Chapter 1 The Sterling Silver Cross

The city centre was quiet at ten o'clock at night with a few scattered pedestrians, except when pierced by the sound of an occasional car revving past.

Inside the Heaven Bar, however, the crowd noise was almost deafening and the smell of cigarettes and wine in the air was overwhelmingly strong. The music blared from the speakers and the people yelled just to be able to hear themselves.

Amidst this mayhem, Harlow Leng sat alone in a seat adjacent to the dance floor. One hand supporting her chin and the other pressed at her temple, she stared absently at a handsome couple dance to their hearts' content in the crowd.

The description "tall and handsome" fit the man perfectly, while the woman was a beauty. It was difficult to take one's eyes off of them.

Watching them dance together in that manner made her very uncomfortable. The woman, Lainey Yu, was her senior from school and it was Lainey's birthday today. However, somehow the man, Michael Tang who was Harlow's boyfriend, managed to become the star of the night. The entire scene made her very nauseous.

They danced with screams of joy and Michael placed his hands on Lainey's perfectly tiny waist, which was wrapped in a very tight and short skirt. His hands roamed over her waist freely, as though no one was around. At the sight of this, Harlow downed the remainder of her wine in one swig.

The size of the gulp made her choke and cough.

Her eyes watered but she never let her sight stray from Michael and Lainey. They seemed to be getting increasingly comfortable with each other until the point where she couldn't bear to look anymore. She tore her eyes away from them.

Out of sight, out of mind, she told herself. It was only a dance, she told herself. She shouldn't be making a big deal of it.

She raised her head again but only to drain the last of the wine from the bottle. Almost immediately she started to feel dizzy.

The scene on the dance floor seemed to be swimming before her eyes. The dancing seemed crazier and the people seemed louder. She felt her throat go dry and her stomach hurt. She held the table tight and got up to her feet to make her way to the washroom.

She staggered into the first stall and hurled her guts out in the toilet.

She already regretted the drinking and made a promise to herself that she had made a hundred times before. She was never going to drink again!

After a pause that seemed like an eternity, she managed to get to her feet and walk out of the bathroom.

No sooner had she stepped out of the washroom than she bumped into a couple stumbling out of the men's room. The two were locked in a tight embrace and kissing each other passionately. They were too lost in the moment to notice that they were blocking Harlow's way.

The man looked dashing in a well-fitted black suit as he stood beside the door of the ladies' room. The woman wore a diamond studded sapphire blue dress. She had pulled the man close to her by holding him by the back of his neck and running her fingers through his hair. Her eyes were shut tight and her hair moved with every movement she made. She had her perfect long legs wrapped around the man's waist and they both seemed completely ignorant of where they were.

The scene before her eyes made Harlow hold her breath longer than she cared for.

Before she knew it, a loud thud rang in her ears.

The couple had lost their balance and knocked Harlow off her feet and into the door of the ladies' room. The man's heavy footstep landed on Harlow in the process.

"Ouch!" she screamed.

Already dizzy from all the wine, the fall only made her stomach churn faster and the next thing she knew, she had vomited once again.

Almost instantaneously, the man let go off the lady he was kissing to avoid the vomit.

Without the support of the man holding her, the woman landed right in front of Harlow, where she vomited.

Harlow had in fact vomited right on the woman's chest!

"Ugh! Yuck!" The woman's face, which was flushed a second ago, turned pale from absolute shock at the turn of events. She was glaring at Harlow who was practically cowering in shame.

The man merely stood leaning against the wall, with a faint yet evil smile on his face as he looked over the scene.

"Are you out of your mind?" yelled the lady at Harlow. "Didn't you see me?" She followed this up with a stream of curses that Harlow was too dazed to comprehend.

All she could do was apologize over and over again. "I'm so sorry! I really didn't mean to do it. Please, let me help you clean up." Trembling, she rummaged through her purse and managed to grab a couple of tissues to help the woman wipe herself down. She glanced at the man and all of a sudden, her heart fluttered.

The mere sight of him, his tall figure, bronzed skin, angular features and most of all his dark and deep eyes, were all at once evil, yet charming. He continued to smile in a way that could make anyone uncomfortable.

"Fuck off!" yelled the woman, shoving Harlow aside. She was an inch away from slapping Harlow, when all of a sudden the man grabbed her hand.

"Hey honey, you're dirty and I don't like it. Why don't you go wash up instead of wasting our time?"

The woman held back her anger and forced a charming smile instead. She leaned against him as he pulled her up, her legs feeling almost limp. He was disgusted though and let go of her arm to take a step back.

The woman realized that he was now repulsed by her and she stiffened. She put on the sweetest smile and said in her nicest voice, "I'm sorry, Mr. Ling, do give me a minute to wash up."

Mr. Ling shrugged but didn't bother saying anything. He took one last glance at Harlow before turning and walking into the hall.

As he turned, Harlow caught sight of a delicate sterling silver cross strung around his neck, and that was the most impressive thing she remembered that night.