Chapter 219: Now?

Words : 1758 Updated : Oct 8th, 2025

Chapter 219: Now? Neither Abigail nor Jamal touched the lunch they’d ordered. After the call ended Abigail turned to Jamal, "I didn’t realize you were recording the conversations with Ryan." "Don’t you think it’d be foolish and careless of me not to record the conversations? You never can tell when he might slip. I have to be prepared to have it all recorded," he said as she glanced at her watch. "Well, I’m glad you did. We should head back to the office now. Lunch break is over. I guess I won’t be working at the company for long as I thought I would," Abigail said as she rose. Jamal rose as well. "Do you feel bad about that?" "Although my plans for the company have been ruined, but this arrangement is safer. Especially for Josh. I have to think about him more than anything else," she said as they walked out of the restaurant together. Instead of taking a cab they chose to walk since the restaurant was only some blocks away from the office and neither of them was in a hurry to get back under Ryan’s invisible watchful gaze. As Abigail walked she slowly processed all that they had discussed. The more she learned about her biological mother the less she liked her. What sort of person was Kimberly Moore? What sort of people were her grandparents to have covered up their daughter’s crime? Abigail’s heart was heavy and felt immense sadness thinking about all the lives that had been affected by her mother’s reckless behavior. Jamal on the other hand was thinking about Abigail and Callan. He was worried about Callan, and how he might feel when he learns about everything. As they got into the elevator to their office floor, Jamal looked at Abigail, "I know it’s probably a stupid question to ask, but I still want to ask. Are you okay?" Abigail shook her head. "I’m not." Jamal sighed softly and gathered her into his arms, "I’m sorry about all of this. I wish there was something I could do." Abigail smiled as she pulled back, "Having you here with me is good enough. This must not be easy for you either. You must be worried about Callan." Jamal nodded, his gaze a little distant. "I am very worried about what all this might do to him. Callan likes to act like he’s some tough jerk, but deep down he’s very softhearted. He has lots of issues he doesn’t talk about. He’s always having nightmares and is seeing a therapist. All he knew before now was that his birth mother abandoned him, and then the lady that raised him until he was eleven also abandoned him at the orphanage home. He doesn’t like to talk about what happened before she abandoned him there. But he’s pretty traumatized by whatever happened. His adoption sort of happened by chance..." he trailed off when the elevator door opened and they headed for the office. As they walked into the office, Abigail looked at Jamal, "I don’t think there’s any need to say anything to her. Just leave things as they are." Jamal gave her a nod and watched as she went into her office while he headed for Genevieve’s office to see if she was back from her meeting. He knocked on her office door, and when he heard her call out to him to come in, he opened the door. "I guess you were out for lunch with Abigail," she said as he walked in. "Yes, ma’am," he said with a nod and signaled her to give him the car key. Genevieve nodded, "Here’s the car key." She held up the car key to him. "Have you heard from my Dad today? I’ve been trying to reach him but he’s not accepting my calls." "Perhaps he’s busy. I haven’t heard from him either," Jamal said as he took the car key from her and then he excused himself. Genevieve was relieved as she watched him go, glad they didn’t have to talk about their earlier conversation. She had changed her mind about confiding in him. She didn’t think there was any need to risk it when she already had a plan in place. She glanced at her phone, wondering why she was yet to hear from Stefan all day when he had called her multiple times the previous day. Perhaps he was busy, she mused with a sigh as she thought about seeing him that weekend. She really hoped that her father wouldn’t put spies to watch her movement in Ludus, else it’d be hard to escape easily. Thinking of her father she wondered what he was up to wherever he was and why he wasn’t accepting her calls. ~*****~ Callan stared at the phone in his hand even after the call ended, but he didn’t really see anything. His chest felt heavy, like something was sitting right on top of it. His father’s words kept echoing in his head. ’Information about your biological parents...’ Emily was still sitting on the couch. Her hands were folded in her lap, and her eyes were watching him closely, her brows pulled together. She tilted her head a little. "Callan?" she called in a soft voice. Callan blinked like he was waking from a daze. Then he looked up slowly, his eyes meeting Emily’s. "What’s wrong?" she asked gently. Callan didn’t answer right away. His mind was racing. He had so many questions. Why now after all these years? Was it just coincidence? What did they find? Why did his father sound so serious? He took a breath as he rose and headed for the kitchen. Emily followed quietly. She stood by the island and watched him open the refrigerator. He wasn’t really looking for anything. He just needed a second to think. He closed it without taking anything out and finally turned to her. "I have to go to Ludus," he said quietly. Emily nodded. "So I gathered." She tilted her head slightly. "When are you leaving?" "Now. My driver will be here soon..." Emily’s forehead wrinkled. "Now? Did something happen? Why the hurry?" Callan nodded slowly. He rubbed his hand over his face. He looked tired again, like all the energy had been pulled out of him. "My dad... He said they found something. About my real parents." Emily’s eyes widened and she straightened up at that. "Oh." Her lips parted slightly, but no words came out. She just looked at him. There was silence for a moment. "So, are you going to meet them? They probably want you in Ludus because your biological parents are there, right?" she asked after a moment. "I don’t know yet. He wouldn’t say. He just told me to get on the jet. He already called the pilot. He sounded pretty serious and urgent," Callan said, wondering if maybe Emily was right and they wanted him in Ludus to meet his biological parents. Emily nodded slowly, trying to process. "How do you feel?" "I don’t know." He sighed and leaned against the fridge. "I’m anxious I guess." They both stood in silence. "I’ll go with you," Emily said quietly. Callan looked at her and shook his head. "No. You can’t. You’ve got your program, remember?" "I can get them to excuse me." "No," he said firmly. "You said you didn’t want any preferential treatments. You’d be easily excused if you asked for a break because of you who are. Do you think your colleagues would get the same privilege? Does it make sense that you’re taking time off when you have barely started the program?" Emily hated that he was right. She stepped closer and touched his arm. "I just want to be there for you." Callan stared down at her hand on his arm. He didn’t know what to say. He didn’t know what he might learn about himself when he gets to Ludus. He didn’t want her to see him fall apart as he feared he might. "Thanks, but you don’t have to worry. I’ll be fine. I’m going to meet my parents not a firing squad," he muttered. "I’ll be back soon." She didn’t argue. Instead, she stepped back and nodded. "Alright." Callan glanced at the clock on the wall. It was a little past 4 a.m. All he had to do was change out of his clothes. He could get anything he needed in Ludus, he wasn’t ready to pack a bag. "I’m going to get ready. You should go back to bed," he said, heading out of the kitchen. Emily followed behind him. "I’ll wait to see you leave," she said, going to sit in the living room while he headed for his bedroom. Without another word Callan headed for his bedroom and by the time he was done dressing up, the driver had arrived and was waiting in the car. Emily set down her cup of coffee and rose the moment Callan walked into the living room, dressed in a navy blue suit. She followed him as he walked outside to the car, and then he turned to look at her. "If you need anything, you can reach my assistant. My driver will drive you around in a less fancy car that won’t rouse suspicion. Let him know whenever you need him to pick you," Callan told her. "You don’t have to worry," she said softly. "I’ll be fine." "I’ll worry less if you let him drive you around," he said, and she looked at him for a moment and even though she wanted to tell him she was a big girl and could take care of herself, she gave him a small nod. Before Callan could walk away, she stepped forward and embraced him. "Take care of yourself, Callan. I hope you’ll be fine and come back your smiling self. I hate to admit that I miss seeing you smile. I never thought the day would come when I’d miss your annoying grin." She had come to realize that she preferred when he was being annoying and teasing her to this cool withdrawn version that seemed to be bearing the weight of the world on his shoulders. Callan stood still until she pulled back, and then he grinned at her. "Be good, Princess Emily. And make sure you stay away from Dan," he said, ruffling her hair before getting into the car. Emily smiled as she stood there, watching the car drive away. She really hoped that he’d be fine.

Chapter 219: Now?

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