The Shadow

Chapter-21 Splendored Rejection

“Rejection and the fear of rejection are the worst and time-consuming obstacles we face in the real world and what it feels like rejection is sometimes God’s planned protection when we’re heading in the wrong direction. Is it always like this?”  
By IoannaTzelepi

Robert was desperately looking for Isabella. She was not picking his call. He knew she is disheartened knowing the truth. He thought to hide this truth from her forever to protect her feelings. But now, he doesn't know where to find her and how to comfort her. He called all her friends but none of them knew where she was. She is not even in those places, which she used to visit in the past when she was upset. 

He banged his hands on the stirring wheel, saying loudly "Where are you, Isabelle? Please....please...don't do anything stupid. Please God, help me to find her as soon as possible."

He was determined to find her and console her. Consequently, he called one of his friends, who was in the FBI, working there, and asked him to use govt software and let him know the location of Isabella’s as the phone is not switched off. Soon his FBI friend completed his hard task and Robert got the location, and he gulped, seeing where she was. He turned the car towards that location praying to God. After two hours he reached the warehouse, where that awful kidnapper kept her without her own free will. 

He was anxious when he heard some clinking noises and went inside instantly. Isabella has trashed all the dirty places with all her might.

He called her loudly, to get her attention "Isabella". She turned her head to him and walked towards him, demanding "Rob, Come here fast." Robert moved towards her. As Robert was coming closer, her eyes were glued to a specific piece of furniture "This is the place he kept me." She pointed towards the dirty bed. She paused for a couple of moments.

She was trembling, not uttering a word and not looking at him "And here was the kitchen, there was washroom. I used to sleep on the bed. And he used to sleep in the kitchen. Then how....When...?" she yelled at the end. Sitting on the floor she rocked herself. Robert hugged her and she sobbed in his arms. She was devastated.

She cried and cried. She sobbed uncontrollably in Robert’s arms. It took an hour for Robert to calm down her. He somehow managed to drag her from there and they went to see her favorite beach.

For a couple of minutes, they both didn’t speak to each other. They didn't have anything to say. Isabella was bombarded with multiple questions, she wiped her tears "I don't understand. How? How can she be his?". Silence filled the room. 

Robert was the first one to break the ice, stating "If you aren’t, I'm ready to take DNA test again." Robert didn't know what to say.

Isabella couldn’t look at him "Why didn’t you tell me the result? When did you take it?"

Robert closed his eyes and sighed, saying "When you left us. Gabi cried all day. I also wished somewhere for Cami to be mine. I did want to tell you the results. And I did come to tell you. However…when I saw you, playing with Cami, Marina was looking at Cami with disgust. And then I saw Cami, crawling towards Marina to pick her up. But she didn't, and you held her tightly. At that moment, I realized Cami has only you. Gabi has me, Marina and you. But Cami has only you. I couldn’t and can't snatch you from her. I left from there, without meeting you." Isabella got completely quiet, digesting the whole truth.

Afterward, she simply asked "What's wrong with Gabi? Please, don't lie to me." Robert saw her pleading eyes and knew she deserves the truth. But his heart clenched every single time he thought about Gabi.

He confessed the truth "She is Bipolar. When you got kidnapped, Gabi’s personality changed instantly. Our bubbly girl became quiet. And when you get back, she was so happy. But...but when you chose Cami over her, she got instantly quiet. She had and has this desperate need to gain attention. She became a people pleaser so that no one abandons her. When someone dislikes her, she became frustrated. It took a lot of time for me to realize that something is wrong with her. One day she was praising her friend in front of me. They had a plan to hang out. But that friend backed out at the last moment, stating her mother got a stroke. On the phone, she was normal with her, but after the call, she broke the phone and trashed her entire room like a raging bull.” He sighed silently and closed his eyes.