章節 167: Meeting Gabriel
As the morning came again, Claire was resolute in finding something that would anchor her sanity. There must've been something in this horrible web of lies that was true. She was Claire Moore née Thompson, a wife to Gabriel Moore. Elise Cooper was her alter ego not her. She was desperate to find any minuscule thread to prove it.
But to do that, she needed to find herself a way to stay afloat. She was skilled and she did it once before. It wasn't difficult to find a part time job in the small cafe - she was pretty much given it on the spot. She made up some sob story that the boss could relate to and she got it.
Starting from the bottom, again. She bought herself the simplest mobile phone - the only one she could afford. She knew where to look for a cheap flat and she found one near Alexandria Estate.
And there she was, known as Elise Cooper because she had no other ID to prove otherwise. With no husband, friends or family. All alone.
She started to work the next day, keen to hold onto every penny she earned. And then when she wasn't working, she searched through papers and on the internet on the library's computer to find any sign of her past life. There was nothing. Not a sign of Claire Thompson. Not a sign of a trial against Michael Moore. Nothing. Everything evaporated into non-existence.
"I am not crazy." Claire repeated to herself.
She spend hours near the Diamond Corporate Building in hope that anyone there would recognise her - maybe Derek Wood or Gordon or Mark Pattison, or even maybe she could catch a glimpse of Gabriel Moore. She approached security when there were different men guarding the entrance but the result was the same.
She even hovered around the car park where she knew Gabriel parked before but even that was futile.
She came near the Horton Club but she couldn't even come close before being stopped. She wasn't an elite member anymore. She was no one.
Weeks have passed and she was no where close to finding anything that even resembled her old life.
She obediently went to therapy with Dr Parker pretending that all was great, omitting the fact that at her lowest she walked across the cemetery, row by row, checking names on the gravestones to make sure that none of her friends or family died. She hasn't found anything yet. On the outside, from Dr Parker's point of view, Claire did alright. On the inside, she was beyond lost.
After one particular counselling session she walked across the city when she spotted a tall man that she couldn't mistake for anyone else. She run up as quickly as she could.
"Gabriel." Claire said his name. Her heart rushed and she felt as if she was going to faint with a sudden rush of emotions. Gabriel was alive. Gabriel was well. She scanned him up and down, noticing that he looked healthier. He was missing a metal brace off his hand too. But as she approached, Gabriel waved a hand at his bodyguards stood in Claire's way. Claire didn't recognise them. "Gabriel knows me." Claire uttered in defence to the man blocking her. "Ask him." The guards shook their heads. For whatever reason Gabriel either didn't recognise her or avoided her. Whatever it was, it was hurtful to not be instantly in his embrace. He was so close to Claire, yet still so far out of reach. Claire watched behind him as he vanished into one of the black cars and drove off.
But, he was alive and he was the first person that she found from before.
"Who thought that approaching a billionaire was going to be so difficult?" Claire grumbled as she walked down the busy street after the initial encounter.
She needed to find a way to talk to him in private, without someone constantly blocking her way.
She submitted a meeting request form online when her heart stopped.
"Moore Pharmaceuticals and Diamond Corporate merger has been successful." She read the news on the company's website. At first she was glad that Gabriel managed to make something good out of it, but as she opened the page she almost fainted. She squeezed the mouse and started struggling to breathe. The page read: 'The merger was a result of the unifying a father and son vision and values for a brighter future.' And below was the photo of Michael shaking his hand with Gabriel. Claire felt sick to her stomach.
Michael was right there, undefeated. Claire couldn't tell if Gabriel avoiding her earlier was because he made up with his father or if he tried to protect her or if he… Claire questioned her last memories before being shot and now that she thought about it she wasn't even sure if it was truly Michael who shot her. Maybe Gabriel shot her after his father posed the ultimatum to him. Maybe, after all, Gabriel choose his own life over her. It made perfect sense.
"I am not crazy." Claire repeated to herself. "I am not crazy." She tried to not question her own memories. It was Michael who shot her. Not Gabriel. Gabriel fought to save her.
Claire's initial request for a meeting with Gabriel was declined almost instantly but she persevered. She wrote down some vague notes as to why she wanted to meet Gabriel. If Michael was around she didn't want to give herself out straight away.
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