The Bounty Hunter's Trilogy: Chosen By Fate

Chapter 11. I Don't Exist Anymore

I was woken up in my bedroom by a light being clicked on. Henry was right beside me. "Audrey, he's awake!" Audrey came in quickly, blood on her clothes.

"Audrey, what-." I leaned up, trying to get out of my bed, but I was too weak. So weak, even talking made me exhausted. The pain in my ribs made me see spots and lose my breath.

"It's your blood." She still had that deep sadness in her eyes, a sadness I hadn't seen so obviously since Stan and Beverly were taken. "Thank goodness your abilities help heal you, or else you never would have made it."

"What do you mean?" Audrey shook her head and felt my forehead like she was checking for a fever.

"I'll tell you after you rest. You're still too weak. And your body is exhausted from trying to heal itself. You would never remember anything I told you." I must've passed out again because when I woke up, Paisley was in my chair with a laptop in her lap, like she was looking for something.

"Haven't found them yet, huh?" I must have startled her because she nearly dropped her laptop. "Sorry."

"It's alright. And no I haven't found them yet, but I know they're north-east of here, but I don't think they've gone as far as Europe."

"At least we're getting closer." I sat up, propping myself up on my headboard. Paisley came over and put a pillow behind my head. "Thanks. So Audrey promised she'd explain what happened when I woke up."

Paisley nodded. "I thought you might say that. I'll be right back." Paisley left and came back with Audrey following her. Audrey looked guilty and nervous. Paisley waited by the door as Audrey came over to me.

"You promised you'd tell me what happened."

"Yes I did." She sat down beside me on the bed and brushed a hair off my forehead, which was sticky with sweat. "It's going to be very hard to explain though."

"Well I've got time." Then I remembered the last thing I'd worried about when I was lying on the road. And even when I woke up in what I can only assume was the infirmary. "What happened to my dad and Conner?" She choked, I could tell by her face.

"You're exhausted from regenerating. We should wait-"

"Audrey, what happened?" She took a deep breath and nodded.

"Your father got really banged up, not nearly as bad as you though. You had organ damage, broken bones, internal bleeding, you could barely breathe by the time we found you. Thank goodness we got to you in time. But Conner..." I saw a tear fall down her cheek.

"No. He has to be okay." I felt wounded, cut through the bone.

"I'm sorry, but the roof came down on him too hard. It was over quickly, though. He probably didn't even have time to feel scared before it happened."

"My brother is gone? But he's just a little baby. Babies don't die."

"I'm so sorry Daniel." I took a minute to cry, get myself together at least enough for her to explain as quickly as she could. I looked up at her again, my vision blurred by tears.

"So why am I here?"

"We had to erase you."

"Erase me?"

"From everybody who ever knew about you. Took every document you had, wiped you off any internet database, the whole nine yards. You don't, technically, exist anymore. At least not as far as the rest of humanity is concerned. Now you're just Daniel of the Korenye. We're smuggling out all of your stuff. Your mother is out shopping with some friends so we have time to get it all. We collect keep sakes, replace photos, all of that gets taken care of."