Friday, 8 AM.
Standing on a rocky cliff of Jansu island, a huge mansion made of bricks and closed grilled windows faced the sea.
The same estate stood miles away from the nearby, yet nearly deserted town within the island.
The mansion was surrounded by security, guarding its isolated estate against unexpected guests. It was utterly the most protected home on Jansu island.
Jansu island was known for its rough waves, often flooding the coasts. It resulted in many fishermen to lose their homes that several left the island to search anew. Those who remain lingered the peaks of the island, away from the seas.
It was essentially one of the most remote islands in the country and rarely were there boats going in and out of the place.
From inside the four-story mansion, a man was looking out his grilled windows, holding up a phone in his hand. He had jet black hair, a well-built body, and tanned skin. He stood about five feet and five inches tall.
His arms had burned marks, suggesting he had been exposed to a fire years back.
The same man took a deep breath and said on the phone, "Catherine, make sure you are not followed. Otherwise, both you and I will go down for this. We need to be very careful."
"I won't be followed, and what for? Winfield already divorced me! He doesn't care about me. My daughter and I have nothing now! We have no choice but to seek your help!
We have nowhere else to go." Catherine answered on the other line. "I'll see you in three days."
"Catherine! Remember, she is Elizabeth now. Make no mistake," told the man. "And don't ever trigger old memories."
"Whatever, Blake," said Catherine before ending the call. "Don't worry, I'll be careful."
After keeping his mobile inside his pocket, Blake Taylor took a deep breath. He closed his eyes and muttered, "I hope she does not bring trouble."
Turning around, he grabbed a bottle of medicines and exited his room, walking a few meters across from where he earlier was. He found himself standing in front of a guarded room with two men standing on each side.
He turned to one man and asked, "Is she done with her breakfast?"
"She should be, sir. It has been almost two hours since the maids brought in her meals," answered the security.
He nodded and knocked on the door before saying, "Elizabeth, I'm coming in."
"Um... Okay," a female voice answered.
Only after hearing a confirmation did Blake Taylor entered the room.
As soon as he came in, he scanned the room and saw the woman whom he called as Elizabeth. She was sitting in front of her small coffee table, drinking coffee.
The woman looked like she was in her fifties. She had striking blue eyes and long golden hair. Her figure was quite small and her skin was pale.
Like Blake, she had burn scars on her arms and a little on her right cheek. Yet, despite the marks on her face, she still looked beautiful.
The same woman forced a smile on her face and asked, "Yes, Blake?"
That made Elizabeth lean back. She asked, "Really, that's the first."
"Well, there is a first for everything," Blake answered.
Blake looked around inside her room and stated, "I have things to do. I also have to prepare for our visitor's arrival. So I will leave you here to rest. In the afternoon we can take our usual walk by the cliffs."
Elizabeth nodded and answered, "Okay."
Blake did not linger any longer. He stood up and left Elizabeth, doing whatever it was he needed to take care of.
Elizabeth, on the other hand, calmly watched as Blake left her room. When the doors closed behind her, she went straight to the bathroom and locked herself in. She went to the toilet bowl and spat out her capsules. She quickly flushed down the medicine and sat on the seat for seconds, pretending she was clearly using the lavatory.
She then came out and rested by the grilled windows of her home. She placed her hands on the caged views and looked around.
There was absolutely nothing. There was no house, no boats that stood afloat by the cliffs either. Even the seas within her line of sight had Blake's men roaming around the waters.
She closed her eyes and muttered, "How will I ever get out of here? How?"
A tear fell down her cheek as she added, "It's been too long... It's been too long."
Elizabeth did not know for how long she cried, but she wound up making her way to her bed, curling into a ball. She embraced the pillow tightly and said, "My little Sami - my baby. I miss you so much... Are you doing well for yourself?"
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Mommy, Where Is Daddy? The Forsaken Daughter's Return