morning, Nathan is sitting in the dining room, waiting anxiously. Prudence serves him coffee, trying to catch her master’s eye. She’s wearing her uniform a little too tightly to highlight her bust but Nathan hardly cares. He’s staring at the living room’s entrance behind her, waiting for Halsey.Jo, who’s sitting next to her father, follows his gaze. “Is there anything else I can do for you, master?” Prudence purrs.“No,” Nathan says offhandedly. “Leave.”Prudence frowns a little but haughtily turns to leave. Jo sticks out her tongue at the maid which doesn’t go unnoticed.Where is she? Nathan wonders. He returned home last night to talk to Halsey but she didn’t open the door to her room when he knocked. She’s been away from sight all morning too.“She’s not gonna come,” Jo pipes up.“What?” Nathan frowns. “Who’s not coming.”“Pretty Lady,” Jo simply says. “She’s not coming today”Nathan narrows his eyes at his daughter. Jo happily binges on her cereal, clearly hiding her am
At 7 PM, Halsey heads straight for the restaurant on the first floor. She meets Mary Ann on the way who has a shift that night.“You got a show tonight?” Mary Ann asks.“Yeah,” Halsey sighs. “I don’t know what I’m gonna sing. I haven’t prepared well.”“You’ll be fine!” Mary Ann reassures her. “That other day, you were amazing at the private party held by the KON Industries Chairman. He told the manager that he and his wife loved your song! I think he was asking for your number to recommend to an agency.”“That’s sweet,” Halsey smiles. “But I’m not interested in all that. I just wanna revive the Lounge my godmother left me.”“You’re too sweet but you should think about it, alright?”Halsey simply nods and smiles but doesn’t say anything. She accompanies Mary Ann to the restaurant. Bianca spots them entering and marches up to Halsey.“Where have you been?” She snaps at Halsey. “Your show was supposed to start at 6 PM!”Halsey is taken aback. “I was told 7.30 PM,” she states. “It’s even
“I told you, I don’t remember anything!” Lincoln scowls as he pats his eye with an ice pack. Daniel is at his apartment with a cop.When Lincoln woke up that evening, he couldn’t recall much except for the fact that he was drugged and someone had broken into his apartment last night to beat him up. He can’t remember the face but he’s sure that it was someone familiar.The cop sighs.“Are you sure you didn’t trip and hurt yourself?” He asks.“Do you really think this kinda injury is self-inflicted?” Daniel snaps at him. “Just look at my son!”“Dad, calm down,” Lincoln groans. “It was a stranger. Someone broke into my house and assaulted me!”“Well, there’s no CCTV here,” the cop says. “It’s broken. The guard didn’t see anyone entering either. So we still don’t have any sketches.”He pauses before asking, “By the way, how did you get drugged? You said you were out drinking, were drugged, and then woke up here. You don’t remember anything?”Lincoln stands up, annoyed at the cop.“Just fi
Lincoln enters Daniel’s chamber only to find a red haired man sitting on a couch, reading a catalog. Daniel isn’t there but the man looks up to meet Lincoln’s eye.“Who are you?” Lincoln asks. “A patient.”“Sort of. I’m Damien Salvez.”Damien holds out his hand for Lincoln to shake. Lincoln recognizes the surname. Salvez…this must be Salvez’s son and one of Daniel’s old patients.“I’m Lincoln Wright- I mean, Lincoln Jacobs,” Lincoln says. He almost calls himself ‘Lincoln Wright’ but corrects it midway. It’s an old habit.“The illegitimate one,” Damien remarks with a smirk. A nerve twitches on Lincoln’s temple and he’s angry at that assumption. He’s not illegitimate but the heir to the hospital.“I’m adopted, not illegitimate,” Lincoln grits.“To the world, perhaps. To us, you’re the illegitimate one.”Damien stands up to study Lincoln. Even though the blonde doctor isn’t bad looking, Damien has a hunch that he’s not a very smart person. There’s a darkness within Lincoln which is appal
The classroom is buzzing with students. It’s right after recess and the children are as hyper as ever, talking and laughing amongst themselves. They’re all around five or six years old, precarious kids who are enjoying their time with their friends. Their laughter is echoing the halls of the elementary school, adding the much needed light to the otherwise gloomy weather outside.Jo is sitting at the back with a few of her friends, playing with paper balls. The teacher is late to class so they’ve got plenty of time. She’s aiming a paper ball at the basket and throws it.“Score!” She exclaims while her friends clap. “You’re really good at this, Jo!” A Chinese girl by the name of Fang Bin says.“You’re awesome!” Another boy by the name of Jacob claims. They’re all complimenting her while Jo smiles widely at them. The teacher enters and all the students scramble back to their seats. “Settle down, kids!” The teacher orders them. “I’ve got some exciting news!”The kids are listening to h
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
*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