Chapter 30: Questions and Questions

Author's Note!

Unfortunately, no Christian POV! Ana will have to figure out this one on her own and so will you. Yes, ambiguity is key and you are free to speculate. Double unfortunately, the girl in Christian's office is indeed Leila. Please leave a review, pretty pretty please. Thank you. Enjoy :)

My head was spinning. I pressed my palm up against the toilet door to hold my self in place. What is going on?! Even my inner goddess was tangled, confused as to what was truly happening.

I tried to organize my thoughts. Christian and Leila were together, that was a fact. He was cheating on me, that was a fact. Jack Hyde knew about it, fact. Jack Hyde was working for someone who knew about it, fact. Yet, there were still so many things left unanswered.

How did Jack Hyde and his 'boss' know about it? Does this mean that I was released early so I could stumble upon Christian's tryst? That could not be. Nobody had known that I was going to visit Christian until I had decided to show up all of a sudden. It was a last minute decision. So it must not have been a stage up, it was the truth. Despite the mess of the situation, a large part wished for it to have been a fake. I sighed and continued my thought process.

For whatever reason, Jack was involved in order to protect me. But protect me from what and why he had the motivation to protect me dumbfounded me. Jack and I had nothing more than a professional relationship, so why would he have assisted his 'boss' in screwing around with Christian's business?

At least this explained why Christian had been going overseas a whole lot the past month. It gave me another reason to believe that his relationship with Leila was not something he had been doing consistently. Or was it? I was so confused. Maybe half the time he spent with her and the other half he would be truly fixing his business problems.

Which led me to the next question. Why had Leila been there? Christian had promised me that she was at an out of state mental hospital and would not be returning. So why had she been here, in his office and in that position? My head throbbed.

My inner goddess lifted the list of questions she had made while I was ranting. One at a time, Ana!

Alright. Gingerly, I pressed my ear against the door and closed my eyes. I listened. There was just quiet throughout the office, no hint of life except for my ragged breathing. Jack must have left as well. I waited a while more before straightening up and opening the door slightly. Peeking out, I affirmed that the office was abandoned. Indeed, Jack had already turned the lights off.

Patiently, I hovered at the door for a little longer to be entirely sure he had left the office as well. Then, I made a beeline for his private office room and closed the door behind me. I had no idea what I was looking for, but I knew that there must be something in here to help me along with this puzzle.

My eyes scanned the room and I sent a silent gratitude to Jack for keeping his office so neatly. I doubt I would find anything in the line of files stacked across his wooden shelves. This must be something recent and those files looked a little more ancient.

Walking over to his desk, I began opening the compartments one by one and searching through them slowly. I made sure to keep them back in their original state to avoid suspicion. There was nothing in them, just basic office equipment like files and stamps, rulers and name cards. Nothing remotely helpful to my search.

The surface of his desk was kept prim and proper, he only had a line of manuscripts and documents that my colleagues and I had submitted today. Then, there was his blue MacBook right at the center of the wood. Crossing my fingers, I lifted it to try my luck. It was locked. I felt defeated.

Maybe. Just maybe. I thought to myself, having watched a million crime shows and detective shows to know that cracking this code was a possibility. Putting on my Sherlock Holmes cap, I thought hard. I looked around his office and at the various picture frames he had. They were all useless, I never got down to truly knowing the guy and I knew no names. I let out an exasperated sigh and keyed in '12345'. If only this was an iPhone, I would have better luck with the four code pin. As expected, the picture of Jack laughing shook at the wrong code.

Suddenly, something in his thrash can caught my eye. I gasped. With quivering fingers, I lifted the crumpled film out from all the other junk. There was a picture of Christian in Dom mode, his hand holding the whip and about to hit a gagged girl. I had never seen this before and judging by his features, this was taken before I had met him. I could guess how Jack would sum this equation up. I flipped the sheet over to find a beautiful cursive writing : Think Ana's safe? Think again.

Momentarily, I was stunned. How would have anybody gotten this? It was personal and private, this looked so intimate and it torched my heart. I could not look away from it, but tore my eyes away to search the rest of the dustbin. There was mostly junk and uneaten food but I found the yellow envelope that the picture must have come in. The same cursive writing scribbled "J. Hyde."

Whoever who sent this had targeted Jack from day one, it was no accident that he was involved. I felt a small pinch of sympathy, apologetic that Jack had somehow gotten tangled in all of this. I had never thought of Jack as my protector, this was surely a first. Casually opening the envelope, I was thrilled to discover a sheet of white paper sitting in it, torn at the edges.

My eyes widened as I read through it, shaken beyond belief. Printed in Times New Roman, was a list of names. Thinking hard, I came to the realization that these were the names of companies associated with Grey Enterprises Holdings. Mostly situated in Asia.

"I trust you know what to do. We'll keep in touch." I read aloud, the final signing off the person who sent this had left.

I pieced the puzzle pieces together. Someone after Christian had approached Jack Hyde to help 'distract' him, by assuring Jack that I was in trouble. But then, there was an alternative. What if that someone was after me?

Stick to the facts, Ana. My inner goddess coached.

Okay. I breathed to calm myself down. I was alone in this matter, I had nobody to go to. I could not trust neither Luke nor Sawyer, and even though this involved Christian, there was no way in hell I would consider talking to him ever. There was a slim possibility that this someone was genuinely trying to protect me from Christian, to help me breakaway from him. All that was certain was that Christian had cheated on me once more.

That was too much for me to handle. I stood, picking up my evidence and heading out of the office and towards my work station. Stuffing them in my bag, I slung it and went down. My mind was filled with so many questions, too many in fact, but I was going to slowly figure this out. If I ran to Christian with this information, it would give him yet another way to slip back into my life. Before I decide whether this threat was directed at him and genuinely serious, I was going to keep my distance.

"Hey Ana, early day?" Hannah smiled at me as I exited the lift.

I faked one. "Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Oh yes, Christian called multiple times to check if you're here."

I raised my brows at her in question.

"I told him you never came back." I heaved a sigh of relief. "He even sent men to pop by and check." I was on alert, scanning my surroundings. "They left quite a while back."

My body relaxed and I smiled at her. "Thanks Hannah, I'll see you around?" She gave me a wave and leaned back into her chair.

Something popped into my mind. "Wait, could I borrow your phone?"

Hannah pushed the desk phone towards me as she went back to doing her work. I dialed Kate. "Kate!"

"ANA?!" She reminded me vaguely of a beggar receiving food for the first time in a long while.

"What?" I was soft, tentative and cautious.

I heard her say something, but it was muffled. Then, I realized she was not talking to me. I strained to listen, trying to focus and make out the words. But then she was back. "Ana, we've been out looking for you! Where are you?"

I narrowed my eyes at the plural. "Who's we?"

She sighed, "Ana, it was all just a big misunderstanding, C-"

"NO." I blasted at her through the phone, stopping her short in her defense strategy for Christian. He may have won her over with his lies, but I had seen what I had and I knew how to win her back. "Kate, choose."

"But it was a-"

"CHOOSE." I growled. "I need a friend right now, Kate. I just need you to be there to support me. It's my word against his, isn't it?"

The moment she failed to reply immediately, I knew she was a done deal. I could practically hear the gears in her head clicking. "It'll always be you, Ana. Can I come pick you?"

Thank goodness. I would have had no idea what to do if she had rejected me. "Yes, but keep him away from me."

"He's trying really hard to get to you, can I pass him the phone?"

"No." I shook my head and my voice cracked."I don't want him to confuse me further."

"Oh baby," She cooed sympathetically. "I'll come get you. Where?"

Hannah raised her eyebrows as my eyes watered, I fought them back and swallowed the lump in my throat. "Of-fice."

"Right away, babe." Came my bestfriend's steady reply, secure in her determination to protect me. "Do you want me to keep you on the line?"

"It's Kay." I forced and gently put the phone down.

Hannah's hand stroked my arm, "Do you wanna talk about it?"

I have her a solemn shake of my head and she continued to stroke me until Kate's car pulled up. Gratefully, she had the brains to come alone. I doubt I could face Christian, Elliott or Mia now. Hannah helped me into the passenger side and the moment the door closed, I sighed through my nose.

"Elliott sedated Christian." She said matter-of-factly, trying to lighten the mood. "You're looking like a foxy mama."

I gave her a small smile and clasped my hands together as she began to drive off. "Do you wanna talk about it?"

She sounded like Hannah. "He's cheating on me, Kate." And just that words alone coaxed out the tears that had been kept away within me the entire day.

"I'd hug you, but I'm driving." Kate sounded apologetic as she threw me worried glances. "Look, I don't want to sound like i'm on Grey's side, but how sure are you?"

It did sound like she was on his side and I folded my arms after wiping the first flood of tears. "I saw them Kate, I was there in his office."

Kate sensed the annoyance in my voice but chose to annoy it. "What exactly did you see, Ana?" The image sent a fresh wave of needles into my heart. "You have to verbalize it, babe."

Squinting my eyes shut, I pressed the bridge of my nose I between my index and thumb. "He was leaning back in his chair and she was on the floor..." I did not want to continue.

"What were they doing?"

"Damnit, Kate. She was giving him a blow job, alright?" I snapped, defensive.

"Chill, Steele." Kate cautioned. "I'm just trying to make sure you don't make the worst mistake of your life. Did you see it exactly?"

"I couldn't."

"Why not?"

Kate inquisitions. They always got the better of me. "His table was in the way." Suddenly my idea of not looking over the table did not seem too wise.

Kate had found her loophole. "Then there's a possibility he was not doing anything."

"You've clearly talked to Christian, so what I say won't matter." I hissed, leaning away from her.

"Anastasia, I talked to a panicking Christian who was holding your ring in his hands." That was visual. "I'm just trying to help you see this from another perspective."

"Fine." I conceded. "So there's a SLIGHT possibility that he was not doing what I thought he was." None of me believed what I was saying, I was so sure of it.

"Ana, do you think maybe you're still suffering from the aftershock of his first... Accident?"

I hated how these words were coming from Kate's mouth. She had been the sole person convincing me to screw Christian over and now she was fighting his case. Surely her relationship with Elliott and his family seemed to out rule me.

"And maybe the uncertainty and insecurity you feel from his absence the past month?"

What she was saying was valid. She was right that I had not seen exactly, I had no proof that Leila was sucking Christian off in his office. She was right that I felt genuinely unsure of my place in his life... Which would explain why an imagination could go into over drive... But not for me.

"Just don't shut him out all together, babe." Kate tried to sway me. "He may just be your happily ever after."

Subconsciously, my fingers rubbed against my now un-banded finger. I missed that ring and I missed Christian. "Maybe not."

"I should just warn you that Ethan's waiting for you back at the apartment."

This was déjà Vu. The last time Christian had made a mistake, Ethan had came to my rescue. But this time, he was attached to Mia. Mia was Christian's little sister. If Kate was already acting like this, there was such a large possibility that Ethan would be much worse. Mia was persuasive.

" It's such bad timing." Kate shook her head in disbelief and I gave her a questioning look. "Christian was saying how his business in Asia was finally settled today."

That peeked my interest. "When?"

"He got the call when he was out with us looking for you."

This was more evidence to show that Jack's call had been truth. The moment Christian and I were over, his business was no longer under pressure. "He said it's like he lost you for his business."

"He used to treat me like an asset anyway." I said sourly.

"I hate how you're using past tense on your relationship, Steele." Kate groaned. "It's so unlike you to surrender."

I shrugged. "After a while, you just stop wanting to make it better."

"Okay okay." She rolled her eyes at me. "Christian says he'll give you space to cool off but you still have to get your nose check-up."

It was so like him to take care of me from a distance. "How about give me space forever?" I muttered under my breath.

"Steele, put on your sunglasses." Kate told me as she pulled into the lot in front of our apartment.

"Wh-" I was about to ask when the first wave of paparazzi slammed into my window. I screamed and quickly grabbed at my glasses, shoving it onto my face as I took in the huge crowd of people with cameras and microphones awaiting my arrival.

"It got worst." Kate whined. "We'll sprint through this nonsense."

I sighed. Once again, I was not wise. Throwing an engagement ring at the face of Christian's body guard was a public declaration of our breakup. I should have done it discreetly.

Yeah, like send it in the mail, right? My inner goddess said sarcastically.

Opening the door, the sea of cameras began to flash as they gave me the tiniest of spaces to put my feet down. They slammed me and overwhelmed me with so many questions, all differently phrased but revolving around the same issue.

I raised my hands up to silence them and to my surprise, they went quiet. The crowd of reporters inched their recording devices closer to me. I was going to keep Christian's business safe until I figured out what was going on.

I drew in a deep breath and prayed that whoever was after Christian would be listening, "My relationship with Christian Grey is over. He and I ask that you give us the privacy we need to have this clean break."

There was a moment of still silence as they took it in. They must have not been expecting it, they must not be used to it. Clearly, they would have had to chase their person of interest and hound them for answers but I had freely given it to them. Evidently, I was not cut out to be a public figure, not fit to be Christian Grey's wife.

Then, the next round of questions erupted and before I could answer them all, Kate's arm looped into mine and hauled me through the crowd. The distance seemed longer than usual and after an eternity, we made it into the apartment.

Ethan and Mia were sitting on the couch, expectant looks across their faces. "Ethan!" I cheered and walked towards him as he jumped up to meet me, crashing me against his chest.

I wrapped my arms around him and sook comfort in this familiar embrace. I felt him nuzzle my ear, "I'm so sorry, Ana."

I felt my composure begin to slip away once more and fought harder to keep the mask in place. Maybe I could just cry in my sunglasses, he would not be able to tell, would he?

Mia cleared her throat and Ethan reluctantly pulled away from me. I felt a tinge of annoyance once more and took the chance to stow away my sunglasses. Mia was never really comfortable with me around Ethan ever since Elliott hinted to her that Ethan had been after me first. It was difficult to be with him around her.

"So.." I said nervously. "Can I stay?" Ethan was still living in the apartment in my room.

"Of course!" Ethan and Kate chorused.

A look of immense jealously painted Mia's beautiful face. "Um, will you guys be sharing a bed again?"

Ethan pursed his lips at the same time I did. We would be if he was not with her. Ethan raised his eyebrows at me in question, I shook my head at him. This exchange seemed to discomfort Mia even more.

"Mia," Ethan started.

"No." I reassured her with a soft smile.

"I can sleep on the couch." Ethan and I both said in unison and we recoiled with laughter. Mia put a hand on her hip.

"I'll sleep on the couch." Ethan clarified firmly.

"Ana will just sleep with me, a sleepover is due." Kate declared,'effectively solving the problem. I gave Ethan a thankful smile anyway.

"Yeah sure." Ethan said, dry of emotions.

"I'm sure Christian would be pleased to." Mia reassured us all, backing up the idea.

I hate to be the one to break it to her. "Mia, Christian and I are over." Her mouth hung and I had to close my eyes in order to keep going. "There's no way we're bouncing back from this."

Just then, the doorbell rang loud and clear. "Are we expecting anyone?" Kate questioned Ethan.

Ethan shrugged and raised his eyebrows at Mia, who shook her head. "Christian's backing off for today."

"Then who is it?" We said in unison, part of me reluctant to find out.

Grenade; Bruno Mars