A/N: Thank you all for your reviews and support! I hope you enjoy this next chapter.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 16: A tendency to some particular evil

"Ana, where have you been?" Charlie asked, standing on her doorstep as Ana approached her apartment with her suitcase in hand.

"Sorry, I was held up," Ana said apologetically, walking through the doorway when Charlie stepped aside to let her in. Ana had left GEH a little before two o'clock, and by the time she was able to get to her car and arrive at Charlie's apartment, it was almost a quarter to three.

"Really? Did your interview go for four whole hours?" Charlie asked in surprise, checking her watch.

"Um… no," Ana said, feeling suddenly embarrassed. "My interview ended a little before noon actually, so I walked a few blocks to go grab something to eat. I passed by Grey Enterprise Holdings and then ran into Christian."

"Really?" Charlie asked, her eyes wide. "So you were late because you and Christian were hanging out?"

"Well, kind of… Elliot was with him," Ana said, blushing for some reason as she set her suitcase beside the air mattress she and Kate had slept on the last time they stayed here. "We took a tour of his building and then ate lunch together in his company's cafeteria, that's all."

"Oh, that's all?" Charlie asked teasingly, smirking at her friend before crossing her arms. "So are you finally going to admit Christian might have a thing for you?"

"No," Ana said firmly, giving her friend a look. Charlie didn't know about Christian asking her out the last time she was in Seattle, and she felt her heart beating uncomfortably loudly in her chest. She hesitated a moment before looking down. "I know that he doesn't like me… but I do think I might have been wrong about him."

"Really?" Charlie asked, raising her eyebrows in sincere surprise, and she uncrossed her arms. "Ana Steele, actually admitting that she's wrong about something?"

"Shut up," Ana smirked at her friend, and Charlie giggled. "Yes, I admit I was wrong to assume Christian was a rude, cocky bastard. I've been trying to be better about not making assumptions about people I may not know very well, and since I feel like I've gotten to know Christian a bit better lately, I'm able to see the kind of person he really is. He's actually a good guy who's been through a lot in his life, and I shouldn't have been so quick to jump to conclusions about him."

Charlie looked a bit surprised at her friend's maturity. "Wow," she said after a moment of silence. "Good for you, Ana."

Ana shrugged, smiling embarrassedly. "I figured since I'm graduating from college soon, it's about time I started acting like an adult."

"Oh please," Charlie chastised her friend with a smile. "You just made a mistake about Christian, and grown-ups make mistakes all the time. I seriously doubt that Christian would consider going out on a date with you to be a mistake though…"

"Oh my God, you have to stop," Ana rolled her eyes at her friend with an incredulous laugh. "Christian doesn't want to go out on a date with me, so just drop it."

"I refuse to," Charlie insisted with a laugh. "You guys would be adorable together, I just know it."

"This coming from the girl who claims she's not a romantic?" Ana raised her eyebrows with a grin. "How's Jose by the way?"

Charlie rolled her eyes, duly chastised. "He's fine. He had to work at the Lady de Bourgh tonight. He said that if he got off early, he would take us on a tour of the place, but I told him you and I were busy."

Ana laughed. "Thank you for that."

The two of them continued to chat about their plans for the night, which included dinner and a movie, and maybe finishing the night out at one of the local college bars. Ana hadn't mentioned to Charlie about going out for brunch tomorrow with Christian and his sister, and she wasn't planning to. Charlie already teased Ana enough about Christian having a thing for her, and there was no need to encourage her further. Besides, Ana figured Christian was just being polite when he invited her to come to brunch with them, and she refused to get her hopes up about something that would probably end up being nothing.

Not that she had any hopes regarding Christian or anything…

Ana woke up bright and early the following morning, and she changed into the only other outfit she'd brought along with her to Seattle - a pair of dark skinny jeans, flats, and a purple cashmere sweater. The restaurant they were going to was relatively nice, so Ana hoped she wasn't too underdressed.

Ana arrived at the restaurant around ten o'clock, and she scanned the crowded area from the front while the hostess was preoccupied with another group that had come in. Ana finally noticed Christian sitting at a nearby table with a pretty, dark-haired young woman, both of them sipping espresso from small white coffee cups. Ana, feeling suddenly nervous, hesitantly approached them.

"Ana," Christian greeted her with a smile when he saw her approach. He quickly got to his feet and buttoned his suit jacket. "I'm glad you made it."

"Of course. Thank you for inviting me," Ana smiled, blushing for some reason.

"May I introduce you to my sister, Mia?" Christian gestured to the other girl, who got to her feet too. "Mia, this is Ana Steele."

Mia was a gorgeous young woman with a slightly darker complexion than Christian, and her short dark hair, big hazel eyes, and bright happy smile made Ana instantly like her. She looked very pretty today in a black dress with three-quarter lace sleeves and a pearly gold necklace.

"Hi Ana. It's so nice to meet you!" Mia said with a sincere grin, holding out her hand. Ana shook it, smiling back.

"It's nice to meet you too."

"The waiter just came by with our coffee, but we could probably flag him down for you if you want a cup too," Christian said as the three of them sat down in their seats, Ana taking the spot right between Mia and Christian.

"Oh no, that's fine," Ana smiled, setting her purse by her feet. "I'm more of a tea drinker anyway."

"I'm trying to convince Christian to let us get mimosas," Mia said, smiling at her brother and picking up her menu. "But he won't let me."

"You're nineteen, Mia. You're too young to be drinking alcohol," Christian chastised his sister with a smile.

"Oh come on, it's a special occasion! And it's not like I'm by myself, I have two adults of legal drinking age with me," Mia said, gesturing toward Ana.

"It is a special occasion," Ana conceded, looking to Christian with a small grin.

"Alright fine, we'll have a round of mimosas," Christian rolled his eyes with an amused grin.

"Yay! Thank you Ana," Mia squealed, reaching over to squeeze Ana's forearm. "I knew I was going to like having you around."

Ana laughed just as the waiter approached the table. They ordered their meals, and Christian ordered them all mimosas, and once the waiter left Mia immediately turned to Ana.

"So my brother tells me you're still in school?"

"Yeah. I'm graduating in a few weeks, actually," Ana explained. "That's why I'm in Seattle for the weekend - I had an interview for an internship at Seattle Independent Publishing. My friend Charlie is going to Seattle university, and I ended up crashing at her place last night."

"Wow, that's so cool," Mia grinned. "I hope you get that internship, Ana."

"Thanks," Ana smiled sincerely. "And I hear you're going to culinary school in San Francisco? What's that been like?"

"It's pretty cool actually. The city is so beautiful, and I've been having so much fun learning about all the different cultures of food and the techniques of how to prepare it," Mia said brightly. "But I'm kinda sad, I'm actually going to be leaving San Francisco soon to enroll in a pastry school in Nice."

Ana stared at her in shock. "Wow, Nice? As in France?"

"At the Les Petits Farcis," Christian said, and Ana looked over at him. He was smiling proudly at his little sister. "She got accepted a few weeks ago, and she's going to be studying under the famed Chef Floubért."

"It's going to be me and like fifteen other students," Mia went on. "It'll be pretty competitive… apparently our exams are going to consist of us working the dinner rush at a Michelin 3-star restaurant."

Mia went on to explain more about culinary school and the type of pastries she was interested in baking, and Christian would chime in with his own thoughts from time to time, clearly proud of his baby sister's accomplishments. Ana was fascinated to learn all of these things about Mia, and she was happy to know that what had happened with Jack didn't break her down completely.

Ana had no idea if Mia knew she knew about Jack, and she made the decision not to mention him. There was no reason to bring up that slimeball anyway.

Their food finally arrived, and after they started eating, Mia began asking Ana about her own life. She seemed to want to know everything about her - who her friends were, what Portland was like, and how she enjoyed being an English major. Ana answered her questions as best she could, hoping she didn't sound inadequate to Mia's interesting and varied life as a French pastry chef.

"So are you going home later today?" Mia now asked, cutting into her crepes covered in strawberry sauce.

"Yeah. Actually, it's my sister Leila's seventeenth birthday today," Ana explained with a smile. "My family and I are taking her out to eat tonight, so I should be getting back by this afternoon."

"That sounds nice," Christian smiled. "Although I'm sorry you can't stay in the city a bit longer."

Ana looked over at him and felt her cheeks go pink. "I'm sorry too," she said sincerely. "I really love Seattle… every time I come here, I wish I could stay longer."

"Well, hopefully you'll get that job at Seattle Independent Publishing," Christian said. "Then maybe we'll get to see you more."

Ana gazed into his eyes, and saw something there that made her heart pound in her chest. "Yeah, I'd like that," she said, almost shyly.

Ana heard a giggle from beside her, and she and Christian turned to see Mia gazing at the two of them, biting back a laugh as she brought her mimosa up to her lips. Christian and Ana both looked away, not wanting to meet each other's eyes.

The three of them continued to chat, talking about everything and nothing. Ana found herself really liking Mia, and she could tell Mia was a lot like Christian in that they both had very kind personalities, although Christian's may have taken Ana a bit longer to realize.

"Ana, I think your phone's ringing," Mia looked at Ana's purse on the floor, and Ana looked down too. Sure enough, her smartphone was glowing and vibrating from inside her open purse, the caller ID flashing Mom.

"Oh, thank you," Ana said, reaching down to pick up her phone. "It's my mom. I should probably take this… excuse me."

She got up from her chair and made her way toward the front door. Once she was a few yards outside the restaurant, she answered the call:

"Hey Mom," she said.

"Ana," Carla spoke from the other end, sounding distressed. "Thank God! Why haven't you picked up? I've been calling you for like fifteen minutes."

Ana halted, surprised at her mother's anxious tone. "Um, I've been at brunch with some friends. What's going on?"

"Leila's gone," Carla said, holding back a sob. "She snuck out of her bedroom window last night and hasn't come back! She left a note saying she was running away with a boy that she's been dating in secret… some college kid named Jack. Kate said that you might know him?"

Ana suddenly felt dizzy, and her heart began to pound as the reality of the situation settled over her... Leila and Jack were together? When the hell did that happen? And the two of them actually ran away together last night? This was all too much information for Ana to process.

"…Ana?" Carla asked when Ana didn't speak for a few moments.

"Yeah… yeah, I know Jack," Ana said weakly, shaking her head. "But I had no idea he and Leila were together. Do you have any idea where they might be?"

"I don't know, but your father is talking to the police right now," Carla said. "We need as much information about Jack as we can get. You need to come home as soon as possible, sweetheart."

"Yes, yes of course," Ana said distractedly. "I need to go grab my things… I can be in Portland in a few hours."

"Thank you honey. Please be safe."

Ana said goodbye before hanging up the phone, feeling like she was about to be sick. She knew she now had to go back inside and explain to Christian and Mia that she had to leave immediately, but she didn't want to say why… for Mia's sake, at least, she wanted to keep the truth of the situation a secret.

Taking a shaky breath, Ana made her way back inside the restaurant and over to the table.

"Ana, what's wrong?" Christian asked immediately, alarmed at the expression on her face.

"I'm sorry, something happened back home," Ana said, her voice quavering slightly. "I have to go right now. I'm really sorry, I can't stay for the rest of brunch."

"No, of course," Christian said, quickly getting to his feet. "We understand. Is there anything we can do?"

"No, there's nothing anyone can do," Ana said distractedly, bending down to pick up her purse. "But thank you."

"I hope everything is okay, Ana," Mia said concernedly, getting to her feet as well. "It was really nice meeting you today."

"It was nice meeting you too, Mia," Ana said with a small smile, and she and Mia hugged. "I hope we get to do this again sometime."

"Definitely."

Once Ana released Mia, Christian moved over to Ana's side. "I'll walk you out," he insisted, and before Ana could protest, he was leading her out of the restaurant toward the front doors.

"Ana, are you sure there's nothing I can do?" he asked quietly as soon as they were outside and away from other people. "You look very pale."

Ana, unable to hold it in any longer, bent her head down and began to cry, bringing a hand up to cover her eyes. She felt Christian watching her with concern, and he placed one of his hands on her arms, rubbing it comfortingly.

"Ana, you can't go back to Portland like this," Christian said quietly. "You're in no condition to drive."

"No. No, I have to go," Ana said firmly, quickly wiping the tears from her eyes. "Leila's run away with Jack, and no one knows where they are. I need to go back as soon as possible so I can talk to the police."

Christian's hand froze on her arm as he frowned in shock. "Wait, what? Jack?"

Ana nodded. "Apparently the two of them had been dating in secret. None of us had any idea, and now I'm so scared for Leila. No one knows where they are… this is all my fault."

"No," Christian said immediately. "No, this isn't your fault, Ana."

"You told me what kind of person Jack is, and what he's capable of," Ana sniffled. "I could've warned Leila away from him... I could have prevented this!"

"No Ana," Christian said firmly. "You could not have prevented Jack from being a manipulative bastard. Don't start blaming yourself for his shitty actions."

Ana sniffled again, not saying anything.

"Go to Portland and be with your family," Christian said, finally removing his hand from her arm and taking a step back. "I'll send one of my security personnel to follow your car back to Portland, just to be safe."

"You don't have to -" Ana began, but Christian interrupted her.

"I insist," he said. "Please, let me do this for you."

Ana hesitated a moment before nodding shakily. "Thank you, I appreciate it. And if you don't mind, please don't tell Mia what's going on with my family. I don't want her to know."

"Of course. Your secret's safe with me," Christian assured her.

"Thank you," Ana said, looking into his eyes. She couldn't quite read the expression on his face, but it definitely wasn't the warm smile he'd been giving her since they ran into each other yesterday. His eyes were cold and calculating, and it made Ana feel like a lead weight had fallen to the bottom of her stomach.

He's distancing himself from me.

"I'll send my guy Taylor to follow you home," Christian said, quickly taking out his phone and texting something on it. "He'll find your car."

"Okay," Ana nodded, glancing down at her feet. After a moment she looked back up. "I guess this is goodbye."

Christian put his phone away before looking back up at her. He nodded. "I guess so. Goodbye Ana… be safe."

"I will," Ana nodded, and with that she turned around to head back to her car, not looking back.

A/N: Oh no, the drama begins!

Thank you all for reading! If you liked this chapter, please leave a review. Next chapter, Ana heads back home to get more info about Leila and Jack.