Chapter 3

Anshuman parked his rental close to the lit-up area outside the new nightclub. He didn’t want to be conspicuous and just wanted to observe everyone around. He was fiercely uncomfortable in the complete black-colored outfit fitting him like a second skin. He thought it was enough camouflage. He walked across the road to where a whole new world awaited him. He took in a deep breath and relished the salty sea breeze bring along with it traces of humans busy littering the shore and also the nicotine puffed up by the youth gathered. The club building was lit up throughout and the crowd was swelling by the minute. Most of them were young locals out for a free inaugural drink. He made his way towards the entrance where the bouncer was checking the ids of a group of young guys for their age. It was obvious they had just made the threshold as they screamed and hooted as soon as the burly man stamped their wrists. Anshuman closely followed them as he entered a dark new cosmos booming with the latest hit numbers.

The evening was lively with the booze flowing all around and it was a far cry from the lousy nightclub he had seen in Mumbai. Whoever had done this one had left no expense to layer up the interiors or if the bar was any indication. If he had been depressed then the atmosphere here infused a little spirit trickling back into him. He took the drink offered and moved to the corner from where he could observe the proceedings. The mixed scents of everyone, cocktailed with the air freshener was intoxicating in itself. He got it why people came to claustrophobic places like these… The revolving colored strobe lights took turns to focus on every patron who was dancing or chatting in oblivion. Though he wondered if anyone could hear themselves in the ear-splitting DJ noise. Anshuman didn’t even know what he was looking for but his gut that was nature ordained, told him something was in store for him…

Almost an hour into the place Anshuman’s ears went dead with the blaring music and vision was precariously on the verge of collapsing if he remained more in the now oppressive insides. He was hungry since he had skipped lunch so he walked outside to their outdoor units lined along the shore where one could enjoy the food and booze along with the warm evening breeze. He settled in a corner shack and placed his order for some local delicacy that the server recommended. He loved Goan cuisine and the limited times that he had ventured out during the time he was here, he had enjoyed the food. He didn’t even know the names of the dishes but none of them was something he could complain about. Tonight he feasted on Goan fish curry which was a coconut-based dish flavored with red chilies and fresh fish served with fluffy rice. He was also served the Sol Kadi.  This he had tried everywhere. It was a  popular and soothing digestive drink made from dried kokum fruit and coconut milk. The food calmed his insides and he felt good after ages. Was it because this was Baga, where his sister passed…?

He felt as if her soul was calling out to him. He was looking around for a pretty woman with curly hair and a cleft in the chin with a tiny birthmark on her forehead and someone who drew and painted well. Yes, his Meera was an artist in the true sense of the world. She had made countless paintings which at one time adorned their proud walls in their Haveli back in Hissar. But after she had escaped to Pune to enroll in the famous art school of her choice all hell had broken loose in his stereotypically set household. The archaic standards didn’t allow for such frivolous pursuits by young girls and Meera was a free bird not willing to be caged.  Nonetheless, his father had burnt away all her canvases and all Anshuman was left was her sketchbook that he had managed to salvage hiding from the family. He had helped her with the funds to pursue her dream and was in regular touch irrespective of his booming real estate business. Should he have paid more attention to his sister? Was she so lonely that she had to run into the arms of a terrorist…? This is what he was told by the Crime branch last month. Could he have saved her if he had known she was in murky waters and finally that last phone call…where she had been scared out of her wits? She had suspected her now-dead husband and had witnessed something she shouldn’t have. The call was made from a local payphone right in Baga. The number no longer existed just like other traces of his beloved sister.

He felt the cold on his cheeks as he stared towards the dark horizon. No matter how far one went, one couldn’t reach the narrowing vistas… Was his quest to find out about Meera just that…? A lost cause…? He realized he had been crying and wiped the moisture away. Just as he was about to get up a tall dark good-looking man probably in his 40s walked up to him.

“Hello there… I am Kader Shah the owner of Passion… I have been watching you for a while now… I hope you liked the food and the ambiance… is there anything that you are upset about…? Can I help…?”

Anshuman looked at the bearded man adorned with superior quality of the chequered suit and matching trousers. The man knew about fashion because the outfit suited him. Anshuman shook hands with him. “…I am Anshuman and I have recently moved to Goa….”

Kader gestured him to take his seat while he sat across and ordered a drink for them. “…So what can I do to help you…? I am not imposing I hope… I have been here for ages and it’s a part of my job to observe people around… and today you caught my attention… So if there is anything you need help with… I am at your service…”

Anshuman smiled despite everything. The guy had stayed away from his guests just to check out on one upset person and that spoke a lot about his credibility. Being a businessman himself Anshuman couldn’t help but admire the quality in the guy. “…So Kader, can you help me find some old-timer in this place… someone who can give me information about…uh… a decade ago…?”

Kader sipped the wine placed by the server minutes ago and thought for a moment before he replied. “…Well Anshuman, there are many but it depends on what you are looking for…accordingly people will warm up to you… if you know what I mean…”

Anshuman nodded. “…a decade ago, my sister’s… body…was washed ashore right in this place… I didn’t even get her remains… I have no information other than the fact that she died here and was cremated…”

“…I won’t get your hopes high Anshuman, but ten years is a long long time… Also I am sorry but bodies get washed often here… but I promise I will find what I can… why don’t you give me your contact number…?”

They exchanged numbers and chatted about business in general. Anshuman promised to visit the club again and shook hands with Kader as he left the happening place. He was not wrong after all.

A little hope had been rekindled deep in his heart…

 ©priyagole. No part of the story can be copied or shared anywhere without the consent of the writer.

Chapter 2

Anshuman tried talking to the boy again. His sobs had reduced to hiccups and the tide was also setting in. He wanted to reach back to his condo before being caught by the officials. He also wanted to drop the kiddo at his home. “…buddy… are you alright…?” He asked softly and this time the boy didn’t shirk away. He nodded bobbing his head in quick succession and Anshuman found it way too endearing. He didn’t have experience with kids but gave it a shot nonetheless. “…so, what’s your name buddy…? Are you from around here…?”

The boy gave him a guarded look and Anshuman watched a play of different emotions passing the cute round face. The boy turned towards him. “…mmmmm ….my name… is…. Mmmman… ppppppreet…” he stuttered and immediately looked away. Aman’s heart went out for the kiddo.

“…Manpreet is it…? Lovely name buddy… so you are not from Goa…?”

The boy nodded again. “….aaaai…. sssstay…. Heeere…” he pointed towards the rock.

“…. You stay in a rock cave buddy…? What about your parents…?” Anshuman was now curious.

Manpreet shook his head and gave him a tentative smile the dimple in his left cheek suddenly coming to life. “….aaa…. aaaafter the rrrrock…”

Anshuman stood up and held his hand. “…come on buddy… time to go home… let’s get going….”

The boy looked down and away and it was then Anshuman’s eyes fell on his shorts. They were wet. So was the area around it. The boy had probably wet himself. “… was this why those boys were bullying you…?”

Manpreet suddenly looked up at him and his saucer-like eyes well up once again as he nodded. “…mmmmy… sss…ssss… speech… and tttthis…” he looked away again.

Anshuman didn’t know what got over him but there was something about this kid that tugged at his heartstrings. “…listen, buddy… I will drop you home… I promise no one will say a word about this to you… that’s a promise… alright…?”

The boy stared unsure about what to do and then slowly stood up on wobbly legs. Anshuman dusted the sand from the rest of his body and held his tiny hand in his. This time the boy didn’t pull away. They walked together towards the rock.

“…so, buddy… who is home now…? Mom…? Dad…?” He asked wondering what kind of parent left their kid unattended especially given his issues.

“…Ma… not tttthere… work…”

“Ok…and what about dad…?”

Manpreet tightened his grip on his palm and spoke softly. “…nnnnoo dddad….”

Anshuman was forced to silence. There was no father in the picture? He felt guilty about judging the existing parent. As they crossed the huge rock, Manpreet pointed towards the secluded house and stuttered. “…mmmmmy ha…ha… house…” Anshuman nodded wondering how could the family stay aloof with a kid. Was the mother alone in this creepy place…? They walked towards the house and as they reached the gate covered with creepers, a plump lady in salwar kameez opened it. She had a worried look on her wrinkled face her grey hair all over her face as if she had been busy with strenuous physical activity.

“…Mannu puttar… where were you, beta…? Nani was so worried…” She walked up to them and it was then she realized Anshuman was there as well. Her expressions changed as she dragged Manpreet towards her. “…Puttar go inside… I will come right after…” Manpreet nodded and with a last look at Anshuman scampered into the rabbit hole they called house. The woman looked at Anshuman wringing her nervous fingers. “…er..who are you…? I have never seen you this side…”

“…My name is Anshuman… I have recently moved into my condo right there…” He pointed towards the direction of his home. “…Actually, I was running when I saw Manpreet crying and being bullied by the older boys… so I got him home… I shall take your leave now…”

“…Er… thank you for helping him… its because he stutters badly… he is teased and ridiculed around here… I am trying my best but…” She looked away blinking tears. Anshuman didn’t know what else to say to her and nodded as he left. He felt as if he had left a piece of his heart behind him.

He rushed into his condo and freshened and preparing a late breakfast of scrambled eggs for himself he picked up his tray and went to his favorite spot in this house, the huge balcony. It overlooked the sea and he felt in alignment with mother nature. He had set up a rocking chair there and had most of his meals right there. The balcony had been a witness to his drunken bouts a couple of times. He was ashamed about it but he couldn’t help it. Sometimes emotions surpassed all rational thought. Back at Hissar, it was forbidden to talk about Meera let alone grieve for her. Even the news of her death didn’t make a dent in their opinions and that was when he had decided to move out. His father had been unhappy but he didn’t care about others anymore. He was broken inside and before the dark emotions crushed him totally, he wanted to break out of the shackles and do his best to find out more about Meera’s last days.

He picked up the day’s newspaper. There was the same old news about politics and sports and of course the pandemic. But nothing interested him. There was time he would be glued to the stock market news but no more. Right then his eyes fell on the opening event of a new night club Passion. Goa was filled with the types and he wondered who wanted to enter the cutthroat market during the pandemic lull. However, the picture of the nightclub took him back about 5 years ago when he had met that gorgeous woman in the shady nightclub in Mumbai. Angie… she was angelic. He still saw her in his dreams and woke up the full mast. No woman interested him at a carnal level as Angie did. He had even tried to date Nirvika Goyal, Keshav’s sister last year, with a hope to rekindle any passion left in him. But she was in love with Amandeep and had conveyed it to him. Nonetheless, she turned out to be an amazing friend, and even now she often texted to find out how he was doing. But his fierce attraction towards Angie remained even to date. He chuckled as he looked away. He sighed as he looked back at the advertisement. Something about it intrigued him as if drawing his attention towards the club again and again. His eyes moved around the different little pictures in the advertisement collage and it was then it clicked in. The location was very close to Baga beach.

He stood up making his mind. Would this rendezvous tonight give him the needed direction…? He didn’t know. He was going tonight for the party…

©priyagole. No part of the story can be copied or shared anywhere without the consent of the writer.

Chapter 1

January 2021 Varca, Goa

Anshuman ran along the sea line his shoes digging into the soft sand, the salty morning breeze ruffling up his uncut hair. He loved running on this stretch of the Varca beach because there was barely a human in sight for miles. The pandemic had already put a dampener on local tourism across Goa but Varca always had that virginal aloofness according to his research. He valued his solitude tremendously and even now as he halted and panted looking up to feel the morning sun on his face, he wondered what he was doing here. He found a rock and sat on it trying to breathe life into his fatigued body. As the beads of sweat meandered their way from his forehead through the unshaven cheeks and finally joining their counterparts on his neck, he sighed trying to figure out the direction of his thoughts.

It was over a month that he had known about Meera’s passing… a decade ago. His sister had meant the world to him and it was difficult for him to accept the fact that he had been groping his way in the dark while she had already been subjected to a watery grave. According to reports, she was murdered and her body thrown into one of the Goan beaches and found in Baga where it had washed ashore. He had the information from trusted sources. If he didn’t trust the army intelligence and the Crime Branch whom could he trust? He had good friends in Mumbai, Keshav Goyal who owned a Pharma corp, and Amandeep Singh Sehgal ex-army, all of who had colluded to dig out the truth while fighting their own battles. They had served him the news on a platter. He had begun to lose hope of finding his sister after years of dead ends but the news of her death had hit him hard.

He realized he wanted to know what Meera was doing in Goa when she was pregnant and despised her husband. She had been in love with the wrong guy, Rehmat alias Haider-ul-Rehman a dreaded terrorist as per her last call. She had even married him and walked her way to the funeral pyre. Rehmat had been killed in an encounter with the Army last month but Anshuman was far from closure. He had wound up everything in Hissar. His buoyantly flourishing business, his stakes in the family enterprise… everything. He had sold off his shares and handed over the reins to his cousins. He had then purchased a condo right here facing the empty stretch of the Varca beach and had moved here in time for the New Year Carnival. The fireworks had lighted up the Varca night sky but he had plunged into the amber-colored liquid in the hope of finding solace, but it was of no use.

Getting back to the present, he panted and looked across the stretch of the beach. It would be soon time for the high tide and he would hear announcements to stay away from the waters, right into his condo. He squinted to look at the waves gathering haphazardly from different directions and crashing into each other. He wondered if the waves of change in his life would set his direction for him… would the rhythm of the waters set his soul free…? He barely slept in the fortnight that he was here. Strange nightmares haunted him where he could see Meera from a decade ago, drowning and he would be paralyzed to watch her get swallowed by the mighty ocean.

He would then wake up sobbing and couldn’t sleep after that. He had been depressed for ages after Meera had gone missing and even been medicated for a while. But he knew, unless he found out more about his sister, her last days in Goa, he wouldn’t be at ease. He had known that her body had been washed ashore along the Baga beach, and just yesterday he had paid a visit with Meera’s picture in tow hoping to get some information. But again, it had been moot and no one seemed to know about anything that transpired a decade ago. He had however left his contact with a few local shacks which were in business a decade ago to get back to him if they recalled anything. There was nothing more he could do but he couldn’t let himself leave Goa yet. There was this invisible pull that held him back…

He looked along the shoreline and saw he had wandered to the extreme corner of the beach for the first time in the fortnight he was here. There was a huge covering of palm trees and wild bushes and beyond that was a single storied home well camouflaged and unless someone looked closer it was possible to miss it completely. He wondered who would want to stay away in seclusion… probably someone like him who ran away from the chaos life offered. He shook his head and decided to explore a little further now that he had come so far along. There was a huge rock probably formed from years of being hit by the monstrous sea waves blocking the view of the final beach stretch beyond that point. The rock projected ahead like a roof and he gradually walked ahead curiosity getting the better of him. He approached the rock and found a naturally formed cave. He couldn’t tell how deep inside the cave was, but the musky smells and the echo of something that sounded like crashing waves spooked him to explore further. He turned back and was about to leave when he heard some sounds beyond the rock. It sounded like children, making him wonder what were kids doing here on this isolated stretch. He walked ahead crossing the rock and saw a group of young boys gathered in a circle. They were all talking together and the discordance was irritating him.

As he kept looking around to see if their parents were closer by, the group moved and he saw a young boy not more than ten seated on the sand, scared and sobbing while the others were mocking and laughing at the poor kid. Reflexively, he walked towards the group and spoke with a stern voice. “Hey, you… all of you… what are you doing here…? Where are your parents…?”

The other boys not much older than the boy on the ground looked at him in bewilderment and then at each other. One of them, probably their leader walked towards him and said, “…Hello sir, I am Jacob. May I know what brings you here to our corner…?”

“…So Jacob, personal corner… is it…? Ok then I will leave you all alone and make a phone call to the officials on the beach… maybe you can negotiate with them… what say…?”

Jacob looked back at the others and they all gave him the ‘look’ as they walked away leaving the crying boy alone. He walked towards the kid who flinched as he neared him. “…Hey buddy don’t be scared alright…? My name is Anshuman… what’s yours…?” Anshuman sat next to him.

The boy, with his overgrown unruly hair flying across his face, looked up with tear-stained eyes. Gosh, they were brown and beautiful guarded by long fan-like eyelashes and something about them tugged at his heart. Those eyes…they spoke a volume… they held a great deal of depth in them. He sighed realizing he was losing his nuts big time. He only knew one other person in this world whose brown-black eyes spoke to him, ever since they were children…whose perpetual unkept hair kept falling on her face every time she was engrossed in something…  his beloved sister, Meera.

©priyagole. No part of the story can be copied or shared anywhere without the consent of the writer.

Prologue

December 2016, Mumbai

The strobe lights blinked into his uncomfortable eyes as Anshuman scouted around to check out for anything familiar. His informant ‘Jhatka’ had emphasized he would get what he wanted to know today… Some titbit about Meera…his little sister. It was over five years now he had last spoken with her. Was she here…? In this shady nightclub in this reprehensible corner of Mumbai…? Oh, how he hated this city… apparently it never slept. Today being New Year’s eve, it was bursting at the seams as callous people ventured out to celebrate. He never understood why would someone want to squander money over trivial celebrations when life had so much to offer… so much more meaning. How could someone celebrate when a thousand others lived in misery…?

He looked around squinting his eyes. He had never been to nightclubs in ages. It never interested him anyway. Not after Meera went off the radar. As he saw the semi-naked women gyrating on the poles in their shimmery nothings, a shudder passed through his body… was Meera…? No… she wouldn’t… she couldn’t dance at all. Despite the smoky darkness and ear-splitting music, he couldn’t help noticing drug exchange. Gosh, those guys were barely out of their teens and they were already stoned. Was Meera too…? No, come what may, she didn’t do drugs… But what if she was forced to…? No, he wouldn’t go there. He would be positive, he told himself. He walked towards the corner and peeped to see a corridor. Probably it housed the rooms for the after-party rendezvous if the blatant solicitation by half-clad girls in raunchy makeup was anything to go by. He coughed as he inhaled the smoke let out by some asshole passing him and covered his face. He cringed at the very thought of Meera being caught in this hellhole… Was she pushed into flesh trade? He knew she had made a lousy decision on getting married. But still, was it possible…? He had heard horrendous stories about the redlight areas and how women serviced men out in shady clubs like these. He almost threw up thinking of Meera soliciting… No… She wouldn’t…Oh God. He hoped and prayed those were just wild thoughts.

He walked through the entire perimeter stumbling often on some zoned-out druggie but finally got pushed towards the dance floor. The crowd had swelled and it was getting on his nerves as the stenchy cocktail of sweat, drugs, booze, and sex wafted through his nostrils wanting to make him retch. He had barely slept for two nights in anticipation of finding out something about Meera. But this looked like a hoax as well… he had hit the dead-end yet again.

As he turned to leave his eyes locked with a set of naïve doe eyes glittering in the sparkling hues of the dark disco. She pranced towards him, her sensual swaying catching him unawares. She had covered her head completely revealing only those mesmerizing eyes. The dance number changed from rock to a romantic number and the people gathered there, slowed down. It was then he saw she had worn a figure-hugging lustrous dress reaching up to the knees of her never-ending legs. She was tall with a good built, unlike those anorexic gals he had seen all this while. Determination shone in the depth of her beautiful orbs and she looked like a woman on a mission. She sashayed against him as she looked into his eyes and something churned inside him. He was instantly hard. He wasn’t a monk but it was long since he had got laid. He never had the urge to, given his constant preoccupation with finding Meera. But this woman… there was something different about her. Like him, she didn’t belong in this shitty place.

Trying to keep his libido in check he asked. “…What are you doing in this place…?”

She chuckled though he couldn’t hear in the cacophony of murmurs, shouts, and blaring songs. She shook her head and spoke. “…The same… what you are doing…” She ran a finger on his lapels. “…by the way… I am Angie…”

“…I am… An…Andy…” he didn’t know why he fibbed but he was transported into another world. “…I am… looking for someone…” He surprised himself. But he was desperate by the minute.

“…aren’t we all… looking for… someone or the other…?” She uncovered her face and spoke moving to the song that had changed. He laughed at her comeback even he couldn’t take his eyes off the lovely patterns of shadows on her pretty oval face. The shining nose stud enhanced her Indo western fusion look. He was bewitched by her smile showing a perfect set of teeth complementing the beautifully arched brows that completed her symmetrically alluring facial features. Soon they began to chat about non-topics. They were both animated using gestures more than talk given the crazy dissonance around them. Mostly about the zombies around them and how they were wasting away. He realized she knew a lot about drugs… scientifically and she knew a lot about the law as she showed him underaged kids who had faked their way into the club. He was mesmerized as she spoke with breaks over the music and a little dance here and there, as to how rules were ruthlessly broken. The passion in her eyes was palpable and he being a sucker for rules, got carried away by her aura. He wanted to keep talking to her…What on earth was she doing in that club anyway…? Was she alone…? She had to be, else she wouldn’t be with him.

He felt light-headed after months and joined her dance trying to match her movements. He lost track of time and his surroundings. For once he didn’t feel guilty about shaking a free leg without worrying about the consequences. He didn’t know when she had snaked her arms around his neck and her perfume had engulfed his senses. The next moment he slammed his lips to her willing softness and they kissed like there was no tomorrow. He was ravenous as he feasted on her plump lips even as she let him explore her wetness. It was electrifying… the atmosphere, the noise, and the pliant softness in his arms. The next he knew they had moved towards a room. He couldn’t see much in the dimly lit space. There were few aromatic candles lit but the ambiance was a dampener with the plaster peeling off in corners of the wall where the water must have seeped in. Overall it screamed of poor maintenance, probably just a getaway for quickies. The bed in the corner had seen better days and he saw spots on the cover, the origins of which he didn’t even want to know. 

But as the woman undressed finally revealing her toned body slithering on the bed, he was a goner. She had the beautiful Indian features now that he observed and that nose stud…? Wow… it was a feather in her splendorous cap. As she lay bare on the crappy bed with her luscious hair fanning her face, she looked like a beautiful lotus surrounded by the gorgeous leaves and the filthy waters didn’t matter.

He hadn’t seen a beauty like her before…not that he had looked that much. Intelligence sparkled in her kohl-laden eyes and it looked as if she wanted to tell him something… rather… confess. He saw a sheet of burn scar on her abdomen… but it didn’t repulse him. He moved towards it and kissed the scar. He then looked up at her. A sheen of moisture, filled those pretty eyes as she looked at him…was she… crying…?

He had undressed and positioned himself on her. He wondered if she was feeling rushed… no it didn’t look like and she didn’t look like someone who could be intimidated.

“…hey… Angie… all Ok…?” he asked.

Her lips trembled as she smiled. “…I will be soon once you get inside of me…”

That was the only invitation he needed. He opened the drawer next to the bed and as expected there were condoms. He picked up one and sheathed himself as she looked at him with dreamy eyes, causing his now painful erection to pierce through the protective latex. He stared into her eyes and as some kind of a mutual understanding passed between them, he slammed into her. He stalled with his eyes shut to enjoy her tight warmth as she circled his hips. She rose her lower back and he got out of his sensual trance. He started to rock with a fervor he never knew existed. She matched him stroke to stroke… and finally, in the next few moments, she convulsed around him holding her lower lip between her teeth, the most erotic vision he had ever experienced. He climaxed the very next moment pouring into her heat all his longing, as his frustration and every other emotion he couldn’t even name. He discarded the condom and came over to rest next to her. She was almost asleep as she snuggled into his bare chest and he could feel himself hardening again. This was also a first for him. Sex had turned from a mere physical gratification to something more… But she looked tired and he wanted her to rest as well. He realized he was tired too after spending the last two nights in constant worry and phone calls with the informers. He barely lasted a couple of minutes promising himself to talk to the beauty the next morning, before sleep claimed him.

He woke up with the sunlight streaming through the blinds right on his face where he had curled to his side of the bed. He shivered with the December chill in the room and he didn’t have to feel the bed next to him to know… Angie was gone. As he moved around feeling the emptiness in the room as well as his heart, he found a little scrawled letter under the pillow. It was written in her neat handwriting, on a page torn off randomly from some pocketbook. It read,

 ‘Stop asking or looking around… it will only cause the ripple effect… go back home and forget everything that happened…’

©priyagole. No part of the story can be copied or shared anywhere without the consent of the writer.

Anshuman Khanna had only one mission in life… to find his missing sister Meera. After a decade of the unending ordeal, he did get the news… that she was dead. But still, the bereaved brother within him grappled with closure. Giving up his life in Hissar he moved to Goa where Meera breathed her last, hoping to pick up the pieces of his broken heart.

Would he find the much-needed solace and some semblance of inner peace in the calming Varca seas? Or will the internal hightide pull him deeper to a point of no return…?

Stay with Anshuman as he meanders a roller coaster in Goa which will tug at his heart strings in the manner he least expected.

#retribution #chanceatlove #heartbreaks #vendatta

Simrat had battled demons of the worst kind and now as a single parent, she is besieged with fear and agony to protect the only person close to her heart. Her well guarded tough veneer is threatened to be broken into and she has to be very careful. For it’s not just her heart that can crumble but also the long-held secret which will put her loved ones in jeopardy.

He wasn’t born evil. He had never wanted to do what he did… he was softhearted and eventually lovelorn, having lost the only woman he loved. Was it wrong to fight for a piece of your heart…?