Chapter 16

I sat on the edge of the hard bed, leaning slightly forwards but still anchoring myself to the bed with my hands. I was playing with myself childishly, seeing how far I could tilt before I slid my butt of the bed. Jeremy was droning on with the doctor, but the bottom line of their medicinal talk was probably that I was fine and that Jeremy was being an overly worried mother hen. He had even called Dorian! I mean, what the hell, man.

Jeremy talked for awhile longer, then walked back to where I was sitting, staring at the floor and my feet. Apparently Jeremy had convininetly forgotten to let me wear my shoes before he carted me out of my apartment, and I was effectively barefooted. Dorian was going to have such a field day laughing at my state of imperfection.

“Come on, Darling. We’ll wait outside for you medicine.” He gathered me in his arms again, this time letting me sit on his arm while I laced my arms around his neck, to make sure he didn’t make me his ‘bride’ again. I was sick of his bridal style all the time. For god’s sake, I wasn’t this egoistical jerk’s bride.

Hayden was the first to run up to us when Jeremy carried me out, but Dorian was followed close after. Dorian didn’t even bother freaking out about meeting his con-artist idol, demanding to know of my condition first. Jeremy only smiled and reassured them that I would be fine –just a fever.

If Jeremy heard me out initially before carting me off to the doctor’s, he would have found out the same thing. Apparently, Mr. Ego was hell-bent on making me the weakling who was bound to have brain-damage if he didn’t send me to A&E soon.

The funny thing was, by the time we reached the doctor’s, my fever had naturally receeded on its own without help of any medicine at all, leaving Jeremy seriously confused and suspicious whether my body was trying to play a trick on him.

“Are you okay? Do you feel weak? Sick? Nauseous?” Hayden asked me worriedly as Jeremy sat me at one of the seats, rushing to take the seat beside me. Dorian immediately planted his ass on the seat at my other side.

“Guys, guys, I’m fine. Really. I don’t need three nannies here fussing over me.” I sighed. I hadn’t even wanted one, and here I had three nannies pushing themselves all over me. All they managed to do so far in terms of my recovery was just getting on my nerves.

“But you need one.” Dorian reminded, which got me a glare.

“And I have three. Stop being all motherly on me, guys. You all are not running for elections to become the next Rose Seyfried, so just stop.”

“She can joke. I proclaim her brain-damaged.” Jeremy said in his high-and-mighty voice, and I slapped my forehead exasperatedly.

“I need to ram my head against the wall now…” I mumbled underneath my breath, threading fingers through my hair to push my fringe up. Keeping straight hair definitely made Hayden happy, but while I was sick, it probably mattered none to him.

“Hey, get out of my seat, man.” Jeremy nudged Dorian at my side with a frown.

“It’s not your seat.”

“I called you here, so I decide where you seat.” Jeremy challenged back.

“Hayden called me here, not you. You don’t dictate me.”

“I told Hayden to call you here. Hayley dictates you. And right now, I dictate her.” Jeremy proclaimed, offendingly invading Dorian’s personal space, issuing his challenge.

“You do not! Hayley Seyfried is dictated by no one.” Dorian proclaimed back in reply, pushing Jeremy back.

“Can the manly testosterone just stop? You guys are supposed to be working together.” I interjected as a loud sigh, taking the temporary attention of all three men.

“’Supposed to’. I still don’t trust him, Sister.” Hayden reminded.

“Yeah, well I don’t trust you too.”Dorian challenged back, as if he were a child defending his pide.

“Guess what; we don’t need your trust.” Jeremy taunted, and Dorian made a move to punch the guy. It took all I had to calm down and keep my temper on low, just in case I started to boil up again.

“Dorian! Can you just control yourself? I don’t need the two of you giving me trouble now.” I reprimanded quietly, and its own silence was deadly enough to have my student backing down like a docile lamb. I didn’t like to scold Dorian, but sometimes the man was just too childish.

“Now shake hands like adults and exchange introductions. I expect the three of you, and Jerlyn and Mabel to be working together.”

“Jerlyn and Mabel are already working here?” Hayden asked –surprised. The last he had heard was that they were dropping by.

“Yeah, I was with them the entire day. Jerlyn is still convinced that she wants a stuffed version of me as a teddy bear.” Dorian conceded, and I sighed again –this time because of Jerlyn’s naiveity.

“Right. No one would buy it anyway.” Jeremy’s sarcasm was easy to detect, and I was quick to snap at him before Dorian could do anything.

“Shake hands, now! I don’t care if you guys want to have a testosterone fight, take it away from me. While you’re around me, you three must be the best of friends.” I commanded in my strictest tone –despite how tired I was.

Grudgingly, Dorian stuck out a hand, which Jeremy accepted just as reluctantly. Seems like Dorian hadn’t expected his idol to be such an asshole.

“Jeremy. Jeremy Stiles.” Jeremy grumbled, as if someone were pointing a gun at his head, and forcing him to say his name.

“Dorian. Dorian Renay.” The same happened to my student, and I laughed internally at the similarity in their reluctance. At the same time, I ironically cursed myself for being surrounded by so many men. Yes, they cared for me, but watching them bicker like housewives in a market, it sure felt like I was babysitting them instead.

“Jeremy, go get my medicine.” I sighed yet again, breaking their eye contact challenge. There was a sound of slight reluctance he made, but he walked away all the same. It was only his first day as my nanny, and Jeremy  was staring to get on my nerves. Perhaps this was a bad idea. I shouldn’t be getting Jeremy involved in this.

“Hayden, is there really a need to pull Jeremy into this? It’s still not too late to let him run. I don’t want him to meet with trouble. There are many ways that this could go bad.” My brother looked at the figure of our childhood friend, leaning candidly against the counter and flashing his handsome smile. It wasn’t so much the Seyfried smile, but Jeremy had manly charms of his own, and it definitely was working on the nurse at the counter by the way her eyes sparkled at him.

“Jeremy was willing enough to stay in NYC while in mid-running process. Does that not tell you of his care fo you? He betrayed everything our father taught him, and went his back on Matthew’s teaching just to stay in NYC to take care of you. He revealed his face to FBI, he wants to stay adamantly. Does that not explain his willingness to be a part of this?”

“But I don’t want to bring trouble to him, Hayden. This work is risky. We could possibly ruin Jeremy’s life if we are careless. He has too many roots here.”

Hayden’s hand closed over mine warmly, giving me the strength that I never thought I would gain from the little brother that I supported since young.

“Hays, this is not like you. You shouldn’t be worrying about failing. We are the Seyfrieds. We don’t fail.”

“But… our parents did… You… Now…”

I never had fear of going against FBI, or playing with the FBI, but somehow, being shot seemed to make me wary. Like a wake-up call, it made me relook everything. This was between Hayden and me. I didn’t have to bring Dorian, the girls and Jeremy into this. It was too late for Dorian to back out, and I’d already made promises to Jerlyn and Mabel for immunity from FBI. They were tied to this large con. But Jeremy wasn’t –hadn’t. Jeremy could bail anytime he wanted right now. Would I take away that chance for him to bail by making him stay?

“Hays, look at me. Our parents didn’t fail. I didn’t fail, and you’re not going to fail. Our parents took their due break, and I had to take mine too. You haven’t had your break yet –you’ve been overworking yourself. Now that Jeremy, Dorian, Jerlyn, Mabel and I are together, just relax. We’ll get me out of FBI in no time. You don’t have to do many things. We are all skilled cons. Well, at least four of us.”

Dorian flipped my brother off, looking up from his phone.

“Doubt me if you wish. I’d just finished setting up groundworks for Annabel’s background. Jerlyn just confirmed our next con. Does anyone feel up to recreating Ruben’s Massacre of the Innocence at the moment? No, Hayden? Well, guess who’s up to stealing it first?” Dorian bit sarcastically.

“That fast? When is Ruben appearing? Where?” Even Hayden seemed surprised at Dorian’s new piece of information. It was surprising how that man had managed to work with the two feisty women of my life, and actually got them to agree on the piece to steal.

“Ruben? He’s appearing downtown. Low-key exhibition –there’s going to be auctions on some low-leveled works, but they’re displaying Massacre to attract the crowd. Why?” Jeremy cut in, a small plastic bag in his hands and a brilliant smile chasing his back while he walked back towards us. The nurse was soooo caught up in his charms at the moment.

“I’m going to get some good money out of it. Maybe I’ll use that money to get Hayley a better babysitter than you.” Dorian boasted proudly, but Jeremy was more concerned about the second part of his proclaimation.

“Hey, my services can’t be bought by money, alright? I don’t see you taking care of your teacher, so shut up. I thought Hayley would choose someone less… like you for a student. I know why she’s so protective about you now –your lousy skills are probably Hayley’s dirty little secret.” Jeremy bit back, and I whispered to Hayden to help me up.

The two conmen were so caught up in their dispute that they didn’t realize that we were gone until we stepped into the lift. Hayden laughed as the lift doors closed in their faces, and out of the three men babysitting me now, it was funny how my brother was the only one keeping obedient enough to leave me alone.

The ride home with Hayden was left with small, light conversation as both Hayden and I treaded on dangerous grounds. The things between Hayden and I –there were too many of them. The many things that we wouldn’t talk about –things like how Hayden survived after me, things like how I survived after I left him, things about Neal.

One day, Hayden and I would have to sit down and shout and scream at each other for everything that happened between us. After that, we could be the world’s perfect brother and sister again, the world’s perfect con siblings.

We reached my place first, Jeremy and Dorian following after quickly, still bickering like two blonde bimbos fighting over the same boyfriend. I got ready for bed –since I’d been advised (and definitely about to be forced by all three men) to rest as much as I could. But of course, before I turned in for the night, I sat at the edge of my bed, checking in on news around the world. There weren’t any headline news of cons going crazy and bringing attention to us, so my work as a part of The Circle was done.

The men had insisted on waiting till I was safely tucked in bed and asleep in my land of Nirvana before they would leave, so I’d made sure that they were chased out of my room, with no one to disturb me while I climbed tiredly to bed. I needed my rare time alone.

I was about to turn off the lamps before I heard it. The strange, almost-unfamiliar tune of Swan Lake singing out to me. It was quite, muffled in the silence of my room, almost drowned out by the sounds of moving cars downstairs. I sat up immediately, heart racing. It couldn’t be…

Ignoring the sensation of vertigo that hit me as I jumped out of bed, I stumbled over to the bedside table, wrenching open the drawer and digging furiously through it, hearing the song louder when I pulled the drawer open. It couldn’t be… please… let it be…

Pushing around the mess in my drawer, flipping paper after paper, I knew the phone was here somewhere. I could feel the vibrations…

My fingers closed over cold plastic, and I pulled it out in an instant. It took only a brief moment for me to stare at the lit up screen. The screen that hadn’t been lit for seven years. The screen that I’d been wishing –hoping –for to light up.

Swan Lake by Tchaikovsky began starting over again.

I flipped the old-fashioned phone open and placed the receiver at my ear.

“Neal!” My voice was a strangled cry, the tears already filling up my eyes, choking me up. It had to be… Only him…

There was a long moment of silence which I wondered which sick bastard was playing a trick on me. Could this be a prank call? A wrong number? But the contact had been listed… Please, god, just speak. Just let it be him…

“Hayley, you sound weak. Are you alright?” His voice –that most beautiful, most soothing, most melodious sound that I’d ever heard –spoke through the phone, the large downpour after seven years of drought.

“Neal, it’s you! Where have you been? Are you alright? Where are you? Why didn’t you contact me before? I knew you weren’t dead! I knew you didn’t die!” The words spilled forth, tears punctuating my cry. How could he not call after seven years? How could he? He was still alive –I knew it!

“Listen, Hays. I know you’re trying to take Hayden back into the con world. I know you love him. But Hayden has friends in the FBI. They are on to you, Hays. I know you’re weak towards anything about your brother, but you need to take a step back. FBI is on to you. One of them used to be a con.” He was speaking lowly, softly –almost whispering –but that voice was still honey in my ears. I couldn’t get enough of that voice. I needed to hear more of that voice.

“I know. Speak to me, Neal. Where have you been? How are you? Where are you now?” I begged, trembling as I pulled myself over to the balcony so that the men outside wouldn’t hear my cry. The last thing I needed now was my conversation with Neal to be interrupted.

“No, listen to me, Hays. You cannot do whatever you plan to. Don’t harm yourself. Don’t harm Hayden. FBI Annabel Francis is trouble –she’s not simple. Don’t play with Hayden’s girlfriend. I know you love your brother, but there are other ways. Don’t target Francis.”

“I don’t care about that, Neal. What happened seven years ago? How did you get out?”

“Hays. Please. I need to go.”

“No! Don’t go. Please…” My first word was a desperate shout, then I sounded weak, whimpering and begging. No… Neal couldn’t be doing this to me…

“I’m sorry, Hays. I cannot be a part of your life anymore. Forget me. You have your student by your side now. You can win Hayden back. I heard Jeremy’s back in NYC for you… You have enough men by your side. You don’t need me.”

“I do! I need you, Neal. I’ll trade them all for you. Just tell me where you are, Neal. Just let me see you again. Let us talk. You need to explain things with me. You can’t just leave me hanging!” I begged, holding on to the doorframe of my balcony to ensure that my legs wouldn’t give way. I was already weak, and talking to Neal like this, knowing that he was still alive...

“I’m really sorry, Hayley. Forget about me. We’re over.”

“NEAL!” I screamed, but the flat tone replied.

I stared at the phone for a long moment, then everything left me. All energy, all motivation, everything. Neal had left me. Neal had said it. We were over.

I dropped to the floor like a rag doll, and I didn’t get up again. I didn’t want to.

My mind definitely didn’t either.

****************************************

“NEAL!” The voice screaming through the door broke up soft discussion between the men outside in the living/sitting area. A single moment was spent with them exchanging looks, then the sound of a loud thud jolted them out of their suddenly frozen state of shock.

Hayden was the closest to the bedroom door, and kicked it open, eyes searching for the figure of his sister in the dark.

“HAYLEY!” His cry of shock was pummeled out of him as he ran to the figure on the floor. She had fallen face down near the balcony, and against the light of the bedside lamp, she looked as pale as white paper. Near her, on the ground, was a phone he had not seen for a long long time.

Hayden ran over to his unconscious sister’s side, turning her up so that she could breathe properly. He felt desperately for her vitals, finding her heartbeat scarily erratic. He pushed the hair out of her face, so afraid to find white-coloured lips. Watching her like this… he felt a pang inside him.

She couldn’t leave him… not like this…

 Dorian nudged him to one side, feeling her vitals himself, then gathered her up in his arms, bridal style. He distantly heard hushed whispers passed between Dorian and Jeremy as Dorian set her down gently on the bed, feeling her forehead for a fever. It must have been nothing, for there was no flash of panic through those black eyes.

“I’m calling a doctor. Something must have happened.” Dorian announced, still worried like hell. Hayley was a strong woman. What would pummel her so hard that she would swoon and faint like this?

He looked back to the phone on the floor. He recognized that phone. It was Hayley’s private phone seven years ago. Seven years ago… Only two things had happened –Hayley left him, and half a year after that, Neal’s plane crashed.

Could it be that she thought of Neal?

Swan Lake filled the room, and he instinctively picked up the vibrating phone, turning it around to look at the screen. He sucked in a gasp, unable to believe what he saw. The name… Neal. Neal was calling.

“What’s wrong? Pick it up.” Jeremy sounded less panicked than Dorian, but no less worried for his sister’s well-being as the man watched him stare at the screen. Following Jeremy’s advice, he lightly fingered the button to pick up the call and gingerly placed the phone by his ear.

“Hayley? Are you there? I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have said what I said to you… I can’t… I can’t do this to you. You deserve better.” The voice he had had nightmares about before, the voice that had serenaded his sister and pulled her away from him came from the phone, and there was no asking who he was looking for.

“You were supposed to be dead, you sick bastard.” He growled into the phone with as much hatred as he could muster at the moment. Enough that Neal had taken his sister away from him seven years ago. What made him so furious was the fact that Neal was still alive –and had left his sister heartbroken, hanging and pained for six and a half years. Not even a call. Not even a sign of life. Until now.

“Hayden? Is that you? What happened to Hayley? Is she alright?”

“I’m surprisde you still cared. But you don’t have the rights anymore. You don’t have the rights to be asking any questions regarding my sister, you large motherfucker. You revoked those rights the day you deicded to leave her hanging, waiting and pinning for you.” He spoke scathingly, almost feeling the burn of his words on his tongue. Oh, if his voice could kill, he knew it would have long murdered the man on the other end of the line through the phone.

“Hayden, I know it was my wrong to leave Hayley like that. But I cannot be with her. I have my reasons. I don’t want her to suffer with me.” Neal’s voice was pleading, begging for understanding, but he knew he would never give any to such a man. This man had not only ruined his life, but also his sister’s life. If something happened to Hayley now, he would NEVER forgive Neal. Never. He would hunt down Neal and end that miserable life, and feel the last breath leave that failure of a man.

The surge of anger had him shouting. What rights had this man? What rights had him to decide if Hayley should suffer or not?

“AND YOU DON’T THINK SHE DIDN’T SUFFER? You’re a real man, Neal Kris!”

Eyes snapped to him, Jeremy’s eyes more angered and pissed off that he was disturbing his sister. But Jeremy hadn’t listened enough –hadn’t computed the name, the words.

The phone was plucked out of his hand before he could react, and he spun around to see Dorian, an extremely pissed off look on his face.

“This is Neal? Neal Kris that Hayley’s been smitten all this while about?” Dorian asked, a hidden volcano explosion hidden behind the voice of calmness.

On the other side of the phone conversation, Neal paused.

“Who is this?”

Dorian turned towards the balcony, his knuckles white from holding the phone. He strictly kept his face outwards, unwilling to show Hayden or Jeremy his emotions. He had been the only one there. He had been the only one with Hayley during the intial fallout. Even then, it had been years after Neal’s departure –supposedly from the human world. Dorian had been the only one watching Hayley walk herself out from her dark nightmares, her dark days.

Dorian had done nothing –could have done nothing either, for he was just a simple amatuer conman looking for help at that time. But this time; this time things were different.

“My name is Dorian Renay. You might have heard of me.”

Hayden could hear the controlled explosion deep in Dorian’s growl, and from that moment onwards, he understood why his sister had never kept Dorian on an extremely tight leash nor imposed anything on him. Dorian had a fierce side, a ruthless side –and it was beginning to show itself here.

“Dorian? You are Hayley’s student.” Neal’s voice was confused, but Dorian didn’t seem to care.

“Good, you’ve heard of me. Let me tell you something, Neal. I was there when Hayley cried everyday and night for you. I was there when Hayley desperately tried to heal the hole you left in her heart. I was there when she delusionarily told herself that you weren’t dead. I was there when she tried to join you on the other side. I was the one who rushed her to A&E from her bleeding wrists. I don’t care how you did it. I don’t care why. But you’ve walked out of her life. Stay there. Don’t ever come back. Because if you do, and if you hurt Hayley the way you did again, I’m going to make sure you pay.”

“Wait, Dorian, I-”

“No, listen to me. I’ve heard all about you from Hayley –how great and wonderful you are. But all I think of you now is how pathetic you are. I don’t care what reasons you have to give. Just save it. But if you ever dare to hurt her again, I will be there when you sleep, and I will tie you to your bed. I will use your own kitchen knife, and I will slice your clothes open. I will push the tip of your knife lightly on your skin and draw my name. I will slice your wrist and ankles and watch you bleed. I will sever your tendons, and you will be crying and begging me to stop the pain, to end the pain. But I’m not going to. I’m going to make you pay for every tear she shed for you, and you’re going to regret breathing the same air as Hayley Seyfried.”

Silence followed after that threat, and no one dared to breathe. Not even Hayden, not even Jeremy. This was a new level of Dorian, a new level of a psychopath that no one believed lived within the exterior of the Dorian they’d been baiting for the past days.

“Yes, you fear me now. You fear what I can do to you. You fear the images in your mind, of me watching you as your squirm to sleep tonight. You will hold that image in your mind when you think of Hayley. She doesn’t need you anymore. She wants you, but she doesn’t need you. So stay away from her. For good measure, stay away from Hayden too. You might want to scoot far away from me, because I cannot guarantee that I can resist my urge to grab something sharp when I see you. I know your face, Neal. You would do well to know mine.”

Whatever shock Neal had wore off after a short moment.

“Dorian, I know. I know I hurt Hayley more than I could ever make up for. I’m sorry. I really am. But I heard what she’s doing to get Hayden back. I don’t know what she’s planning, but it’s dangerous work. She’s got two agents climbing on her back, and Hayden’s handler isn’t going to stop. I wouldn’t have called, but I can’t let Hayley be caught. I’ll never let Hayley be thrown into jail, not if I can help it.”

Dorian’s free hand fisted, and knuckles became white.

“Then I’ll thank you for you uneeded concern. I will take care of her. The only thing you can do for us all now is to never call. I would ask for you to kill yourself, but I wouldn’t want your obituary to upset Hayley if she saw your pathetic face and name. So, I suggest you just stay as far away from Hayley, Hayden and me as possible.”

“Please, let me-”

“I will never let you speak to Hayley again. You’ve hurt her enough. You should’ve heard that she was shot. She was just recovering. And here you are, calling.”

“Is she alright? I didn’t hear-”

“She’s fine without you. It’s nice hearing that you exist, and that you’re still alive. Now that you’ve proven your existence, return to the rock which you crawled out from under and never come out to show your face ever again.”

Dorian did not wait for more. He flipped the phone shut and without a second thought, pitched the phone in his hand out of the balcony, watching as the offending device fly through the dark night’s air. He watched as it dropped on the tarmac below, and a car rolled over it.

“Dorian…” Jeremy began carefully, as if he were speaking to a mentally unstable patient.

“Shut up. I’m calling the doctor’s, so watching over Hays. Hayden, trace Hayley’s old phone number, and track the last conversation. I want Neal’s phone number, and every single detail registered behing that number, even if it is an alias.” The man’s anger was still very much controlled, and at the moment, NYC’s top con did not dare to breathe any sign of disobeyance.

He nodded, as did Hayden, and both of them watched as the man stalked out of the room, fury chasing his every step. Yet, before Dorian closed the door behind him, he stopped and met the eyes of the two conmen who had been taken by shock.

“This is the Dorian that Hayley picked up. This is the student she found. It had little to do with my soft fingers. It was the anger she swore to tame down. And she was successful. Until today.” Dorian revealed –finally toning down a little on the anger.

Then, the door slammed close.

That was the Dorian that Hayley first saw.

That was the Dorian who would kill.

Anything. Anything for Hayley Seyfried.