Chapter 27: Play Along

Chapter 27 - Play Along Ryan watched Abigail as she processed what he had told her, and he was pleased to see that she seemed to be buying it. He had received her text on his way home to see her because he had received a drawing of her from her faculty dean, informing him that it was sent to the school's media team and it got to him. Hearing about her nightmares now made him even more anxious than the detailed drawing of her made him feel. All these years, he had been glad that she didn't remember anything, and he had thought she was never going to regain her memory, so he couldn't understand why she was suddenly having nightmares after fifteen years. There was no way he was going to let her regain her memories fully. And there was no way he was going to let whoever was searching for her to find her. While Ryan was watching Abigail, she was busy typing on her phone. As much as what he had said made sense and explained why they hated her, it wasn't adding up at the same time. How could she have caused their death when she had seen the truck coming at them in her nightmare, and she had nothing to do with it? And she had also seen them being shot dead in her nightmare. It had been an assassination, not a mere accident, and she was very sure Genevieve had not been in the car. [How did I cause the accident? Did they die because of the accident?] she asked, wanting to see if he would clear her doubts with a more definite truth. "Yes, they died in that accident," Ryan said and then shook his head, "I don't want to talk about it anymore. I don't want to remember it. I will get you a therapist to help you now that it seems your memories are resurfacing. There's something else I want to talk about," he said, dismissing the subject. Abigail looked at him, wondering what he wanted to say, but she didn't need to wonder for too long. "Who did you meet in Blue York?" He asked, and her heart skipped a beat as she wondered why he was asking her that. Abigail shook her head, but before she could type, he stopped her and asked, "Did you go out without your lens and wig?" Before she could conceal her shock, her eyes widened slightly as she wondered how he could have known, and Ryan sighed deeply as he returned to his seat behind the desk and picked up his phone. "I guess you did. I've been trying to keep you safe all these years, but you're bent on exposing yourself and getting yourself killed." Abigail frowned, wondering what he meant, but he continued once again before she could type on her phone. "Westend is no longer safe for you, and you can't go back to Blue York either. If you love your life, you'll listen to me," he said as he unlocked his phone and showed her the portrait of herself on the screen. If she loved her life? She asked herself as she gazed at the detailed portrait of her. Who could have captured her so perfectly? "Genevieve arrived at the apartment to see the place torn apart. I guess they came to find you. I also received this drawing some minutes ago from your Dean..." [Who are they?] Abigail managed to ask after she tore her gaze away from the detailed drawing of her. "For your safety I can't disclose that to you. All I can tell you right now is that some very dangerous people are after your life. Before you bring any more tragedy to this family you should go to somewhere safe. Somewhere they can't find you," he said, and Abigail's heart skipped a beat. [Somewhere safe?] she asked, suddenly scared at the prospect of leaving the house now that she knew someone was after her life. "Yes. You can trust me. I'll send you to somewhere far away for the time being. Don't worry, I'll make arrangements for both you and the baby to be taken care of. I will also get you a therapist over there that will help you now that you're recovering your memories. I'll come and visit you when I can. This will help us keep your pregnancy a secret too. After the baby is born you can start attending a new school over there while I get someone to take care of the child. After you graduate you can return home," he said, and Abigail's heart raced. As much as she liked the idea of being away from Genevieve and their father, the thought of it also made her anxious since she wasn't sure what to make of all he was saying or what to expect. [When am I leaving?] she asked after a moment. "I'm making the necessary arrangements now. You will leave as soon as everything is in place," he said, and Abigail nodded, not sure what else she was expected to say. "Don't worry, Abi. By the time you get back I would have taken care of everything," he promised and she nodded as she rose to leave, making sure her face did not give away her doubts. Just as she got to the door, he stopped her again, "Abi?" She turned. Ryan held her gaze for a moment, "Have you ever thought about getting a plastic surgery? I think you should consider it for your safety. Nothing very serious, but enough to change your looks a bit. We don't want them finding you." Abigail signed to him, [If I get surgery then I won't need to use the lens or wig anymore, right?] Ryan nodded, "Yes. You can just dye your hair to a different color and lose the lens. But that's only if you get surgery. It's the only way to make sure they can't find you." Abigail nodded, [I will do it.] "Good," Ryan said with an approving smile, "A therapist will come see you tomorrow," he said before she walked away. Once Abigail shut the door behind her, she pursed her lips. On one hand she believed him that there were dangerous people lurking around because she knew that Genevieve's mother and grandparents had been murdered even though he wasn't telling her that part of the story, but on the other hand she didn't understand why anyone would be trying to hurt her or why they were searching for her now after all these years. Why was she the one they were searching for and not Genevieve whose family they had murdered and who had also been at the scene as he claimed? It wasn't adding up. It didn't make any sense. She could tell there were some elements of truth in what he said, but she was also smart enough to know he was lying and hiding something from her. She wasn't sure what was going on, but she was going to play along and pretend she believed him. If he wanted to send her somewhere far away, she would go. If he wanted her to have surgery, she would get it done since it was no different from having to use contact and wear wig all these years. She would play along until she found out exactly what he was hiding from her, and why he was hiding her away from the world.