The family had no choice. Lina was enrolled into a mental hospital. The decisions were kept hushed and no one else knew of this incident. Servants were instructed to spread rumors that she was on house arrest deep within the mansion. With how many rooms there were, no one doubted the words.
Every day, Altan would visit Lina. He brought her flowers and gifts, waited by her bedside to speak, but she never did. How could she? Her brain was boggled by the drugs she was prescribed and the electrotherapy she was forced to undergo.
Her grandfather deemed her insane and ordered every treatment possible, on the market, and off of it. Everything under the table was performed, until she was barely conscious.
"No more of these surgeries," Altan once told a nurse, handing her a fat stack of cash.
House Yang paid the hospital well to give her pioneering treatments that were supposed to fix her mental state. However, there weren't many things that they could try on her without Altan's watchful gaze. He would never have approved of some of the procedures her grandfather had paid them to try. Thus, they decided to always keep her medicated. That was better than the neurological experiments they performed on other people.
"Put her on medication instead," Altan instructed. "Don't disturb her."
On good days, Lina was able to sit still and have a slow conversation. On worse days, Lina would have a fit over pictures of her family. She was still unable to cope with the idea of them existing in the sky and then, on the ground. Her dream had been so vivid and she had felt every emotion, that she believed it to be real.
What did all of this mean?
"You're doing well today, Miss Yang," one of the kind nurses said with a slight smile. She placed the medication in front of Lina and watched as the young woman popped it into her mouth, took the water, and then drank it.
Lina was always obedient with her pills. She never resisted the drugs and always took it with diligence. In fact, some would even call her the model patient. When she was medicated, she never made a ruckus and always stayed in her room, deep asleep or on bed rest. She never struggled or caused a scene once she took her daily dosage.
The nurses trusted her. So, the nurse took the water cup and picked up the tray, then left the room without checking under her tongue. A minute passed and the doors opened without warning.
"Almost forgot," the nurse said. "This is a present from your grandfather."
Lina nearly broke character. She wondered if the nurse did this on purpose. A second later, and Lina would've been caught red-handed. Mutely, she glanced at the present which was a book.
The nurse, dressed in a crisp white uniform, handed it to Lina. Lina observed the nurse's uniform, wondering how it could be so white when all they did was harm the patients. She wondered how it was possible for the whitenot to be tainted with the blood of the horrible experiments. White symbolizes innocence and purity; two words completely at odds with the ethics of this mental institution.
Lina heard that this was one of the better mental hospitals. But it didn't change the fact that in the basement, there were experiments performed on the "incurable" patients. Holding back a response, Lina numbly flipped through the pages.
It was the same routine of her not speaking. A second later, Lina heard the door shut. By now, the pills were dissolving from her body heat and moisture in her mouth. Finally, Lina spat out the pills into her hand and stared at them. She couldn't even use the bathroom without a buzzer.
"One less than yesterday," Lina realized.
Lina reached into the drawers where a wide variety of presents from Altan were kept. Within it, Lina took out a safe disguised as a book. Altan had given it to her for "good behavior."
Lina unlocked the safe, poured the pills into the tiny box, and then, locked it again, sliding the book back into place in the drawers. She knew the nurses always looked through her belongings, but this was an item they could never uncover. To make sure the pills didn't rattle in there, she had stuffed a variety of random objects inside of the safe.
Just as the drawers were quietly closed, a knock echoed in the room.
Lina didn't respond. She knew better than falling for their heinous trap. Sometimes they would knock and sometimes they wouldn't. It was to test if she'd ever respond, which she didn't.
The nurse opened the door. Lina swore she stopped breathing. Her heart stopped right then and there. She could hear ringing in her ears. She almost shouted his name. She almost dropped her act.
"A visitor, Miss Yang," the nurse skeptically said. "Sent from the Main House. Do you recognize him?"
Lina held her tongue. She simply turned her dazed expression to the door. Without warning, she chucked the nearest item towards the entrance.
The nurse knew Lina spoke with tantrums. If Lina saw someone she didn't like, she'd throw objects at them. And those people included Altan, as well as her parents. Deeming this a fit response, the nurse decided the man, was indeed, from House Yang.
"This is a normal reaction from her, rest assured," the nurse told him.
"Yes, she was never a well-behaved one," he coldly remarked.
At his words, the nurse let out a laugh and then walked off, leaving the two alone. Seconds passed and he remained standing by the door, resembling a grim reaper. Dressed in black from head to toe, she recognized him instantly. Except, this time, he wasn't carrying his military uniform. He was dressed in a large trench coat, tailored suit, and ironed white shirt.
"I'm late," Kaden said the second he saw her distant expression.
Kaden bent and picked up the item she had thrown at him. It was a book. He smoothed the surface and approached her. She frowned and didn't bother to respond.
"I'd ask if you've been well, but we both know the truth," Kaden said, placing the item onto the cabinet beside her. He stopped right in front of her. She stared ahead of him, not bothering to lift her head.
Not wanting to put a strain on her delicate body, Kaden bent his knees and lowered to her eye level. She was startled, her gaze widening in shock. Then, he stroked her face attentively.
Lina flinched at the coldness of his leather gloves. At the reaction, he tossed the glove to the ground. She let out a shaky breath, the warmth of his fingertips like fire on her face. She tried to pull away from his touch, but he leaned closer, kissing her right on the forehead.
"What did they do to you, dove of mine?" Kaden murmured, his voice tender and affectionate.
Despite that, Lina shivered in fear. She saw the glint in his eyes, the thirst for blood and retribution. She opened her mouth, but he placed something straight into it. She froze, but then realized. The sweetness of the candy made her tear up. Within seconds, she was crying, her tongue trembling at the rarity of the treat.
"Come, dove, I'll keep you safe," Kaden promised, stretching his arms out for her. She latched onto him instantly, like a wounded child seeking comfort. They barely shared a word, but it felt as if they had a conversation of a lifetime.
Kaden took her into his embrace and stood to his feet. He was going to take her out of here, no matter what it took. And it started with the blaring of the alarms, the lights turning off, and a speed that the human eyes would never detect.
"Where are we going?" Lina finally said, for the first time since their minimal discussion. She had so much to tell him, but so little to utter. It was almost like he knew what she was thinking. He soothed her upper back.
Lina trembled at the blaring alarms in the distance. She heard the scrambling of footsteps.
"A safe haven." Kaden wasn't sure if he could trust her with the truth. If this was how she reacted to seeing her past memories, then how would she tolerate what he really was?
"You must trust me dove," Kaden said.
Kaden heard the frantic footsteps rushing to their room. The nurses and guards were on their way. They prioritized her first. Kaden would never let her be taken from him ever again. He was furious at her departure. Look at where it had gotten her. If only she had stayed put as he had told her to. If only she had listened.
"All I ask is for your trust," Kaden stated, reaching into his pocket to take out a syringe.
"Will it hurt?" Lina asked, eyeing the needle.
"Yes."
"At least you didn't lie…"
Lina winced when she felt the painful prick. Then, she began to feel her head drop back. He caught her in time, stomping the glass syringe into pieces under his foot.
Lina couldn't recall the moments after that. All she felt was her stomach churn, the world around her blur, and she was certain they moved at a pace faster than the human eyes could register. The last thing she thought of was…
Who exactly was Commander Kaden… What exactly was he?
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