Chapter 31: Escape for the Day

Abigail leaned into the kiss, pressing her entire body against Mark’s, as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tight against him.

She wasn’t sure how long they remained in that embrace, but she knew she needed to hold on for as long as he would allow her.

Finally, breathless, they both pulled away from the kiss.

“You have no idea how long I’ve been wanting to do that for,” Mark whispered, so close against her she could feel his breath ghosting against her lips.

“Oh, yeah?” Abigail teased, “How long? Since I came and tripped over all your equipment?”

Mark laughed, and pressed so close together, Abigail felt it echo through him. A loud rumbling, like a drum beating steadily.

Abigail laughed for a moment, and then everything came back to her. Last night and this morning, and she sobered. She wanted to tell Mark everything, she desperately needed to, but she knew that here wasn’t the place.

“What’s wrong?” Mark asked her, tilting her face to him.

“Are you very busy right now?” Abigail asked, in lieu of answering him. “Or can we just go somewhere, anywhere, really, away from here?”

“Of course,” Mark agreed immediately, but his face was still hard set and determined. “But what’s wrong?”

Abigail shook her head, she couldn’t speak to him here, “I’ll tell you once we’re there, okay? I promise I’ll tell you everything.”

______________________________________

Mark had a beat up truck with him to work today, and they drove that into the city. It was a quick, if noisy, ride to the restaurant.

Mark asked her to let him choose and just trust him. And not fifteen minutes later, they pulled up in front of very nondescript looking restaurant. Abigail only knew it was a restaurant because no house would have a name painted all over the top.

“I thought you weren’t in the mood for the finest cuisine Morocco has to offer,” Mark joked. “I figured a simple burger joint was more what you were craving right now.”

Abigail felt so grateful she could kiss him. And then, realizing they did that now, she turned to him and did just that.

She spun herself in Mark’s arms, and pressed her lips tightly against his, wrapping her hands around his neck, pulling herself close against him.

She pulled her lips off his own and pressed her forehead against his. “Thank you for doing this for me,” she murmured.

“Absolutely anytime,” Mark swore to her with such intensity that Abigail had no choice except to believe him.

Taking her hand, Mark led her into the restaurant. From the outside, it looked exactly like a normal house would look. And on the inside, it seemed to work just the same. They passed through the front door, into a foyer, where someone came and seated them immediately.

They passed a corridor that opened to a few rooms, possibly what was once the bedrooms, but now functioned as smaller sitting places. They were taken to one of the larger rooms, filled with tables.

A waiter came and placed some menus down for them to look through, and after a few minutes came and took their order.

Abigail went with whatever Mark suggested, since that option had worked out very well for her the last time she’d done it.

While they waited for their food, Abigail told him what had happened since last night and this morning. Mark listened in attentive silence through most of it, but he couldn’t keep the shock and outrage off of his face.

When they were done speaking, Abigail felt a thousand times better. But Mark was clearly only just processing everything he had heard.

Mark was adamant that she go to the police, but Abigail explained to him what that would do to her father’s company, to their stock portfolio. She tried, as best as she could, to explain to him that would mean innocent people losing their jobs, families unable to provide for their children.

She tried to explain to him that this really was the best form of action for anyone, and after a long talk, Mark sighed, and accepted that with everything to consider, this was the best decision.

They moved on to different topics while they waited for their food, the mood amazingly lighter. With each passing moment, Abigail felt better and better.

Mark spoke about his parents, what he remembered of them; he told her stories from his childhood, when things had been happier and peaceful.

And Abigail listened, grateful that he was sharing this part of himself with her so freely. She held his hand as he spoke, and listened attentively, caught at every word.

Soon, the waiter brought out their food, and Abigail’s mouth watered and her stomach protested just looking at everything. She realized that with all the drama going on she hadn’t actually eaten anything yet today.

They were about halfway through their burgers, long past their conversation about her insane family, when Abigail felt her phone buzz in her pocket. Putting the burger down, she took out her phone to find a text message from her father.

‘Abigail,’ the text read. ‘I don’t know how to begin. I am truly sorry for accusing you as I had. I hope that you will be able to see my point of view and forgive me. Charlotte has explained everything to me, and I have received the documents from the doctor.’

Abigail had left the antidote off the report, because then there would be questions about who had provided that. And in all honesty, Abigail just wanted to forget everything that had ever happened.

‘Olivia, too, being poisoned, obviously means this was an attack on the family and a possible heir for the company. I promise you, we will discover who did this. In the meantime, please accept my apologies, and do let me know when you get home. I would like the chance to apologize in person.’

After reading the message, Abigail simply closed her phone, and continued speaking to Mark. She was here to escape all the madness that was her family. She would deal with it when she got home.

______________________________________

Abigail took a deep breath and knocked on her father’s office door. Almost immediately she heard the voice of her father telling her to come in.

“Abigail,” her father greeted her, as soon as she stepped inside. “I trust you received my message, otherwise you would not be here so soon after this morning.”

Abigail folded her arms across her chest, “You’re right, I wouldn’t be. The way you treated me . . .” Abigail trailed off, looking at the ground, at the wall. Anywhere, but she refused to look at her father.

“Was reprehensible, I know,” Adam acknowledged. “And I apologize for it, and I’m not excusing it. But you need to see it from my side, too. What I walked in on, and you, barely able to recall what had happened.”

Abigail closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. “All right, I suppose, I can understand how that would look.”

“That man that was is your bed, do you know who he was?” Adam asked.

Abigail shook her head.

“He was the second in command to the CFO,” Adam told her. “He wasn’t some random person off the street, he was someone specifically important to the company. It made sense, in some way, for him to be in your bed. He had a high position at the company.”

Abigail bit her lip; that did seem to have more logic behind it than she had previously thought.

“I believe everything was set up to discredit you,” Adam told her. “But whoever did it, did a really terrible job.”

Abigail bit on the inside of her cheek to keep herself from smiling.

“They’ll be caught,” Adam said, turning to his daughter with assurances. “This will not go unpunished, I promise you.”

“Thank you,” Abigail said, sincerely, though she very much doubted how much of his words would eventually reach fruition. “If there’s nothing else,” Abigail said again. “I’d like to get to bed a bit early tonight.”

“That’s probably a good idea,” Adam told his daughter, nodding. “You do have a long day ahead of you tomorrow, after all.”

Abigail frowned at her father, “I do?”

Adam smiled as a response, “You’ve been officially employed since yesterday. Tomorrow, I’d like you to go and pick out your own personal office at the company. And you can begin next week, if you’d like. Or immediately, whichever you prefer.”

“Oh,” Abigail said, unsure of what else she had to say.

She felt a little guilty, now. Her father said she’d officially been employed yesterday, and that she was still employed meant that he obviously hadn’t removed the contract even after he’d walked in on her and seen what he’d seen. It also made sense why he had been so disappointed.

“Thank you,” Abigail said, eventually. “I’d be more than happy to go in tomorrow.”