Gardens Of Eden (A Harry Styles Story)

34. The Voice of Reason

"We're almost there, stay with me."

Harry's voice echoed like a memory in my mind, interrupting my dreamless sleep. 

I'm with you, I wanted to say, but I couldn't figure out how.

It took another minute of waking up before the night before came back to me, making me jolt and wince in pain.

"Mmm..." I groaned sleepily, trying to blink away the fog. The room was bright, decorated with old England charm. I tried to move my head to look around, but a hand on my right arm made me jump. That's when I realized I couldn't see out of my right eye. 

"What the-" My hoarse voice was barely audible.

I heard a chair move as someone stood, and I waited for them to come into view. Harry's dimpled smile stepped around the bed, making himself visible to my good eye. He had been asleep too, only waking up when I did, and it was obvious in the way his hair stuck up on one side. 

"Hi." I whispered, raising my hands to touch the bandages on my face. 

"Hey back. How did you sleep?" He sat on the edge of the queen bed.

"I think I slept okay? I'm pretty groggy. Did you sleep in a chair?" 

"Well, no." I slept down the hall. But I came to check on you and you were still out, so I had a nap. He gave me a lopsided smile.

"You didn't have to stay here. What about work?"

"Work is the last thing on my mind right now." He looked at me and I saw the desperation in his eyes. He wanted to know what had happened, he deserved the whole story. I swallowed my fear, knowing if I was going to expect honesty from him, I had to give it back. "Harry, it's my fault. I was calling the Garden." I admitted. My dry throat was raspy as Harry passed me a glass of water.

"The Garden." He reiterated slowly. "May I ask why?" His voice was calm, but I could tell he was blindsided.

"I knew I had a chance of reaching Danielle. She's from Falkland too... I wanted to ask her to look for my ring."

"Your ring. That's what you were trying to get back?" He pieced together.

"Yes. It was my Mother's, she gave it to me the night she died."

"I see." He took a deep breath. "So is it possible they tracked you to the payphone?" He asked. I hadn't thought of that.

"I suppose it's possible... but it would've been a lucky guess on their part that the calls were coming from me."

"True. Unless you said something, and it was recorded?"

"I never got through. Actually that's not true. I finally got through yesterday, it's first time I've spoken to anyone."

"Hmm. Okay. So they found you, followed you, knocked you out and took you.. where?"

"They didn't knock me out, they drugged me with something. I remember everything being blurry, and I sat down and hours must've gone by. They took me to the warehouse behind the Fawk."

"That means it has to be connected to Dunville-" He pinched his lip.

"-that's what I thought at first too...but it doesn't make sense. She wasn't there, she was never mentioned. She doesn't even own that old lot, it's just property that no one has touched in years."

"But it's too much of a coincidence."

"But we have no proof that she was involved."

"We know that Seville came after her for the money." Harry told me, surprising me.