Beforeshebetrayed me.
BeforeSophiebackstabbed me, twisting my heaven into hell.
Into an endless darkness.
And the pain, the hatred, the disappointment… They would never change. They could never be mended.
“Who owns it now?” I asked in a low, cold voice, still staring at the house. I already knew the family had changed—not just from the family nameplate out front, but because years ago, Zaeem had mentioned over the phone that Tshabina and Tsabinu no longer lived in this neighbourhood.
Uncle Kuswan hesitated a moment before answering, “It’s owned by a family who run a culinary business, Mas. The wife also owns a cosmetics company.”
He knew.
Everyone from the old days in this house knew about us. And no one could fail to realise it was all long over.
Since that day. Since that night.
Then, my car pulled up in front of us. The chauffeur and Natasha had finally brought it round from the car park. Uncle Kuswan stepped forward and opened the rear door for me. “Please, Mas.”
I slid inside. “Thank you, Uncle Kuswan. Please send my regards to Aunt Enda.” The older man nodded with quiet warmth as he closed the door.
« -- * -- »
After the long crawl through the city, we arrived at one of the fine restaurants inside a five-star hotel in Central Jakarta: Claid Hotel & Lounge.
I entered with Natasha, letting her talk to a staff member until another came to greet me directly and guide us to a closed-off area—a VIP room.
Pulling out one of the chairs, I sat down while Natasha slid into the seat beside me. She was already talking to the waiter as he brought the menus, and I nodded, not really listening to her questions about my order.
The room was still, and the thud of my shoes melted the air. I couldn’t quite name it.
It wasn’t about the food because I never liked eating out anyway.
My jaw was locked tight, so tight it ached. My heart slammed hard, a storm of bitter emotions, leaving the urge to run from its source. I shook my head, pressing my hands together, gripping them until the bones hurt.
I was about to see Tsabinu.
After ten years, I would face him again, not as my closest friend, but as Dad’s and my brother’s subordinate, my so-called colleague.
My breathing caught, as though claws were tearing me apart from the inside. I shook my head, and that was when I glimpsed it—someone watching me through the glass of the VIP door.
The sight jolted me. He looked as startled as I did before slipping away in an instant.
I shot to my feet, my chair scraping back.
“I need the loo,” I muttered to Natasha without meeting her eyes.
With long strides, I left the room, scanning left and right and catching a shadow of the man rushing down another corridor. My pulse hammered. Sweat prickled my skin. And the bloody noise here thundered around my ears.
Too loud.
Hold it, breathe,for fuck’s sake,breathe.
I spun around at the corridor’s end and—
Gone.
Damn it. Did I lose him? He turned here, where the hell—think,think.
