Elijah wanted to call her back, but the speed she used to retreat stopped him from doing so. He just stood there, wondering what had just happened.Like in the previous days, his subconscious tried to communicate something to him, but something else kept blocking it from going through.Still standing, a flash of reflection caught his eyes, making him whip his head to the side. There, the entrance to the garden stood beckoning to him.He remembered his early days in this mansion. That was before Rhonda, and he got their apartment. He would wander towards the garden but was always stopped from entering it, courtesy of their grandfather.They said it belonged to his dead wife, who entrusted it in his care on her deathbed. When he realized he couldn't solely handle it anymore, he left it in the care of a woman who worked for him for a very long time.His legs waddled beneath him, compelling him to move forward. This was probably the only chance he would have in a while to get the herb he
“Please, no more stops,” Elijah muttered as he drove out of the ambush.It was late afternoon when he pulled into the Carter's mansion. He had barely gotten out of the car when John was beside him, ushering him out with a barrage of questions.“Calm down, John,” he said, finally finding enough space to leave the car.“We called you in the morning, Elijah. Why are you only just coming? I don't mean to be entitled, but I thought you cared about Winnie?”“More than you'll ever understand,” he said in his mind, but with his lips, said, “Where's Mr Carter?” “He's in there, pacing around. He hasn't been able to sleep a wink since we found out last night that she neither returned to her office, her house, or his house,” he explained somberly.Elijah's heart palpitated. It was doubtful Winnie would skip a day off her family, especially her grandfather. “Have you spoken to Lexington? Maybe he's seen her.” He felt weird for mentioning his name, but there was no denying the two had gotten close
“Father?” Her voice dropped an octave lower when she saw how distraught he was.She went over to him but paused when Elijah's presence became visible to her eyes. “Who are you, and what have you done to my father?” She asked, pointing an accusatory finger at him.“Me?” Elijah asked.She looked around and then back at him. “Aside from the weird man in the suit, and—” she stopped, her eyes widening. “Colin Trust? Is that you?” She moved away and went to stand before him Instead.“Alice, you're back,” he said, not matching her enthusiasm.“You look so grown. Everything in this City has changed, including you.” She gave him a slow once over and then stretched out her hand. He let out a small sigh and accepted her hands. “You look the same,” he said, and he didn't mean it as a compliment.“Well, thank you.” She blushed.William shook his head, wondering what he had done to be blessed with such a child. “Why are you here, Alice?” He asked, unable to take it anymore.She did one-eighty and
Winnie Carter's eyes flickered open in the dimly lit room. It took her vision a few seconds to adjust to the darkness and her brain even longer to recall all events before the three seconds her eyes had been open.When she eventually did remember, there was only one thing she wanted to do: escape!She tried to move both hands but stopped when they wouldn't budge. She was about to try raising her legs when she felt constrained.Despite the dullness of the room, her eyes shot down to see what was causing the restriction. Squinting hard, she found hints of a rope tied across her body. She was bound.“Oh crap!” She hissed. Her pissed-off voice echoed around the room before returning to her ears.The sound made her even more annoyed. There were a lot of things she needed to do, and being locked up this way was going to set her back a lot. Being the businesswoman she was, she decided to run a little negotiation.“Hello? Is anyone there?” She called out. Her voice, like a spring, bounced thr
Elijah parked his car and went straight into the center. He walked past the pixie-cut lady trying to call out to him and didn't stop until he got to Dr Hill's office.He knocked on the door, and even before the doctor could tell him to come in, he pushed it open and stepped in.“Elijah!” Dr Hill called in faux surprise. Pretending as if it was barely twenty minutes ago, he had called to tell him he would be coming.However, what stopped him dead in his tracks was the woman who turned to look at him.“Rhonda?” He found himself calling in a shock-filled voice.“Elijah, what are you doing here?” She asked, her brows slanting curiously.“I should be asking you that. Is everything okay? Is your mum fine?” “She is,” her face fell before she continued speaking. “You know how mum gets. When she found out you brought her back to life, she insisted I come to Dr Hill for extra medication, just in case you did something bad to her,” she explained.He knew he was supposed to be mad at her mother
“What kind of god are you? Aren't gods supposed to be kind?” “Who said so?” He cocked an arrogant brow.“It's a universal belief. How are you a mean God? You're either lying, or I'm dreaming?”“You still don't believe me?” “You've not given me a reason to.”“What else do you want me to do? I already read your mind.”PushShe rolled her eyes.”You could be one of those psychic people. I don't know.” She shrugged.“You're an unbeliever. For a girl as pretty as you are, that's not a smart choice,” he said, shaking his head.“The alternative is taking your word for it. If you want me to believe you're a god, prove it to me. Cause it to rain in here. Please send me a pet dog for companionship. Provide food from the ceiling. I'm not going to eat something that nasty, but it'll turn me into a believer,” she said, throwing him a daring smirk.“Is that a dare?” His lip curved into an amused smile, making him more handsome than he already was.She blinked and took her gaze elsewhere. “The burd
By the time Elijah stepped out of the center, it was completely dark. He was about to hop into his car when his phone rang.“Every bloody time!” He shook his head but knew he couldn't ignore it.Resigning himself to fate, he pulled the phone out and answered the call.“Hey man, where's everyone?” It was Tobias at the other end of the line.He let out a deep breath and relaxed his tensed muscles. “Isn't Cleo at home?” He asked.“Nope. Snow isn't here, either. Where are you?” He asked.“Something mad came up. Winnie is missing.” He tucked the phone in his ears, using his head as support, as he opened the car and got in.There, he withdrew the phone from his ears and put it on a loudspeaker, then dropped it in the passenger's seat.“What'd you mean she's missing? Like missing-missing? Or went for a vacation and do not want to be disturbed, missing?”“Unfortunately, I think it's the former. Her grandfather is in terrible condition. He almost fainted earlier on. I have to find her tonight,
He suddenly stopped hearing her screams, but he kept on driving. A destination unknown, yet he would instead make a fool out of himself than not follow his guts or the voice in his head.The land started to get thinner and more narrow. A sweet smell of lavender wafted around his nose, making him reflexively inhale.On this path, he gained a little bit of clarity. Not only could he smell the lavender, but he could also smell her. No one who had inhaled Winnie's scent before could ever miss it.“Stay with me. I'm on my way,” he whispered as if she could hear him. He hoped the wind carried his promise to her. Give her comfort and reassurance until he arrives to save her.Exactly ten minutes of driving through the lavender, fragrance-filled, narrow path, he found himself in front of a big castle-like house.Dead trees and weeded grasses surrounded the mansion. It was another thing that looked familiar, but he couldn't place why it did.He parked and ran out of the car. He continued on hi