Sebastian had finished showering and getting dressed when he heard someone whimpering, so he went to investigate. Clara was dreaming and thrashing around like she was fighting someone. ‘No, no.. she said, whimpering... Celine... hide... Celine…,’ tears were coming from her eyes. The minute she started whimpering, he rubbed her arms and her back, comforting her like a child, ‘Shhh.. shhh..,’ He said, ‘It’s okay…. Shhh…. It’s okay…,’ she started quieting down, and when he had his arms wrapped around her. She went back to sleep. Clara’s secretary called her brothers to come up for lunch as she laid the food on the table, but nobody was in the office, and she did not know if Clara had come back from her bike ride, so she left. Her brothers came in laughing. They were teasing each other and betting again on where they

All these years, the Johnson siblings did their own investigations about ten-year-old girls who were kidnapped around the time Clara disappeared, searching for the article that would lead them to her family, but it always led them nowhere. They followed all kinds of leads, even went as far as visiting the people who lost them, but they always ended where they started, nowhere. It never occurred to them that the bad guys had covered up her disappearance with an angle they never thought to explore. But now, with Celine as their lead, they had something to follow. All the doors to the past suddenly opened.  Clara’s parents were Nathan and Emelia Jacobs. He used to be the president of the biggest financial firm in the country. Her mom was an accountant before retiring to take care of her family. They went to the same college but did not really date until the

Sebastian has been distracted the whole day. After he snooped on Clara, he couldn't think about anything else. He had gone back to the office to wait for her when she said goodbye to her father. Anticipating her to come to his office the last few hours, but she didn't. Where was she? Did she just go back to her hotel? To occupy his time, he tried to find out her room number at the "V" but they wouldn't give it to him.  Waiting was driving him nuts. He couldn’t go out looking for her because he was not supposed to know she was there. So he started pacing in his office. Earlier, he texted Max and Jeremy, telling them what he witnessed. They were tight-lipped about it for a while, but when he said he wanted to help, they told him where she was staying and when she was coming back. He didn't know why they truste

Clara was tinier than he thought and lighter. Not that he thought she’d be heavy to carry, but having her in his arms made her seem very frail and small. Sebastian was able to get her into the front seat without her waking. She had a rough day, and he pondered whether they should go back to his house or her hotel. He picked her up at the “V” earlier and successfully got her room number, which was convenient because he knew that bringing her to his house would freak her out.  It was already 10 pm, and he did not want to drive to his house, only for her to freak out and have him take her back to her hotel. Not that he wouldn’t do anything for her, but he didn’t want the day spoiled by misunderstanding. Sebastian laid Clara in the middle of the bed. Kissing her for

Clara could not remember enjoying herself this much before. Sure, she went on dates before, during her college days, but she always thought it was her duty to make sure that her dates or boyfriends had more fun, most of the time compromising on what she wanted to do. Maybe that was one reason her relationships didn’t work either, because she did not find pleasure while being in one. Being a nurturer, she always felt like she needed to take care of everybody’s wants above hers. As soon as she was old enough, she started working just so they wouldn’t kick her and her siblings out of the orphanage. She wanted to make sure if none of them ever get adopted, they would always stay together. The orphanage usually made kids leave when they turned 18. At that age, they considered them to be adults, which meant they could get a job and lodging somewhere in the city. It