Within a few hours, Nathan had finished washing the clothes, as Laura had ordered. He returned to the small store where he spent his nights and collapsed onto the worn-out Mirabel couch. His fingers traced over each other, he let out a sharp sigh of exhaustion, then placed his hands over his chest, his stare fixed on the ceiling and then he mumbled, "I wish I could remember even a pinch of my past memories," Nathan then sighed. He then touched his face, feeling the burnt mark that had uttered his appearance.
"Don't even know how I got this burnt on my face, I am so frustrated in this current life, nothing seems real to me, it's just like I'm in an illusion of eternal suffering," Nathan thought to himself, sighing hard.
A few years back, Nathan mysteriously woke up on the streets having not even a single memory of his past, the only thing he remembers was his name. That was when the scavenging began, having no qualifications, he was forced to beg and do low earnings jobs to be able to feed, sometimes he got no jobs or even if he ended up getting a Job, the money won't be enough to sort out his demands. Nathan had no idea who his parents were—no clue about his father, no memory of his mother. He had asked questions, tried desperately to recall something—anything—but all efforts had proven futile. Nothing worked.
The only possession he had from his past was a photograph of a woman. On the back of it, there was a strange symbol—two crescent moons intertwined, with an eagle imprinted at the center.
Jordan reached into his pocket and pulled out the picture he always carried with him. He stared at the woman's face, hoping for a flicker of recognition. Nothing. Turning the photo over, he studied the symbol again, eyes narrowing, willing his memory to cooperate. But there was still no understanding of what the emblem meant. This wasn't the first time he had tried to study the symbol, and now seeing it again and trying to glimpse something was not making any difference to his previous failed attempts.
The Sinclair family owned several companies across the city. One of them was Bluebane, a tech company specializing in high-end technological components—one of the best in its field. Nathan worked there too, but not as an employee. He was a slave forced and controlled by the Sinclair family. He received no pay, endured constant humiliation from his colleagues at work, and lived in the shadows of their cruelty.
The next day, Nathan got dressed for work. He didn't choose to go because he loved the job—he hated it—but he wanted to please his wife, Laura. And more importantly, he needed to stay alive. Her father was one of the most feared men in Atlanta City. His power was boundless, his wealth a fortress, and his wrath was something Nathan never wanted to witness.
"Oh, my sweet lovely husband, are you heading out for work already?" Laura's voice rang from the living room, her lips curling to a sneer. She sat curled up on a plush sofa, her brown blunt hair wavering on the foam and munching on popcorn as she watched a TV show.
"Yes, ma'am," Nathan replied calmly, forcing a smile from his lips, careful not to meet Laura's gaze.
Laura giggled, shoving her hair to the side of her shoulder, then licked her lips seductively. "My honey, you know you don't have to call me ma'am, right? I'm your wife. It's your right to call me sweet names, don't you think so?"
Nathan swallowed hard in nervousness.
Laura was strikingly beautiful. Her beauty was mesmerizing—silky hair, pink plush seductive lips, a figure that no man could resist. It was part of the reason Nathan hadn't thought twice before agreeing to marry a complete stranger. Over time, he had grown to love her—deeply. He prayed, almost daily, that she would eventually feel the same.
"Umm... ummm..." Nathan looked up and as soon as his gaze met Laura's eyes he quickly pulled his gaze away feeling nervously.
Laura stood, slowly closing the distance between them. She leaned in, her lips inching toward his neck then moved more closer to his lips. Nathan hesitantly leaned forward as well. his lips almost meeting hers, and before he could realise, his cheek was met with a harsh heavy slap.
"You fool," Laura spat. "You think a man who is disgusting like you could actually kiss me, have you taken something that had uttered your imagination or what? Are you insane?" Laura barked Angrily with a furious gaze.
"You're nothing but trash. I'm only keeping you here because I want to. Or maybe because I haven't finished using you yet," Laura added,
Laura's words pained more than the slap she had landed on his cheek. Nathan staggered back, stunned not because of the words but the slap she had landed on him. He wasn't expecting the slap—not after how soft her tone had been just seconds earlier.
"What happened? She sounded sexy and calm just now…" Nathan thought, rubbing his reddening cheek and swallowing the pain.
"Get out of here," Laura commanded.
Without another word, Nathan turned and fled out of the mansion like a frightened dog. He managed to catch a ride by hopping onto the back of a nearby truck heading toward Bluebane company.
Bluebane company was divided into multiple departments—data management, manufacturing, development. Each department's offices were staffed in pairs. Nathan worked in one of them.
The truck finally stops and Nathan drops down from it. He went straight towards the company, and when he wanted to get inside, he paused a bit then took a deep breath before stepping inside. He walked through the passages before getting into an elevator, but just then, whispers from his colleagues followed every step he took.
"Smells like trash..."
"Always so sticky-looking..."
"Does he even bathe?"
Nathan said nothing to their words. He kept his head down and went straight into the elevator that led to his office and just before the door could close short, a woman's voice rang out.
"Wait a bit, I need to get to the elevator," the woman hastily spoke.
She got into the elevator and the door closed. While elevating upwards, the woman looked at Nathan then spat on the ground.
"Dammm… something smells like routine fish," the woman said, closing the nostrils of her nose, then locked away.
Nathan knew the woman was actually referring to him, even if she didn't call his name.
Soon the elevator stopped and the door swung open, Nathan stepped outside, and went straight to his office, he took his seat beside Jasper, his assigned work partner. Jasper, at least, was decent. Sometimes he even bought dinner for Nathan, though Nathan never shared anything about his personal life.
"Well, well, who do we have here? The most talented, skilled computer whiz in the entire city," Jasper said with a smirk, then laughed jokingly.
Nathan chuckled lightly then adjusted himself on his seat. Nathan was gifted—no doubt about it. His skills in software development and systems programming had elevated the company's output in countless ways. But he didn't know where he'd learned it, probably in his recently lost memories. Nathan couldn't recall attending any university. Whenever Jasper asked, Nathan would casually name a random institution just to avoid suspicion, and annoying questions. No one knew he had married into the Sinclair family. He had kept it a secret based on the strict orders from Laura never to disclose it to anyone.
In truth, Nathan was a mystery—even to himself, an unsolved enigma.
"But Nathan..." Jasper said calmly, typing his fingers on his keyboard.
"I just wanted to ask, though I want to sound calm, because if I didn't say it to you as my friend, no one would," Jasper added.
Nathan shifted his gaze to Jordan then nodded calmly.
"Why do you always come to work dressed like a beggar?" Jordan asked, then he continued, "This place is one of the most prestigious companies in the city. Everyone here earns close to ten thousand dollars a month—and yet you dress like this. Don't you use your salary for clothes or anything?"
Nathan said nothing. He only exhaled, a faint gasp escaping his lips.
"Well, it's your choice," Jasper murmured, returning his focus to the computer. "Everyone has their own way of spending their money," Jasper added.