Chapter 26

After an unsettling twenty minutes of back and forth between Theodore and Najay, they decided to go to SHI’s Enterprises to find Abigail.

Najay thought Abigail was with Theodore all this time, and Theodore thought she was with Najay. They almost went into a fit when they noticed she wasn’t with either, yet there was nowhere else in the city rather than a hotel that she could be staying at.

But the only sure place they knew they could find her was at work.

Curious eyes watched them as Najay and Theodore went inside. Camille, most of all, wanted to know the reason behind seeing the only two people who Abigail talked about here at SHI’s. After all, they hadn’t seen her in days, and Camille was the last person on staff to talk to Abigail.

It made her wonder if this had something to do with Nicholas. It was after their talk that everything seemed to change. So, Camille didn’t think twice when they asked to see Seymour after learning that Abigail hadn’t come in for work in two weeks. Seymour wasn’t busy, so Camille sent them up before confirming that he could see them.

Najay found the office easily. She had been there before in search of Abigail. This time wasn’t different.

“Come in!” Seymour shouted from the other side of the door as Najay knocked. Theodore held the door open for her as they entered, instantly getting Seymour’s attention.

His face twisted in confusion as he eyed Theodore, but realisation struck him when he finally recognised his face from business magazines and newspaper articles. Instantly, Seymour felt like he had to size up to Theodore, but it was more instinctual than intentional.

“Seymour, is Abigail here?” Najay asked, getting right to it. Her voice pulled Seymour’s attention from Theodore.

“Ah, Najay.” Seymour beamed. “It’s good to see you again.” He stood and buttoned his vest as the pair approached him. Theodore reached forward to shake Seymour’s hand, sharing a nod of a sort of mutual businessman respect.

“Is Abigail here?” Najay asked as he sat down again.

“No. She asked for a few days off. I granted it. She seemed distraught when she called, and I didn’t question it.”

“She called you?”

“Yes.”

“Where is she?”

Seymour leaned back. “I don’t know. She seemed upset. When I saw her, she was torn up about something.” He glared at Theodore. “The next day, she called, said she needed time away from work, and I granted it to her.”

“He’s lying,” Najay said. “He knows where she is.”

Theodore ignored everything Najay and Seymour said as he focused on only a segment of Seymour’s statement. “Wait, you saw her?”

Seymour stared at Theodore. “Yes. About two weeks ago, she called me, utterly broken. I saw her, and we talked. I assumed you had a fight.”

He paused; silence followed, so he continued.

“Well, I regret this the most, but I had to leave her. She assured me that she was fine, but I had planned to pay her a visit when my midnight meeting was over to ensure she was okay.”

Theodore shook like a leaf, fists clenched at his side as he listened to the man talk. But he was angry with himself. He drove Abigail away, and she had to seek refuge in her boss—the man who proposed to marry her only months prior.

“Ha! So you do know where she is.” Najay pointed an accusing finger in his face, squinting her eyes. But Seymour’s gaze shifted to Theodore as he replied.

“No. She didn’t text me the address as I asked. But she did call the next day asking for time off. Since I knew how badly she needed it, I obliged. That’s all. She didn’t elaborate.”

Najay squinted her eyes. “Seymour, where is she?”

“I don’t know—”

“Goddamit, Seymour!” Theodore slammed his hands on Seymour’s desk. “Where is Abigail?”

Seymour glared at Theodore. “I would’ve happily told you, except she asked me not to. Now, I don’t appreciate you coming into my office barking at me as if you intimidate me. I have no idea what you did to her, Mr Adams. But that young woman was torn up when I saw her. So if she asked me not to tell you where she is, I’d happily fulfil her request. You don’t deserve—”

“You don’t know shit about what happened!”

Najay rested a hand on Theodore’s chest. “Okay, gentlemen, calm down. You don’t have to tell Theodore. Just tell me.”

“But then you’d tell him, and Abigail asked me—no, begged me to keep her whereabouts a secret, seeming she knew you would seek her out after what? Two weeks?” His icy gaze returned to Theodore. “Are you bored again? Need her to come back so you can break her heart again?”

Theodore shook with rage, seeing nothing but red. Najay pushed against his chest harder to keep Theodore away from the man as she faced Seymour with pleading eyes.

“Please, Seymour. She’s my best friend. Look, we fought, and I said some really nasty things. But all this time, I thought she was with Theodore. Now, knowing she wasn’t with him and having no clue where the hell she is, it worries me, okay? I’ve been calling her all morning, and if it was only a break-up that had her upset, Abigail would’ve picked up or even texted me back. I have an awful feeling that something else happened.”

Seymour sighed and dropped his gaze.

“Oh my gosh, something happened to her, didn’t it?”

He met Najay’s eyes. “Probably.”

“Probably! What do you mean probably?” Theodore barked.

Seymour glared at him but replied anyway. “When she called me, she was at the hospital.”

“What!”

“She sounded fine. She was out when I got the call. I knew where she was because there’s a troubadour at the hospital’s bus stop. I know his music anywhere, and I heard it when she called me. She didn’t mention that she was there, and when I asked where she was, she lied. Obviously, she didn’t want me to know what happened, so I didn’t push her. She was upset enough to start with. I went to the hospital almost immediately, but they wouldn’t tell me why she was there… Patient confidentiality and whatnot, and I’m not her husband or family. But they did confirm that she was there, and she was discharged minutes before she called me.”

A tear rolled down Najay’s cheek as she sat in the chair in front of Seymour’s desk, holding her head.

“Look, I’ve been keeping tabs on Nicholas. He hasn’t been anywhere near her, and he has no clue where she is. She’s safe.”

Najay’s voice broke. “Seymour, please. Where is she?”

He couldn’t maintain eye contact with Najay. Her pleading and his concern for Abigail broke away the promise piece by piece. He couldn’t count the number of times he had to stop himself from going on a plane to find her. But Seymour respected her wishes.

He thought it would be easier to look at Theodore. Being reminded of the reason Abigail was hurt in the first place would probably prevent him from talking. Still, even looking at Theodore, all Seymour could do was wonder. What happened between them? Why was she so hell-bent on keeping Theodore away from her?

Still, above all, Seymour knew she loved this man deeply. And that is precisely why she’ll need Najay to comfort her. Abigail once mentioned that though she loved her aunt, they weren’t always close. So, she probably needed someone to talk to—someone she knew and trusted—like Najay.

Despite his better judgement, Seymour sighed as his wall finally crumbled.

“She went back home to Denver. She’s staying with her aunt,” he finally said.

Najay blew out a breath of relief, jolting to her feet as she grabbed her purse and Theodore’s hand.

“Thank you, Seymour. I won’t tell her what you told me. If she asks, I’ll say I guessed when I saw that she wasn’t in the city. That’s the only other place she would’ve gone, so I don’t know how I didn’t think of that. But thank you.”

Theodore didn’t spare Seymour so much of a glance as they moved to the exit. Deep down, his own self-hate gnawed at his mind. Two weeks. She’s been gone for two weeks, and he had no idea. And all this time, Seymour knew.

Theodore wanted to be upset that Abigail went to Seymour when she was at her lowest. But how could he? It was his fault she left in the first place, and he could’ve stopped her that night but allowed her to go. He could have found her but thought she’d eventually come back after all his texts and calls.

But then again, why would she? It’s not like she needed him to survive, and though he would never admit it out loud, there was a time when Theodore thought that she did. He cursed himself for ever thinking she would come back because she ‘needed’ him. But if he learnt anything over the past two weeks, it is that she didn’t. The eye-opener was dreadfully painful, but he thought he deserved the pain.

This made him appreciate her more. This made him WANT her more. Knowing that she could walk out of his life at any point made him realise that she didn’t need him. He needed her.

“Oh, and Theodore,” Seymour called as they were about to exit, stopping them in their tracks. “For her own good, stay away from her, please.”

Theodore’s eyes closed on instinct. He knew Abigail didn’t want to see him, and he knew following Najay to Denver would upset Abigail even more. For Abigail’s own good, maybe he should stay away from her.

But hell, for his own good, he knew he at least had to try to get her back. So, he made a vow. He’d only leave her alone forever if she looked him in the eyes and told him that herself.

Still, he dreaded proposing the ultimatum to her. As he feared that whatever led her home to Denver—to the place she swore she wouldn’t return to until she graduated—would be enough to rid him of her life forever.