The Secrets Hidden In The Scars

      It’s about six o'clock. Michael is now in his spacious office, sitting on a big writing table on the leather office chair, holding a ballpoint pen that he knocks at the surface of the table at times, and typing text on a keyboard with a second hand, while his eyes are pointed on a big monitor. As usual, this man looks decent enough. He is wearing an expensive, almost new gray shirt, dark blue pants, and black shoes that are so clean that they gloss. His half-gray, half-black hair is perfectly done, and his face is shaved and has no scars.       And while Michael, being absolutely relaxed, is sitting on the chair, in which he shakes and wraps at times, and thinking about something, someone knocks at the door of his truly gorgeous office some time later. The man quickly clears his throat, stopping to type something and getting sharply straight, and folds his hands on the table in front of him.       “Come in!” Michael exclaims.       The door quietly opens, and Eric Brown, who definitely has a wonderful mood, shows up on the doorstep.       “My lord, may I come in?” Eric asks politely.       “Sure, Eric, come in!” Michael replies quietly and points to the sofa that is placed in his office.       Eric comes into the office confidently, closes the door, and sits on the sofa, looking satisfied and very proud. Though, his face and arms are covered with fresh, bright blue bruises that will be going for a few days, and it’s possible to see even dried wounds that were bleeding strongly before.       “Damn, what’s wrong with your face?” Michael opens his eyes widely, looking at Eric closely. “You are all in bruises and blood!”       “We have to take much to do what we need,” Eric shrugs with a shy smile.       “Did you come to Catherine and ask her to treat your wound?”       “The men and I came back a few minutes ago. I did not see Cath in the living room and shortly came to you.”       “Alright,” Michael glances at the monitor of the computer for a second, presses on keys on the keyboard several times, but then looks at Eric again. “By the way, you look very happy. Much funnier than before.”       “It’s just nice when you successfully finish a business,” Eric replies with a sly, slight smile.       “M-m-m…” Michael smiles much wider. “So, since you are so happy, I believe you have something to tell me.”       “I do have, my lord.”       “I really hope you delivered the piece of good news,” Michael says proudly, squinting slightly. “What I want to hear from my most loyal helper.”       “Do not doubt, My lord, I have excellent news,” Eric replies confidently with a wide smile. “And I can have the pleasure of making you happy with what will elevate your mood much.”       “I always have a wonderful one. But still…” Michael folds his hands on the table, looking at Eric slyly. “Did you do what I asked you about?”       “We did everything you asked us about!”       “Did you catch the gal?”       “She is in your house. We locked her in the room where the old stuff that nobody needs is lying.”       “Great!” Michael happily rubs his hands with a sly smile. “And how was everything?”       “I must confess that it wasn’t easy.”       “Did that beauty not want to go?”       “The problem was not only about it. The hardest thing was about your beloved nephew.”       “Edward? What does he have to do with it?”       “He does, my lord. That boy began to pretend to be a hero again. He was protecting her so hard, refusing to let us come to her and behaving rudely toward us for the thousandth time. Threats did not impact him, and Eddy did not give up.”       “Oh, wow…” Michael replies thoughtfully, stroking his chin. “I wonder, how did he show up? Did he foresee that I decided to ask my people to bring the gal here?”       “I cannot say it. But we had many problems with that asshole. He also committed an attempt to run away from us when Eugene and I distracted a little.”       “Aw, that boy still believes he can defeat me,” Michael shakes his head, leaning back in the office chair. “And protect his ex-girlfriend from his beloved uncle.”       “By the way, he already knows that the girl did not really cheat on him. She told him everything.”       “I believed so. He would’ve hardly protected her so hard and refused to give his ex to us.”       “But he eventually lost,” Eric replies confidently with a sly smile. “Edward waved his puppy paws and barked a little, but then I knocked him out with a couple of strong hits against the wall.”       “Knocked out?” Michael shows anxiety, rounding his eyes. “I hope you did not hit him too strongly. I don’t need him dead now!”       “No, no, My lord, do not worry, that boy was alive. I checked the pulse and felt it up. Of course, it was weak, but that puppy did not die.”       “I do need Edward alive, so far. If something happens to him before a certain moment, I will not be able to have fun and mock the boy, who is actually afraid of everything in the world.”       “Let’s believe he already woke up and got out of there. His wreck was not far from the place where everything happened, and your nephew could easily leave.”       “Well, alright, I shall find out what happened to him later. The most important thing is that you caught the gal and brought her here.”       “We had much fewer problems with her, but the lads and I nearly became deaf from her hysterical shouts. She screamed so loudly that people would have heard her a thousand miles away from us.”       “Ah, yeah…” Michael laughs quietly. “I should’ve foreseen that and given a pair of earplugs to all of you, so she didn’t make you deaf.”       “It’s alright, my lord, we did what you told us anyway,” Eric replies confidently. “The gal is here, locked in the room, and probably wants her mommy and daddy to take her in their arms.”       “Most likely…”       “And you know, although that gal is a terrible coward and can fight from a slight scare, she is quite sassy anyway. She barked while looking out from the back of your nephew, but when he passed out, Rochester realized her protector would not save that cutie and began to fight and bite.”       “Yeah…” Michael nods, stroking his chin. “So, my nephew had a sassy girlfriend…”       “I think they are worth each other. That puppy had been barking before he got a very strong hit on the head. And that cutie had been screaming and fighting like a wide cat before we did something. We had to put her to sleep to get her into the car quietly and bring her here. So, you were right when you said it was the only way to bring her here.”       “It’s weird… My nephew always had a crush only on quiet and shy girls, who were afraid to open their mouths. And he kind of never had blondes along girlfriends.”       “You know, I think your nephew could not just resist Ms. Rochester’s beauty. She is fucking awesome: tall, thin, with big breasts and a tough ass… They are fucking good to touch! The body kind of gets an electric shock from a slight touch of them! Ah… Just a sweetie! I must confess that Edward has incredible taste in choosing girls.”       “Agree, that guy has always known everything about beauties. My boy fell in love so much that he still cannot get his wonderful Natalia out of his mind. He has not forgotten that gal…”       “And it seems like she is still not indifferent to him, either. You must’ve seen how she ran to her ex when he hit his head and collapsed on the ground unconscious. How she was crying, screaming, begging him to wake up, hugging him… How horrified she was by realizing that her protector was defeated…”       “Maybe, she is not indifferent. Or maybe, she just put her tail between her legs. Who knows…”       “I don’t know if she said it in despair or not, but Wainwright and I kind of heard that gal confessing her love to him when he had already passed out. She was kissing him and caressing him… As if those lovebirds didn’t break up, honestly!”       “Really?” Michael smiles slyly and smirks quietly. “Aw! How it’s all touching!”       “I never thought ex-lovers would be worried and protect each other like that. The boy was covering the gal and fighting with us when at least one of us touched her with a finger. And how furious he was when Eugene began to kiss and caress her. We thought he’d explode and really kill all of us. And the gal sharply got white and began shaking from fear when that pathetic hero hit his head and slipped down the wall.”       “I’d like to watch the ex-lovers standing by each other,” Michael simpers quietly, takes the pen, and starts knocking at the table with it. “Well, it’s alright, they will meet in heaven very soon and be together forever. In case Edward does not want to stand by me. I do not doubt it will happen. Trust me, Eric, that boy will not agree to kill. He is too cowardly. Even saving his life will not make my nephew get over it. I press as much as possible, but Edward will not succumb.”       “I think so. And the case is not about love for the family that he swears on. The problem is his cowardice and insecurity. We are right when we call him a barking puppy. He can only bark on the corner but is afraid to attack, even if he tries to meddle in something.”       “Nevertheless, I have a little hope that I shall get him as my helper. And in case he agrees, I will have to keep the promises I gave him for the murder of his own friend.”       “Why do you need it?”       “I just want to make my army bigger. Besides, everybody treats him as badly as me. Nobody cares. So… I want to make Edward believe that he should not let things happen as they want. He must take revenge on those, who have always loved Terrence more.”       “That’s how…”       “By the way, I told you to bring the gal here to blackmail my nephew. If he loves her so much and suffers because he could not save her, he may accept my claims. One of which is the murder of his friend, Terrence MacClife. And when the gal dies, it will be too late to change something.”       “And when are you going to kill the gal?”       “Not now. I want to make everybody worry about her. May she stay at my house for two or three days. As my ‘honorable guest’… And then I will let my nephew know what to do to see his ex-girlfriend the last time, and she will die, no matter if he kills his friend or not.”       “Will you let him know she is here earlier?”       “Maybe, tomorrow, I shall text him a message to him to let him know that Natalia is in my house. And yeah, this is the way I want to use to find out if my nephew is alive. If the puppy comes here with the hope of taking the girl away, we will understand it all.”       “And of course, will you not let him come here, telling him to go to hell?”       “You understand me well. Yeah, tell Otto and Andrew not to let him come here in case the boy shows up here.”       “Do not worry, My lord, they already got my instructions and will not let your nephew come to the entrance not for anything.”       “Very good.” Michael looks at Eric with a sly smile and sighs, shaking his head. “Ah, I cannot wait to start this unforgettable show. I would have the pleasure of starting it right now… But I want to wait for a few days to make everybody nervous. Especially Edward. I can imagine his face when he wakes up after the hit on the head and understands that his ex was kidnapped by the evil men.”       “In case he does not get amnesia or brain damage,” Eric simpers quietly. “Well, hardly… That scumbag has nine lives and quite a tough head, with which you’d rather make a dent in a cement wall than kill him.”       “Even if he has nine lives, they will be gone early or late. Edward will not be able to hope that he is a young, healthy guy, whose wounds go very fast. Someday, no miracle, prayers, or shouts from his ex will not save him from death. And they will not make him a cowardly boy if he chooses his life and becomes my ally.”       “It will happen, trust me.”       “Do not doubt! I will have a chance to become a witness to more interesting events than the attempts of you and Eugene to kidnap the gal and defeat my nephew, who hopes that his heroism will be good for someone.”       “Just let us know when to start the show, and we will organize everything. I will personally make sure everything is right. Just like always.”       “Of course…”       Michael thinks for two seconds with a sly smile on his face, glancing at the window and raising his head with pride, and then looks at Eric and frowns slightly.       “Hey, did the gal wake up?” Michael asks.       “Yes, yes, Rochester is awake,” Eric replies. “She woke up somewhere in the middle of the way when we were meant to go to your home for some time.”       “I hope she did not think of opening the door of the car and jumping out of it.”       “No, the gal was sitting between me and Eugene. Even if she had really wanted to run away, she would’ve had no place. She screamed a little and calmed down when she realized she had no chance to save herself. Honestly, I wanted to put her to sleep again. But first, I found out that I had lost the handkerchief. And second, we almost came to you. And we had only to push her into the house and lock her in the room.”       “Wonderful. Let that wild cat live her last days. Get ready for the last meeting with her ex. And her beloved friends, whom I will defeat at the nearest time.”       “Yeah!” Eric smirks with evil in his eyes.       Michael nods and falls into silence for two seconds, but then he exhales sharply and confidently gets up from the table, saying:       “Oh, you know, Eric, I want to talk to the blonde. Will you lead me to her?”       “No problem!” Eric exclaims with pride and gets up from the sofa. “Follow me!”       Eric makes a gesture to ask Michael to follow him. The man, carefully fixing the collar of his shirt, proudly follows his main helper, who leaves the spacious office along with him. Next, Brown leads him to the right place for some time, turning to the right and going straight down the wall until the end. Everything is not so beautiful and bright in this part of the house where there are no windows, but there are a couple of chandeliers with a very dim bulb. Almost nobody comes here if they do not need it. And nobody keeps this place in order because there are some things that anyone has not used for ages, and which do not have a meaning.       Some time later, Eric and Michael come to a tacky door at the end of the dark hall full of some stuff. Going by this one, the owner of the house feels disgusting and winces strongly. Eugene and a young, dark-haired man with a rude, non-attractive appearance are standing in front of the door. They are talking about something with a wide smile, and Wainwright has a much better mood and actively works his hands, as he says something to his interlocutor that shows great interest in what he hears. But when Michael and Eric come here, they stop the talk and move their eyes to their boss and his main helper.       “My lord…” Eugene inclines his head slightly.       “Excellent work, Eugene!” Michael exclaims with a wide, sly smile. “I knew you would do that.”       “I guess Eric has already told you we had to apply some effort to bring the blonde-haired cutie here.”       “Yes, I know that the would-be star of porno sites did not want to come here.”       “That gal did not forget me and immediately recognized me when I showed up.”       “I doubt that such a cowardly and sensitive girl forgot how a real man wanted to satisfy his needs.”       “But you know that I, sadly, did not manage to find out how that gal was good at sex. At first sight, she is a sexy dolly that I want to feel up and kiss, but I think Ms. Rochester is wonderful in this business, as well.”       “I completely understand you. But you know that I’m not allowing you to come to her. I don’t need her to die earlier from a heart attack and make the whole house deaf with her loud shouts.”       “Of course, My lord,” Eugene nods, looking at Michael with a little wild gaze that only mentally ill people or those, who take illegal drugs may have. “You know that I never dare to go against you: If I’m not allowed, I will get over it. It’s going to be very hard to hold myself down when such a gorgeous baby that is wanted to fuck cruelly is in the house, but I will do my best not to go against you.”       “It’s alright, Eugene, wait for a little,” Michael says confidently, clapping Eugene on the shoulder. “I will only hold her here for two or three days. Then my beloved nephew will see her for the last time, and I will call you and give the cutie to you. And you will be able to do anything to her. If you want, fuck her, if you want, torture her… When it’s time, she will be completely yours.”       “As you wish, my lord. Our imitable lord.”       “Oh, yeah, I am always imitable!” Michael smiles with pride.       “We do not even dare to doubt it.”       “But Eric and you are fine fellows – you completed a hard mission. You got the boy out of the way and brought the gal here.”       “We had many problems with the puppy, but that’s good it ended well, and that cutie went with us. Of course, we had to put her to sleep, but still.”       “Well, as Edward knows what actually happened to Natalia, I shall see how he’s going to behave,” Michael smiles slyly. “What he is ready for to save her life. That I will, of course, not give her. But my beloved nephew does not know it.”       “But keep that psycho far from me when that gal is near. He almost killed me when I slightly touched that sweetie and kissed her. Edward is freaking cowardly, but he has a tough hand. Eric and I are walking beaten and bloody.”       “It’s okay, let him watch. He will do nothing to you and have to watch what he will not be able to change.”       “Well, on the other hand…” Eugene smiles slyly. “You’re right… Absolutely right. As always.”       Silence settles in the air for two seconds, after which Michael glances at the old, tacky door.       “Oh, alright guys,” Michael says thoughtfully and clears his throat quickly. “I want to talk to the gal and let her know that the situation is hopeless. And see if she is as beautiful as you say.”       “Sure, sure!” Eugene exclaims, quickly steps back from the door, and invites Michael to come in with a gesture. “Come in!”       “You know what… Leave the keys from this room to me and go away. Go away, you three! Eric, Eugene, ask Catherine to treat your wounds and give you something cold to put on your bruises.” Michael glances at the young guy Eugene was talking with. “And you, Douglas, talk to Otto and Andrew again and let them know that they are not allowed to let Edward in. No matter if he screams or fights – they are not allowed to! But if he is too hysterical and refuses to listen to them, knock him out and lock him in a room. He will be locked until his friend and the second gal are brought here.”       “As you wish, sir,” Douglas says confidently, inclining his head slightly.       “Alright, get out of here! Go, go! Wainwright, get out of here and do not dare to come here before I tell you to. Brown, where are the fucking keys from the room?”       “Yes, yes, yes, take!” Eric jabs, giving Michael the rotted key in a little bundle with two more ones.       “Yes, disappear! Everybody!”       When Eric, Eugene, and Douglas leave, Michael comes confidently to the door with a sly smile, unlocks it with the most rotten key, and enters the small room. Being here in this place is not very nice, at least for the owner of the house himself. Some books, papers, magazines, clothes, and other stuff that nobody needs are thrown in little bunches. An old creaky, by far not the softest and most comfortable bed is placed very close to a small window that barely lets the light in this room as well as the same old tacky and wooden stool. There is a little chandelier that can light up this room at a dark time on the shabby ceiling covered with cracks, it’s possible to see many yellow spots on white walls. Wallpapers are ripped in some places, and a little, dirty carpet with red and yellow rhombuses is placed on the floor covered with rotted laminate.       Michael examines this room with disgust and sees a cute blonde with blue eyes sitting on the tough, very uncomfortable bed. The strongly exhausted girl is sitting with her head inclined, disheveled loose hair, tear-stained hair, and quite dirty clothes. Almost all the buttons of her gray shirt are buttoned wrongly like in a rush, and her collarbones are seen from it. The blonde does not try to get out of here in any way. At heart, she understands that she is in a hopeless situation. The girl just looks into the distance with dead eyes without emotions on her face and seems absolutely quiet.       When Michael enters the room, the girl slowly moves her tired gaze to him and watches him without emotions, being a little afraid but not showing it because she spent all her strength on the fight with the accomplices of this man, who closes the door after himself.       “So, hello, girl,” Michael says quietly, takes the tacky stool, sits in front of Natalia with disgust, and looks at her with an assessing gaze and a slight smile on his face. “So, you are Natalia… Natalia Rochester… So, I’m happy to meet you. My people were right when saying you were freaking beautiful. It’s really true. You’re more beautiful than I imagined. And yeah, if you have not been told, let me introduce myself. My name is Michael.”       “What do you want from me?” Natalia asks quietly. “Why did you bring me here?”       “Ah, my girl, I have so many goals that I do not even know what to tell you first.”       “Let me get out of here. I don’t want to stay here.”       “Oh, no, honey,” Michael shakes his head. “I cannot let you go. You will stay in my house for a few days and then have to die, sadly. Of course, I’m very sorry such a beautiful girl like you will not live for too long. But I can do nothing.”       “So, I got it…” Natalia nods, setting her dead eyes on Michael. “You do want to harm my friends! Harm them for money! For what has never belonged to you and will never do.”       “It seems like you are a clever girl if you understand everything.”       “Why are you chasing my friends and trying to kill them?” Natalia asks without emotions. “What did they do to you that you want to get them out of your way? Why are you getting those, who do not have to do with this story, involved in it?”       “Wow!” Michael wonders. “I thought your ex told you everything. But if Edward did not say very much, I can do it by myself. Tell you what kind of dangerous game my beloved nephew started. Tell you how he is connected with your friends.”       “Do not burden yourself – he said everything not only to me but also to my friends.”       “So, everything?”       “About all your plans.”       “I see… So, he was silent about his biggest secrets.”       “But I cannot understand the reasons.” Natalia silently looks at Michael, shaking her head for two seconds. “Why do you need the money that actually belongs to your friend? You deprived that man of everything he had and now want to deprive him of his sons. Take the last thing he has!”       “Oh, honey, you will not understand me. You don’t know what it means to be a rejected sonny that did not get attention. Your mommy and daddy have always given you everything and given all the love to you as their only child.”       “And are you ready to do such bad crimes for that?”       “Who would love to be unnoticed? Even if they do, they always find reasons to swear on you, while someone else, who should not have been born, gets all the love and gets showered with tenderness and care of people? My younger brother always got the best. He always heard praise and was held up as an example, even when he screwed it all up and did everything wrong. That asshole was the center of the Universe for everybody to know him: from our parents to all our familiar people. They noticed only his success and asked about my brother. The moron, who was the all-favorite guy.”       Michael shakes his head and crosses his arms over his chest.       “And me? I was nobody! I was never loved and sworn for any little thing and when I hurt my brother. I should’ve been invisible to be loved. Because when I barely showed up myself and tried to get someone’s love and ask for caress, I was just told to go to the ass along with all my successes. And after that, do you think I have no right to be mad and curse everyone in the world?”       “And is that why you want to revenge on him?” Natalia wonders. “Do you think he is the one to blame that everybody had no reason to praise you?”       “I almost revenged!” Michael smiles slyly. “My brother is dead, and his wealth is almost owned by me. I need to do only one thing – to get everything that, according to the will of my younger brother, belongs to your ex, Edward.”       “Would you get better if you stole absolutely everything from him and send everybody to another world?”       “I will do! I’ve dreamed of destroying those, who ruined my life, since childhood. At first, I should have only killed my brother. But since he made two sonnies, who make me terribly enraged by their existence, I will have to destroy those brainless scumbags.”       “And why do you need the money? Have you thought the dollars would be gone early or late, and you would have nothing?”       “No, Natalia, I will always have everything because I have a shipbuilding company that gives me big money. The incomes of the firm are stable – not less, not more. So, you have no reason to worry about my well-being.”       “It’s not your money, sir. The money is meant to belong to your brother. And if he is dead, his son is meant to own it.”       “No, my sweetie, if you think Edward will get at least a cent from what his father bequeathed to him, you are deeply wrong,” Michael says confidently. “I shall not let that asshole own the money and get the rights for the company. And he will not get it because, first of all, he should prove the death of their father. Though, Eddy will not be able to because he has no documents.”       “Ha, you think you will be able?”       “I have money,” Michael throws his hands up with a sly smile. “I can find good lawyers and pay some people – that’s all! Goes without saying, after the potential applicants, who could put an eye on my money and the stocks of the company are destroyed.”       “Money can’t decide absolutely everything.”       “My darling, remember one thing. You are nobody without money. Without banknotes, you will not be heard. But when you are rich and have money and good contacts, the whole world lies at your feet, and you feel as powerful as God. Even impossible things become possible if you have a thick bag of money in your pocket.”       “You are a stinker!” Natalia throws coldly. “An evil, nasty, greedy, and cynic stinker that cares only about money.”       “Not only money, my sweetheart, but also the fact that I’m surrounded by people, who would respect me and be proud of my successes. Fortunately, I’m lucky, because I have so many very loyal people, who highly rate my success.”       “And what’s the cost? How much do you pay to those people, so they dance attendance upon you?”       “As much as they need to be satisfied. I have very many aliases, but I’m always happy to get much more loyal people.” Michael rolls his eyes, falling into silence for two seconds. “And I would be so glad if my beloved nephew Edward became one of them. If your ex wants to be loyal to me, he will be the only one, whose life I shall save. And help him live better.”       “No, do not even hope!” Natalia shakes her head with horror in her eyes. “That man will not do this! Edward is not a killer and robber!”       “If he does not want, it’s his problem. He will die along with his family and you. Moreover, I will tell you more: I do need that puppy to reject my offer. Because I do not want to share at least a cent he did not deserve with him.”       “Do you want to kill all of us for the inheritance?” Natalia asks with horror in her eyes. “Just because Edward is the son of your brother, who may get the money?”       “Not only because of that, but also because those two just make me mad. For example, their strong resemblance with their father. When I look at them, I do see my fucking brother, who is waiting for them somewhere in heaven.”       “But they could reject the money! Edward is ready to sign any papers and give you everything you want. Just give him what they should sign, and that’s all!”       “Ah, Natalia…” Michael laughs quietly, running his hand over his hair. “How silly and naive you are… Do you really think if your ex-boyfriend rejects the money, I will keep him alive and not bother the MacClife family? No, do not even think about it!”       “But why?” Natalia shakes her head with wet, widely open eyes full of horror. “Why don’t you want to leave us alone if your nephew rejects the money? You want to get the money – it will happen if Lockhart signs any papers for the refusal for you!”       “I did tell you about it, and you heard everything from your ex. Why do you ask what you know the answer for?”       “Aren’t you ashamed of your actions?” Natalia wonders. “Are you ready to kill so many people for money and revenge, and seriously think money decides everything in the world?”       “Of course, money decides everything in the world. Thanks to bags of dollars, I have solved so many problems that I would not have solved if I had been the same homeless pauper as my nephew Edward.”       “If he wanted, he would reach much. He just needs motivation and what would get him really interested in it and seem to be easy.”       “That puppy has gotten only lots of problems by relying on his pretty appearance and attempts to become a hero for covering his cowardice and insecurity.”       “He was just fighting for what he has a right!” Natalia says confidently.       “Well…” Michael smiles mysteriously. “Actually, I not only do mean it but also something else… You see, girl, I know something about your ex… One terrible secret that he is hiding so hard and terribly afraid to reveal. There was one sin in his past…”       “What are you talking about?” Natalia frowns slightly, staring at Michael surprisingly. “What do you want to say?”       “M-m-m, it’s a long story. And if I had not gotten him out of some shit, that boy would have been dead. He would’ve hardly been quiet when walking on streets and dying from boredom, not knowing where to play Superman.”       “It’s some delirium! You don’t know what you say!”       “Be sure, you will know everything very soon and understand that your ex-boyfriend is not an angel. And I know another reason why he is terribly afraid of me to the shake of his knees. I mean, I will tell you. He is terribly afraid that I will tell his dark secret and let everybody know what may be waiting for him if Edward went against me.”       “I don’t believe you!” Natalia says confidently. “None of your words! You have gone crazy from your fucking money!”       “We will see who has gone crazy: I did it from money and revenge, or you did it from your love for my nephew. I will see what you will say when you all know Edward’s biggest secret he has been hiding for very many years on the day of your death and the death of all the MacClifes. And another secret that is going to reveal his real indetity.”       “Whatever you say, I will not believe it. You have done enough to ruin his mental health and make him feel like worthless shit. By blackmailing, you brought Edward to a horrible condition! He is afraid of you because you give him constant pressure and make him sure that your offer would be his best decision.”       “M-m-m, so, blackmailing?” Michael frowns slightly and crosses his arms over his chest. “No, Natalia, I’m not blackmailing him! I’m just suggesting he save his life in exchange for being my ally. I do not want to do it, but if that puppy really betrayed his family, I will have to keep my promise. If Uncle Mikey promises, he must do it. I will have no choice.”       “You may not think everything will happen. Edward loves his family and would do anything for it.”       “We will see it, girl. Will see if that boy does only one thing that will help him get closer to a rich, beautiful life. The mission is very easy – killing Terrence.”       “No!” Natalia shouts, shaking her head sharply and feeling tears getting out of her tears. “No! He will not dare to do it! Edward will never ruin his life like this and become a killer! A killer of the one, who he loves, despite nothing.”       “Oh, love…” Michael throws gloomily and glances aside for a second. “That’s what does not let him live… Love… Because of this fucking love, he cannot put his cowardice, insecurity, and hesitation in his ass. That boy naively believes this feeling would help him reach something. Love for you, love for the friends, love for all the familiar people…”       “Do you want him to become as rotted and senseless as you are?”       “If he wants to reach something and live a good life, he will have to become cruel. Alas, but it’s life: if you want to live well, you have to step on others. I don’t know anyone, who would get rich only thanks to love. All my friends had to do a lot to become provided.”       “You just don’t know what that is, and it’s strange to you. But trust me, the stronger this feeling is, the higher chance that it can defeat any evil and literally bring anyone to life.”       “Total delirium! Love, pity, sympathy, and other stupid things prevent people from what they want.”       “Edward will never be deprived of these features and will not forget how to love and forget those he loves with all his heart.”       “Something tells me when I call the amount that he could get from his inheritance, Edward will forget you and his family,” Michael replies confidently, stroking his chin. “Money quickly gets obsessed with a person’s mind and becomes something like a drug. That’s what will make him plastic, from which you will be able to make anyone.”       “You did say you didn’t want Edward to agree.”       “That’s correct. But everything depends only on Edward himself. If he wants to be loyal to me and starts changing for the best, I shall forget my hatred for him and make him a part of my army.”       “Maybe, he is shy of his poverty and afraid to tell someone he has nothing, but Edward will never kill someone,” Natalia replies confidently.       “Why are you so confident? Why are you absolutely sure your ex is so good and innocent?”       “Because I see what you do not, honorable. I believe Edward will not betray his family and will someday reconcile with them and prove that he is a very good and loving man.”       “I think there is only one explanation for the fact that you believe he is an angel and see nothing bad about him. You are just in love with him. You have not forgotten my dear nephew. Your heart still trembles when someone calls Edward’s name.”       “You know, it’s the truth!” Natalia sets her contemptuous gaze on Michael. “I will always love Edward! Even though we broke up. Even if none of us wanted it.”       “Yes, yes, I do know why my nephew left you…” Michael smiles slyly. “I know… He would’ve hardly tried to save you from my people and beaten them so strongly.”       “He will not leave me,” Natalia replies confidently. “I do know Edward will do his best to take me away from here. Your nephew will not let me stay here.”       “Maybe, he will try to do something to get you out of here. But all his attempts will be worthless. If Edward comes here after I let him know that you are here, nobody will let him in here earlier. And he will not hear you screaming at the top of your lungs. The security got an order not to let him go and to kick him out of my territory by force. But if the boy is enraged and screaming as hard as you did when trying to get off Eric and Eugene, I will have to give the order to knock him out, tie him up and lock him in a storeroom where he will stay before the day I decide it’s time to bring all the MacClifes to this house. And you two will not be allowed to see each other and be locked in the same room.”       “You are a beast. Just a nasty beast that must burn in hell.”       “And do not count on your friends – they will experience the same if they come here and want to take you away. Don’t worry, there are enough rooms in this house to lock all of them and not to let them meet before it’s time.”       “But they will be looking for me anyway,” Natalia replies confidently. “When my friends know you decided to lock me here, Terrence and Raquelle will take measures. And maybe, Edward will even persuade them to unite and find a way to help me. They will do this for me.”       “They can do what they want. It will not help them. They will know where to find you but will not be able to get closer because I will close the way.”       “After what happened to me, these three will be much smarter and more careful not to get into the trap. They will do their best to get off your pals, who will wish to put them to sleep, get them into the car and bring them here.”       Michael silently looks at Natalia for two seconds and clicks the fingers of his hand, saying:       “Oh, about traps… I really hope they realized they’d hardly save themselves and you. No matter how hard they try to run away or drive away from my people in a car at a high speed, I shall reach them early or late.”       “Do you mean the race, during which Terrence and Raquelle barely got off your pals?”       “The one. When your friend decided to take an example from his friend and show off a little, not understanding that he looked stupid and could have been deprived of a driver's license if the police had caught him driving at a high speed.”       “They nearly crushed because of you!” Natalia exclaims loudly. “Because of you, Raquelle got scared so much that she nearly died from fear! From the fear that she will experience the same as her late parents!”       “It’s not my problem!” Michael shrugs with an innocent smile. “Terrence is the one to blame! He shouldn’t have started driving at the speed of more than one hundred and lusty miles an hour and pretended to be a driver for Formula 1. My people just wanted to scare him and your friend, letting them know that they wouldn’t run away from me, and that I’d catch them anywhere. Even if they went to the top of the Himalayas, I’d get them there!”       “Scare them with knives?” Natalia frowns slightly and thinks for two seconds. “Not to kill?”       “No, my darling, I did not try to kill them. Moreover, there are two very important rules about murdering: not killing in popular places where thousands of people watch you, and not leaving tracks. My people kill at my home or deserted places, so they leave no tracks, and nobody can prove how someone not to please me is killed.”       “I’m sorry that your neighbors don’t know what you are doing. Otherwise, they would’ve reported you to the police a long time ago. Or are only the same rotten rats as you living here?”       “Yes, I befriend my neighbors. Moreover, many of them are my loyal helpers.”       “Oh, did you buy all the houses in this neighborhood and give them to your pals?” Natalia frowns slightly, crossing her arms over her chest. “Or pay for the rent?”       “There are many beautiful houses that I could buy and rent. If your ex becomes my ally, I shall rent a small house for him. And later, he will buy any place if he wants to move or provide himself with the estate. Could you believe I did not miss something and forgot about a little thing?”       “I wish someone checked the money and found out how you got it. I don’t understand how they cannot see someone stealing so much and living like a rich man.”       “If you want to know if I pay taxes, don’t worry. I always pay my personal taxes and the taxes of the shipbuilding company just in time.”       “What a nasty stinker you are. A nasty stinker that must not live in this world. You say the birth of your brother was a mistake, but actually, YOUR birth was the biggest mistake of your parents. If such a rat had not been born, a danger wouldn’t be threatening innocent people.”       “My beloved brother will not spend a lot of time watching his sonnies, their mother, his soon-to-be daughter-in-law, and the one, who could have been the one if she had gotten married to my younger nephew. Very soon, you all will go there and be together forever. It will happen at the nearest time. They can run and try to comfort themselves with the hope that you will be free. And then I will do something for my relatives and a couple of potential ones to come together and die on the same day. Say goodbye to each other and will be given to my people to be killed.”       “Kidnap them as well as you did it to me?”       “If they must be put to sleep to be brought here, it will happen. But they will come here, despite their wish. Your friend can scream, fight, bite, and beg her fiancé to save her as much as she wants. And my eldest nephew can keep waving his hands like a hysterical girl and proving that he has mental issues.”       “I really doubt Terrence would let your accomplices catch Raquelle. For her, he is ready to tear anyone and will not let her get closer to any rotted rat that will love to touch her with a finger.”       “Ah, yeah…” Michael smiles shyly, shaking his head. “Yeah… I know how attracted they are to each other… About how their relationship was almost ruined… I know everything…”       “I did realize you were the one to stick their nose in all holes and collect rumors and pieces of news about everything and everyone.”       “I cannot deny it…” Michael falls into silence for two seconds. “But I foresaw that event and came up with a plan for how to make the mission of my helpers much easier. I will do my best for your friend not to even realize that she will stay without her protector. It will be much easier than you think.”       “Trust me, Sir, now, when you decided to hold me here, my friends will always be inseparable,” Natalia replies confidently and quietly. “Raquelle and Terrence will start to realize that danger is threatening them. Your nephew will not let my friend go not for anything.”       “However…” Michael smiles slyly. “He will have to leave her alone if I tell him to come here at his wish first. If it happens, your friend will probably stay alone. And if my younger nephew magically makes his friend sure to help him, and I also tell him to go to my home, it will be one hundred percent of success.”       “What?” Natalia rounds her eyes immediately. “Do you want to send your people to the house of my friends to bring my friends here after she stays alone?”       “Sort of. Terrence will wish to save his beloved Raquelle and not let her go to my home with him. But in this case, my nephew will make a mistake. Because my people will be able to easily take your friend and bring her here. I already examined the neighborhood where your friends are living and know how to defeat the security easily and quietly come to the necessary house. And even if your friends want to tighten security and forget about their wish to walk outside without bodyguards, like ninety percent of celebrities do. No security measures will save Terrence and Raquelle from imminent death.”       “No…” Natalia pronounces in a shaking voice, shaking her head and closing her mouth with a hand. “No, you cannot do it… No!”       “So, my dear, I think you realized it would be something like a trap for Terrence he will unnoticeably get into,” Michael says thoughtfully, running his hand over his hair, and simpers quietly. “He’d believe she would be in safety at home, but it’s not the truth…”       “NO!” Natalia screams at the top of her lungs. “DO NOT HURT THEM! NONE OF THEM SHOULD SUFFER BECAUSE OF YOU! NOBODY!”       “Hey, hey, do not scream like a piggy,” Michael winces strongly. “Since Eric and Eugene came here, being literally dumbfounded by your hysterical shouts, I will not surely take it and will kill you in anger. Though, I do not need it because I want to let you see your ex for the last time and then give you to my people, who will kill you. Maybe, they’d play with you and your gorgeous body, but then kill with no regret.”       “Scumbag…” Natalia hisses through her teeth. “The real scumbag, who must die in PRISON! BASTARD! How can you live in the world? Why do such shitty people live in the world for so long? WHY?”       “Because I’m smart and sly. Maybe, I have no education, but I have brains. That I don't use to learn algebra, chemistry, or psychics that nobody needs. If I had no brains, I wouldn’t have gotten what I have now.”       “Sorry! I’m sorry that there is nobody, who would wash your brains and make you realize that your wishes will not lead to anything good.”       “I never give up on my wishes and always fight until the end,” Michael says confidently. “I shall not give up on my goals. I’ve been waiting for this revenge for more than twenty years! I have been trying to find a way to take revenge on my brother, kill that bastard, and take everything from him for more than twenty years. He would’ve died a long time ago, but the birth of his fucking children ruined all my plans. Because my brother later ran away with his younger sonny, got married again, and made two more children. Only luck helped me find that idiot and decide it was time to take revenge. And now, almost a quarter of a century later, I will finally get what I want and revenge for never being loved. The final is close! Very soon, the sun will rise for me! My brother is already dead… And my nephews and their mommy and beloved girls will die, as well.”       “Would you dare to do it? Have the courage to hurt the mother of Terrence? Find Edward’s mother? How horrified they would be if they lost her children because of you? I don’t know what it means to be a mother because I have no children yet, but all my familiar people, who raise sons and daughters say they are even afraid to think something could happen to their precious gems.”       “I will also defeat their mommies,” Michael smiles slyly. “You think I will not invite her here? No, my sweetie, when I destroy you, her sonnies, and her soon-to-be daughter-in-law, I will surely defeat her. Rebecca Jonas, the mother of the rotten rat named Terrence. Who should not have been born as well as Edward.”       “NO!” Natalia screams with horror in her eyes. “Do not hurt that woman! DO NOT DARE!”       “Who will stop me? Not you, Natalia! Do not hope that begs of you or someone else will help one of you. The only one, who might survive and stand against my army is my nephew Edward. If he stands by me, I will give him life and change it for the best, depending on his loyalty and quality of doing my orders.”       “Will you dare to kill that innocent woman, who has done NOTHING bad to you! Just like Edward’s mother!”       “I’m shamelessly ready to kill those, who have made me irritated all my life, and who can do it with their existing,” Michael replies coldly. “My brother always stood in my way, and his ex-wife, Terrence, and Edward have made me irritated. Raquelle irritates me because she is the fiancée of that psycho MacClife. And you will have to give your life because you dated my nephew and could’ve gotten married to him.”       “Well, just like I thought,” Natalia shakes her head and falls into silence for two seconds, staring at Michael. “You decided to kill everybody for the ride! So, they don’t suffer! And to get their wealth dishonestly.”       “M-m-m, as it turned out, you are not a stupid girl,” Michael nods confidently with a slight smile. “You understand everything… Sorry for doubting you, darling… I used to think what Edward did: I thought all blondes were idiots. And yeah, in case you didn’t know, your ex didn’t have girlfriends with blonde hair before you. You got him overwhelmed by your beauty, and he forgot about his principles and keeps loving you strongly even after he found out about your alleged betrayal and then realized he was deceived.”       “Wrong, honorable. Hair color does not impact the brain or intellect. It’s just a prejudice that was thought up by a stupid person.”       “Well, maybe, you are just exclusion from the rules. You are by far not stupid and, as I see, realized you had no place to run. The fact that you are not trying to get out of here makes you better for me and even makes me respect you. Somehow, I knew such stupid gals, who did not know the easiest things and kind of came from Mars. But you are not deprived of intellect. Talking to you not only about clothes, cosmetics and jewelry is possible.”       “Do not doubt, Sir,” Natalia replies coldly. “I have quite a good tongue to answer your mockeries. And no matter how afraid I am, I can stand by myself when I understand I have nobody to count on.”       “I do not doubt it!” Michael laughs contemptuously. “Eric and Eugene told me everything, and I knew how you were fighting until the end. Until you got weak, fell into a magical dream, and ended up in my gorgeous house.”       “Don’t think I’m afraid of you and can easily die from a heart attack,” Natalia says in an icy voice, hiding her strong fear and clenching her hands into fists tightly. “If I have to, I will be protecting myself in all ways and not give up while I can breathe and stand on my feet.”       “Oh, shit…” Michael moans quietly, running his hands over his face. “Here’s one more lover of snapping and showing off to hide her fears… My nephew has a long tongue and finds an answer for everything, and his ex does not leave him behind. The first one tries to prove that he doesn’t suffer from terrible insecurity and cowardice in everything, and the second one wants to hide her fears. Did you lose the memory and forget how you were obsessed with horror when Eugene was trying to grab you? And when Eric was fighting with your ex not to let him come to you?”       “You will not scare me. While I have no protection, I will be protecting and fighting by myself.”       “I always say you are worth each other. You, guys, are kind of made for each other! You two are cowardly and hesitate, and you love seeming to be sassy to show everyone that they should be afraid of you and keep themselves far from you.”       “You doubt me?” Natalia asks rudely. “Wait, I shall show you I can stand for myself. I will surely deal with all of you until Edward comes for me.”       “Okay, okay, my girl, let’s pretend you tell the truth. Of course, I will never believe it because I know your real weak character and know how Edward is actually cowardly. I think spending a few days in my house is going to be your test. A chance to face your fears and do your best to get over them. And when it’s time, I will finally make my plans come true.”       “I’m wishing that your plans are ruined at the last moment,” Natalia snaps in an icy voice. “Something to go wrong at the last moment and not to let you kill the MacClifes and steal at least a cent from them.”       “Wow, wow!” Michael raises his hands in front of himself. “Easy, girl, easy! I will take a double hit from you and your ex!”       “I’d like you to actually die. You know what a favor you would do to all of us if you went where you wanted to send my friends and ex-boyfriend.”       “No, Natalia, don’t even hope I will die in the next twenty years,” Michael says confidently. “I have so many unfinished things that I should do. Moreover, I will have to pick up my successor, who will inherit my wealth after my death. There are very many applicants, but I have not decided to whom I would like to bequeath everything. And who should seat in the chair of the owner of the shipbuilding company.”       “Pick up soberly, honorable. What if someone you count on needs a few days to waste the money that DOES NOT BELONG to you and bankrupt the company that has NEVER been yours.”       “Trust me, girl, I will surely think about everything and choose the most decent one,” Michael replies confidently. “But it will not have to do with who, who will die in a few days.”       “And be careful not to lose the money. Otherwise, you will not be able to pay your accomplices, so they do dirty tricks and don’t let you dirty your hands with mud. So, you don’t get in trouble and solve the problems of your pals.”       “I already said I would always have money because the company of my younger brother will entirely belong to me. My father did not want to make me at least the right hand of the owner and picked up another person – a sonny of his friend, who gave great hopes. I will no longer be answering calls, smiling at everybody with a terribly nice smile, and being too gentle to everyone. A job as a secretary is for women, not men! And a young girl WILL BE sitting in that place.”       “I wish you went bankrupted one beautiful day!” Natalia throws rudely, humming and crossing her arms over her chest. “I’d have the pleasure of seeing your face when you realize you have no cent and have to forget about expensive pleasures. The best doctors, the best chefs, the best lawyers, the best stylists… Expensive delicacies that you are used to and high-quality clothes.”       “Oh, you know, you got me a little exhausted…” Michael moans tiredly, running his hands over his face. “I’ve been talking to you for five minutes and got kind of emptied. When I talk to your ex, I get fed up with his energy. That you, the fuck, sucked out!”       “You know, I would not talk to you at all because you are terribly disgusting to me,” Natalia replies quietly. “Now I understand why no woman has wanted to be with you. You would suck everything out of her and turn her into something like a plant. A lifeless plant.”       “I’m surprised that Edward dated YOU for three months and did not go insane. Was he so blinded by his love for you that he became your plastic, from which you made what you wanted? You made him the doggy that followed you everywhere and looked into your mouth.”       “You said I was not deprived of intellect, and people had an interest in talking to me. So, Edward and I talked about many interesting things. I told him something and discovered many things. He never let me know he felt bored with me, and I always felt very comfortable with him.”       “I don’t care about it.”       “Then why do you ask?”       “Ar-r-r…” Michael groans loudly. “Alright, I’m done with this talk! I’m leaving before you drive me crazy!”       Being a little irritated, Michael quickly gets up from the stool and shakes invisible dust off his new pants with disgust. The man comes to Natalia, who is sitting on the bed with her eyes moved to the floor.       “And yeah, let’s make some things clear,” Michael says quietly and grabs Natalia by the chin, setting his gaze into her dead red eyes. “Since you’re here, I tightened the security, and now my people will be watching everything much closer. If you try to run away from here, you will be found quickly and brought back. And you will have to regret it. And, if you keep screaming like a psycho idiot, I will have to take cruel measures. For example, injecting sedatives into you, tying up or doing something, so you’re not able to move freely.”       “Yeah, it seems like you’ve given them much of the stolen money if they are ready for everything,” Natalia throws in a low, rude voice. “Corruption is rejoicing!”       “I don’t also advise being rude.” Michael steps back from Natalia. “Don’t force me to kill you much earlier than I invite your ex and his family here. Remember, Natalia, I need you alive and healthy before the day my revenge comes true.”       “You think you can get something by holding me here? For example, you have something to blackmail Edward with to make him stand by you!”       “Right, you will be the object of the blackmail. But that puppy will believe that he will make me sure to set you free if he does anything for me. Even if he is walking in his head, I shall not set you free and shall give you to my loyal people. To the hands of my dearest Eugene Wainwright, who is impatiently waiting for the day he can do anything to you and have some fun before you die. You are afraid of him like fire… After what he did to you.”       Natalia, opening her eyes widely and scarily looking at Michael, swallows up nervously.       “M-m-m, I do feel you’re shaking,” Michael smiles slyly. “From the memories that will stay in your memory forever. That will become a reason why you began to be afraid of all men and lost a chance to get married. What you dream about so much. But what you have less and less hope for every year. However, you will not show off in a wedding dress because you will have to die very soon. Die because of the one, who harmed your tender mental health and turned your careless life to hell.”       “You are a beast,” Natalia throws coldly. “The same beast as your accomplices are.”       “Well, it depends only on you, beauty. If you don’t try to run away and wish to be rude to me or one of us, nothing will happen to you before I invite the guys to my home, and my people drive your gorgeous friend here.”       “How can you prove that nobody will hurt me? What if you or one of your ogres come up with a mind to mock me and kill me?”       “Don’t worry, girl, I will not hurt you,” Michael replies confidently, comes to Natalia, and puts his hand on her shoulder, while she looks at him and scarily blinks her eyes, immediately feeling how her whole body gets frozen. “I will not try to rape you. And I will not make you stay hungry. You will eat whenever you want. Of course, don’t hope for lobsters, but you will be able to eat macaroni and cheese.”       Natalia says nothing and swallows up nervously.       “If you need to go to a bathroom, you will be brought there. But then you will be locked here. You are not allowed to walk in the house freely. Moreover, I will not beat you and will not let anyone touch such an incredible girl like you. Nobody will accost you without my permission. Everybody will treat you well. I will personally watch everybody and tell them not to hurt my honored guest. But we will not be ogres if you’re a good girl. If you want, you can snap as much as you want, but don’t even try to deceive my people. Otherwise, my beloved nephew Edward will get your gorgeous body dead and will be crying because he did not save the one, who he still loves at heart.”       “He will come for me,” Natalia says confidently. “My friends and he will not leave me in trouble and will do their best to get me out of here.”       “They can do what they want. Your friends will not go to the police because they can prove nothing, and I have some familiar people that would close any case for two minutes and help me or my friends get off something. Yes, those guys could try to talk to an officer, but the case will not go further. I will find it out and do my best for everything to be over shortly.”       “You’re sick. A sick psycho that must get therapy. And who must pay for the bad tricks he has done to innocent people.”       “Alright, alright, alright, I have no time to listen to you. I’m leaving, I have many things to do.” Michael comes to the door and puts his hand on the door handle. “I will check with you later. Enjoy the last days of your short life, Rochester.”       Michael waves a hand at Natalia, turns around with a quiet sneer, opens the door, leaves, and locks the room with a key. Realizing her helplessness, the girl sighs heavily, doubles over, and runs her fingers through her hair.       “Gosh, why for what?” Natalia wonders with horror in her eyes. “Will I really die in a few days? No, no! I don’t wanna die so early! I haven’t lived enough! God, please, help me! That man can’t win, depriving us of lives and getting the opportunity to use everything that doesn’t belong to him? I don’t wanna die and lose those, who mean so much to me. I don’t want my close people to die because of this freaking Michael. The scumbag that brought everything to this. Who wouldn’t give up on revenge even if Edward gave them his father’s inheritance.”       Natalia raises her head and brings her hands folded together to her mouth, shaking her head.       “It won’t change his plans. We will die anyway! If Terrence, Raquelle, Edward, and Mrs. MacClife don’t find a way to save themselves, Michael will make his revenge come true. While I can do nothing, they should think up something. This story can’t end so tragically! Gosh, show them the right track! Don’t let them lose and let that asshole win and kill us.”       Natalia sighs heavily, setting her gaze in the distance.       “It’s strange that Edward didn’t tell me about the blackmail. He did know Michael was turning him against Terrence and wanted to make him kill that guy. I’m sure Lockhart knew much more than he told me. I mean, he has something to say. At least, he has confirmed that he is not Edward Lockhart. And there’s a connection between him and the MacClifes.”       Natalia shakes her head and runs her hand from her forehead to the nape of her neck.       “But now, one thing is clear – Edward didn’t lie when swearing that he didn’t need someone’s money and wanted to get just a part of him. And even refusing to fight wouldn’t save us. He has the right to the money and the fight for what his father bequeathed to him. Since Edward’s father is dead, he will get the money. He’s meant to get. But now he is ready to reject, even if it won’t save us. Though, Michael is too obsessed with this revenge and a wish to kill those, who are somehow connected with his brother. Edward didn’t bluff and told us the truth, but we understood it wrongly and thought he betrayed us because of his disgusting behavior. That I, however, provoked. Everything is clear for me, and I believe him.”       Natalia, frowning slightly, thinks for two seconds but then sharply raises her head with widely open eyes.       “Yeah, what did Michael mean when he said he knew a secret about Edward? What could it be? Why is that old man so sure about it? Does it have t do with his real name? Or is there something else? He kind of said he helped his nephew get out of some trouble and avoid the consequences. He let me know that he might betray Edward’s biggest secret, which would definitely make us doubt his decency. Gosh, what could it be? Is that serious? Much more serious than the situation I got into almost six months ago?”       Natalia shakes her head to move strands of hair that get in her eyes off her face.       “And yeah, now I don’t doubt that Michael framed me. With help of that freak… Eugene Wainwright… Who mocked me. Who is well aware of everything that happened on that horrible day. And he kept Edward’s belief in my betrayal along with all of his pals for a long time… So, it means Michael may have to do with the order to accost me and send the photos of me being almost nude…”       Natalia glances aside and frowns slightly.       “Yeah, but how could Michael know me about five months ago? How could he know something about me if Edward and I barely knew each other? But I wouldn’t be surprised if Michael had told his people to watch Edward. And he says he has good contacts. Everybody knows that if you know who to contact, you can easily find out any sort of information about someone. And I think finding out something wasn’t too hard for him. I’m connected with by far not the unknown Raquelle and Terrence and the business of my parents. In some circles, the last name Rochester is well known. Father and Mother have some familiar people, among whom there could be someone to know Michael or one from his bribed gang.”       A few seconds later, after reflecting on everything she heard, Natalia stops her eyes on the things thrown around her: magazines, newspapers, clippings, photos, and many other papers. The girl stares at them for some time and then decides to sort out those things and try to find something, thinking it would help her understand why Michael is aware of the lives of the MacClifes and their closest people. Natalia slowly gets up from the bed, comes to one of the bunches, and gets down on her knees. First, she looks at this one and then starts running her eyes over shabby, slightly ripped, and half-faded papers. The blonde finds lots of old newspapers and magazines released a few years ago. And many clippings are cut out of by far not the latest issues. However, she also finds recent magazines and newspapers.       “This magazine was out three years ago, in April 2013,” Natalia says, taking one of the glossy magazines, and then grabs a much older newspaper. “And this newspaper was released in July 2011… My gosh… Why do those people keep these magazines and newspapers here instead of throwing them off? Did they actually forget about this bunch of trash? Or are Michael and his pals so afraid to dirty their suits and high-costed clothes that they hate coming here?”       Before a certain moment, Natalia does not closely examine the content of the newspapers and magazines, just looks at the headlines written in big letters and highlighted with bright colors and checks the release date. But later, the girl takes quite a recent magazine, turns pages of it for some time, and sees an article, in which Raquelle’s name is mentioned. It tells about the rumors Simon Ringer spread. Rochester’s friend was literally made a monster because she behaved disgustingly and allegedly mocked everyone she worked with. By the way, this magazine belongs to a very good familiar man of Simon named Kendrick Dixon, who agreed to publish lots of humiliating notes for money. However, when the truth was revealed, he had to stop releasing the magazine.       Natalia clearly remembers how bad the poor Raquelle felt when she was insulted by one person for nothing and everybody, who caught a wave and began to repeat everything like parrots. Sadly, the girl did not know she got into a trap of the man, who seemed so nice at first and never let her know that he dreamed of revenging her because her mother rejected him.       “I believe Michael knows about that scandal. The magazine of Kendrick, who slandered Raquelle for money that Simon gave him, is here for the reason. It’s one of the ways, thanks to which Michael found out everything about Terrence and Raquelle’s lives! That man does know everything about MacClife and Cameron’s lives and all the scandals, which they’ve been involved in…”       Natalia frowns slightly and thinks for two seconds, but then quickly looks at the bunch.       “I wonder, is there something else here? Maybe, I should examine all of it better and find out how much he knows?”       Now, Natalia closely examines every single magazine and every single glossy magazine. The girl notices that every single issue has a mention of Raquelle and Terrence’s names. There are those that have to do only with one of them, but later the blonde finds out that some magazines wrote about both of them. For example, the media spread rumors about them having an affair but then said they officially confirmed their relationship. Examining the content of the magazines, newspapers, and clippings, Natalia gets sad when thinking of what was happening in the life of Raquelle and Terrence. A little later, the girl runs her eyes over notes that tell that the lovers were about to break up for different reasons: from a betrayal to the man’s issues with alcohol. One newspaper wrote that Natalia’s friend was noticed in the hugs of another man, and another says Terrence was caught in the hugs of a blonde named Rachel Sanderson, the daughter of the producer, Albert Sanderson. There are even photos of the man having the pleasure of kissing that girl.       “Hm…” Natalia frowns slightly. “Rachel Sanderson… The daughter of the producer Albert Sanderson… Damn, is that the girl, who Terrence cheated on Raquelle with? Here are the photos of him kissing and hugging her…”       Natalia closely views the photos of Rachel published in the magazine she is holding.       “I don’t know who she is, and who Albert is, but that girl is quite sweet. She’s so happy while being next to MacClife… I wouldn’t say he pretended… However, she isn’t so beautiful to take Raquelle’s place. My friend is a thousand times beautiful and fits Terrence much more. Of course, it’s bad that MacClife used her, but that girl was guilty. She was too in love with this man and wanted to believe he would marry her. But she met a failure: Raquelle hit her on the head, and Terrence woke her up and rejected her, saying he played with her.”       Natalia moves her eyes off the magazine and chuckles quietly.       “Honestly, I would’ve had the pleasure to watch Raquelle and Rachel fighting in a resting room. Watch my friend kicking the ass of that insolent girl, who dared to steal such a handsome man from her. Anyway, Cameron got what she wanted and let her know that she wouldn’t give her six-foot-tail handsome guy to anyone.”       Natalia shakes her head.       “I’m sorry that Raquelle and I fought, and I didn’t see their fight,” Natalia says with sadness in her eyes. “After which MacClife woke up and recognized his mistakes. That’s cool that they gave their relationship another chance. I’d be very sad if such a beautiful couple broke up.”       After thinking a little and sighing heavily, Natalia keeps examining the newspapers and magazines, finding articles about the same things described differently. She starts reading the articles about Terrence and Raquelle going to break up and telling their fans that they would quit their acting and modeling careers. Of course, it was a rumor, but it got the fans of the couple of Cameron-MacClife very excited. However, Natalia later finds an article about Terrence and Raquelle denying all the rumors personally and making everyone sure that everything was fine with them.       Moreover, the magazines and newspapers contain not only notes about Terrence and Raquelle. There are also many notes about the man’s band “Against The System,” about their popularity that grows fast, and about their performances as the opening act of “The Loser Syndrome.”. There is a piece of news about “Against The System” signing a contract with “Five Seconds Records” and “Dark Side Management” and starting to work on the debut album. The last article about the guys that Natalia finds is about Peter Rose’s suicide attempt.       Natalia finds nothing new, but she thinks of some bad memories. However, the girl finds out Michael is well aware of the lives of Terrence and Raquelle and knows everything thanks to magazines and newspapers. She even tries to find out if the man knows something about her life, but it gives her no results. The girl, being disappointed, loses interest in the bunch of magazines and newspapers and just wants to sit on the bed. But she stops her eyes on something black… A book that is lying in the corner of the room. The girl creeps to it, takes it, and shakes a thin layer of dust off the soft-to-touch leather cover. The blonde starts examining the find and opens the first page. After reading the first lines, the girl realizes this book is someone’s personal diary, but Natalia cannot understand who it belongs to.       All the notes are made with careful handwriting. There are no mistakes in the words. As if they were written by a very smart person, who knew grammar and punctuation. The girl reads everything that is written in it with an interest and starts to make much more sure that this diary belongs to the man because the notes have notes that were not written by a woman. Before a certain moment, Natalia finds nothing special about the notes that describe some feelings and emotions of a person, but there are no details of some events that would drop a hint at who could own this diary. But some time later, she sees a short note that gets her a little confused by its headline. It was made a long time ago, judging the date that is written before the text.       “January, 24th 2010.       The funeral of my close person.       It’s going to be a very hard day because it’s the day of the funeral of Nicolas Carter, my close person, who meant so much to me. My best friend, whom I befriended for many years, and with whom I could trust everything. I still can’t believe Nick is dead… This man was always like my own brother, whom I could count on for everything, being sure he won’t tell my secrets. He also called me his best friend and called me a brother. I can’t understand why he was killed, and who did it. Nicolas did nothing bad and was always a good, decent man. I would like to make the killer of my best friend feel like I did on the day I was told about his death. When I found it out from Anita, his younger sister, who was also shocked by the news about his death. She organized the funeral, but she still didn’t wanna believe her brother had died. I’m very sorry that the innocent person suffered because of one stinker, who hasn’t been caught yet. The police do almost nothing. They haven’t identified those, who could kill Nick. Hope is little, but I hope the killer will be found someday and pay for what they did to my brother…”       “My gosh…” Natalia frowns slightly and moves her eyes off the note. “Who is Nicolas? Whose friend was he? And who killed that man? Judging from the note, he was killed somewhere in January 2010 because the funeral happened on the twenty-fourth. I wonder, has the killer been found? Or are the police still investigating this case? How did it actually happen? Nevertheless, I’m sure that Nicolas was connected with one of the MacClifes. Someone, to whom the diary belongs. That’s a man… A man, rightly… He also called me his best friend and called me a brother… Damn, does this diary belong to Michael? Was Nicolas his friend?”       Natalia starts to read the diary to try to find out who Nicolas is, who could kill him, and whether the killer got the sentence. But she finds out nothing. So, some time later, the blonde decides to stop reading the diary and puts it aside. Then the girl slowly gets up, tiredly sits on the tough, terribly uncomfortable bed, and inclines her head. She understands she will not run away from here and do something to save the MacClifes, and she believes she better be as silent as possible and show no resistance. Nevertheless, Natalia prays that her friends help her get out of here and save themselves. But she has less and less hope for the best. Nevertheless, even despite the hopelessness, Natalia tries to think positively, even if the situation is getting worse, and Michael’s thought that the MacClifes are not able to save themselves and each other does not seem so stupid.       

***

      Terrence, Raquelle, and Edward drive to the place, from which Natalia was taken away. The three were silent on the way and did not talk with each other, thinking about something and looking at what they were going by with dead eyes. But when Lockhart stops the car and grabs the steering wheel with his hands, he breaks the silence, setting his gaze into the distance.       “We’ve come,” Edward says quietly. “It’s here.”       “It’s here?” Raquelle frowns slightly and starts closely looking around, sitting in the backseat. “You wanna say everything happened here?”       “Yes, it’s the place where I saw Natalia.” Edward points at the path in front of him. “She was walking on that path, and I stopped the car in the place where I stopped it now. After that, I left the car, locked it, and ran to her.”       “Oh, what a place…” Terrence winces slightly, looking around with suspicion. “I wonder what she was actually doing in this place.”       “Maybe, she just wanted to walk where there were no people?” Raquelle shrugs. “Got sick of walking at the popular center of the city and decided to walk here.”       “But doing this is especially dangerous now. It seems like the situation of the rape attempt taught Rochester nothing, and she wanted to run into the same mistake again.”       “Well, I agree with it… Natalia didn’t think for too long when deciding to walk here.”       “And committing crimes at these places is very good, ‘cause nobody would catch you and betray you to the police.” Terrence falls into silence for two seconds. “What? No witnesses! Nobody can prove anything! No cameras around, and the police hardly drive in these places and check them as often as, let’s assume, the center of the city.”       “Maybe, that deadbeat Brown knocked me out, but I do know that those scumbags took Natalia away by the order of Uncle,” Edward says thoughtfully.       “I don’t know how they found you here, but they planned everything well. Well, or Uncle warned them about all the dangers and told them how to get over them.”       “I don’t also know how they found out Natalia was here. Maybe, they watched her… Maybe, someone saw her and called his pals. There might be many assumptions…”       “And as I understand, were you and Natalia talking here?” Raquelle specifies, still looking around and examining the place where she is.       “Yup, and then that company surrounded us here,” Edward replies quietly. “We took a few steps and move slightly… No more…”       “Hm, but where’s the brick wall, against which they hit your head?” Terrence asks with suspicion. “I only see dry trees, lots of road signs, a few bushes, and a crossroad.”       “The half-ruined brick box with that wall is a little further. We could go there on our feet. It’s something like a destroyed or non-built house.”       “There was a house there?” Raquelle wonders.       “I don’t know, I can say nothing. But it seems like it’s true. Someone began to build something, but stopped for a certain reason.”       “Okay…” Raquelle falls into silence and quickly takes off the safety belt. “Oh, okay, do what you want, but I’d like to look around better.”       Raquelle opens the door of the car, leaves it, closes it, and starts to slowly walk through the whole territory, looking at everything she sees in front of her.       “I wanna look around, too,” Terrence says quietly and takes off the belt. “Maybe, we could find not only Natalia’s phone and bracelet, but also something interesting.”       Terrence opens the door, leaves it, closes it, and starts looking around and walking in circles. Well, Edward glances at the lovers walking on different sides, as he holds his hands on the steering wheel.       “You think I don’t want it?” Edward blunts, switching off the motor. “Doing everything to prove to you that I’m not as horrible as you think is the best thing for me.”       Edward exhales sharply, takes off the belt, leaves the car, and locks it with a key. And while he does it, Terrence stops in the middle of the territory and starts looking around, and Raquelle slowly walks in circles and examines everything she sees, trying to be very careful and wishing to find the phone and the bracelet Natalia lost.       “Hey, Edward, are you sure Natalia lost her bracelet and phone here?” Raquelle asks loudly, looking not at Edward and Terrence but at a different place. “Maybe, you thought she lost those things?”       “I know it for sure,” Edward replies confidently and loudly, steps back from the car, and starts to look aside. “I wouldn’t have said it if I hadn’t been so sure. We’ve gotta find Natalia’s phone and bracelet somewhere here. We had run for some distance before she lost those things.”       “Even if Natalia lost her phone and bracelet right here, it doesn’t mean they are still here,” Terrence notices, paying no attention to the strong wind that is blowing at this place. “What if someone went by and took those things? Or did they fade away in the sand? So, we can’t see them!”       At this moment, Edward, Terrence, and Raquelle are at some distance from each other. Every one of them looks at different sides, listening to every noise and looking at everything they see.       “Couldn’t those men take her phone when Edward and Natalia were running away?” Raquelle asks loudly, fixing a pin on the back of her head, with which a couple of thick strands of her hair are pinned.       “Do you think they saw it getting out of her pocket and decided to take it with them, so Natalia didn’t call anyone?” Terrence asks.       “Quite possible. I think they could easily notice it and pick up the phone, so she didn’t call and ask for help.”       “I agree with you,” Edward says thoughtfully. “Those men aren’t idiots to miss this thing. Even if Natalia had had a phone, they would've taken it away from her.”       “You’re right. And even if we assume you thought she lost her phone, she would’ve been deprived of it. Those men could search her and take everything, so she didn’t have anything to contact us.”       “Exactly!” Edward thinks for two seconds. “And I believe Uncle could take her phone to get the numbers of Mr. and Mrs. Rochester. He did want to get the money out of Natalia’s parents and is supposed to call them.”       “Maybe…” Raquelle takes a few steps forward to the side, where she still looks at. “In this case, he could easily get her parents’ numbers and the numbers of her friends and familiar people. He’d need no common familiar people or hackers to hack her account on iCloud… Just like a familiar man of Simon did it when he hacked my account and got all the numbers.”       “And then is Uncle gonna call all of us and threat?” Terrence assumes. “Or send us a few messages?”       “But he got Natalia’s number somehow! He did send her messages.”       “Maybe, a hacker really hacked her account and got her number? I believe they could do this… At least, I find it the only explanation for the fact that Uncle got Natalia’s number and sent her a few messages with threats.”       “And Michael and she could have familiar people, who gave him the number…”       At some moment, Raquelle gets interested in something and slowly but confidently goes to the side she needs. Terrence and Edward do not notice it because they look at different sides. And Lockhart recalls something that has to do with this case.       “Listen, guys, I think I know how he could get it,” Edward says thoughtfully. “I know how Uncle could get Natalia’s number.”       “Know?” Terrence wonders, sharply turning on Edward.       “Yeah, I recalled one little thing.” Edward also turns on Terrence, putting a finger on his lip and frowning slightly. “It seems like I told you that Uncle Michael’s accomplices attacked me and wounded me with a knife one month ago.”       “Yeah, you did.” Terrence crosses his arms over his chest, frowning slightly. “But what does it have to do with it?”       “It does, Terrence! The case is that when those men attacked me and struck me down, they began to give me strong hits. Meanwhile, one of them got my mobile phone out of my pocket and began to search for something in it. I tried to take the phone, but that man didn’t give it, and the others were holding me tight and had me motionless.”       “That’s how!” Terrence frowns stronger. “So, do you think they were searching for Natalia’s number?”       “Quite possible. I remember that man writing something on a little piece of paper. It was probably her number! It’s confidential information that Uncle could know in two ways: getting it from her familiar people or checking my mobile phone or the phone of someone else.”       “Oh, did you really have Natalia’s number in your phone? You broke up! One month ago!”       “I had it then…”       “My gosh…” Terrence glances aside for a second and chuckles quietly. “I thought you deleted her number from the phone literally on the way to her home. With a wish to blame her for cheating.”       “I wanted,” Edward shrugs and glances aside for a second. “But… I haven’t done it yet.”       “And what stopped you?”       “I just forgot. And… I didn’t remember that… I didn’t check contacts on my phone and didn't delete Natalia’s number after I believed in her betrayal.”       “It doesn’t sound like the truth. It seems like you weren’t gonna do it.” Terrence puts his hands on his hips. “Confess, Edward, you didn’t even think of deleting her number.”       “Does it have to do with Natalia’s kidnapping?”       “Just wondering.”       “Fuck it, you won’t understand it anyway… I mean, you won’t believe it.”       “Why can’t I?” Terrence rounds his eyes. “Although I doubt it, I got the thought that you didn’t really wanna forget Blondie. One of the ways to do it is to delete all the numbers and messages, throw off all the gifts, block the accounts on social networks, and stop communicating with those, who are connected with the former object of sympathy. But you don’t probably wanna do it.”       “It’s not connected with our goal. You did say we’d talk only about the business and not start a talk about other things.”       “Oh, no, it is connected. If you gave a fuck about that girl, you wouldn’t move a finger for her. If Michael killed her, it would be okay!”       “Stop talking,” Edward throws gloomily in a low voice. “Let’s better come to the brick box.”       Edward turns his back on Terrence and slowly steps back from him further.       “Avoiding the talk,” Terrence says confidently, starting to follow Edward shortly. “You know I’m right, but you deny it.”       “I’m just following the terms of our agreement: no talks about what doesn’t have to do with Natalia’s kidnapping and the attempt to save ourselves from Uncle Michael,” Edward replies quietly.       “Oh, Edward, stop pretending. Just confess that I’m telling the truth, and that you do really care about Natalia.”       “Nothing will change if I say it’s the truth.”       “So, aren’t you still indifferent to that girl? Yes? I’m right?”       “Oh…” Edward stops with a slow exhalation and turns to Terrence, who he looks at without emotions. “So, what do you wanna hear from me?”       “The truth, preferably,” Terrence crosses his arms over his chest and stares at Edward. “I think confessing it won’t be hard now.”       “Okay, okay, if you want to know, I shall say it…” Edward replies quietly. “Yes, I’m not indifferent to Natalia, and she still means very much to me. You’re happy now?”       “Quite,” Terrence nods confidently and falls into silence for two seconds. “So, how long ago did you change your mind? After you were told Natalia was guilty of nothing?”       “I wasn’t indifferent to her, even when I thought she was a betrayer.”       “That’s how? Okay…”       “Believe it or not, it’s the truth. However, you could’ve guessed it when I said I wouldn’t leave Natalia in trouble and forgive myself and Uncle Michael if she died because of him. I can’t lose her because she doesn’t have to do with this story. And that girl still means very much to me.”       “Well… Honestly, I partly believe you, but partly don’t.”       “But try to understand me. Moreover, you’re well aware of what that is. You can’t judge me after you experienced something like that.”       “Well, I kinda understand you,” Terrence crosses his arms over his chest. “But knowing how you’ve lately behaved, I doubt that your words are true. I ain’t gonna hide that I want to catch you in the lie and make you pay a high cost for that.”       “Any success? Caught?”       “Not yet. But remember, I’m always careful, and I don’t stop watching you. I did warn you that one little bad thing would put you in prison.”       “Yeah, sure…” Edward exhales sharply. “You’ve got a right to do it.”       Edward turns upon Terrence and sets his gaze into the distance. MacClife looks at him gloomily for two seconds, waves a hand, and runs it sharply over his hair.       “Oh, okay, let’s talk about it later,” Terrence says quietly. “Now it’s not time.”       “We could go to the brick box, but…” Edward replies thoughtfully, glances aside with a feeling that something is not right, and frowns slightly. “Either I’m getting paranoia, or something ain’t right… It seems like something is missing…”       “Erm…” Terrence starts to look around. “You know, I got the same feeling… I… Can’t explain…”       “Yeah!” Edward suddenly realizes. “Where’s Raquelle? Where did she go? The last thing she’d said before she disappeared was something about Natalia’s familiar people, who could give Uncle her number.”       Terrence glances sharply at Edward, then looks around and goes a little further.       “Damn, indeed, where did she leave?” Terrence wonders. “She was here some time ago! Where did that gal go?”       “We didn’t kind of give her a reason to get out…” Edward shrugs, also looking around the whole territory.       “So, what did that girl come up with again? Do I have to find her nobody the fuck knows where again? Is that gal gonna give me problems and make me solve them?”       “Get cool, Terrence,” Edward replies quietly, slowly walking through the whole territory. “I think she is somewhere near. Getting to the center of the city takes a lot of time. If you do it on feet, the way will be two times longer than in a car.”       “Oh, Raquelle Allison Cameron is incorrigible!” Terrence pronounces irritably, moaning quietly. “Tell me, what do I do to her? The last time, she got out somewhere after I just kicked her outta the car, so that gal calmed down and stopped screaming. And now she ran away to nobody knows where! Is she gonna come up with something and start choking in a panic attack and then faint at the end?”       “I don’t think it will happen,” Edward replies thoughtfully. “There’s nothing that could make her experience a panic attack.”       “I do not actually know what to expect from her!” Terrence throws a little irritably. “Raquelle is just a hurricane: you don’t know where it goes, what it does, or what it might lead to.”       “You know it better,” Edward raises his hands. “She’s your fiancée, and you know her much better…”       Silence settles in the air for two or three seconds, and then Terrence exhales sharply and runs his hands over his hair and face.       “Alright, stop talking!” Terrence orders quietly. “Let’s better think about where that runaway girl could go. We must find her before she does something.”       “We don’t have to think!” Edward replies with a slight smile and points at the side that he is looking at. “Look there!”       Terrence looks where Edward asks him to look with mistrust. They see a dark-haired girl sitting on the sand on her knees and holding something that she is interested in.       “So, I believe our loss has been found!” Edward exclaims.       “I see,” Terrence says, squints slightly, and looks at Raquelle better. “But what’s she doing there? And what’s she holding? Did she find something?”       “Let’s come to her and ask.”       Terrence says nothing and sharply gives a start, going where Raquelle is now. Edward watches his friend with a little gloomy gaze, but then quickly follows him. A few seconds later, they come to Raquelle, who is sitting on her knees and looking at the expensive gold smartphone and the wide braided bracelet made of clean gold, while the strong wind is blowing her hair and clothes.       “Hey, Raquelle, what are you doing here?” Terrence asks irritably, coming to Raquelle and bending at her. “Why the fuck are you sitting on the dirty ground? Having a rest? Got tired?”       “Oh…” Raquelle moans quietly, closing her eyes and looking at Terrence tiredly. “What happened this time? Why are you resentful again?”       “Why? Is it okay that you’re leaving nobody knows where again and telling nobody about it? Wanna give me lots of problems and make me take care of you like a child?”       “Gosh, Terrence, stop having hysteria…” Raquelle replies tiredly. “You don’t let me think about the situation.”       “Since you like making me nervous and running nobody the fuck knows where so much, I have to do it. So, you don’t get in trouble and give me a couple of more bad surprises. Just like you did when you got out after the race.”       “Ar-r-r-r, MacClife, don’t make me enraged, please…” Raquelle groans quietly, rolling her eyes. “Are you gonna remind me of that ‘till the end of my life? I had only one panic attack that you provoked! But you’re having a hysteria, as if I have a panic disorder and can’t control these attacks.”       “But something tells me you learned nothing from that event,” Terrence replies coldly. “And you understood nothing after you found out that your friend had been taken away from this place! You wanna meet a stinker and end up in the hands of those bastards? Come on! Keep doing!”       “I believe you understood nothing from what’s happened to you all your life,” Raquelle snaps. “You always do the same things.”       “Damn, don’t start a scandal and remind me of all my sins that I’m well aware of,” Terrence moans tiredly. “I ask you about just one thing – to be close to me, so any scumbag won't dare touch you with a finger. When we end this story, you can walk wherever you want. But now be pleased to do what I say if you don’t want to be one step away from death because of the man, who went insane from money and revenge.”       “Oh, my gosh…” Raquelle quickly gets up on her feet with a quiet sigh. “Terrence, I’m not a little child that you should constantly watch and run after. Of course, it’s nice to me that you’re worried about me. But first, my mental health is fine, and I don’t suffer from disorders. And second, I’m not as weak and helpless as you think and could stand for myself.”       “Aha, we are all brave verbally.” Terrence frowns and crosses his arms over his chest. “But when we run into something, no hard resistance helps us.”       “If I have to protect myself, I’m ready to do this. I do know what I can and cannot do.”       “I don’t know what you could come up with! I can’t read your mind and foresee your next actions.”       “That’s good you don’t know what’s on my mind,” Raquelle also frowns and crosses her arms over her chest, literally copying the gestures and mimicry of Terrence. “Otherwise, you wouldn’t let me go and would cover your wish to follow me with an attempt to protect me from every single person.”       “Wanna be put to sleep and taken away nobody knows where, just like your friend was?” Terrence asks irritably and loudly. “If you do, it’s okay, I can leave and give a fuck about you!”       “Of course, I don’t want! But…”       Raquelle does not finish her mind because Edward, who is standing aside and hearing her and Terrence sorting out a relationship, meddles in their talk hesitantly, coming to the two slowly, saying:       “Hey, guys… Of course, I’m sorry for meddling in your fights. But maybe, you save it for later and fight when you’re back home?”       “I don’t know why he got nuts again,” Raquelle throws coldly. “I don’t start it all. He did want to make me a little nervous.”       “Ha, am I starting it all?” Terrence resents, pointing at himself with his fingers. “And you are so innocent and fluffy?”       “Ar-r-r… The more I’m with you, the stronger I wanna strangle you!”       While Terrence looks at her surprisingly and shakes his head sharply, Raquelle steps back from him and comes closer to Edward.       “He’s too nervous today,” Raquelle blunts.       “Don’t pay attention,” Edward replies quietly. “He’d burn out and calm down.”       “I hope. Otherwise, I shall kill him earlier than your uncle Michael.”       Edward silently shakes his head and decides to change the subject not to let Raquelle and Terrence fight to hell.       “Oh, okay, let’s forget that…” Edward says thoughtfully. “You better explain what made you so interested that you left us and said nothing.”       “Ah, yeah!” Raquelle exclaims and shows the phone and the bracelet she took from the ground to Edward. “Look what I found! What we were searching for!”       “My gosh… It’s Natalia’s phone!”       “Exactly! Her things were lying here, on the ground. I saw something sparkle from afar and decided to check it out. And I found the phone and the bracelet that was shining…”       “So, it happens that we didn’t come here for nothing?”       “I noticed that the bracelet had quite a weak clatter, and Natalia could lose it at any time. I don’t know if she noticed it, but it would've slipped down her hand early or late, and my friend would’ve hardly seen it.”       Edward hesitantly takes the gold bracelet from Raquelle’s hands, looks at it for a few seconds, and nods confidently.       “Yes, that’s it,” Edward says confidently. “Natalia had this one in her hand! It got stuck on my coat. Look.”       Edward shows Raquelle a little hole in his coat that he got after Natalia’s bracelet got stuck in it.       “And yeah, you’re right, the clatter is really weak…” Edward says thoughtfully, looking at Natalia’s bracelet. “But the jewelry is very beautiful. It’s hardly costume jewelry.”       “No, no, it’s made of clean gold. I know it, ‘cause I was with her when she was buying this bracelet in a jewelry store.”       “Right, the bracelet is really beautiful,” Terrence agrees, coming to Edward and Raquelle and glancing at Natalia’s bracelet. “After fixing a clatter or replacing it, it will be like new.”       “Yeah, but now I don’t care about the bracelet and the clatter on it.” Raquelle starts wrapping Natalia’s phone in her hands and unlocks the screen, typing the password that she knows well. “I know checking someone’s phone is bad, but I was curious to check her messages and calls. I saw Edward tried to call her several times two hours ago…”       “It’s true,” Edward confirms. “I didn’t believe she was kidnapped and tried to call. But she didn’t answer. I forgot that Natalia lost her phone. Otherwise, I would’ve tried to find it here before going to your home.”       “I got it. But now it’s not about it. Did you know Natalia got not only a few messages with threats, but also calls?”       “Calls?” Terrence wonders. “She answered them?”       “She didn’t answer calls. They are marked as missed. But there are a bunch of messages.” Raquelle opens the list of messages and starts scrolling. “Look, several messages from an unknown number that contain threats and clear hints at what happened five months ago. But we will hardly read them ‘cause the phone is almost discharged.”       “What? Several messages?” Terrence standing on one shoulder of Raquelle looks into Natalia’s phone and frowns slightly. “So, did Michael send her more than two messages?”       “As it turned out, she got much more than we thought.”       “And how many did she get?” Edward asks, standing on another shoulder of Raquelle and looking into Natalia’s phone.       “I’ve seen eight messages so far.”       “Eight? Not two?”       “Nope. But they’re very similar.”       “But when were the other messages sent?” Terrence frowns slightly.       “Much earlier than the messages that Natalia let us read,” Raquelle replies quietly. “And the first message was sent about one month ago.”       “One month ago?” Edward rounds his eyes. “When Natalia and I broke up, I got wounded, and she went to Mexico along with her parents?”       “I think so… The first message was sent on August, 12th. Then she got another on the same week, and then two more messages every week. So, it happened that she got the six messages.”       “But the breakup happened, if I’m not mistaken, on the fifth or sixth…”       “But if she got those messages, why didn’t she tell us? We could’ve scrolled the dialogue up when Natalia let us read the two latest threats from Michael, but we didn’t do.”       “Agree. And I didn’t guess of scrolling the dialogue when I had the phone in my hands…”       “Nevertheless, it gives us nothing,” Terrence replies, crossing his arms over his chest. “Even if Michael sent her one hundred messages with the same meaning, it would give us nothing. But if we report that man to the police, we will definitely need a list of all the messages to prove that he has to do with threats.”       “Natalia said she was ready to give it. When we talked after running away from Uncle’s pals.”       “That list could be wonderful proof of the fact that the deadbeat threatened her.”       “Hey, listen, were all the messages sent from the same number?”       “Well, yeah,” Raquelle shrugs, scrolling the dialogue with the messages. “She got the two latest messages that we read from the same number.”       “I just briefly thought Wainwright could send her something. Because… He is well aware of what happened five months ago and could remind Natalia of that nightmare.”       “No, there are no messages from any other unknown number. There are dialogues with me, Anna, Terrence, her mother and father, and you, Edward. Her stylist, who dyes and cuts her hair… And that’s all… I see nobody else…”       “Okay… Let’s think that dirty gorilla sent her nothing.”       “But the question is, how did Michael manage to find her phone number? We can only assume that Michael, his pals, and Natalia have common familiar people.”       “Well, if someone hadn’t left, someone would’ve found out one little thing,” Terrence notices thoughtfully.       “Which thing?” Raquelle frowns slightly, looking at Terrence surprisingly.       “I know where Uncle could get her number,” Edward replies confidently. “When I was getting beaten by his pals on the day of the knife wound, someone got my phone out of my pocket and was searching for something for a very long time. I saw him writing something on a little piece of paper, and someone used a flashlight to let him see, ‘cause it was very dark outside. And after getting what they needed, he threw the phone at my face. But it was taken when I was brought to the hospital, though they gave it back to me when I woke up. It was absolutely discharged, and I could do nothing with it.”       “My gosh… Are you sure they were searching for Natalia’s number on your phone?”       “Yes, I’m sure that man also wrote the numbers of the others: you and Terrence, Mr. and Mrs. Rochester. He also probably wrote your mother’s one.”       “And if Michael really got Natalia’s number in this way, he could start to send her messages shortly,” Raquelle assumes thoughtfully, frowning slightly. “And it sounds quite true…”       “Hey, Edward, do you remember the day when you got wounded?” Terrence asks. “It happened before the breakup with Natalia or after?”       “Of course, I remember,” Edward nods confidently. “It happened somewhere three or four days after the breakup with Natalia. So, count: if we broke up on August, 5th or 6th, I got wounded somewhere on the ninth or tenth.”       “Hm, and Natalia got the first message with threats on the twelve… She was in Mexico with her parents and grandmother.”       “But when she left?”       “She said, two days later after your breakup. And she said she tried to load herself up to get over that. I wouldn’t be surprised if she hadn’t paid attention to the messages that she was getting for one month due to her business.”       “Maybe…”       “Listen, Edward, did you get attacked in this place?” Raquelle frowns slightly. “I think it’s a very good place for similar crimes.”       “No, no, it didn’t happen here,” Edward shakes his head sharply. “That place is much further than this one. I remember there were some metallic gates, on which a table ‘No crossing the gates, it’s dangerous!’ was hanging. I think there was a tower surrounded by gates. I dunno, probably, a phone or electric one… And there were little wooden, half-ruined houses, but they weren’t someone’s house…”       “Oh, why do you and Natalia love walking in places where there is nobody?” Raquelle moans quietly. “Near electric towers…”       “I just love these places. I like walking where there is nobody. You know how many madly beautiful places there are in the city. I know many of them. Of course, you have to spend a lot of time reaching them, but you could even go on your feet for that beauty.”       “Nevertheless, you should forget about walks in these places,” Terrence notices. “You’ve gotten enough problems due to your love for walks in places where nobody walks.”       “Said the one, who doesn’t mind walking to similar places,” Raquelle chuckles quietly.       “It does have to do with you, too, cutie. If you don’t want problems, don’t even think of walking in these places.”       “Oh, MacClife, here you go again…” Raquelle pronounces tiredly, running her hands over her face.       Silence settles in the air for two seconds, after which Raquelle runs her hand through her hair and moves it back, saying:       “Okay, let’s do something…” Raquelle takes Natalia’s bracelet from Edward. “I’m taking the phone and the bracelet. They will be with me for a while. And when Natalia is free, I shall give the things to her.”       Raquelle puts the phone and bracelet in her purse and closes it with a zipper.       “Okay,” Terrence shrugs. “Now, let’s keep moving. I wanna look at the brick construction that Edward talked about. Where is that?”       “It’s not far from here – we can go to that place on our feet,” Edward replies and points to the right side. “You just always need to go on that path before you see the right place.”       “Great!” Raquelle exclaims, looking at Terrence and Edward and moving off slowly. “Then let’s go there? Or are we gonna stay here until it gets dark?”       “Well, if you want, let’s go!” Edward moves off and goes forward to lead Terrence and Raquelle to the right place.       “Hey, Terrence, move your ass! Or are you waiting for me to take your hand and bring you to the right place?”       “Ha…” Terrence chuckles quietly and moves off the place, starting to follow Edward and go next to Raquelle. “I see you decided to play the captain of the ship.”       “Just wanna hurry up, ‘cause it’s getting dark in one hour. But you’re standing here like an idol and staring at us.”       “Okay, okay, I’m coming,” Terrence raises his hands. “Just don’t grumble!”       “I believe you’re the only one to grumble. I’m absolutely quiet.”       “Do I behave badly?”       “You did when you turned the aggressor mode on and tried to kick Edward out of home and beat his face. And you would’ve beaten me if I hadn’t stopped you and gotten you cold by a strong slap in the face.”       “Oh, Raquelle, please, don’t start it…” Terrence moans quietly, running his hands over his face. “We agreed about everything. And I said I was ready to forget about the offenses and tolerate Edward to find a way to save Natalia.”       “My gosh, don’t look like you did it by force and are dreaming of ending this story and not having to tolerate him.”       “You did scream at me and tell me to agree to help him. So, I agreed. At my wish. For the time we’ve been here, I haven’t insulted this man. As I promised.”       Raquelle says nothing and just sighs quietly, shaking her head. Edward, who is going ahead with her and Terrence, hears their talk and gets upset because of what he hears. It’s hurtful for him that Terrence literally did him and Raquelle a favor by agreeing to forget about his offenses and help in Natalia’s salvation. Yes, he understands the offense of his friend. But the fact that he agreed to help by force not to make his fiancée upset makes him sad, and he doubts that he will make this man sure that he has never wished him anything bad.       A few minutes later, the three finally come to the place, from which Natalia was taken away. To the brick, half-ruined house. At some moment, Lockhart stops in front of the ruins and turns to MacClife and Cameron to let them know it’s the place.       “So, we’ve come,” Edward says thoughtfully. “That’s the brick box that I talked about. From here, those men drove Natalia away and knocked me out with a hit on the head. And here, there was the handkerchief soaked in chloroform.”       Terrence and Raquelle frown slightly and start slowly walking and examining the brick ruins.       “Oh, it seems like someone really wanted to build a house,” Raquelle assumes, looking around, as she is holding by one of the half-ruined walls.       “Sorry, they could’ve built a good house,” Terrence replies, closely looking at the half-ruined brick walls and bricks lying around. “It would’ve been a small but good one.”       “Someone stopped building probably because there was not a chance to run water, gas, and power. Or they got problems with documents. What if the government allowed them to build nothing here?”       “Allowed or not, but it’s clear that someone really wanted to distract from everyone and build a house far from the city where there was nobody around,” Edward assumes.       “I think so. But I guess these ruins have been here for ages…”       “Oh, listen, let’s stop talking about the fate of this house,” Terrence says tiredly. “We came here not for that. We should just examine this place and try to find some clues.”       “Took control in your hands?” Raquelle shakes her head with a chuckle.       “As the oldest one of us three,” Terrence comes to another part of the ruined brick box. “The smartest and wisest one.”       “Yeah, and the loudest and most hysterical…”       Terrence says nothing, growls quietly with his eyes rolled, and steps aside. Raquelle shakes her head and comes to the house from another side, starting to examine this part and not forgetting to look at her legs in the hope of finding something good. But while the girl looks to one side, the man just comes to the brick wall, to which Edward was pushed.       “Hey, did they hit your head against this wall?” Terrence asks, pointing at the wall with blood tracks. “I see blood tracks!”       “It is!” Edward shrugs with his arms crossed over his chest.       “Holy shit…” Terrence looks at the blood tracks for two seconds and squats down to see the way they are flowing. “Yeah, Edward, it seems like you hit your head well…”       “Yeah, it was hurt… Very hurt… For the first few seconds… And then I passed out and… That’s all!”       “I’m making more sure that you’re lucky.” Terrence gets up quickly on his feet and strongly hits his fist against the brick wall. “The brick walls are very tough. It could’ve been much worse. My hand hurts after a slight hit on the wall. If the hit had been stronger, something would’ve hardly stayed from the head. All brains would've gotten out…”       “But as you see, Terrence MacClife, I’m lucky,” Edward throws his hands up. “As my ‘beloved’ uncle Mikey says, I have nine lives, just like a cat.”       “I’m starting to think it’s true. As if someone wants to kill you, you will be back from the dead anyway.”       “When I defeat Uncle and know that nothing threatens Natalia and my family, I can die quietly.”       “Hey, don’t talk about suicides,” Terrence winces, shaking slightly. “I’m fed up with it because of the case of Peter. And I don’t wanna hear anything like that.”       “I wasn’t gonna start it…”       Edward goes aside and starts to examine the ground under his feet to search for something, while Terrence watches him with a sad gaze full of uncovered sadness and pity. As if he got excited by the friend’s words about “dying quietly”. Meanwhile, a mobile phone suddenly starts vibrating in the purse of Raquelle, who is slowly walking around the half-ruined brick box and keeping herself distantly from the men. The girl shakes slightly from a scar, but then calms down and decides to find out who called or sent her a message. She steps back much further from Edward and Terrence, and hides behind one of the brick walls, leaning her back on it. Then she takes her phone from her purse and unlocks it. After examining the content of a notification on the home screen, she finds out that she received one message. Being a little excited, Raquelle opens what is sent from an unknown number and quickly runs her eyes over it. But she calms down quickly when she finds out that it was a message from a man named Darwin.       “Hey, Raquelle, it’s Darwin Austin. Sorry for not being able to call you right now. I have a business and can’t talk with you for too long. But I can make you happy with the news that I did what you wanted and talked to Victor Johnson one and a half hours ago. I explained the situation and told him who you were, and he said he’d be happy to meet you at any time. Just tell me you agree, and I’ll immediately tell him.”       Raquelle smiles slightly, being happy she will find out all the secrets of the MacClifes and talk to Darwin and Victor about the situation Natalia got into, hoping to help her somehow and try to save Natalia. Not thinking much, the girl being sure about her decision types a message for Darwin and quickly sends it, sometimes looking at Terrence and Edward, who she does not want to tell about her meeting with the one, who knows their father.       “Hey, Darwin, I got your message. It’s great that Mr. Johnson agreed to meet me. Please, tell him that I can meet him tomorrow after lunch. And I think we will have to talk not only about the story of the MacClifes… The case is that another bad and dangerous situation happened today. And I would like to discuss this with Mr. Johnson. It does have to do with the story, in which my close people and I got involved.”       Raquelle puts her phone in the purse and steps back from the wall, walking in circles slowly with her arms crossed over her chest.       “Gosh, how it’s good that Victor agreed to meet me,” Raquelle thinks. “Maybe, he is the last hope of us. What if he helps me find out everything that Michael plans and save the MacClifes from what’s threatening them. Or maybe, I will find out something about Lockhart. And in this case, I won’t make the guys go to the police so hard. Because I shall get the help of the police and do my best to end this story.”       Raquelle glances aside for two seconds.       “I’ll also try to explain the situation of Natalia’s kidnapping,” Raquelle decides. “As Darwin said the police were waiting for a good moment to catch Michael, I think this case is very good. And Michael will show up early or late with his claims and wish to harm one of us. I’m sure I can do it! Tomorrow, I will find out the truth about Edward’s father and ask Victor about his alleged dead friend. The more I know, the better it is. I must know what to be ready for, and what to get the others ready for…”       Raquelle glances at Edward and Terrence, who are talking about something, and MacClife is standing with his arms crossed over his chest and looking quite cold but quiet.       “But Terrence and Edward shouldn’t know I’m gonna meet the one, who knows their father, tomorrow,” Raquelle thinks. “Moreover, I can’t tell them that Lockhart’s father is actually alive. If I’m right that he is the friend of Victor. And I must prove it… The first step is a meeting with Mr. Johnson. A little later, I will talk to Darwin and ask him where the man will be waiting for me. Of course, it’s gonna be hard to get out of home, so Terrence suspects nothing and doesn’t wish to follow me, but I’ll find a way to leave. I won’t let him and his friend find out everything earlier.”       While Raquelle thinks about the upcoming meeting with Victor Johnson and the questions she wants to ask, her phone starts vibrating again. The girl quickly takes it, leans on the wall with her back, and opens the new message from Darwin.       “Great! In this case, a meeting with Victor Johnson is scheduled for tomorrow at half past three at the café ‘Runaway.’ It’s located not far from the police station where we are working. Our bandmates and we often eat there in our free time. I will call you and remind you of the meeting. And yeah, I will be with you at the meeting because Mr. Johnson asked me to be there. We are both interested in the situation that happened to you.”       Raquelle nods, quickly realizing where the place of the meeting is. And to let Darwin know she read the message, the girl quickly types the text and sends it, puts the phone in her purse, and sets her gaze into the distance.       “Thank you so much for the help, Darwin! I truly hope you and Mr. Johnson will help me and my family. See you tomorrow.”       While Raquelle agrees to the secret meeting with Darwin and Victor, Edward and Terrence quietly come to the girl after she puts her phone in her purse.       “Are you okay?” Terrence asks.       “Yup…” Raquelle smiles slightly, trying to pretend that she is quiet and not excited. “Everything’s okay.”       “Are you sure? Did something happen?”       “No, everything is great. But why? Something isn’t right?”       “We just thought you were anxious and a little nervous,” Edward replies thoughtfully. “As if you found something that got you terribly shocked.”       “Nope, I found nothing. There is nothing here.” Raquelle slowly comes to the wall with Edward’s blood on it. “I found nothing but the blood on this wall.”       With these words, Raquelle slowly squats down, looking at the tracks of the fresh enough blood.       “It’s yours, Edward?” Raquelle asks.       “Mine,” Edward nods. “The aftermath of the hit that almost sent me to another world.”       “My gosh…” Raquelle barely touches the blood with her fingers, but gets only some dirt on her hand. “I’m even afraid to imagine what kind of horrible consequences of the hit against the wall could’ve been.”       Edward shrugs silently and glances aside for a second.       “Hey, while you’re standing here and dreaming about something, Edward and I found something that belonged to one of the men, who attacked him and Natalia,” Terrence says confidently.       “Really?” Raquelle frowns slightly, gets up quickly, and crosses her arms over her chest. “A mobile phone?”       “Nope, a wallet of one of those bastards,” Edward replies quietly and gives Raquelle a black leather wallet.       “A wallet?” Raquelle hesitantly takes the wallet from Edward’s hands. “Are you sure this wallet belongs to the one that had to do with Natalia’s kidnapping?”       “We are.”       “You better open it, look inside and see what’s in it,” Terrence advises. “You should be interested in it.”       Raquelle looks at Terrence with mistrust, but opens the wallet and starts to examine what’s inside. She finds a few shabby dollar banknotes, little pieces of paper with numbers that the girl does not pay attention to, and a plastic passport card that makes the girl much more interested. The girl quickly gets it out of the wallet and closely examines the content. It’s possible to see a full-face photo of an adult man with bright green eyes, which are as crazy as the eyes of a mentally ill person, red hair, and a big scar on half of his face. This man is so non-attractive in the photo that Raquelle swallows up nervously and feels she gets goosebumps on her back when seeing this horrible man.       “Eugene Walter Wainwright…” Raquelle pronounces thoughtfully. “Gosh, how horrifying he is! Who is Eugene?”       “It’s, my darling, one of the stinkers, who work for Michael,” Terrence says confidently.       “This one?” Raquelle moves her surprised gaze to Edward and Terrence. “You wanna say he is one of those, who were chasing Natalia and Edward?”       “Not only – he did much more horrible things,” Edward says confidently.       “More horrible things?”       “Eugene Wainwright is the one, who almost raped Natalia five months ago. Meet the bastard, who made the life of your friend worse.”       Raquelle opens her mouth slightly and sharply moves her surprised gaze to the photo of Eugene.       “What?” Raquelle gets horrified. “This donkey?”       “Exactly!” Edward exclaims with a slight nod.       “Gosh…” Raquelle shakes her head sharply, moving some of the strands of hair off her eyes. “So, is that the one, who did such horrible things to Natalia?”       “That’s him. The asshole, who was in the photos. Sent to me one month ago by that gorilla or my uncle.”       “My gosh…”       “You won’t forget this man ‘cause his face is so ugly that you might easily not sleep at night. Being afraid to see him in your nightmare.”       “Not surprised that Natalia was shaking and afraid of that man so much,” Terrence says, looking at Eugene’s photo. “He’s really very similar to a gorilla… Though, I believe a gorilla would be more handsome than this freak with crazy eyes.”       “Hm…” Raquelle frowns slightly and glances at the birthdate on the passport card. “Judging the birthdate, he is thirty-one… Born on March, 30th, 1985. In Salt Lake City, Utah…”       “He would’ve better stayed in Salt Lake City!” Edward throws gloomily, crossing his arms over his chest. “Why did that asshole come here?”       “Poor Natalia… I can imagine how horrified she was when being next to this man,” Raquelle shakes sharply. “Ugh-h, how ugly he is! When I looked at him, I began to shake.”       “Yeah, this man doesn’t make you trust him,” Terrence replies thoughtfully. “But I’m horrified by his eyes. They have such an unnatural color… And his gaze is similar to the one that a serial maniac has. Or the one, who takes drugs.”       “I wouldn’t be surprised if he was really a serial maniac or took drugs.”       “He is gonna be more dangerous if he sniffs some powder,” Edward says in a low voice.       “Yeah…” Raquelle bites her lip slightly. “I agree with you…”       Meanwhile, Raquelle thinks:       “I wonder if Darwin and Mr. Johnson know something about this man? What if Eugene has to do with a crime? A man with this type of appearance is supposed to commit at least one murder or attempt. Or… Natalia could not be the first victim of him. What if he has already raped someone? I should take this card with me and show it to Victor and Darwin.”       “So, at least, we know the man, who mocked Natalia on the order of Michael,” Terrence says thoughtfully.       “Right,” Raquelle pronounces quietly and puts the passport card in the wallet, which she puts in her purse. “I think we will need this wallet…”       “And I wouldn’t have assumed that the offender of that girl would have to do with Michael. I thought these cases weren’t related to one another.”       “Ar-r-r…” Edward growls quietly, clenching one hand into a fist and hitting it against the palm of his other hand. “If I know that Uncle did all of that, I don’t know what I’m gonna do to him. That jackass and that bastard will pay me for what they did to the poor girl.”       “Yeah, Michael has done so much…” Raquelle says thoughtfully. “And the worst thing is, we can do nothing. Just sit and wait.”       “And it’s very bad,” Terrence exhales slowly. “Even if we go to the police, they’ll hardly find Natalia.”       “Hey, didn’t those men say where they were gonna drive her?”       “Nope, they said they should’ve driven her to a very good place where nobody would find the girl,” Edward shakes his head. “But I don’t know where. Maybe, Uncle found an abandoned house or something like that and decided to hide Natalia there.”       “And how long is he gonna be holding her there?”       “I don’t know. But I think Uncle will show up early or late. I mean, he will have to. And he does understand it.”       “Yeah, but what do we do all this time? We have to worry about Natalia, and our lives are in danger ‘cause Michael wanna kill all of us.”       “Now the only way to save ourselves somehow is not walking alone at a late time in a deserted place,” Edward replies quietly. “Any crime is usually committed where there’s nobody, and nobody sees it. Agree, nobody would get a benefit from kidnapping someone in daylight in popular places. There would be too many witnesses. And Uncle and his deadbeats hardly need it.”       “I think I agree with you,” Terrence frowns slightly, putting a finger on his lip and starting to stroke his chin. “Wainwright almost raped Natalia in the deserted place at a dark time. You, Edward, got wounded in a similar place. I got attacked where there was nobody, even if it happened in daylight. Raquelle and I got caught in an almost deserted place closer to the evening. Natalia was taken away from here, the deserted place… So, it happens that we must not show up in dangerous places all alone, while Michael and his pals are free.”       “And I wonder how much time was gone after someone from those people had sent us the letters?” Raquelle asks. “I mean, one of them. Because another was left on the windshield of my car right before my eyes. But how much time the second letter had been in a mailbox before Violetta gave it to you? What if those letters weren’t sent on the same day, at the same hour?”       “I don’t think so. The servants check the mailbox every day and would’ve told us someone had put the letter. Yes, maybe, one letter could be put in the early morning not to become suspicious for neighbors, who usually sleep at that time. And they could easily go by the security…”       “Wait, everything is clear about the first letter,” Edward says thoughtfully. “But how did those men find the place where Raquelle was?”       “I don’t exclude that they could chase her. Maybe, that man kept himself far from her and the crew, with which she went to the country of the city for a photoshoot. But he was following them, put the letter at a good moment, and got out.”       “Chase?” Raquelle opens her eyes widely. “You think someone memorized my car, came at a good moment, and left the letter?”       “Sort of!” Terrence nods. “So, if you wanna go somewhere next time, even along with stylists, photographers, and assistants, I advise remembering that someone might be watching you. Paparazzi may also be familiar with someone from those people and easily betray your location.”       “Terrence’s right, Raquelle,” Edward agrees. “Nobody’s gonna hold you in four walls by force and be with you literally everywhere. But you should remember that they might watch or even attack you.”       “Well…” Raquelle thinks. “Nobody has come to me and threatened when I walk alone.”       “For the time being, Raquelle,” Terrence says gloomily. “For the time being. You’ll see, when you relax a little and forget about those men, danger will find you.”       “I never relax, even if there are many people around,” Raquelle shrugs. “Especially now, when we’re having this situation.”       “It’s right, but before you go somewhere alone, you better think several times,” Edward advises.       “Okay, I got it. Let’s not walk in similar places.”       Silence settles in the air for two seconds, during which Terrence runs his hand over his hair and glances aside, Raquelle gets a little excited from thinking about how to go to the meeting with Victor so that nobody suspects anything, and Edward looks around or at his dirty shoes covered with sand.       “Oh, okay, I think we will find nothing more here,” Terrence says thoughtfully. “We better go home before it’s too dark.”       “At least we went here for the reason,” Raquelle notices. “We found Natalia’s phone and bracelet and Eugene Wainwright’s wallet.”       “At least something!”       “So, what?” Edward asks quietly, frowning slightly and crossing his arms over his chest. “Did I make you sure that I didn’t lie to you?”       “Yes, you did. But don’t think you wouldn’t be responsible for what’s happening, and you are not charged with agreeing with Uncle against our family. My opinion didn’t change. If you do at least one bad thing, I will betray you to the police and blame you for being an accomplice to Michael and his gang. And I’m ready to repeat it again and again, so you don’t forget that your life depends on me.”       “I got it,” Edward shrugs, looking at Terrence without emotions. “I’m doing it not for praise, but for saving the lives of innocent people.”       Terrence says nothing and just gloomily looks at Edward, but then he sharply exhales and waves a hand, saying:       “Okay, let’s get out of here.” Terrence slightly rubs his hands, feeling goosebumps on his body. “The wind is very strong here. I got a little cold.”       “I will drive you home and then leave,” Edward says quietly. “You won’t reach your home by yourself from here.”       “Alright, thanks,” Raquelle thanks gently.       After looking at each other, Raquelle, Terrence and Edward come to the car of the latter one. And when they come to it and quickly get into it, Lockhart switches on the motor and presses the gas pedal, going on the road and turning on the other side without problems.       

***

      The evening is getting closer. The stranger and Victor are meeting again to talk about the current situation. Mr. Johnson had only by far not the best news, but now he is ready to tell his friend something good that might give them hope that this story might end well.       “Yes, my friend, I have a very good piece of news,” Victor says confidently, sitting in the driver’s seat of his car that is placed in a quiet place not far from the stranger’s hideaway. “I think that’s what will help us move off the dead point.”       “Speak, Mr. Johnson!” the stranger replies excitedly, sitting in the passage seat of Victor’s car. “I want to know everything!”       “Believe me, this piece of news will really make you happy and give you a little hope for the best.”       “I’m closely listening to you.”       “Alright.” Victor clears his throat. “My friend, do you remember I told you about the girl a few days ago? The model, who is probably a fiancée of Terrence!”       “Yes, yes, I remember,” the stranger nods confidently. “Raquelle Cameron… Yes?”       “Exactly! So, I want to congratulate you because I managed to find that girl.”       “Serious?” the stranger rounds his eyes. “You found her?”       “I did.”       “Gosh, is it really the girl, who we needed so badly?”       “Yes, my friend,” Victor nods confidently. “Raquelle Cameron is really a fiancée of Terrence MacClife.”       “My gosh, we’re lucky… So, could she help us somehow?”       “I think she could. At least, we can find out everything that is happening in your family. I want to ask that girl about much.”       “But how did you find her?”       “Actually, I didn’t find her. My colleague Darwin did. I’m working with him at the police. He’s a good guy: a kind, decent, wonderful worker… He is going to be promoted and become a sergeant.”       “So, does that guy know her?”       “He does. Darwin was studying at the university with that girl for one year, but later she dropped it and chose her career. And they didn’t speak after that. But today, they accidentally ran into each other at the café and talked a little.”       “He told her about the case of my family?”       “Not everything, but she knows something. But I must say that my workmate doesn’t know much about this story. I constantly go somewhere for my job and help you. So, I have no time to keep him aware. Darwin briefly knows something.”       “Alright, I got it… And what’s next?”       “Well, when Darwin started talking about the MacClife family, Raquelle told him that her fiancé was having the same situation. I mean the situation of the inheritance and the threats from his uncle. She asked him to tell her more, and he shared the information that he knew. And later, he found out that everything was the same in both cases. So, we can confidently say that Raquelle Cameron is a fiancé of Terrence MacClife.”       “And how much does she know about this story?”       “Sadly, I don’t know. When Darwin called me and explained the situation, he didn’t tell me everything. He just said he found the fiancée of guy, who you and I talked about, and was absolutely sure it was her. My workmate told her about me, and Raquelle persuaded Darwin to organize a meeting with me.”       “Wait, I hope your workmate didn't tell Raquelle that I was alive?” the stranger asks anxiously.       “Yes, that girl knows you’re alive. Darwin told her that.”       “God, why?” the stranger puts his hand on his forehead. “She might tell everybody that I didn’t die. And if Michael knows it someday, he will eat me and not let me end this business.”       “Don’t worry, my friend, I’m sure she won’t say anything. Besides, Darwin didn’t call any names. He just said I was helping my friend, who is dead for everyone now. And he added that Raquelle wanted to meet me secretly, so nobody knew anything. I’m even sure that Terrence doesn’t know about her plans.”       “I can’t be so sure…” the stranger says anxiously. “I can’t risk so much.”       “I understand you, but my intuition tells me that we can trust that girl. Of course, we will warn her that our plan must be a secret, and I’m sure she will give in to us.”       “What if Terrence knows everything? Or his mother finds out something? I’ve known her for ages! That woman has such good intuition! Hiding something from her is impossible! She does feel when you don’t tell her something!”       “Don’t worry, my friend, it’s gonna be okay. I will meet and talk to that girl. Moreover, when I was coming here, Darwin sent me a message, in which he told me that something bad happened in Raquelle’s circle, and she wanted to talk to me about it.”       “In her circle?” the stranger looks at Victor surprisingly. “But what could it be?”       “Who knows. Maybe, the guys are getting serious threats, and Michael decided to be much crueler, and she’s afraid it might end badly.”       “I won’t be surprised. That asshole could kill everybody immediately, but he plays time to torture us and extend his pleasure. The pleasure from revenge for what he is guilty of.”       “Anyway, I feel it’s a good chance to move off the dead point. We’ve been stuck in the same place for too long. But now, after we found Terrence’s fiancée, we got a little hope and probably a wonderful ally.”       “And when are you going to meet Raquelle?”       “Tomorrow at half past three. Darwin will be with me. I asked him to come with me and listen to the story that I’m going to tell that girl.”       “So, tomorrow…” the stranger says thoughtfully.       “You have no reason to worry,” Victor smiles slightly, softly clapping the stranger on the shoulder. “If I know something very important, I’ll immediately tell you everything. And tell her who you are and how you are connected with the MacClifes and something like that.”       “I believe that girl is determined if she did insist that you met.”       “Oh, yeah! Darwin said that girl was really determined to save the MacClifes from Michael’s threats. Raquelle is definitely worried and had literally been in despair before she met my colleague and learned a part of the story.”       “Oh…” the stranger sighs, running his hands over his face. “If only she didn’t suffer… Since that girl is the fiancée of my eldest son, Michael may want to try to kill her. And if he knows that she asked you for help, Raquelle might seriously suffer, and Terrence would hardly save her. Especially, if he and she are surrounded by a few deadbeats from the gang of my brother.”       “If we have to, we will do our best to provide her with protection. As far as I know, that girl and your son are famous people, but they don’t surround themselves with bodyguards and walk in the city like ordinary people. Though, they need security so badly now.”       “That’s bad.”       “If the situation is very hard, and Michael wants to be much crueler, the police will do everything to protect these people.”       “And I hope Michael will not learn about your meeting with Raquelle,” the stranger expresses hope.       “Darwin and I chose the café that was located not far from our police station. Moreover, we will take a few more officers. And we will not betray ourselves or the fact that we’re policemen. We will dress up like ordinary people that go to a café to eat.”       “If there are many accomplices of Michael, you will hardly deal with them.”       “Don’t worry, my friend!” Victor replies confidently. “Even if they’re there, nobody will dare to do something to Raquelle before the eyes of visitors and the staff. And I promise we will be watching every single suspicious person. If we notice something suspicious, we will immediately leave.”       “Well, so…” the stranger glances aside for a second. “In this case, I shall keep my fingers crossed.”       “By the way, do you remember I told you that Edward broke up with his girlfriend one month ago?” Victor frowns slightly, stroking his chin.       “Yeah. But why?”       “Raquelle said that girl had been her best friend since school time. And she also got threats from Michael. He has sent her a few messages on her mobile phone.”       “Seriously?”       “I learned it from Darwin.”       “My gosh…” the stranger frowns slightly and thinks for two seconds. “But what does she have to do with it? That girl isn’t connected with us!”       “Yes, yes, I know, nevertheless a fact is a fact. A danger is threatening that girl, and she might die because of Michael.”       “Gosh, what’s going on?” the stranger resents. “When will that scumbag calm down? God shouldn’t let him come up with the thought to kill Raquelle’s family and Edward’s ex-girlfriend! I wouldn’t be surprised if it happened!”       “Yeah, your brother might go down to that… If he’s going to kill the girl, who doesn’t have to do with this story.”       “It would be good to know more about her. Maybe, after what’s happening to that girl, we’d understand why Michael got a grudge against her, and why she broke up with Edward.”       “I think Raquelle could tell us very much. If those girls are best friends, Edward’s ex-girlfriend could tell Raquelle everything that is happening to her.”       “I would be happy.”       “Don’t worry, I will ask her about everything during tomorrow’s meeting.”       The stranger nods, glances at his hands, and starts to look at them with sadness in his eyes, while silence settles in the air for two seconds.       “Are you alright, my friend?” Victor shows anxiety, looking at the stranger better. “You have problems?”       “No…” the stranger replies thoughtfully, exhales sharply, and runs his hand over his hair. “Just worried about my children…”       “They’re gonna be fine, I promise. They will not suffer.”       “I don’t mean it. I just can’t stop thinking that Edward might kill someone for money. I don’t want him to make the same mistake that Michael did. Though, his mother and I don’t want it. For us, it’s gonna be a strong hit that we won’t take.”       “I completely understand your feelings. But now I can calm you down a little. Thanks to my informant, who is next to Michael, I found out that Edward refused to do it. Michael and he recently had a talk, during which your brother tried to make him sure that the murder of Terrence would be the best decision for him. But Edward didn’t want to give in.”       “You think he doesn’t really want it?”       “As my informant said, your son sounded true. Of course, he might do it if Michael, so to say, washed his brains. But I think Edward will not succumb. And even if he does, he will never forgive himself for that.”       “You did say Edward might be jealous of Terrence because his brother has everything, but he has nothing,” the stranger notices, throwing his hands up and looking at Victor amazingly.       “Yes, I remember. Edward might really be unhappy with having nothing, while Terrence has everything. But something tells me that he will not have the courage to do it. Maybe, Michael is absolutely right: your younger son is very hesitant and quite cowardly. I don’t want to insult him, but it’s true.”       “I don’t deny it. Edward has always been insecure and a little timid, but he tries to hide it. However, if Michael uses his ability to palaver anyone and make him or her sure to do what he wants, Edward might give up. My brother has had this skill since childhood. He can persuade you. Michael might blackmail a victim and promise very much. If he knows your weakness and unreal wishes, he may use psychological pressure on you. For example, if you’re cowardly, he always says it to make you prove that it’s not true.”       “Right, he is good at public speaking. My informant says he uses this thing not only for Edward, but also for all of his accomplices. He knows them like five fingers and presses on their weakness very strongly if they are afraid of something, doubt something, or reject something.”       “Too good. And that’s what makes me worried. If Edward stops resisting and succumbs to his provocations and eloquent speeches, Terrence will be dead. Both of them will be dead. The first one will die from a shot from a pistol, and the second one will become a killer and literally die for his mother and me. It will not be our child, Victor. Our kind, innocent child that does nothing bad to anyone.”       “I get it,” Victor says with sadness in his eyes.       “And I don’t know if someone can stop him after Michael obeys him to himself,” the stranger sighs quietly, running his hand over his hair. “Could there be someone to help Edward wake up and say, ‘no’ to his sick uncle? And piss my brother off as well as the money and the inheritance that my son sank his teeth into.”       “Let’s hope it won’t happen,” Victor suggests quietly. “I’m suggesting waiting for tomorrow. And after the talk with Raquelle, I will come to you and tell you everything about it. Decide what to do.”       “First, we should live until tomorrow,” the stranger says thoughtfully, glancing aside for a second and leaning back in the passenger seat. “What if we don’t live ‘till tomorrow and aren’t able to end what we should end.”       “No, don’t say it, my friend! I’ve said it many times and can repeat it much more times: don’t give up and lose hope. Not everything is lost. We have a chance to stop Michael and his gang. I’m sure your family will be sleeping quietly early or late, and you will finally let them know that you didn’t die on the day of the attempt on you.”       “I know, Mr. Johnson. It’s just hurtful for me that I can do nothing. It’s disgusting that I’m stuck here and doing nothing, while my family is about to die because of that crazy man. My children and my first wife are in danger! They’re about to die! I don’t wanna stay alone in the world! I don’t!”       “We will save them, I promise.” Victor claps the stranger softly on the shoulder. “Your children and their mother will be saved and able to live a quiet life. And the girls will not suffer.”       “I can’t leave my family in trouble. I can’t… I don’t wanna make the mistakes I made when being young… When I already left my eldest son and his mother on their own because of the freaking sense of shame.”       “You are doing something. But when the good moment comes, you will make a great surprise and ruin the plans of Michael, who will be shocked when seeing you in front of you.”       “Literally living for this moment…” the stranger sighs tiredly.       “It’s gonna be okay, don’t dare to give up,” Victor encourages confidently. “I believe in justice and do know that it will rejoice one beautiful day. We will prove to Michael that the world is ruled by love, kindness, and justice, not power, money, and convenience, as he believes.”       “You always know what to say and how to encourage me.” the stranger claps Victor on the shoulder with a slight smile and squeezes it. “Thank you so much, Victor. Thanks for being by my side at such a hard moment.”       “Doing this for the one, who’s been my friend for ages. And who is the godfather of my daughter.”       “I hope I will be able to thank you for everything you’ve done for me and my family someday.”       “I’m doing all of it not for thankfulness, but for our friendship. For the duty that any honest policeman must do.”       The stranger smiles shyly, completely trusting his old friend Victor and knowing that this man will never betray him or refuse to help.       

***

      After Edward drove Terrence and Raquelle home, he was driving in the city for some time. But later, the man, being in a depressed condition, is returning to the home of Rebecca, which he would like to leave at the nearest time. When he leaves the car near the house, Lockhart slowly leaves it and locks it with a key. Then he, slouching strongly, goes to the hall door with the same step, unlocks it with a duplicate of a key, and enters the house. After putting a bundle near the door, Edward tiredly takes off his light beige coat and puts it on a sofa in the living room, where he just came. The man slowly looks around the whole living room with his tired gaze full of sadness, comes to the stairs, sits on one of the stairs, doubles over, leans on his laps with his elbows, and runs his fingers through his hair, feeling just terrible in all senses.       Now, when nobody sees, the man allows himself to stop pretending that he is absolutely cold and collected. Although his condition got a little better, It is still not very good after the strong hit on the head. Lockhart still feels weak and literally had to put himself together to show he was fine. However, the thought that he must prove that they understood him wrongly and help his ex-girlfriend helps him hold on and overcome any mental and psychical pain. Edward is obsessed with strong hate and disgust. Not to someone he fought with. Himself. He is madly ashamed of all of his actions and ready for anything to save himself from the shame that gets obsessed with him. The man wants to disappear from everyone because he fears looking into someone’s eyes, but he understands he has no right to put his tail between his legs and hide in a bush.       Moreover, Edward cannot still come to himself after he found out the shocking truth about what happened to Natalia and meet her offender. He cannot get rid of the nasty sense of fault and feels much more disgusting, blaming himself for the end of their relationship. The man madly hates himself for not wishing to make this situation clear. It could have been different if he had known all the truth when he got those fateful photos. And now he got a new reason to curse and hate himself – the kidnapping of Natalia. Sadly, Edward did not save the girl. That’s why he is terribly ashamed of her. He is ready to sacrifice his life, so she is free and lives a quiet life.       After the breakup with Natalia, he did not get better. Even if someone says time fixes a heart. In the case of Edward, time literally kills him. It makes him feel much unhappier and suffer from his stupidity, naivety, and aggression, which became reasons why his relationship with the girl ended. And Edward completely understands those, who dislike or even insult him. He really deserves it. The man completely understands that he will not deserve the forgiveness of those, who lost respect and love for him, so easily. Though, he promises himself to prove that if he has made some mistake, it has never meant a wish to harm his family.       At some moment, Edward, who slowly gets up from the stairs and starts walking into the spacious living room and looking at everything he sees, gets nostalgic for the times he dated Natalia. When he was spending probably the best days of his life. The days, which became just wonderful memories that warm up the soul, but which would never be experienced again. Maybe, it was just sympathy – a nice feeling that gave him happiness and made him smile widely. But now his feelings became stronger. Edward feels terribly dreary without Natalia. He sees no other girl next to himself but the one, who he loves but has lost. The man realizes how much he needs the sweet blonde, with whom he felt so good. Who gave him love and care, which he was deprived of in childhood.       A little later, Edward, taking a little thing from a table and wrapping it in his hands, thinks about his first kiss with Natalia. He smiles unconsciously, as he comes slowly to a big picture of a girl, who was not definitely born in this century. And he feels his heart starts beating much faster from the memories of that special, unforgettable moment. The man barely remembers how he got obsessed with feelings he could not actually resist. But Edward does not forget the girl’s lips – unbelievably soft, a little hot, and with a flower smell. For him, it was a great pleasure to kiss her and breathe in the dizzying smell of her soft skin and silky blonde hair. The man will never forget those feelings. He will keep the memories of the time he spent with Natalia in his heart.       While Edward is slowly walking into the living room and looking and touching everything he sees with his sad eyes, he falls into the pool of memories that warm up his soul but make him sad. But at some moment, he stops somewhere in the middle and sets his tired, depressed gaze into the distance. Later, he has to come back to reality because he hears someone’s steps that are getting closer and closer. The man sharply turns and moves his eyes to where he hears those sounds. As it turns out, Rebecca slowly goes downstairs to the first floor and goes to the kitchen or somewhere else. The woman glances at her son, but sharply moves her eyes off and keeps going. Edward understands he wants to talk to his mother and calls her hesitantly:       “Erm… Mrs. MacClife…”       Rebecca stops and slowly turns on Edward, looking at him with quite a sad gaze. The woman says nothing and looks at the man, who sits on the sofa and starts to nervously twist on it.       “Can we talk about something?” Edward asks hesitantly.       “Talk?” Rebecca asks without emotions. “There is something?”       “Yes… Talk to me…”       “I think we talked about everything the last time, and I heard enough.”       “Please, Mrs. MacClife, I’m begging you. I want to explain everything and tell you something that… Happened today…”       Rebecca stands in the same place for two seconds, but then exhales sharply and relaxes her tense shoulders, saying:       “Okay, but do it quickly. I’m going to eat and go to sleep.”       Rebecca being cold and gloomy outside comes to the sofa, sits next to Edward folding his hands in front of himself, and hesitantly looking at his mother, into the eyes of whom he is ashamed to look.       “By the way, what’s wrong with your face?” Rebecca asks, looking at Edward’s face, seeing two bandages of different sizes, and glancing at the open part of his arms covered with fresh bruises. “And your arms? How did you get so many bruises? You fought with someone again?”       “I will explain everything later,” Edward promises quietly and moves his eyes down for a moment. “But please, listen to me and try to understand me a little.”       “Alright, speak,” Rebecca says quietly. “I’m listening to you.”       “You see…” Edward takes a short silence, during which he looks at his hands. “I… About our latest talk… Everything you said the last time…”       Edward falls into silence for two more seconds, understanding how it’s hard to pick up words.       “I thought about what you said much… It’s… It made me think about much… And now… I can say… Oh… Damn… How it’s hard…”       Edward feels that it’s a little hard for him to breathe from the excitement, and every single muscle gets strongly tense. But still, he, running his hands over his face, exhales sharply and glances at Rebecca.       “So, you were right,” Edward says quietly with sadness in his eyes. “About everything you said… Right when judging me for my actions, my words, my terrible character… I understand everything…”       “My gosh…” Rebecca wonders, shaking her head. “What I’m hearing! Did you start to realize that you behaved disgustingly towards all of us?”       “I’ve always known it, but I just confessed it to me. When I literally got a hit on the head with a baseball bat and was made to wake up.”       “So, got remorse?” Rebecca asks a little coldly, crossing her arms over her chest. “You began to understand you’d make a mistake if you went against your family and killed us with no regrets for getting our money?”       “You all understood my motives wrongly,” Edward says with sadness in his eyes. “You call me a lover of money, who wanna become rich by killing his relatives. But it’s not the truth! I swear, I’ve never even thought of exchanging my family with money, and I ain’t gonna do this.”       “But you did say it to all of us.”       “No, I’ve never said it. I meant only the wish to get the inheritance. No thoughts of robbing my family and especially killing it.”       “Don’t you want to become rich and stop being ashamed of your poverty in this easy way? You don’t want to work and earn honest money, but you thought you’d get everything at once!”       “Yes, I want to earn a lot of money someday to buy anything and rent at least the smallest and worst apartment. And if I have to work much for that, I’m ready.”       “Stop pretending to be an innocent lamb,” Rebecca demands coldly. “You betrayed your plans and said you had a right to what allegedly belonged to you.”       “The money of the family doesn’t belong. But the money that my father bequeathed to me does. I was fighting only for it. I didn’t want Uncle to get it and deprive my father of the last thing he had.”       “You’ve lied enough, Edward. First, you told everyone you were terribly mad because the people around you were more successful than you, but you had nothing. Do you actually know that those people worked hard, and they keep working to live well? You never thought of what those you want to kill have gotten over?”       “No, Mrs. MacClife, please, don’t say it,” Edward begs with pity in his eyes. “It’s madly hurtful for me that everybody considers me a monster that’s waiting for a moment to kill his close people. It’s not the truth!”       “You did make everybody think you needed only money, houses, cars, and other wealth from us,” Rebecca says quietly. “You want to reject your family for the money and insult those, who always treated you well.”       “I’m not gonna reject my close people, no matter how much someone offers me. To me, they have always been very important, and I don’t wanna lose them.”       “Remember, Edward, if you at least try to attempt and especially kill someone, you will die at least for me. I am already disappointed in you, and I refuse to believe that I could be so attracted to you. But by committing a murder, you can forget about my love for you.”       “No, Mrs. MacClife, please, don’t say it!” Edward begs with despair, shaking his head. “I love you with all my heart. Believe me, I’d never kill a person and ruin my life, living with a sin that I would never get rid of. I’m not a killer or robber! I’m terribly afraid of any guns and wanna scream from fear when seeing a pistol or a knife.”       “You love only yourself and big money. Family and friends mean nothing to you. We made sure about it when you openly claimed the right to someone’s money and the wish to become a killer for lots of dollars. So, you didn't work all day long and did become rich in a very easy way.”       “Okay, tell me… Tell me how to make you sure that I don’t plan anything bad against my close people, do love it with all my heart, and want to get back the trust of those I have fought with? How? I don’t want to be literally the same nasty, egoistic scumbag as Uncle is? You must blame him for all the problems, not me!”       “You will hardly deserve our forgiveness after everything you’ve done. After you left and humiliated your girlfriend! After you insulted your friend and his fiancée, who are guilty of nothing for you! After you gave me a strong pain and made me disappointed in you.”       “I swear, I didn’t want to hurt anyone,” Edward replies confidently, looking at Rebecca with sadness in his eyes and being upset because his mother is very cold to him. “I’ve never wanted to give someone pain and make them disappointed in me! Maybe, I’ve got lots of weaknesses, but I’d never do such a mean thing to those, who are dear to me.”       “But you are about to do it!” Rebecca notices. “You may kill your own friend at any time! Just because of jealousy over his success! Because of hate and madness! Because of the thought that you are loved less than he is!”       “I’ve never hated Terrence and Raquelle, and never been jealous of him. I’ve always treated my friend very well and called him my best friend and closest person. Literally a brother. My attitude toward him has always been true. And I still love him, respect him, and am proud of what that man has reached.”       “But Terrence himself doesn’t think so. He terribly hates you and says he will no longer remember that you are his friend. Never call you the one.”       “I know,” Edward moves his sad eyes to his hands. “I know I’m guilty of making him hate me. But I really want everything to be otherwise. I want to prove to him and all of you that I’m not so horrible and could give my life for my family.”       “You’ve done the things that have to do not only with your family. Don’t forget how much you insulted your ex-girlfriend.”       “If Natalia had told me the truth earlier, I would’ve never left her and would’ve done my best to help her.”       “How much the poor girl had to hear from you. Which humiliations she tolerated because of you! How you tried to turn us against her, making her a nasty prostitute.”       “I’m really very sorry for what happened. I confess that it was bad of me.”       “Bad is too soft to say! I can’t find words to describe how mean, nasty and disgusting it is. And I don’t mean only the situation with Natalia.”       “Mrs. MacClife…” Edward pronounces with pity in his eyes.       “You were lying to me and all your close people for a long time and proving that everything was fine. But then we suddenly found out that you broke up with Natalia, betrayed Terrence and Raquelle, and got them involved in the story of the inheritance. And to defeat us, you said you were ready to reject your family and kill it for big money, and you lastly blamed me for loving you less than your friend.”       “I completely understand it… I know I’ve done nothing good for someone to praise me and say they’re proud of me.”       “After what you did, you will never be told that,” Rebecca says confidently and coldly. “Maybe, you used to have a chance to get praise, but after so many mean actions, you can only dream about it.”       “You’re right…” Edward agrees quietly and obediently and inclines his head. “And it’s fair. Terrence is praised because he’s really a fine fellow. But I’ve done nothing to make someone proud of me. I’m really, terribly ashamed to tell people that I have nothing: no money, no home, no car, no good clothes… Nothing!”       “Is this how you began to speak? Is Terrence good now?”       “Mrs. Mrs. MacClife…”       “You know, Edward, it looks like hypocrisy. An attempt to get off it, excuse yourself and your actions, and do something for everybody to forget what you did.”       “I’m not trying to excuse myself. I’m just telling the truth and wanna know how to get another chance to prove that my love and respect for my close people are more than true.”       “What you’re talking about! Well, I’m personally not going to believe you so easily. I didn’t forget how rudely you were talking to me the last time. Do you think I had the pleasure to hear your charges? Everything you told me the last time!”       “I said it in anger!” Edward exclaims with despair. “I was terribly hurt! Because nobody has ever needed me. Father always let me know that he didn’t care about me. He was never interested in what was happening to me, what I felt, what I wanted, what about my problems… I never heard any advice from him and could only dream about open talks about teenage issues. And you… You didn’t show such a strong love for me… You’ve always praised only Terrence, you made him the center of your Universe… And my mother has never thought about me for the years we’ve been separated. I was terribly hurt that you never said you were proud of me, at least for a little thing. I just wanted to get some love that I’ve lacked all my life. I’m suffering ‘cause I’m not getting what my friend got.”       “The thing you are not right about is that your mother didn’t think of you when your father took you away.”       “You can’t know it.”       “She could say nothing to anyone and hide my pain under wide smiles. But your mother probably thought of you every day. About where you were, what happened to you, what you would become… Every day, she prayed that she would meet you someday.”       “Just like you’re dreaming of meeting your missing son?”       “Exactly! After Terrence’s father told me that my boy ran away from home and disappeared, my hopes began to fade away. I was even horrified to think he wasn’t alive. I lived with the thought that my younger son was dead for a few years because the police didn’t manage to find him. But… I’ve lately had hope. Hope that my son is actually alive. That I will know what happened to him early or late. And introduce him to Terrence. Do my best for them to become friends.”       “Do you think my hopes didn’t start to fade away after a few years of unsuccessful searches? I did actually want to give up and accept the fact that I wouldn’t be destined to unite with those I wanted to meet so badly! If I hadn’t been lucky, I’d hardly be praying about managing to win their trust and love. And not losing them after telling them who I am.”       “So, have you already found your family?” Rebecca frowns slightly.       “Erm… Y-yes…” Edward swallows up nervously, locking his hands tightly. “I have… Some information about it… I… I know… Where to find my brother and… My brother…”       “Do you think they will be happy to know about all your tricks?”       “Nope… But I’m dreaming of becoming them to be proud of. Becoming someone, whom they wouldn’t tell that he’s a loser and idler, who has reached nothing and can only live on someone’s account. Who would prefer being a beggar all his life and eating what there is in dumpsters to betraying his family and killing it just because Uncle wants it. That old bastard, who won’t stop by anything to… To revenge on Father for not getting the love that he got.”       “And you are probably going on his way confidently and dreaming of getting your friend out of your way because everybody loves him and is proud of him.”       “I want to get only Uncle and his pals out of the way. I want to save my close people from what that man can do. Maybe, I looked stupidly, trying to save you in my own way. But whatever my actions were, they were done only for one goal – to make Uncle leave us alone and get everything that was meant to belong to my father.” Edward glances at his hands with a quiet sigh. “However, even after doing this, I can hardly be a hero for everybody. I messed up everything and lost the trust of my close people. I can’t be excused.”       “Do you really want to prove that you love us?”       “Really want. I’m literally dying from a wish to get back your love and trust.”       “Well, if it’s so, reject your inheritance. It won’t make everybody immediately believe you, but it’s gonna be the first step to getting better. It doesn’t make sense if your uncle wants to give up. Just say, ‘I’m giving the money and the company to my uncle!’ – that’s all! There’s nothing hard about it!”       “I will surely do it!” Edward sharply moves his tired and depressed gaze to Rebecca. “I swear I’m ready to reject the money and let that man choke himself from jealousy and evil. He can give me all the papers, so I sign them immediately.”       “And if you also go to the police and tell everything you know about your uncle, it will be good for you. Also, no matter if they agree to listen to you. This is how you will show you’re ready to help us put that man in prison.”       “I’m ready to help with everything about the arrest of Uncle and his gang,” Edward says confidently. “You can count on me. I promise I will not betray.”       “All of us can work our tongues, but not everybody can do what they promise. No guarantees that you don’t lie and won’t take your words back.”       “No, I will not reject my words and will be doing my best for that man to pay for his sins,” Edward swallows up nervously. “Especially if the life of the one, who means much to me, will depend on it.”       “What?” Rebecca frowns slightly. “What do you mean? The lives of all of us?”       “Not only. But also Natalia’s life. Who may now be in great danger.”       “Natalia? But what happened to her?”       “She’s in trouble, Mrs. MacClife!” Edward says in a little shaking voice. “If we don’t help her, she might die because of that old, sick man!”       “Gosh, you’re scaring me! Why do you say Natalia might die because of your uncle?”       “Uncle’s people have kidnapped her. They’ve taken her away nobody knows where on his order.”       Rebecca closes her mouth with a hand and looks at Edward with horror in her eyes, saying nothing for a few seconds.       “What?” Rebecca opens her eyes widely. “They have kidnapped Natalia?”       “Exactly!” Edward exclaims. “Uncle threatened to do it a long time ago, but today he gave his accomplices an order to drive her where nobody would find her.”       “But, Edward, how do you know it? Maybe, you’re wrong? Maybe, you are lying to me?”       “No, no, Mrs. MacClife, I swear I’m not lying!” Edward jabs excitedly, getting quite nervous and shaking from the tension. “Natalia is really in trouble! That man is gonna do something horrible to her.”       “Did you see it? You saw them trying to take her away?”       “I did.”       “And you did nothing?”       “No, I was trying to protect her until the end and doing my best not to let them do anything to her,” Edward replies shamelessly in a quiet, low voice. “Fighting with those stinkers and not letting them come to her. But sadly, I lost. I let them take that girl away against my wish.”       “Fighting? So, is that why you have bruises on your body and face?”       “Yup…” Edward runs his hands through his hair and doubles over, leaning on his laps with his elbows. “And now I hate myself for not getting up and taking her far from those deadbeats.”       “My gosh…” Rebecca pronounces thoughtfully, looking at Edward suspiciously. “Were you trying to protect her? You couldn’t stand her and dreamed of literally killing her! Why did you try to save her from your uncle’s people?”       “No, Mrs. MacClife, it’s not the truth!” Edward glances at Rebecca sharply. “I’ve never wanted to kill her! And I was protecting her, even when I thought she was a false bitch.”       “Wait, but when did you see that? Did you meet Natalia and talk to her?”       “Yes, I caught her on the way and asked her to explain everything again. Of course, we fought again, but Natalia eventually told me what happened, and why she hid the truth from me. Now I know everything and have made sure that the girl was guilty of nothing. She was just slandered and almost raped by the nasty, sick bastard.”       “I’m aware. You can say nothing.”       “What?” Edward amazingly stares at Rebecca, opening his eyes widely. “You knew it, too? But how? How do you know Natalia was almost raped?”       “It doesn’t matter. But I’m well aware of that story. And I made sure again that my intuition would never betray me. I knew something wasn’t right about this story and was right.”       “Someone told you that?”       “I did say it didn’t matter!”       “Terrence told you?”       “I did say you didn’t have to know it,” Rebecca says quietly.       “Okay, you can be silent.” Edward waves his hand. “I know Terrence did it. Raquelle and he were the only ones to know Natalia’s secret.”       “Well, as you know everything, I can confirm it. Terrence didn’t want me to tell you that because he thought you didn’t deserve the truth. But now I see you woke up and realized you were an idiot.”       “Yup… I’m an idiot… An absolute idiot that ruined my relationship with my girlfriend. Though, I didn’t want to leave Natalia, and I loved her with all my heart. Because of that scumbag, who, as it turned out, worked for my uncle.”       “Wait, what?” Rebecca opens her eyes widely. “Natalia’s offender is your uncle’s accomplice?”       “Yes. Today, I met him for the first time and realized who he was when Natalia immediately got scared when he showed up in front of her. I memorized that scumbag very well thanks to the photo, which that man sent me. Without doubts, with the help of Uncle, who knew my home address.”       “My gosh… What news…” Rebecca shakes her head, closing her mouth with a hand. “I wouldn’t have thought it was all connected…”       “Someone would’ve hardly thought that freak would be Uncle’s accomplice. There was only the thought that Natalia and Uncle or one of his pals had some familiar people, who told him about her. But how that man learned my home address was a mystery. Now, this secret has been revealed.”       “So, didn’t you briefly think about it?”       “Erm… Yes… Maybe, I thought about it briefly. But I didn’t think it could be the truth.”       “Bad, Edward. Very bad. That you didn’t think. That you thought the lie was the truth. Thought the attempt of a cruel rape was a betrayal!”       “I know… I’m really very sorry for what happened.”       “How could you leave Natalia at such a hard moment? The poor girl was suffering, crying, and worried, and almost brought herself to a wish to kill herself… She would’ve swallowed many tablets or opened her veins if Terrence and Raquelle hadn’t been by her side. Her offender would’ve been the one to blame for Natalia’s death, as well as you. Because you humiliated, insulted, and mocked her!”       “No, Mrs. MacClife, please, don’t say such horrible things!” Edward gets horrified, opening his eyes widely. “I don’t know what I’d do if Natalia really killed herself. I… I wouldn’t forgive myself.”       “And instead of helping your girlfriend overcome that hell, you were pretending to be a hero and doing stupid things. You would’ve most likely gotten thankfulness for that. Not your attempts to fight with your uncle and meddle in the case that didn’t have to do with you.”       “I’m really very sorry,” Edward says with pity in his eyes. “I should’ve guessed everything was much worse than I thought… But think yourself, what should I have thought when I saw the photos of my nude girlfriend kissing and hugging a monkey? Who would think adequately after seeing THAT? As if Terrence wouldn’t get enraged if he saw the half-nude Raquelle in the arms of another man. As if someone else wouldn’t lose their mind and let the hate get obsessed with them!”       “I understand you were jealous of her and mad. And I know keeping your head cold is very hard in these cases. But you should’ve found out everything instead of starting to blame her. You should have calmed the poor Natalia down, not have pressed on her, and have paid attention to her condition. Her reaction to the photos.”       “I think I just needed someone to literally splash cold water over me or give me a slap in the face. This is how I could wake up and try to find out everything without screaming, insulting, or blaming her for lying and cheating. But sadly, I was silent. I was silent until the day when Terrence and Raquelle caught Natalia and me fighting.”       “You say the right things. You really needed someone not to let you get enraged and bring the girl to that condition.”       “I know…” Edward glances down. “But now it’s too late to say something…”       “Very sorry that it’s too late. You could’ve avoided all of that if you’d tried to overcome evil and jealousy, shared it with another person, and figured out everything.”       “You won’t understand what I felt. You were hardly jealous of Terrence’s father and a certain woman, even if she was just his colleague.”       “No, Edward, you’re wrong,” Rebecca shakes her head. “When I was too young, there were many cases when that man made me nervous. When we lived together, he never cheated on me, but I could burn from jealousy when seeing Jamie talking to a girl and smiling at her cutely. You know how much I wanted to come to her and pull her hair out.”       “Really?”       “And there were cases when Terrence’s father was jealous of me and some men. Of course, he didn’t show it openly, but I saw Jamie getting very nervous and looking at those guys badly. We two talked to the opposite sex as familiar people or friends.”       “And what was next? Jealousy was gone?”       “Yes, I learned to struggle with jealousy and began to trust your father, taking the fact that he spoke to other women quietly. But I did it after we broke up.”       “Could we learn not to be jealous of your second half and a stranger?” Edward asks gloomily. “And stop thinking that a girl or a man wants to steal your beloved person, who cutely talks to someone.”       “Of course, you could. People spend years learning to keep their emotions under control. There’s nothing wrong with fighting for your territory and what belongs to you like a wild animal. But it doesn’t mean you should see a potential competitor in every single person. Only too obsessed people suffer from terrible jealousy for every little thing and even their own family and want to get all the attention.”       “Do you wanna say if I’m so jealous and literally attack every single one to come to my girlfriend, it says about my sick jealousy?”       “No, I don’t say you’re sick. You just need to take it easy. Look, your friend and his fiancée suffered from it somehow. Terrence let jealousy get obsessed with him when he was told Raquelle cheated on him with another man. And how she was mad when she saw her fiancé in a hug of Rachel and nearly pulled her hair out! But they managed to learn to trust each other and control their emotions. Even if they’re worldwide famous, and every man is in love with Raquelle, and every girl wants to be with your friend. They know they need nobody but each other, and quietly accept the fact that they communicate with the opposite sex.”       “No, I think struggling with jealousy is almost impossible,” Edward runs his hand slowly over his hair. “Maybe, I quietly take the fact that a girl speaks to her family and close friends, but I get nervous when she talks to strangers. It’s some kind of attack on what belongs to me. I don’t want my girlfriend to belong to someone else.”       “I understand your reluctance to share a girl with others. It’s fine when a man wants her to belong only to him, and a girl has a right to guard what’s hers and literally fight with everyone to put an eye on her sweetheart. I don’t know… Maybe, you’re just afraid to be deprived of the warmth, love, and care that a girl gives you, and which you lack, as you say. And that’s why you’re acting so widely. But there’s nothing bad about a little jealousy.”       “Try to understand my feelings. Try to understand the reasons why I did it. I don’t excuse myself, but it has an explanation – terrible jealousy and the offense to the girl, whom I loved so much, but who betrayed me.”       “I’ve told you what you should do to avoid it.”       “I know I’m an idiot.” Edward inclines his head guiltily. “The moron, who thought of doing just something only after fewer people openly hinted that everything might be different about that story. Including Uncle Michael, who knows this story very well thanks to that nasty, sick bastard.”       “And what pushed you to find out everything?”       “Raquelle pushed. Before meeting Natalia, I met her at the café and talked to her about what happened. And at some moment, she openly said that Natalia could tell me something, but she refused to explain her words. So, I thought better.”       “She told you everything, and you got surrounded by Michael’s people, who you couldn’t save her from?”       “Exactly! And as there was Natalia’s offender, I understood I should’ve been much crueler and not let them touch that girl, at least with a finger. But sometimes that scumbag managed to run to her and feel up and kiss her right before my eyes. Making me burn from evil and a wish to kill the snake that gave so much suffering to the poor girl.”       “Oh, God, how awful…” Rebecca shakes her head, being shocked by what she heard.       “So, as you heard, despite trying to protect her so hard, Uncle Michael’s people won and took Natalia away,” Edward says in a low voice. “I couldn’t save her and lost… Lost… I almost pushed her to death…”       Edward leans on his laps with his elbows, setting his gaze into the distance.       “I wish they would take me away,” Edward adds in a little shaking voice. “Why? Why did they make that girl a victim? Why’s she suffering like that? Natalia became a victim of the horrible people again!”       “I think your uncle will show up and give his claims for the life and freedom of Natalia very soon,” Rebecca assumes thoughtfully. “He can’t hide that girl forever.”       “When he shows up, I swear I shall kill that bastard,” Edward says confidently, clenching his hands into fists tightly, and moves his eyes to Rebecca. “That snake has drunk enough of our blood and gone too far. He framed Natalia, made me believe in her betrayal, and told his pals to take her away nobody the hell knows where. And now, he might do anything to her.”       “But still, I hope nothing will happen to her, and she will be okay,” Rebecca expresses hope.       “If it hasn’t happened,” Edward says in a shaking voice, getting tenser. “But I don’t know what I’ll do to that jackass if I know he told his people to kill Natalia. I swear I shall skin him alive and never forgive that scumbag if that girl dies because of him.”       “Nevertheless, I’m sure she won’t break down. Natalia has the power of will and a tough character, and she must tolerate it and stand up for herself. Even if she’s all alone and unprotected in front of those horrible people. If she got the patience to be silent about the rape attempt for so long, she can survive the days she’s gonna have to spend in hostage.”       “Nothing will save her if a pistol is put against her head,” Edward replies in a broken voice. “Only a miracle…”       “Raquelle was saved by a miracle when Simon Ringer almost killed and raped her right before Terrence’s eyes. When she almost fell off the roof of the five-floor building. So, the same miracle will save Natalia. You should just believe your uncle will do nothing to her.”       “Terrence was next to Raquelle and didn’t let that man shoot her. But I’m not with Natalia, and I can’t help her. And I have to suffer ‘cause I’m powerless, and she got into a hopeless situation.”       “Early or late, your uncle will show up and say where he’s hiding Natalia. You will get a chance to protect her when one of his accomplices tries to kill her.”       “I’d be happy to be with her right now, but nobody knows where Uncle hid her. But I promise, when that old man shows up and says where he’s hiding Natalia, I’ll immediately go and take her away from there. Even if I have to get into there by force.”       “Do you really want to save her so much? Or are you just trying to whitewash yourself and not to give a bad impression about yourself?”       “Do you really doubt it?” Edward looks at Rebecca surprisingly with a heavy breath, shaking slightly from the tension. “It is my main goal that I will do anything for. I will not calm down until I know Natalia is alive and healthy.”       “Say honestly, do you still have feelings for that girl?” Rebecca asks with sadness in her eyes. “Do you want to help her because you succumb to them?”       “Yes, Mrs. MacClife,” Edward nods confidently, not even thinking about the answer. “Believe it or not, it’s the truth. My feelings for that girl are still alive and have never died. Despite my great evil and offense, I kept loving Natalia and protested against our breakup. I haven’t accepted the fact that we broke up on my initiative. I wanna believe we just fought, but I understand it’s not true.”       “But your relationship was hard to call serious. You were in the early stage of a relationship. You didn’t go further than the stage of sympathy. You felt very good together and were happy, but it’s not what people would call real love. It’s a stronger feeling, for which kissing and hugging aren't enough.”       “Maybe, it was really just a crush. A strong sympathy… Maybe, it happened because that girl was kind of afraid to go far… I felt that she was timid and didn’t feel comfortable. We felt good together, but there was a wall between us. I was close to her, but she acted distantly and was kind of afraid…”       “Because of the stinker, who almost raped her?”       “I think, yes. I didn’t use to understand the reasons why she wasn’t so free toward me, and I excused it with the fact that she had a tender character. But now I have an assumption that Natalia behaved in this way because of the trauma she got after that case. I’m sure she wanted it, but she was terribly afraid. So, that’s why she didn’t let me go further when I wanted to add something new to our relationship.”       “I get it. But she was sweet to you anyway?”       “Yes, Natalia treated me very tenderly and warmly. She gave me what she could give… I felt good, but… Sometimes I wanted more…” Edward sighs heavily. “Nevertheless, I was happy with her… Probably, for the first time in my life… As I said, there could be just sympathy between us… But now I believe those feelings got much stronger than before. And after I got separated from that girl, I realized I missed her. The tenderness she showed me. Her touches, her smell, her hugs, her kisses… Every day, I realize more and more how bad I feel without all of that. When I dated her, I felt so happy and surrounded by the love that I was consciously looking for in other people. But now I feel lonely. I’m broken.”       Edward falls into silence for two seconds, inclining his head, running his hands over his face, and setting his half-wet eyes on the floor.       “I love her, Mrs. MacClife,” Edward adds hesitantly and looks at Rebecca, feeling that a tear is getting out of his eye and rolling over his cheek and not hiding it not to let the woman see that. “I love Natalia with all my heart. And I’m sorry I lost her because of my stupidity. I do really feel bad without her. And I won’t take it if something happens to her.”       Edward squeezes the bridge of his nose.       “I know I sound like a girl and seem weak. But I will no longer have a meaning in life if she dies because of that bastard Michael, her sick offender, or their pals. I don’t want it! I don’t!”       Edward doubles over and sniffs quietly, grabbing his hair with his fingers painfully and starting to shake much stronger. He is in despair and feels he is about to have a nervous breakdown. The latest events wrecked his nerves and deprived him of strength. But today was the last drop. The man just cannot hold himself down and lets tears roll down his cheek. He is no longer afraid to seem a weak, sentimental guy, who has been trying to hide it all his life.       “Nevertheless, you shouldn’t give up,” Rebecca says softly. “You should do your best to save that girl.”       “I always tell myself about it and know that I have no right to let things happen as they want,” Edward replies in a strongly shaking voice, wiping tears off his cheeks and under his eyes. “But you know how it’s hard to pretend that everything is fine, and I can tolerate anything! I do feel so bad, but if something else happens, I might fall into despair. I can’t stay strong anymore! I can’t! I have no strength to fight! What happened today broke me down.”       “I know what will help you. What will help you hold on and bring the case to an end.”       “What?” Edward sniffs quietly. “Even if I persuaded Terrence and Raquelle to help me, I didn’t feel better.”       “If you really asked them for help, I’m very glad you got on well with them somehow. But I mean something different.”       “What?”       “Love. The love will help you keep your mind and not break down at a very important moment. If you love Natalia, listen to your heart and do what it tells you. Despite nothing, I see you have feelings for that girl, and you’re really in love with her and suffering because she is not with you. And if you really want to prove that we were wrong about you, and you really love her and your family, you’ve got a chance to do your best.”       “Do you think my feelings for Natalia will help me?”       “They must help. Because you let yourself show these feelings and confessed them, you realized that your actions were disgusting. Am I not right, huh? Didn’t the truth about the rape attempt and the kidnapping of Natalia make you wake up?”       “Yup…” Edward nods and wipes off tears under his eyes. “After all of that, I can’t play this game by the old rules. Now I must play differently. Become much crueler towards the man, who must pay for everything he’s done to me, my family, and that poor girl.”       “The most important thing is to be sure that she will be fine until the end, and you will wait for your uncle to tell you where to find her, and what you should do to save her. Don’t reject what he will offer you – agree on everything. This is how you can prove to that girl that she is not an empty place for you.”       “I will not give up on rescuing her!” Edward says confidently, moving his wet, red eyes to Rebecca. “Natalia will not become a victim of Michael! She must not suffer! None of my close people must suffer! If Uncle wants, he can do anything to me, even kill me. But the others must not become victims of that man. If I messed up everything when I meddled in the war between Uncle and Father, I must pay for it. If I have to die, I will do it. If I kill that stinker of someone from his gang, I will go to prison and serve a sentence.”       “That’s good you don’t refuse to help Natalia,” Rebecca nods with sadness in her eyes. “But please, don’t say your uncle can do anything to you, especially to kill you. You’re giving me a lot of pain by saying such horrible words.”       “The bigger fault is on me.” Edward moves his depressed and sad gaze into the distance. “So, I must pay for the sufferings that I gave my close people.”       “No, Edward, don’t say it. I understand it’s very hard for you now, and you’re about to go crazy. But now, you can’t give up on everything. When Natalia needs your help. I’m sure she hopes you'll come to help her and still loves you at heart.”       “I can see it only in my dream,” Edward replies quietly and thoughtfully. “Just like it happened in my today’s dreams… When everything was fine, and she told me she loved me… Was hugging, kissing, caressing… It was so nice that I wanted not to wake up and to stay in that dream forever…”       “If you want to try to see it not in your dream but really experience it, rescue that girl. Meet her expectations and prove that your words about your feelings for her are not an empty sound, but the real truth.”       “You’re right…” Edward nods and puts his hands together, bringing them to his mouth. “I must do it. Never forget about my main goal. And remember about the truly strong motivation.”       “I believe your heart will tell you what to do,” Rebecca replies softly. “And it won’t let you become a stoned man and stop feeling something good. Just listen to what it says and succumbs to its sound. Your sixth sense will not betray you and will tell you what you do wrong or right.”       “Well, you know…” Edward chuckles without emotions on his face, still looking into the distance. “Honestly, it’s now screaming, ‘Get out of her life, betrayer! She doesn’t deserve a scumbag like you! She needs another man that would be a thousand times better than you.’”       “It’s not the sound of the heart, it’s the sense of fault,” Rebecca smiles slightly. “That’s what’s dragging you down. You’re afraid you won't be forgiven and understood and wanna hide in your cocoon not to look into the eyes of those, who are mad at you. But you’ve gotta fight with it if you want to get the love, respect, and trust of your family and former girlfriend back. Don’t let a sense of guilt get a victory and make you stay in a bush. Thus, you will never get better and will make your relationship with your family worse. Nobody likes cowards and talkers, remember this.”       “Thanks for the advice, Mrs. MacClife,” Edward forces himself to put on a smile. “Your words motivate me.”       “Not my words, Edward, but your love for Natalia. That’s your strongest motivation that will help you do everything that so many people are expecting from you.”       “I hope this motivation will help me save Natalia and make my relationship with my close people better. I want to do my best for that and… Maybe not to make someone proud of me and call me a hero… But at least stop considering me a stinker.”       “I think you’ve already taken the first steps.” Rebecca puts her hand on the shoulder of the morally broken Edward with a slight smile. “And keep doing the same. Prove to everybody that you are not what people call you, and everybody will think better and start to doubt your egoism, greed, and meanness. Help Natalia save herself from your uncle, and don’t let anyone harm her. Yes, it’s gonna be hard, but early or late, your sufferings and wish to risk your life for your close people will be rewarded. Maybe, not at once, but someday it will happen.”       “I promise I will do my best to help Natalia and prove to everybody that you understood me wrongly,” Edward replies confidently. “And I will do my best for you to be just a little proud of me and not to be ashamed of holding me as an example. I’m not perfect, but I will be aiming to get better.”       “Everything’s in your hands, Edward. The important thing is not to give any reason to doubt your trueness, to believe in yourself, and to never give up, even if it’s very hard, and you feel you’re about to reach your limit. Terrence had a similar situation when everybody turned their backs on him. But he changed their opinion and got a second chance. If your friend did it, you can do it, too.”       “I will no longer make my close people disappointed. I will do my best for everything to be different.”       Rebecca says nothing and just smiles shyly. Although she does not look so cold, the woman keeps Edward at some distance and does not let him hug her. Even if he really wants to press himself close to this woman and feel her warmth. However, despite nothing, Rebecca is by the side of this guy. And unlike Terrence, who is hiding his wish to show care for his friend, she reveals some of her feelings but does not talk about them too openly. Nevertheless, Edward is glad to get just something. He understands that nobody would forget his sins and squeeze him in their strong hugs with words about how much he is loved by them.