39
Chapter Thirty Nine
When Lucas showed up at Amanda’s building the next morning, she didn’t buzz him up. He was already worried because his calls hadn’t gone through when he called her after he woke up.
Apprehensive, he punched in her code, which he was familiar with, but he quickly realised she had changed it. It was after a couple more unsuccessful calls that he thought to check her car in the parking basement. After a couple minutes of checking and double checking, he realised it wasn’t there. Which meant she wasn’t at the apartment.
Where could she have gone? The office? To see her father?
A quick call to the office revealed she hadn’t showed up there. He drove straight to the headquarters, meaning to go check whether she was at her father’s office. But when he got there, Charles’s secretary informed him that Charles was in a meeting, and no, Amanda hadn’t showed up there either.
He called up people he never thought he would. Rebecca, Keith. He even called the Bolton residence to find out whether she had gone there. She hadn’t, and no one knew where she was.
After his futile search, he went to work, hoping she would show up. He kept trying to call and send messages, but her phone remained unreachable.
By evening, he still had no idea where she was, and he had no idea where to look.
After a restless night, Lucas showed up at the Lemaiyan Group headquarters the next morning.
He requested an emergency meeting with the Chairman, and when his secretary insisted he had a meeting as soon as he got to the office, Lucas insisted it was something urgent that couldn’t wait.
The secretary made a call to Charles’s personal assistant. After a few moments, she let Lucas know that Charles could spare him five minutes when he arrived.
While waiting, Lucas tried Amanda’s phone one last time. He cursed when the tone alerting him she was unavailable came on. She had been unavailable for 24 hours now.
Where could she be? Was she okay? If something had happened to her, he would never forgive himself.
He should never have left her alone the other night. After everything she had been through, the new revelation must have been such a hard strike. No one would be okay on their own after getting such news. Why didn’t he insist on staying with her?
He shoved his hands in his hair, pacing in the Chairman’s waiting area. If only she could send him a text message, just a message, to tell him she was okay.
The elevator opened and Charles Lemaiyan walked out, closely followed by his assistant.
“Lucas,” he acknowledged him, offering his hand in greeting when he came to him. “What’s so urgent that you ambushed me in my office so early?”
Lucas shook his hand, for the sake of the staff around. “Let’s talk in your office,” he told him.
“Of course,” Charles said, heading to the office.
The two men disappeared in the Chairman’s office.
The moment the door was closed behind them, Lucas dropped his assumed professional aura. “Where’s Amanda?”
His voice came out sharp, and it was clear Charles didn’t miss the tone as he gave him a sharp look as he settled in his chair. “Excuse me?”
Lucas stalked forward and stood on the other side of the desk. “What have you done with her?”
Charles raised one hand in a placating gesture. “Calm down and tell me what this is about.”
“I know you want to get rid of her,” Lucas told him. “She has been missing since yesterday. Did you do something to her?”
Charles dropped his hand. “I had no idea she was missing,” he commented.
“Do not lie to me!” Lucas demanded.
Charles rose to his feet and walked around the desk. Giving Lucas a stern glare, he ordered, “Watch your tone, young man! If she decided to skip town, good for her! It makes my job easier.”
Lucas could barely hold in his anger. His hands balled into fists at his side. “I swear, if you’re behind this, I’ll make you pay!”
Charles shook his head. “Your parents would be so disappointed if they found out about this. If you don’t focus on the important things, you’ll bring disgrace to your entire family.”
“Amanda is the most important thing to me right now. And as far as I’m concerned, she’s the only family I need!”
“You’re young, and stupid. You’ll grow up and regret all of these stupid decisions you’re making,” Charles warned him.
“Don’t worry about my regrets,” Lucas spat, before turning and storming out of the office.
He wasn’t sure he still had his job at Lemaiyan Fits after that show, but he didn’t care.
He was only concerned about one thing, and that was Amanda’s whereabouts.
***
Amanda had never spent the year’s end alone.
She was always surrounded by family, friends, and co-workers. Not locked up in a cabin in the mountains, staring listlessly into the roaring fireplace.
The last time she was here, she had been running from the aftermath of a betrayal. Here she was, not even a year later, hiding away from the pain of yet another betrayal. Not that the hiding was helping.
Being away from everything didn’t distance her from the pain in her heart. Not just her heart—her entire body seemed to have checked out. The first day she got to the resort, she had barely left her bed. The second day, she had ventured outside, hoping to find even the least bit of comfort in the serene surroundings. There was less snow this time of the year, unlike the last time she had been there. Hiking was therefore much easier, and she had walked until her legs ached. Somehow, the physical pain distracted her from her emotional woes. It also helped that when she got back to her cabin, she slept like a log after taking a warm shower, thanks to the fatigue.
It was now morning again, another day to face her new reality.
She knew she couldn’t hide forever. Soon—sooner than she preferred—she would have to make the drive back home. Confront Charles. Find her birth parents. Apologise to Helena and reject her offer. From there on, she could try figuring out what to do next. Because no matter how much she tried to map her way forward, her brain couldn’t get that far. It was as if it refused to do so until she dealt with the immediate issue.
Just another day, she promised herself. One more day, and she would gather the strength to face her new reality.
Somewhere along the way, hopefully, she would find enough of it to make a new beginning.
