Hannah stares at his profile while he is focused on driving. She watches him tighten his lips into a narrow line, probably thinking of a solution. He wants to keep them safe, and he doesn't know where they should hide since his father is like a wolf, finding them even by smell.
— Will you tell me what you really did to your father? What did you mean when you said you unleashed hell?
— I did some digging in his safe. He keeps compromising documents there. I know you tried and meant well, but he would have easily jumped over the leg you put under him. Two can no longer manage. If the prosecutor's office starts an investigation, he'll be done for. He won't get out of it.
He clasps his hands on the steering wheel, and his gaze is fully focused on the road. You can see that he is hard after what he did to his father. He may have hated him, he may have always dreamed of destroying him, but he finally dared and stabbed the man who raised him in the back.
— So until he is captured by the police, are we in danger?
Joseph looks deeply concerned.
— Today I stopped being a son to him, I became an enemy, so I have no idea what he might be capable of. You are in worse danger because he has tricked himself into thinking that you have rebelled against him.
The brunette is sure he will kill her if she falls into his grasp.
— I'm afraid — she says in a whisper.
— Well, what do you not say? This is the first fucking time I'm scared. — He looks at the girl for a moment. — Until I'm shaking all over from the inside. I don't know when I became such a coward. I think it's your influence.
Hannah smiles fleetingly.
— I just basked in your humanity.
She observes the area they are passing. She wonders where Joseph is going to stop to ensure their safety.
There's forest all around, so he would rather not spend the night in a tent, does he? It's minus temperatures outside.
— Where are we?
— This is a place my father is unlikely to reach. When I was a child, my housekeeper used to take me here in secret from him. She said it was a magical place where I could talk to my mother, and she would listen to every word I said. Thanks to this, I stopped crying every night.
— Can you trust her one hundred percent? She won't give you away in front of your father?
— She hid that key in my pocket, wanting me to hide. My father would not squeeze the truth out of her, even if he started torturing her. She loves me like her son, treats me better than a father. She is a person I trust one hundred percent.
The girl nods her head.
She looks at the one-story building, which is located secluded by the forest. It is an incredibly beautiful place.
— This is one of the houses that is hers parents, she comes from a good family, so I don't understand why she decided to work as a housekeeper. For more than twenty years, she endured her father's moods, there were times when he took out his anger on her, and yet she didn't leave. She is a tough mother.
Hannah also can't understand why a woman who came from a wealthy family devoted half her life to serving.
— Perhaps her dreams were ruined? Things are different in life. — The girl shrugs her shoulders.
— She won a cooking contest. She had a chance to become someone great, but she gave it up. Do you know why Jimmy, when coming to see me, first runs to the kitchen? Because my housekeeper's dishes are so fantastic that they melt in your mouth.
The brunette stretches her lips in a smile.
— Well... your father probably pays her well, on the other hand, she has become very attached to you.
Joseph nods his head.
— Let's go inside.
Hannah suddenly realizes something as she steps outside and closes the door.
— Don't you have any transmitter in your car?
— I'd have to be to run away in a car bought by my father.
Embracing mugs of warm tea, they sit on the living room couch, staring at the TV screen. Both are silent, pretending to be focused on the movie being played, yet neither of them is interested in the plot. They are lost in their thoughts, worrying about the coming hours.
— Do you realize that this could all be prolonged, and we'll be stuck here until the new year, lest we fall into my father's paws?
Hannah shifts her gaze to him.
— I know that.
It even makes her happy if she gets to end the old year with the person she loves most in the world.
— I apologize for what my father did to you and your mother.
— I was the one who revolted him. I could have guessed that he would attack in this way.
— I swear... I'd rather not own all this property and have a normal, loving family. When I think about how I behaved in the past, I'd love to go back in time and punch the former myself in the face to get a grip.
The girl puts her cup down on the coffee table. She lifts her legs onto the couch and embraces them with her arms, turning toward Joseph.
— I, too, feel like going back a few months and slapping myself in the face to come to my senses. I ruined our happiness — she says in a sad voice, resting her chin on her knee. — Solar tried to isolate me from my friends, and most of all from you. She knew what was in store for me in the future and wanted me to avoid this pain. She tried to protect me from your father.
Joseph crinkles his eyebrows.
— To a certain extent, I believe you that she exists. She proved it in your apartment, but how could she know that you were in danger from my father? This is absurd.
— Your father is largely connected to her death.
But it's not as surprising to him as she assumed. The boy lowers his head and stares at the cup for a long moment.
— The day she died.... she tried to talk to me, and I rudely dismissed her because there were senior students with me. They guided me, chose the people I was to hang out with, since I belonged to an elite group. — His gaze is pained as he says these words. — The other day, she hinted something about my father, and I shouted that she should shut her mouth and get away from me. She was pale and terrified.
— You were a sucker, Joseph.
He looked at her obliquely and nodded.
— I won't deny it.
— Do you think she tried to reveal the truth about your father to you then? To tell you about what she discovered?
— We were friends for many years. My father knew her well. Something must have happened if such a tragedy occurred.
Outside, the snow begins to fall. Stress makes them both feel tired. Hannah lays her head on his shoulder and falls asleep. He, feeling her closeness, closes his eyes, yet guards the place, fearing that something bad will happen to them in their sleep.
*
Danielle looks at Jin as they slowly walk side by side, silent. She is grateful to him for taking her for a walk, as she has been resting at home since she left the hospital. The walls had begun to rip the life out of her, and she needed fresh air.
— I asked Joseph to notify me when they were in a safe place, but he had his phone turned off. My guess is that he doesn't want his father to track him down; however, I'm worried about them.
Dressed in his quilted jacket, Danielle crosses her arms over her chest.
— We'll worry when it gets safe, and they don't come out of hiding. For now, don't think about it.
— Did you say "we will"? — Jin looks surprised.
— What's so strange about that? Do you really see me as a monster without feelings? She may not be on good terms with Hannah, but she's still my sister.
The redhead looks offended. Jin smiles at this sight.
— Lately you seem to be the real Danielle. The one I met nine years ago.
She shrugs her shoulders.
— Perhaps.
The snow begins to fall harder and harder. Jin overlaps Danielle's path and puts a hood over her head.
— You recently came out of the hospital. You need to take care of your health.
Her left breast is flooded by a wave of hot avalanche. With wide-open eyes, she stares at him as she corrects the fur at the hood.
— I chose the wrong path in life — she says unexpectedly, watching every millimeter of his face. — This is what our every day could look like.
— It could — he confirms. — And it still could if you take the plunge.
The girl notices a fleeting smile on his face as he turns his back to her and walks slowly ahead.
— Are you giving me a chance? — she asks in a loud voice.
— I am giving you a chance to first prove that you have actually changed! — he replies with a shout as he turns to face her. He keeps his hands in his jacket pockets, looking amused. — But first do your homework and come to an understanding with your enemies.
Her lips stretch in a smile. She runs up to him and grabs him under the arm.
— This moment reminds me of our first walk, except that it was summer then. — Danielle takes her memories back to when she was fourteen. — Then you protected me from an oncoming bicycle, will you now protect me from my enemies?
— You have to work hard for it. You have your whole life ahead of you, so you should make it in time.
*
Joseph opens his eyes and from under his squinted eyelids looks at the figure he sees in the light of the flickering fire in the fireplace. Only when his vision sharpens does he realize that it is Solar.
— You must forgive her. No one loves you more than she does.
At first, the boy is shocked.
— Why do I see you?
— You are the only one who can see me, Joseph. I must have come to you in a dream. — The brunet looks at Hannah, who is sleeping with her head laid on his shoulder. — A bright halo surrounds you, so I'm sure everything will end well for you. The curse will pass, don't ruin this happiness. You are made for each other.
The boy crinkles his eyebrows.
— What do you mean?
— The past cannot be changed, but justice exists.
Tears appear in his eyes. He feels remorse.
— I'm sorry. I apologize for not listening to you that day. — Emotions hit him with double force. — I'm sorry that I hurt you.
— You will make it up to me if you take good care of Hannah. — A sad smile appears on her face. — She needs you to no longer trust something that hurts her.
Joseph strokes the girl's hair.
— You've messed with her head a lot.
— It's not me. She is suffering and requires you.
— You also suffered, you required me, and I did nothing to help you. I humiliated you.
— So don't make the same mistake, Joseph. I just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The shooting fire in the fireplace makes the boy get goosebumps. He wants to hear the truth, but is afraid of it.
— What did you see that day, Solar?
— Not only did I see, but I also heard part of your father's conversation with his lover.
It's like a strong gust of wind. It hits him in the face, for a long moment he couldn't get a word out.
— With a mistress?
— You will find out who she is with the demise of your father. You have to see it with your own eyes because you will never believe me.
Solar melts into the air, and Joseph opens his eyes, feeling his heart pounding hard. He doesn't know if he just experienced a waking dream, but he's sure it was a final goodbye to an old friend.
She is gone, and with that, she has given him one last conundrum before he begins a new phase in his life.