Morning sunlight slipped quietly through the tall windows of Jade's bedroom. She stirred beneath the smooth sheets, momentarily forgetting where she was. Then it hit her Daniel's penthouse. Her new reality.
Still barefoot, Jade stepped into the corridor, her curiosity leading her through the luxurious silence of the apartment.
That's when she saw it.
The black door.
Tall. Out of place. Heavy, with a silver handle that seemed ancient in contrast to the sleek modernity around it.
Drawn to it by something she couldn't explain, Jade reached out.
Her fingers grazed the handle
´Pain.'
A violent surge hit her mind like lightning. She gasped, falling to her knees, clutching her head as visions stormed into her mind.
A woman with golden eyes, screaming in fury.
A man with crimson-black hair, holding a bloodstained dagger.
An ancient throne, crumbling.
A voice deep, commanding whispered one word that echoed in her soul:
"VESPERIS"
Then silence. The pain vanished as fast as it had come.
Jade blinked, trembling. She was still in the hallway. The door still shut tight.
But something had changed.
That wasn't just a door.
And Daniel…
He wasn't just a powerful man with secrets.
He was something else entirely.
Just as Jade was still catching her breath on the floor, one of the housemaids turned the corner and gasped slightly.
"Miss Lee! Are you alright?" the maid asked, rushing over.
Jade straightened herself, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear and forcing a weak smile.
"Yes, I'm fine… just felt a little dizzy."
The maid glanced nervously at the black door behind her, then lowered her voice.
"You shouldn't be here, Miss. That door… Mr. Ooman doesn't like anyone going near it. It's strictly forbidden."
Jade narrowed her eyes. "Why? What's behind it?"
The maid shifted uncomfortably. "I don't know, ma'am. No one does. But please… if you would follow me to breakfast? I don't want the boss to get upset."
Still a little dazed, Jade stood and followed her into the bright, luxurious dining room. The breakfast table was overflowing with options freshly baked pastries, exotic fruits, warm dishes with rich aromas.
She scanned the room.
"Where's Daniel?" she asked casually.
The maid bowed slightly. "He left for work earlier this morning."
Jade scoffed under her breath and muttered with mock offense,
"Oh. No goodbye, huh? How romantic."
As she slowly took her seat and sipped from a glass of juice, her thoughts were far from the food. Her mind kept returning to that strange, ancient word that had echoed through her skull like a curse.
Vesperis.
And those flashes of blood, betrayal… eyes that didn't belong to this world.
She bit into a croissant absently, but deep down, she knew,
That door was hiding more than secrets.
And she had just unlocked something... she wasn't supposed to.
Jade tried to focus on her breakfast, but every bite felt mechanical. Her mind was spinning, looping back to that moment her hand on the cold handle, the explosion of pain, the visions.
Vesperis.
The name echoed in her skull like a ghost refusing to fade.
She pushed her plate away, barely touched, and leaned back in her chair.
That door wasn't just off-limits it was hiding something ancient, something dark. And the way the maid had flinched, lowering her voice like the walls had ears… it unsettled her.
She stood and walked through the penthouse slowly, her hand brushing along the walls, her eyes scanning the grand paintings and tall mirrors.
Was Daniel hiding a past?
Or worse… was she living inside it?
She stopped in front of one particular painting. It looked older than the others, almost out of place faded gold frame, a figure dressed in regal clothes with piercing amber eyes and
Red-black hair.
Just like Daniel.
Her chest tightened. She stepped closer, reaching a hand toward the face in the painting.
"Miss Lee?"
She jumped. The maid from earlier was behind her again, holding a folded garment.
"This is for your outing later today. Mr. Ooman asked for you to be ready by noon. The stylist will arrive soon."
Jade nodded, her voice flat. "Of course. Noon."
She waited for the maid to walk away before whispering under her breath,
"Who the hell are you, Daniel?"