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Suzanne had gone out for a walk to try to calm herself down; she felt extremely nervous because she had called Nathan on his phone and it had gone to voicemail.

She couldn't understand how a whole day had passed without hearing from him, especially when he was just a few hours away from London.

"He has to be okay, he has to be okay," she whispered into the night, trembling with cold.

She had left the babies with the nurse and two other guards to feel more secure, taking only the driver and another guard with her.

She had gotten out of the car to look at the moon, which was full like a plate of milk that night. Luckily, she had her sweater on and walked for a while, with the driver following her closely.

"Get back in the car, Mrs. Strong," the guard asked her sternly, reprimanding her. "Mr. Nathan won't be happy at all."

"I know, John," she said disheartened. "I want to go home, please."

The journey was silent. She was sad and didn't know what to do; she felt so alone... She missed Nathan. She missed having her father and brother with her. She even thought of Dylan.

Suddenly, the driver braked sharply, and she screamed in horror when she heard two gunshots, one of them hitting the driver directly.

"Raymond!" she called out, but he didn't respond.

John wasn't moving either.

Her body started trembling. She saw several people approaching the car, so she quickly grabbed her phone to call Nathan, but her hands were shaking, and she couldn't control her body.

In the end, she ended up calling Dylan.

"Hello?" he answered with a groggy voice.

"Dylan... Help me," she said, crying.

"What's wrong, Suzanne? Where are you?"

She couldn't keep talking because someone opened the back door.

"What's up, pretty girl?" the guy smiled maliciously.

She was paralyzed with fear; his gaze sent shivers down her spine.

"What happened, beauty? Cat got your tongue?"

"Leave me alone!" she screamed.

"As if I'd listen to you, doll," he looked her up and down. "Grab her."

"No!" she screamed desperately.

Suzanne tried to escape through the other door, but she couldn't as they had grabbed her by the feet and pulled her roughly, binding her feet and hands.

"Sweet dreams," the man said, putting a cloth over her face.

Seconds later, she knew nothing more.

…


Valery was nervous and couldn't stop tapping her foot on the floor while she waited in the hospital's waiting room.

"This is crazy," she thought. "I shouldn't have agreed to do this in the first place."

She thought she would feel better and her "revenge" would be complete after agreeing to participate in that farce, but she felt very guilty knowing everything Nathan and Suzanne were going through.

"I'm the worst person in the world," she murmured with a broken voice, running her hands over her face in frustration. "I should tell everything, absolutely everything."

She was there to talk to the forensic doctor who had received Nathan's father's body, who had requested her presence over the phone.

She didn't know why she was still involved in this and why he had called her specifically, but it didn't give her a good feeling.

Her shock was even worse when she found out that there were too many deaths involved, not just those in the building.

Flashback:

"It's too late for regrets," she was met with a cold and calculating look that made her shiver. "You can't back out now... and your friend better follow the plan to the letter."

"A lot of people died, innocent people who had nothing to do with your hatred," she spat, gathering courage. "How can you do so much harm? Don't you see it's your family?"

"It was necessary," he simply said.

"You're a monster," she said with anger. "I regret a thousand times having agreed to this absurdity."

She shrank in fear as she saw the person's face in front of her, looking very agitated and angry.

"You'd better do it... or I'll destroy your life completely, and everyone you love," he ordered coldly. "You will follow the plan to the end, do we agree?"

"Y-yes," she whispered with a broken voice, holding back the urge to cry.

End of flashback.

"Miss Grant, Dr. Scott will see you now," a nurse informed, pulling her out of her thoughts.

The woman stood up with jelly legs, feeling a knot in her stomach.

"You wanted to see me, doctor?" she asked suspiciously, sitting in front of him.

"Miss, we have a situation here and it's serious," the doctor explained, showing her some admission papers. "One of the bodies that arrived here doesn't exist."

"What? I don't understand.”
"For some reason, Mr. Strong is not answering my calls, nor is his wife," he scratched his neck, feeling uncomfortable. "You were here that day, and I'd like to know if you have any contact with the family."

"Well... I think so," she looked at him confused. "Are you going to tell me what you mean by one of the... bodies not existing?"

"Just as you heard, miss," said the doctor, clearing his throat. "As you know, the dead don't walk, but this one did. He also stole some medicines from the hospital and left without a trace."

Valery felt like she was losing her breath.

"W-what's the name of the... walking dead?" she asked cautiously, with a lump in her throat.

The man looked at her in a way that started to make her nervous.

"Richard Quirrell."

The air became dense and oppressive. Valery felt as if the ground had opened up beneath her feet. How was this possible? Richard should be dead.

He had disappeared after what happened at the Strong companies, and everyone had presumed him dead. But no, he was out there somewhere, lurking.

"It can't be..." she murmured, her hands trembling. "I have to tell Nathan the truth and stop Richard."

Dr. Scott looked at her with empathy and determination.

"Valery, it will be hard for them to believe you. You've been missing. But you have to try."

Valery nodded, knowing it was true. She had practically vanished after the events at the Strong companies.

She didn't care; she couldn't allow Richard to keep harming innocent people. She gathered her courage and took out her phone. She dialed Jarek Strong's number, her voice trembling with each ring.

"Mr. Strong, I have to tell you something urgent," she took a deep breath. "Richard Quirrell is not dead. He's alive and planning to keep causing harm."

The man on the other end of the line almost fell back. He clenched his fist and exhaled sharply; the news hit him like a sledgehammer.