Isaac remembers little of his parents; they died when he was very young. He was instead raised by a trusted friend of his parents, the wealthy entrepreneur Daniel Linderman. Daniel was a stern and distant man, though not a cruel one; he prioritized his work above all else, though. Daniel had high aspirations for Isaac, as he had no biological children of his own, and raised Isaac to be the heir to the Linderman empire. Daniel wanted nothing more than for his son to become as powerful, ruthless, and calculating as he was, capable of manipulating anyone and anything to his side. Though Daniel was ostensibly Isaac's father, there was a steady procession of people to look after young Isaac, clean up after him, fix his meals, and even educate him. Out of fear of Mr. Linderman, Isaac's caretakers often allowed him to run roughshod over them, creating something of a "problem" child who had no boundaries and knew no limits.
This all changed when Isaac was 12 years old and he was remanded to the care of Nicole Nichols, Daniel Linderman's personal assistant. Nicole was the first person to ever be able to get through to Faulkner, to stand firm against his outbursts and show him boundaries. She did not fear Daniel Linderman, and she feared his progeny even less. As such, Isaac found a challenge in Nicole, but soon came to understand that she had a wealth of things he could learn. Ultimately, they would settle into a tense mentor/mentee relationship, with Isaac constantly testing Nicole's limits and boundaries.
All his life, Isaac was molded into becoming what his adopted father wanted, and in a way Daniel Linderman got that wish. Isaac was like a diminutive version of Daniel, all fire and fury but without Daniel's tempering. Isaac restrained himself around Nicole, but as he grew up his outbursts became more focused and furtive. By the time he was 18, Isaac had eyes for his adoptive father's empire, for power, for authority, and for everything the world had to offer. This all nearly came to an end in 2013 when Isaac got into a fight at the Linderman Group owned nightclub, Rapture. When his temper flew off the handle, Isaac found himself in a fight with another Linderman Group employee, Kain Zarek. Zarek, not realizing who Faulkner was due to inebriation, beat Isaac within an inch of his life and would have killed him had his bodyguards not intervened. The Linderman Group quietly removed Mr. Zarek from their payroll (and buried his remains on the roadside in Yonkers, NY) before Isaac recovered.
The severe beating at Zarek's hands changed Isaac, and his outbursts and temper turned inward. He became quieter, but not hesitant. Isaac began to internalize his needs, his desires, and his aspirations. His successful bid for NY State Senator the following year only spurred on his ego and drive. When Daniel fell ill with pancreatic cancer in 2015 Isaac dreamed of taking over the throne of his father's wealth. But when Daniel died, Isaac was overcome with anger to find out that Nicole Nichols would have carte blanche control over his influence in the company. It was then that the final piece in the puzzle that was Isaac Faulkner fell into place. Nicole had to go.
In late 2017, Isaac hired a career killer to assassinate Nicole and make it look like an accident. However, Nicole miraculously survived her car accident and Faulkner fell into a spiral of anger and depression, fearing that she may realize what he attempted and could at any moment sever his wealth and power. Isaac scrambled to cover up his tracks while at the same time coordinating with Nicole for his ongoing political aspirations in the hopes of becoming a House Representative in 2020.
But if Nicole were ever to find out what he did…