The Glittering Abyss (Part 1)
"Come home with me, Alison. Grandfather let me bring you back to the ancestral home once you are discharged. The doors of the Winston family will always be open to you," Aidan urged. "Jack will return in a month."
“Can't you just tell me where he is now? How can you bear to watch him fight his addiction alone?" she countered.
Why does everyone know Jack's whereabouts except me, his legal wife?
“Alison, I'm sorry.”
"You—" Alison was speechless.
She ran toward the shore, stepped onto the soft sand, and listened to the sound of the waves.
Images of Jack kept flashing through her mind.
"Ah... ah..." she screamed into the vast ocean.
Using both hands, she wrote “Jack” and “Where are you?” in the sand.
Aidan froze, then hurried over and whispered, "He's still in S City."
She froze, her heart surging with wild joy.
"Get in the car, Aidan." Alison's face lit up with life.
They went to places Jack frequented but found no trace of him.
As night fell and neon lights flickered, the two entered the Rebel together.
Yet the Rebel before them was unrecognizable—every face was new.
“Sit with me, Aidan.”
"Your injury hasn't healed. You shouldn't drink,” Aidan said, trying to dissuade her.
“Just let me have a couple of drinks,” Alison said, waving down a Rebel waiter.
Just as Aidan moved to stop her, his phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID—Lucia. He hung up immediately.
The waiter brought two mixed cocktails.
Alison grabbed one and took a large gulp. The strong liquor burned her throat and made her cough softly.
Aidan put away his phone and snatched the stemmed glass from her hand. "Alison, have you forgotten your inner child?"
She froze, tears welling up instantly.
"I'll drink this." He downed the contents of her glass, then emptied the other one, completely shattering her attempt to drown her sorrows.
Yet, the moment he set down the empty glasses, his phone rang again.
He glanced at the number and answered. "What's happened?"
"There's been an incident, Mr. Winston."
"Speak up. Don't beat around the bush.”
"There's been a murder at the company. Someone's dead.”
“Who died?” Aidan's heart skipped a beat. His first thought was of the woman Jack had ordered him to watch closely.
"It's Manager Foster from HR."
Aidan's face instantly turned ashen.
"Who died? Aidan?” Alison asked anxiously.
He waved her off, signaling that he would explain later.
"Notify the police immediately. Secure the scene. No one except law enforcement is to approach,” he ordered the caller.
Just as he hung up and was about to explain to her, her phone rang.
It was an unknown number. She picked it up.