CHAPTER 1 : Escaped

Whispers. Murmurs. Chants. It overwhelmed her ears again. She heared murmurs from different sides of the unfamiliar place she was in. As she opened her eyes, she find herself in the dark cave sorrounded by terrifying hooded men in black.

She panicked.

" W-who are you? What are you doing to me?! " she cried and struggled to free herself from the chain that bind her.

Blood dripped as she forced her hands out. The pain tingled and it made her sick. Her hazel eyes routed to the man who kept murmuring in the midst of the circle of candles. The sight of it made her tremble and the fear was killing her alive.

" P-please, take me home," she cried in plea but failed.

It's as if the hooded men hear no sounds. They continued to utter words she failed to comprehend. She wandered her eyes around, seeking a way to escape 'til she saw a boy of the same age as she. Her eyes fixated on him as he placed his pointer finger across his lips and say the words that saved her.

" Shhhhh!"

The next thing she knew, they were running. The only sound she heard was their heavy breathing and the crackling sound of dried leaves that was crushed beneath their shoes.

" Can you see that boat over there?" the boy asked, breathing heavily while holding his knee to support himself.

Her throat was dry, making her unable to speak so she only nod in response.

" That's your only way to escape. Hurry!"

" But, what about you? Let's run away together!"

He shook his head.

" I need to save my brothers ."

" But__."

" Go!!"

The moment her boat drifted away, the sound of a loud bang made her look back.

Time stopped.

Her world stop rotating, leaving all things petrified. But not her eyes that welled in tears as she witnessed how the boy was shot dead in his heart.

He died. He died and it was because of her.

Margaux rose up from bed with heavy, unstable breathing. She reached for a glass of water, take her pills and calm herself.

The moment she calmed down, she instantly got up , opened the window and gazed at the starry night sky.

" Why are stars so beautiful? So they could compel us to believe that night is not as dark as we think? I know. Lurking in the shadows were people who perform their darkest deeds," she whispered.

That was not just a vivid dream but a memory she wish to forget.

She was nine years old back then , innocent and fragile. She escaped from death yet she can't run away from the pain forever. That melancholic night cut her deep and it made an ugly scar that could never be erased.

Margaux's eyes routed to the walls of her room as she tiptoed. Newspaper clips are everywhere, news from magazines, maps with marked places and red threads connecting people and events.

Her fingers carressed the clip of a headline in bold letters from 14 years ago.

AARON AND STEPHANIE CHAMBERS ARE FOUND DEAD INSIDE A TRASH CAN.

A weak smile formed in her lips.

" Mom. Dad ."

She took a cigarette, lighted it and inhaled its smoke as another headlines pique her interest.

DISSAPPEARANCE OF FOUR CHILDREN EVERY YEAR, DEEDS OF A CULT?

She sighed as she lowered her gaze to the dark alley beneath her. It's in the familiar lamp post and in the familiar " No Parking" sign where she saw this unfamiliar figure of a man who's been pressing his stomach like he's in a state of unbearable pain.

About 5 kilometers away she spotted the figures of two men with a gun in their hands.

" Sounds like trouble ," she said to herself as she throw off her ciggarette stick, took her black coat and cap of the same color from the closet and wear it. She conceiled herself with a black mask before jumping out of her window.

" W-ho are you? W-what exactly do you want from me ? " the guy in blue suit cried as the men pointed their guns at him.

She squinted her eyes as she studied the situation behind the darkness.

" We were ordered to take your life."

" P-please, I'll pay you more. Name your price...just please.... let me...let me live... ."

Margaux smiled in disgust as the man begged and cried before them. Fear is weakness and weak people are normally oppressed. They are normally taken advantage.

That's the very reason why a long time ago, she decided to kill her weakness.

They were about to click the gun but before they could pull the trigger, Margaux leaped in the air and landed two powerful kicks on their napes, making them passed out

the exact moment her feet landed.

" No.. please... please..don't kill me..." the man pleaded.

She smirked and grab him in his arms.

" Noooo!!!___aaaagghh!" he groaned in pain as her fist landed on his stomach.

" Do you call yourself a man after kneeling before these jerks?"

" Who are you?! Do you want to kill me too? ..Why are you after me?"

Margaux's irritation reach its peak when she noticed his trembling hands as he bit his nails.

" What the heck! Stop panicking!"

He studied her. After realizing that she won't do him any harm, his cold and trembling hands reached hers. Flabbergasted, she met his pleading eyes as he uttered.

" Help me live. Help me live and I would return the favor countless folds."

She didn't mind him and checked his cut.

" I stab myself accidentally when I was trying to escape. I need a surgery. Please bring me to the hospital."

She smirked and pressed his wounds.

" Aaaaaagh!"

" Listen young man. It can't even be considered as a deep cut."

" Really? But I feel like I'm dying."

She rolled her eyes.

" Such a wimp," she thought.

" Get up. Leave this place if you cherish your life ," she said and walk away, leaving him behind.

" Tell me the way to escape at least ."

She paused and look at the darkest path in the neighborhood. She sensed how the sight of it creeped him out.

" But I'm scared of darkness!"

" That's not my problem ," she said and dissappear in his sight.

Truth is, she did not really disappear. She's been hiding, waiting him to leave and followed him silently when he finally did.

She chuckled as his scared reaction amuse her.

" Aaaaaaagh!"

She suppressed her laugh when his high - pitched scream echoed in the alley because of a tiny black cat.

He pick up a stone and throw it to the clueless cat.

" Why the hell do you look so scary?!" 

" Meow... Meow...."

" Uggh! Stay away from me!"

" Meow...Meow...."

" I'll sue you!" he shouted to the cat and continued walking.

Margaux shook her head in disbelief.

" He's crazy," she thought.

" Hello?! Is any one there?! " he shouted before taking another step.

" I'm not a bad guy! Don't hurt me. Please?"

She laughed. Gladly, it wasn't loud enough for him to hear. When he saw a light coming from a clinic with a " 24 Hours Open " sign outside , he laughed like an idiot before knocking. As the door opened, Margaux take a step closer to eavesdrop the conversation he had with the young woman who opened the door.

" My name is Seiche Heisegel. I__."

" Oh my Gosh! You're the CEO of Temptation Scent!"

" You're right. I need__."

" My name is Heaven. I dream working in your company!"

" Nice meeting you, Heaven. You see, I'm really dying. Will you let me in?"

" Oh my God! I'm so sorry Mr. Heisegel. Come in please."

Back in her room, Margaux's eyes fixated on Seiche Heisegel's charming face in her laptop monitor.

After such a long time she finally met a man who would irritate her and make her laugh at the same time. She contemplated for  a while whether he's weird or cute. She hardly thought which fits him better. After the traumatic incident of her childhood, that was the most geniune smile her lips ever curved.

It was all thanks to Seiche Heisegel.

" How could you be a CEO in such a young age hmm? How did you become one with your silliness? And why are those men after you?" she asked in her thoughts.

She's not a detective. She's not a member of any investigation team either. She's just Margaux.

The girl who escaped.