The smile on Nathaniel’s face vanished, a shocked look crossing his face. ’What are you talking about? I think you are mistaken. It’s Nora who saved .’
The old man shook his head and said confidently, ’It’s her sister who jumped into the water and pulled you out. If she hadn’t acted quickly, you wouldn’t have survived.’
’No,’ Nathaniel couldn’t believe it. The woman he despised, whom he thought had replaced Nora in his life, was actually his savior. ’This can’t be true. You are certainly mistaken. It’s Nora...I rember...’
His hand shook a little as he showed him the photograph of Nora. ’This is Nora. She saved .’
The old man adjusted his glasses and looked at the photo. ’I know it’s Nora madam...She ca to , asking for help. It’s her sister, Zara Madam, who saved you.’ He looked into Nathaniel’s eyes. ’I never knew you had mistakenly thought it was Nora who saved you back then.’
Nathaniel staggered, his head buzzing. He had always treated Zara coldly. If she were his actual savior, he would die in sha. The woman who should have been loved and cherished had been humiliated and neglected in every turn. With resentful words, he had always hurt her.
’I thought you loved Nora and that was why you married her,’ the old man said. ’But I didn’t know you mistook her for your savior.’
’No...’ His heart was torn apart at the thought of Zara hating him now. ’I fell in love with Nora because I thought she was my savior, but it was Zara. She was right there beside , watching silently. I kept ignoring her. Why didn’t she say a thing to ? Why didn’t she tell she saved ?’
Then he recalled her ntioning that she was his savior, but he had dismissed it, believing she was trying to compare herself with Nora out of jealousy.
Regret twisted his heart. ’I need to talk to you. I have to...’
He ran away. His phone buzzed in his pocket. ’It must be Zara,’ he murmured, reaching for his phone. ’She always calls to check on .’
To his disappointnt, the na flashing on the screen wasn’t hers. It’s Roberto.
As he answered the call, he heard his panicked tone, ’Sir, it’s bad...Madam...Madam...’
’What happened?’ Nathaniel snapped impatiently. ’What happened to Zara?’
’She...t with an accident and died on the spot.’
Nathaniel froze in his tracks, the phone shaking in his hand.
’She was eight weeks pregnant.’
’No, no...’
With a gasp, Nathaniel opened his eyes, his chest heaving, forehead drenched in sweat. He now rembered everything. That dream wasn’t a dream. It was the incidents he had lived – his past life.
The news of Zara’s death had saddened him so much that he had a heart attack and died right there. He couldn’t even have the ti to say goodbye to her. But now that he had been given a chance, he wouldn’t repeat the mistake.
’Why didn’t I rember all this sooner?’ he thought, lanting. ’I already hurt her so much. I need to go back to her.’
Without checking where he was and what condition he was in, he swung his legs down and stood up frantically. The surroundings spun, making him stagger. His whole body sagged back into the bed, and a sharp pain in his head followed.
"My head," he groaned, holding his head. It was only at that point that he felt the gauze. He touched the fabric, his expression pinching.
"What happened to ? Where am I?" He looked around.
It was a small room with only one yellow bulb lighting up the space. The walls were worn out, paint coming out. The bed was small with a thin mattress. On the side, there was a nightstand, where a first aid box was kept.
Nathaniel gradually recalled going to et Zachary. But a car had followed him recklessly, causing the accident.
"That black car," he muttered. "It’s all because of that. Maybe that guy had kidnapped ."
His gaze moved to the closed door, his mouth twisting. "But I can’t stay here. I need to go back to Zara. I have to talk to her."
Ignoring the ache in his head, he pushed himself up and marched toward the door. He twisted the knob, and it opened easily, which surprised him. He thought the kidnapper might have locked him up, but he was wrong.
’He might be thinking I’m still unconscious.’
Just as he stepped out of the room, a figure appeared. Nathaniel froze, a wave of shock hitting him.
"Roberto?"
Nathaniel couldn’t believe he was seeing him. His gaze roved over the man in front of him, checking if he wasn’t dreaming.
Roberto’s appearance had changed. He had grown a long beard. With shoulder-length hair and the deep cut on the side of his forehead made him almost unrecognizable. His hair was ssy and brittle. It seed as if the comb had not touched his hair for ages.
He had beco leaner. His skin looked dull with freckles marring his face. He didn’t look like the man Nathaniel used to know – smart, immaculate, sophisticated.
The guy in front of him looked rougher and tougher, as if struggles of survival had made him a different person altogether. Yet, Nathaniel didn’t fail to recognize him.
"It’s really you!" He was still dazed. "But why didn’t you call if you were alive? I’ve been looking for you."
"I’m aware," Roberto said.
"Aware?" Nathaniel pinched his brow, confused. "Why didn’t you reach out to ?"
"Because of safety issues," replied Roberto. "My life was threatened. I thought I would stay underground for the ti being and let people assu I was dead. But I never expected you wouldn’t give up and would keep looking for ."
Nathaniel nodded slowly. "Everyone believed you were dead. Even the cops said there was no chance of survival. But deep down, I knew you would have survived."
A shadow crossed over Roberto’s face as he recalled the day of the accident. "I found sothing about Zachary," he recounted, his voice dreamy, "sothing very dangerous. He had links to the underworld don, a powerful one – even the authorities won’t touch him. But his n spotted my inforr, captured him."
He paused as he recalled the call of the inforr that night. "He called , asking to help him. But I imdiately guessed it was a trap. So I left, hoping to stay underground for sotis. But those people followed . To escape them, I caused the accident deliberately."
When he drove the car right through the cliff, he jumped out. He touched the scar on his forehead.
"I sustained so injuries, bone fractures, but I survived," Roberto added. "Sadly, all the evidence I gathered against Zachary was destroyed in the accident."
After a mont of pause, he added, "A kind passerby helped and let stay at his place until I fully recovered."
A hint of empathy crossed Nathaniel’s eyes as he wondered what else Roberto had faced all those days.
"When I ca back after a few months," Roberto continued, "I saw you already had soone as your assistant."
"I-I needed soone reliable to help ," Nathaniel felt a little guilty as he heard those words from his mouth. He thought Roberto might be disappointed with him. But his next words eased him.
"I completely understand," Roberto said. "Of course, you needed soone to help you. But I didn’t expect it to be Ian."
"Why? Do you know him?" Nathaniel grew curious.
Roberto shook his head. "I don’t know him personally. But my inforr once showed Ian’s photo, claiming he had nothing him sneaking around Zachary. Initially, I thought Ian might be a spy for the enemy gang, tracking Zachary’s movent. But when I started following him, I spotted him with Kelvin. That’s when I realized you might have hired him because of Kelvin."
"Yes," Nathaniel said. "Kelvin said I couldn’t trust anyone; Zachary had planted his spies everywhere around . So, I have no choice but to rely on him. Initially, I didn’t like Ian, but now I know he is quite capable."
"That’s why I didn’t contact you, believing you were with the right man," Roberto said. "Instead, I started following Zachary. I stayed outside his penthouse office, pretending to be a holess man, and checked who else ca to et him. I found many secrets about this man. He has a hand in smuggling, arms dealing, human trafficking, illegal gambling, and many more. His company is not doing well, but he earned a lot through that illegal business. And to cover up his illegal deeds, he needed a well-established Grant family business, under which he could continue his dark business freely."
"Oh, that’s what he is planning," Nathaniel muttered. "I’ll never let that happen."
"There is no end to his greed," Roberto continued. "He wants to rise in power, to beco one of the topmost players in the underworld. Currently, he is working with the enemy gang leader, planning to take down the don."
"Is it that easy?" Nathaniel scoffed.
"There are moles everywhere," Roberto replied. "It’s seed tough, but not impossible. I have proof of Zachary working with the enemy gang leader. If we can hand it over to the don, Zachary will be gone for good."
"That’s fantastic," Nathaniel’s eyes sparkled with excitent. "Why are we waiting for? Let’s do it. I’ll call Ian right away. He and Kelvin will help us."
He looked around for his phone. "Where is my phone?"
"Sir, calm down. You can’t call Ian yet."
Nathaniel looked up at him with a frown, befuddled. "Why?"
"Because we can’t trust them anymore," said Roberto with a chilling tone. "Kelvin has been compromised."
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