Chapter 24

“Remember how you first met Jeremy?” Hayden asked to break the silence shared between us, and I came back to reality with a slight smile.

“I was the one who brought him to Dad, wasn’t I? He tried to pick from me, then ran away when I caught him. He looked so striking; I was sure someone needed to give him some of our talents.” I replied my little brother, and Hayden sighed in remembrance.

“He came in dirty and tattered, but that hair and face… I saw immediately what you saw in him. He wasn’t like Dorian –he didn’t have the perfect fingers. But he had a smile and a face. I was a little jealous when Dad first accepted him; I didn’t like how he was getting the attention from you and Dad.”

My smile grew a little wider at that memory. Hayden had been younger than us then, and though Jeremy was older, Hayden had been better in conning and pick-pocketing. Often, Dad had the two of them competing against each other, and Hayden worked hard to show that he was better than Dad’s new student. Jeremy was a gentleman too, and often let Hayden win when it got obvious that Jeremy was deft at picking up con skills.

“But he knew, and he was exactly the one who helped you improve by leaps and bounds, no? Mum and I saw exactly what he was doing to you, and we often laughed quietly while you trained relentlessly to beat Jeremy.”

“Please, I’m not the only one whom he’s made a difference on. Remember your crush on him, Hays?”

A blush rises before I could even help it. That had been when I was young and ignorant. You could put it down on hormones too, and it didn’t help that I had been around the age where girls began to actually look at guys in a romantic manner.

“Can we forget that phase, Hayden?”

Hayden just grinned at me instead.

“’Have you seen Jeremy today? Oh my god, he was just like a knight in shining armor! I know Dad doesn’t like me talking about him like that, but really! He’s just such a gentleman!’” Hayden mimicked a young girl’s voice, and though it hadn’t been my actual words, it definitely had been my teenaged thoughts of the conman who had spent part of his childhood with me.

“I did not do that!” I protested, giving my little brother a playful hit on his arm while he laughed at my embarrassment. It was rare that the two of us shared such sibling conversation anymore, and it was sad that this only happened now, after so long, in such a situation.

The severity of the situation hung down on me shortly after, and the slight smile fell away as we waited in the silence of the hospital. I’d taken a day off from work, and so had Hayden. We were impatient, but what else could we do, other than wait and wish?

“You know, I haven’t seen you smiling these days.” Hayden broke the silence again, and I tried my best to force a smile on my face to prove him wrong.

“Don’t. Don’t smile when you don’t feel like, Hays. I’ve grown up, and I’ve taken beatings and disappointment. I don’t want you doing everything for me, Sis.”

“But you are my little brother, and I promised to take care of you. Dad and Mum left you to me, and it’s my responsibility to keep you safe.” I reasoned, though I didn’t try to force a smile anymore.

“I know you’re trying to take care for me, but I’m saying that you don’t have to give up everything. I can get away from Rainer and the FBI on my own. You don’t have to put yourself at so much risk. It’s still not too late to let Annabel Francis go, and go back to cons.”

I didn’t understand where Hayden was trying to go to with this conversation at a time like this. We’d been holding up ever since I decided to make Rainer distracted. Hayden still didn’t like me being in danger of being found out, and Jeremy still tried to force me out of it, but I kept on to my job. I was trying to save Dorian, Jerlyn, Mabel and Jeremy at the same time. I still promised that I would keep Hayden safe, but it would come later.

“What are you trying to say, Hayden? That I resign now and jump on a plane out of NYC? I ran away once; I’m not going to run away again.”

My little brother looked away, as if he couldn’t bear to look me in the eyes.

“Tyler Yule… The Circle is going to be unhappy that you’re going so far to help me. Even if they were fine with you playing off as FBI to help me get out, Tyler’s going to persuade them to make you stop getting close to Rainer. If you refuse to stop, you know The Circle’s going to come after and screw you up. You’re at too much risk, Sis.”

I let the silence between us, letting the pressure and tension grow while I thought. It wasn’t that I hadn’t thought about it, but I wasn’t sure what Hayden had in mind by bringing things up like that. At this point, in this situation?

“Why are you bringing this up now?”

“Tyler… met me. He made is sure that he has people in NYC that is going to stop you, and he seems sure about it. He told me that for you, I should stop you. But I know better, but I need you to know that it’s not only us now. It’s The Circle, and it’s Tyler too. It’s FBI and The Circle. No longer just about you, me, and the people who’re helping us.”

“When?” I demanded. Tyler Yule… I had heard news that he was around days ago, but he had never really put in any effort to find me, so I had thought that he was here for some other personal business. He hadn’t even called, which felt a little strange to me.

“Yesterday night at my place.”

I stood up. This was the last straw. It was enough that Tyler tried to send Jerlyn and Mabel into my personal business. Now, coming to tell Hayden to convince me to stop? Tyler was abusing his power as a member of The Circle to make me stop, and damn if I was going to stop just by such a minor little obstacle.

I am Hayley Seyfried, after all. I am the only woman on The Circle, and I was going to live up to that reputation of being the only one who could stand a long-waging war with Tyler Yule.

 A hand closed over my wrist, and I turned back to see Hayden shaking his head pleadingly at me.

“Just pretend he never looked for me, alright? We need to see what’s in front of us now. Jeremy comes first above everything else. FBI, me, or even Dorian. Jeremy.” Hayden spoke our childhood friend’s name as if it were a plea, and I couldn’t bear to disappoint my little brother.

Despite my desire to call Tyler now and thrash things out with him one on one, I let my anger go slowly and sat back down beside Hayden quietly, letting my temper smolder slowly.

My phone rang, cutting through my red haze of anger at Tyler, and I picked it up without looking at the screen.

“Anna.” I said, waiting for a reply that came quick after.

“Hays, will you stop whatever you’re doing now? Will you stop going after Rainer to make him stop? Will you stop digging yourself this hole that you’ll not be able to come out of? For me?” Dorian’s voice was almost emotionless when he asked me.

I didn’t want to know why he suddenly wanted me to stop when he hadn’t really been meeting me for the past few days, or even why he even called, but my answer was similar to the one I gave Hayden.

“I’m not going to stop, Dory. It’s for you, the girls, Jeremy and Hayden.”

“That’s what you say. But what you’re doing. It’s going to harm everyone. Everyone that you’re out to protect.”

“You don’t know that. I can handle Rainer Clarke; I can handle the FBI.”

“You can’t and you won’t. I won’t let you do this anymore, Hays. I’ve taken a step back long enough.”

“What are you saying, Dorian? What is this all of a sudden?” I asked, a flash of what Hayden told me coming through my mind. If Tyler had gotten to Hayden… then he could have gotten to Dorian just as easily.

“I’m saying I’m going to stop you. You’re really not going to stop, even for me?”

“Don’t do anything stupid, Dorian. You’re not going to like defying me. Just stay on plan and nothing is going to screw up. I’ll have everything thought through. And if this new thinking is Tyler’s fault, I’m going to screw him up so bad that he’s never going to return on his seat on The Circle. So don’t you believe a single word he says and just listen to me.”

“It’s too late, Hayley.”

“Dorian!” I tried to call through the phone, but there was no more reply. There was silence on the other end of the phone, but Dorian hadn’t yet put it down yet. I could hear the sound of cars driving past.

Dorian wanted me to hear this. There were the faint sound of Dorian’s footsteps.

“Agent Rainer Clarke?” Dorian’s voice was perfect pitched. A footstep in a puddle of water.

“Yes?” Rainer’s familiar voice replied curiously.

“This is for Hayley.”

The gunshot was deafening through the phone. The silence that followed afterwards was even more I was past listening.

“You are not my student.” My voice must have dropped deafening. The fact that there was no replying gunshot… the fact that there was no more words spoken between the two men.

I felt something spiraling from deep in my stomach.

“You heard it all, Hays. This is all for you. I’ve helped you clear your last hurdles. Pack up and leave with me. Tyler Yule can’t touch you anymore. Just leave with me. Hayden will understand. Jeremy will understand.” Dorian spoke through the phone finally, but a range, for it had a haunted caliber in it. Hayden, sitting before me, looked up worriedly, but I was past caring.

“Hayley, I-”

“I don’t know who you are anymore. I didn’t make you to be like this. You are not the Dorian I came to help. You are not the student I put with me on The Circle.”

“You might hate me, but this is for you, Hayley.”

“No, this is for you. Leave. Leave NYC. I don’t want you here. I don’t need you here.”

“I just-”

“We’re through. Leave, and don’t come back. Leave, and be yourself until I find it in myself to forgive your stupidest mistake so far.”

I hung up before more could be said. Dorian… how could he be so stupid? My student could not have done a stupider thing at the moment. Just going forth and declaring war with the FBI? In my name? In my name as Hayley Seyfried? He was trying to drive me into a corner! A corner that I was so close to getting out, and Dorian had now officially closed the walls on me.

“What’s wrong?” Hayden jumped up to ask as I tried my best to crush my phone with just my bare palms.

“Call the ambulance… Rainer’s just been shot.” I bit out. Despite his profession being my enemy, Rainer was a friend. I understood how Hayden had found a loyal friend within Rainer Clarke, for beneath the Agent Clarke, I found a man who wanted to belong, who needed company. I found a man who was unusually intelligent and quite striking in the area of thinking like a con. I found conversations with him quite interesting, and though I was under the pretext of charming him, I found his charms quite alluring too.

Of course, being FBI was the biggest turn off for me, but Rainer Clarke as a human, as a normal man was a friend to me, to Annabel Francis.

“WHAT? How?”

“Dorian just shot him.”

My mind finally reached the answer, the root cause of the actions of Dorian. I should have known. Tyler would have reached to Dorian first, Hayden next. Of course. Of course Tyler would reach the weakest link of my small team. Of course Tyler would aim at the man who had a passion larger than his loyalty to me.

Without a doubt, I knew that Tyler must have somehow coerced Dorian into stupidly thinking that he could have me if I was saved from this situation I was in now. Tyler must have somehow convinced Dorian that I would be his.

When I would never be.

I picked up the phone again; this time convinced that I was going to call someone if I didn’t let my anger known. I know I should be keeping my silence in the hospital, but I needed to lash things out with someone, and I couldn’t wait till I met him face to face.

“TYLER YULE. You have meddled into my life here in NYC, and I’m going to make you pay.” I don’t even bother waiting for his greeting before I cut him off. Tyler. He’s going to pay.

“Is that you, Annabel? Dear me, what happened?” He asked in such a condescending tone, and it is obvious that he thinks that he’s winning our waged war.

“You know full well what you’ve done, Tyler. And it’s Hayley. You made my student turn on me, and you’re going to pay.”

“Me? What did I do? I merely had a small chit chat with Dorian! Pray tell; what has he done now?”

“He has killed himself by listening to you.”

“Oh my, I send my condolences.”

“Don’t. Because I’m going to send mine to your family soon –not that I would mean it. You brought the war to NYC, Tyler. You’re going to regret bringing war where cons find paradise.”

“Sweet Hayley, New York is White Collar Paradise, and both of us are white collar cons. Who do you think will win this war, on this pure plain of paradise?”

“I will enjoy our war.”

“I’m sure you do. Don’t worry, there are more surprises coming your way.”

“And so are they to you.”

“I thank you beforehand then. Now, I must hang up, for you have caught me in the middle of work. We will leave chit chat for someday over coffee, alright?”

He did not wait for a reply before he hung up.

Hayden looked ready to burst into tears with worry when I hung up, but he was interrupted when the door opened. Temporarily, everything was forgotten as I rushed forwards, making towards the surgeon walking out. With face half hidden behind his surgical mask, I could not see his expression, but I saw resignation in his eyes.

“How is he? How was the surgery?” I asked with worry and concern, but he sighed.

“There were complications, and we couldn’t continue on without more tests. We will reschedule the surgery to a few weeks later.”

“Can he even survive a few more weeks?”

“He should be able to. Just make sure he doesn’t get any shocks, or that he doesn’t work his body out. We’re banking on his physical health to keep his going. But strictly, there should be no more of his escaping stunts.”

“What are his chances of surviving this?”

The surgeon gave another sigh, and my heart dropped further as he shook his head morosely. Hayden remained blessedly silent behind me, supporting me silently while we waited for the verdict.

“Now that we’ve encountered this complication… I’d say less than 20%. I’m sorry, Ms. Francis. We’ve done all we can.”

With that, the surgeon walked away.

That moment, my consciousness also left me.

I, Hayley Seyfried, don’t swoon often. But recently, I have done it often.

Because recently, things have been trying to hit me down, and push me further to the ground.

I am high strung on a wire, and I’m breaking to pieces slowly. The cracks are beginning to show, and while Hayden is there, acting as a foundational support, the hammering at my exterior is beginning to show cracks. Hitting me down is beginning to hurt me even more than I thought possible.

One more blow.

One more blow, and I will come crashing to the ground.