"See my hand." Kara extended her arm, there were tiny bruises on it. Like finger marks. "He dared to force me to come with him, saying if he took me away, you would come to him. Shit! I was forced to sacrifice one of our precious chairs. I hit him on the head but that lunatic was too strong."It even led to a fight?Hailey held her chest to control her suddenly thumping heart. Was he crazy? How dare he go to the diner and attack her friend?"Mum." Hailey hurried up to her mother. "He didn't harm you, right? Are you alright?" "No, Dear. He didn't do anything to me," her mother answered. "He mostly argued with Kara. He told me that you guys are married and I should bring you out.""That boy is dangerous, Dear." Her mother held her shoulders. "You need to be careful, please. He only left when I threatened to call the police. I think he's going to come back. He believes we're hiding you.""Don't worry, Mum. He can't do anything to me. Kara–" She turned to Kara and said, "– I'm so sorry
...Hailey slept that night, hoping only for those happy times to come to her dream. Those happy memories with Kendrick. They'd become her comfort and her assurance that he cared about her. He still cared for her, and they were going to clear the misunderstandings. Hailey left the bed and when she walked out to the living room, she saw Kara and her mother about to leave for the diner. Last night, the two had planned to hire securities around the diner in case Rob came back again. And although they looked worried and told her, again and again, to be careful out there, it seemed to weigh heavily on them to ask her not to go out. After bidding them goodbye, Hailey sat at the dining table and ate her food. Her mother's phone was still with her, and her eyes never left that address on the screen. When she was done eating, she did the dishes and washed up quickly before changing into a dress.She picked up a bag and put the phone inside with the money Kara had given her. Then she put o
Also, she didn't want to return to that house. She hated the sight of that man. He didn't waste time believing Chloe's lies. He even said he was disappointed in her. Well, Chloe was right about one thing. Her father didn't like her. But Hailey didn't see only hate in his eyes. She also saw greediness. Her mind went back to the phone and she sighed for the umpteenth time. The phone wasn't even hers. How was she going to explain this to her mother? And that recording... Urgh! She should have backed it up in Kara's phone. She should have done that last night, or maybe she should have gone straight to the police with it. But she'd been anxious when her father spoke about Kendrick's plan to take a new wife. Also, she couldn't just go to the police like that. She needed to see Kendrick first. Hailey rubbed her temples, dreading the upcoming headache. She shut down the noises in her head and focused on those happy memories instead. Since she admitted that those hallucinations were, in
Hailey glared at them even though the guns were still in their hands.Damn! Her nerves were wrecking inside."But I must see your Boss now whether I like it or not. I must ask him to compensate for the emotional damage. After all, he didn't train you well!""You are not allowed to speak ill of Boss." One of the bodyguards stepped forward and warned. "One more insult, and we will throw you out."Throw her out? She'd be damned to let that happen.His gun was closer than the others' and she swallowed."Ahhh." Hailey fell down and held her ankle. "You're so mean, you big bully! How dare you hit me? You have no respect for your Boss. As his bodyguard, you have no right to hit me! Shit! Even your Boss never hit me, Kendrick cherished me like an egg. I can't wait to tell him how unprofessional you are by hitting a woman!"The guy stood in front of her awkwardly and the other bodyguards dropped their guns. "I didn't hit her." He turned around and explained to the rest. "No! You hit me!" Ha
That girl also told her about more servants and a Butler, but no one seemed to reside here apart from Kendrick, and his bodyguards of course. Hailey could not sense anyone. Not even the sound of the guards' voices outside. The atmosphere was stale as if the time had stopped. Hailey's eyes wandered to the stairs and she dropped her bag on the couch. Despite having the urge to explore the house more, she must meet Kendrick. He must be upstairs.That was where the bedroom should be located. One of the bodyguards had said something about him taking a rest. Her feet moved her toward the stairs while her eyes kept wandering around the living room. From a corner, her eyes caught a swimming pool behind the glass wall.The pool was at the back of the house. Suddenly, the scene changed. Hailey found herself staring back at something similar all of a sudden. From a screen, she was staring at the swimming pool. In fact, she was staring at the whole layout of the house, and it couldn't have l
She touched his perfectly trimmed full eyebrows. They were straight as if carved by the most perfect artist. Her fingers traveled down to his straight nose, and when she touched his lips, she gulped. And she couldn't help but ask again if she wasn't dreaming and if she hadn't stumbled into the wrong man.He was just perfect beyond perfection, not even the photo on the billboard could compare. "Ken," she breathed out. "How could I ever have thought of leaving you."Her whispers were barely audible to even her. Her chest right now was clogged up with different kinds of emotions. Happiness, sadness, and grief. She didn't know which to focus on. Rob, that devil. How could he take her away from him? How could he make her believe that he was her husband while this was where she belonged? Hailey knew that from the beginning, and the rapid beating of her heart at the moment as she sat in front of him confirmed it more. This was where she belonged. The rightful place her heart should be.
Then he felt something. Something soft was pressed into his body. An even softer one was wrapped around his neck, tightly.Warm breaths caressed his chest, his bare chest. And a wave of black hair spread across the pillow and some portion rested on his arm.Also resting on that arm was something soft. A soft flesh, a warm one. His throat went dry at that moment. He should still be in the nightmare. But his eyes were now opened and he could see his surroundings. His other hand moved and he found it holding on to something small, her waist. Then she snuggled into him, burying deep in his embrace. And that was when he realized something. She was clothless and so was he. Except for the sheet, not a fabric of clothing was on their body. Everything stilled, his heart stopped beating. Her face appeared in his view and he was thrown into confusion as well as speechlessness and more dread, a bigger dread. 'Hailey.' Was he seeing things?As if scorched and burned at once, he jerked up and
Hell, he didn't need to be asking that. Her answer would only confirm his thoughts of her. Was she fed up with her marriage again? Did she switch men that easily?"Hailey!" He grabbed her arm and hauled her against him. Hell! He should have thought twice before doing that. "You claimed I initiated this contact." And he couldn't refute that. "For that, I will let you go. Now get out of my sight and find other men to be frivolous with.""But Ken—""I haven't forgotten your baseless accusations in the washroom, and I won't go back on my vow to get back at you. I am giving you the chance to leave, Hailey. Get out of this place, now."Hailey's brows furrowed and her hands came up to hold his. "The washroom incident was a misunderstanding, Ken. I– I swear I wasn't in my right mind. Rob, that idiot brainwashed me."Right. His assumption was right. She was fed up with her marriage already. And true, she wasn't in her right mind. Even now, she wasn't. "Believe me please, Ken." She gave him
Sharelene stood in a corner, watching everything unfold. The family was in a frenzy. She could only see fear in their eyes and hear the fright in their voices.As the staff wheeled Hailey out of the emergency room, a deafening silence fell upon the hallway. And Ken...He hadn't been himself since they came here. He hadn't been himself since a few days back when he learned Hailey was kidnapped. Neither would he speak to anyone, nor listen to those that tried to talk reason into him and advise him to take it rationally. Since a few days back, he was the complete opposite of the man she had met many years ago and had a second chance of getting close to again. The man that would always keep calm no matter the circumstances...He was nowhere to be found. Ken was completely different from that man she knew. In her mind, she'd almost gotten what she wanted... Or more specifically, what her family wanted. But now, staring down at the ring on her finger, it was as if the engagement neve
```````And every day, Kendrick lived in guilt. For the next several months, every minute of his life was consumed by guilt. It took him weeks to gain her mother's favor, and even months to regain her grandfather's. He would come back every day, hoping that her eyes would at least flutter. Her bump kept increasing at an alarming rate. His every day was filled with fear and trepidation. And one day, her eyes did flutter. He was supposed to feel joy, but not at a chance that more trouble loomed ahead. Her pregnancy was due and not a week after that, the babies arrived. His real fear resurfaced at that moment. The fear that they would never be able to hold their bundles of joy together. The fear that he would never get the chance to tell her that he loved her. However, she proved the doctors wrong, chasing away his fears. Now, staring down at the babies, her utmost gifts to him, Kendrick had never felt so much contented in his life. He'd never been able to wipe off his smile sin
***Kendrick paced in front of the Emergency Room. His heart was in his stomach and his hand never left his hair. It was as if she'd been inside there for hours now despite being wheeled in just now.No amount of self-reassurance could calm him. No one attempted to offer him reassuring words even. They've all been in the same dilemma.Her mother wouldn't stop crying and he couldn't find the heart to offer her those words he'd yearned so much to hear. Hadn't it all been his fault? Hailey was pregnant. How was that possible? When they arrived here, it was the first thing the nurses said after taking her vitals. But Kendrick still found it hard to digest.And the fact that the child would definitely turn out to be his only made him more confused. It made him angrier with himself. "Ken, what is going on here?" Rushed footsteps sounded in the hallway and he glanced sideways to find his parents as well as Sharelene. "What are you doing in this place? Is someone wounded?" Asked his f
~~~'Hailey.'Kendrick's hands trembled and his grip on the gun threatened to loosen. Staring up at the balcony where she was being held captive, he fought not to let the rage take over. The rage that became multifold the moment he sighted them dragging her here. Her body was limped. She looked worse than how she'd looked in the video. And an almost similar-looking lady, whose face was cascaded with tears, was being held at gunpoint beside her. Was that her mother? "Don't worry, Mr. Reid." Standing with them were the three shareholders. "She isn't dead yet. But she'll soon be, if you don't follow our commands."Mr. Weimar and the rest. Kendrick's assumption hadn't been wrong. They had a hand in this. "Already, you've broken one of our rules," scoffed one of them. "We thought we told you to come alone. Coming here with your friend is like seeking more trouble. Will Mr. Carter be competent enough to fend for himself?""Shit! Buddy, these stupid old fools are underestimating me," De
***"Hailey, listen to me!" Rob grabbed her shoulders, forcing her to look up. "This is important, you have to take it."Nothing was more important to Hailey right now than getting away from him. Not only did she fear these drugs he had brought her, but she also feared the way his demeanor had changed ever since he returned with them.Of course, even if Rob was really trying to save her, there was no way she was going to cooperate with him.Yesterday, he'd secretly taken her blood, waking her up. And he returned this morning, looking agitated and somehow angry at her. "Hailey!" Rob's hold became tighter. "You must take these drugs immediately. I can't get you out here if you don't. Please, Hailey." He softened his voice. "Just take the damned drugs, you'll feel better. We both will feel better.""What exactly is wrong with you?" Her mother's voice faded in the background. "Leave her alone, she doesn't want to take them. Please I'm begging you, don't torment her any further."While he
Maniac.Hailey lifted her hand weakly to send a slap across his face, but her hand went limp and fell mid-way."M–Murderer." She pushed his chest. "Just go, leave me alone.""Hailey." Footsteps approached the room and Rob said frantically, "Please hold on." He touched her forehead. "You're sick. I'll get someone to treat you. I'll get you out, I promise."Then he sprang to his feet and left, closing the door behind him. Hailey was left wondering how such lunatics could be left wandering among normal people. She sniffed and waddled back into her mother's embrace. How blind had she been to associate with these kinds of people in the past?And how could she put a stop to these endless noises and intense headaches? She didn't want to remember? She didn't want to recall whatever they had shared in the past. ***'Ken, you have to save me. These strange men have captured me and they won't release me until you come. If you don't come alone, Ken, they're going to kill me and my Mum.'Kendric
...The hours dragged on, and from the tiny cracks in the wall, it seemed night had come. Still in her mother's embrace, Hailey shut her eyes to keep up with that pain.Both hands were wrapped around her stomach and she'd shiver now and then. As much as she'd like sleep to overtake her, it didn't. The exhaustion weighing her down didn't let her achieve that. The exhaustion caused by the aches all over her body. Her head pounded constantly, the voices also became louder each time she was left to her thoughts. Those hallucinations were neverending, and very soon she was afraid that they'd burst out, damaging more parts of her brain.The darkness slowly disappeared and the creaking sound of the door made her aware that morning had come. Another day of torture and pain."Hey, wake up!"Before cold water or anything worse could be splashed on her, Hailey leaned away from her mother's embrace who was also awake."Take your food!" The man burly man threw a food box and a water bottle at them
***"Ken, you have to save me. These strange men have captured me and they won't release me until you come. If you don't come alone, Ken, they're going to kill me and my Mum. They have laid traps for you, Ken—"Hailey was cut shut by a hard slap across her face. Bound to a chair with ropes, cold water was splashed on her face. She licked the side of her lips, tasting the metallic liquid; the only thing that kept her from fainting."Damnit! Woman. I told you to leave the trap part out! Are you deaf or what!?" The man holding a camera in front of her shouted. "Now, let's take another video. You will say everything you were asked to.""Stop wasting your time, Man," the portly man said and walked forward. "I don't think this lady is willing to cooperate.""I told you she's a stubborn one," Chloe scoffed from a corner."Now listen to me, Young lady." The portly man approached her and lifted her chin. "If you keep acting this way, we can't fulfill our promise to you. Give us your cooperation
***"Buddy, this is serious. How could she just disappear into thin air? Is there a chance that they're hidden somewhere in this city?"This city? Probably not. Kendrick had turned the whole city upside down. He'd deployed every force he could think of. They'd searched everywhere; every warehouse, every dilapidated building. There was no sign of them. It had been three days and there wasn't any traces of them. He'd driven to the cemetery that day, hoping more than anything that she hadn't spent the night there. And his prayers turned out to work. Only that, what actually happened was worse than spending a night in the cemetery. The sight of her phone by the cemetery gates was all he needed to know that something bad had happened. She was abducted. And there was still no traces of the suspects. Her sister and that guy. "Damnit! This is all screwed up." Devon paced for a while before sitting on the couch. "You didn't tell me you've taken her back. You never should have allowed her