Hiding in Plain Sight

Chapter Three:

Olivia counted the money in her hand. It was three hundred dollars. All cash. That was all she had left after buying a bus ticket.

The bus to Westfield would leave in two hours. She sat on a plastic chair and pulled her hood up. She kept her eyes down. She did not look at anyone. She did not want anyone to look at her.

Her stomach felt strange. Not sick just tired. Heavy. Every morning she woke up with the fear. What if she was pregnant? What if Mark’s child was growing inside her now? She thought about Mark.

She put her hand on her stomach. "I’m sorry " she whispered. "I don’t know what to do ”

Three years of being invisible. Three years of staying from Mark Sinclair. One night changed everything. He did not know she was his wife. He thought she was a stranger.. She heard what his assistant said. Mrs. Sinclair is a ghost who married him for money.

The words cut deeper than his eyes.

The bus station was loud. People yelling. Suitcases rolling on the floor. Babies crying. Olivia closed her eyes. Tried to breathe slow. She would leave the city. Find a job somewhere new. Figure out the pregnancy test alone. No one would know her name there.

“Ticket to Westfield?" the woman at the counter asked.

“Yes " Olivia said quietly. She pushed the cash across the counter.

As she took the ticket her old phone buzzed. She had turned it off after leaving the mansion. Now she turned it on for one minute. Just to check.

There were 20 missed calls. All unknown numbers.

One text from her mother: Olivia your father is worried. Mr. Sinclair is asking about you. Please call me.

Olivia’s hands shook. Mark was asking about her. He was looking for her.

She turned the phone off fast. Put it in her bag. Her heart was beating fast. She had to leave

Across the city Mark stood in his office. Stared at a wall full of maps and photos. Red pins marked every place his people had checked. Hotels. Bus stations. Clinics. Olivia’s workplace. Her old school. Nothing.

“She’s smart " Daniel said. "She’s paying cash. No card. No phone. She vanished.”

“She didn’t vanish " Mark said. His voice was low and sharp. "She’s hiding.. I will find her.”

He had not slept in three days. His eyes were red. His shirt was wrinkled. He looked like a man who lost something and would tear the city apart to get it back.

“Sir Sophia Bennett is here " Daniel said carefully. "She says she has information.”

“Send her in.”

Sophia walked in wearing red and smiling like she already won. "Mark you look awful. When did you last sleep?”

“When you tell me where Olivia is " Mark said.

Sophia sat down without being asked. "I heard her mother went to a clinic. For a pregnancy test. Is it true? Are you going to be a father?”

Mark’s jaw tightened. "Is she pregnant?”

“I don’t know " Sophia said. ". If she is you can’t let her keep it. She’s a Hart. Her family only wants your money. Think about the Sinclair name.”

Mark walked to her. Stopped one step away. His eyes were ice cold. "Don’t talk about Olivia like that. Again.”

Sophia blinked. She had never seen him defend anyone. "Why do you care? You didn’t even know her three days ago.”

“I know her now " Mark said. ". I will find her.”

Sophia left angry. Confused.

Back at the bus station Olivia heard her name on the speaker. "Bus 442 to Westfield now boarding.”

She stood up. Pulled her bag close. She moved with the crowd. No one noticed her. That was good. She liked being invisible.

Then she heard a voice behind her. "Miss Hart?”

Olivia froze. She did not turn around. She walked faster.

“Miss Hart wait " the voice said. It was a man in a suit. One of Mark’s security team.

Olivia started to run. Her bag hit her side. Her heart felt like it would break. She ran through the crowd past people with coffee and luggage. She did not look back.

She ran out of the station and into the street. Cars were everywhere. She crossed without looking. Almost got hit by a taxi. The driver yelled at her.

She kept running until her legs burned. Until her chest hurt. She stopped in an alley and bent over breathing hard. Tears ran down her face.

“I just want to be free " she whispered. "Why is he looking for me?”

Her phone buzzed again in her bag. She ignored it. She could not talk to her mother. She could not talk to anyone from the Sinclair family.

She needed time to think.

Mark got the call ten minutes later. "Sir we saw her at the bus station. She ran. We lost her in the crowd.”

Mark slammed his hand on the desk. "Lost her? How do you lose one woman?”

“She was fast sir.. Scared. She ran like someone was chasing her.”

Mark closed his eyes. She was scared of him. Because of what he did that night. Because of what she heard.

“Check every bus leaving the city today " he said. "Check every hotel under a name. Check the clinics. She might need a doctor if... If she’s pregnant.”

“Yes, sir.”

Olivia did not get on the bus. She was too scared. She bought a ticket. Threw it away and walked the other direction. She went to a motel on the edge of town and paid cash for one night. The room was small and smelled old. The door had a lock.

She sat on the bed. Took a deep breath. She pulled out a pregnancy test she bought at a drugstore. She stared at it for a time.

“I’m not ready " she whispered.. Her hands were shaking.

She went to the bathroom. Did the test. Then she waited. Three minutes felt like forever.

Two lines appeared on the stick.

Positive.

Olivia sat on the floor. Covered her face. Tears came fast and hot. She was pregnant. Mark Sinclair’s child. The man who called her a ghost. The man who did not even know her name that night.

“What am I going to do?" she cried quietly. "I have nothing. No money. No job. No one to help me. He will take the baby from me. He’s a Sinclair.”

She stayed on the floor until she had no tears. Then she washed her face. Lay on the bed. She could not sleep. Every sound made her jump.

Across town Mark could not sleep either. He stood in his bedroom and looked at the note again. I’m sorry.

He remembered how she felt in his arms. Small. Soft. Like she was. Trying not to show it.

He remembered how she left without asking for money. Without asking for anything.

The files on his desk said Olivia Hart worked two jobs to help her parents. She sent money home every month. She never complained. She never asked him for help.

She was not a ghost who married for money. She was a daughter who sacrificed everything for her family.

Mark pressed the note to his forehead. "I was wrong about you " he whispered to the room. "I was so wrong.”

The morning Daniel called. "Sir we found her mother at a grocery store. She was buying baby vitamins and crackers.”

Mark stood up fast. "Where is she now?”

“She left, sir. We’re following her. From far away. She’s careful. We don’t want to scare her.”

“Good " Mark said. "Don’t scare her. Don’t scare Olivia. Just watch. Call me if you see Olivia.. Do not approach her. Not ”

“Yes, sir.”

Olivia spent the day in the motel room. She did not eat much. The smell of food made her sick. She lay on the bed. Talked to her stomach.

“Baby I don’t know if your daddy will want you " she said softly. ". I will love you. Even if I’m alone. Even if I’m scared. I will love you.”

She fell asleep for one hour. When she woke up she heard voices outside her door.

“Room 12 " a man said. "Check it.”

Olivia sat up fast. Her blood went cold. They found her.

She grabbed her bag. Looked out the small window. Two men in suits were talking to the motel owner downstairs. Mark’s men.

She could not breathe. She opened the window. The room was on the floor. Below was a roof, over the back door.

She climbed out. Her hands shook. She jumped to the roof to the ground. Pain shot through her ankle. She ignored it.

She ran again. She was limping, scared and all alone. She ran through streets and small alleys. She kept running until she was sure nobody was following her.

She didn't stop until she got to a bus terminal that was open 24 hours. It was on the side of the city. She bought a ticket to a town. The town was three hours away. She paid with cash. She didn't give her name. She didn't show her ID. Just cash.

On the bus she sat by the window. She watched the city lights fade away. Her ankle was swollen. She was feeling down.. She was free. At least for now.

Mark stayed in the city. He didn't know she had left. His people were keeping an eye on Margaret Hart.. Margaret never went to Olivia. She knew her daughter needed some space.

Days went by. Marks office felt like a prison. He checked reports every hour. There was no sign of Olivia. No clue. Useless leads.

“She's good at hiding " Daniel said one night. "She doesn't want to be found.”

“I know " Mark said. He rubbed his eyes. ". I won't stop looking. Not until shes safe.”

He didn't know she was, on a bus. She was looking out the window at fields. She was holding her stomach. She was crying quietly.

Olivia whispered to the baby "We'll be okay. Just. Me. For now.”

She didn't know Mark was searching the city for her. She didn't know he stayed up every night. He looked at her photo.

The contract had three months left, Mark hadn't found his ghost yet, Olivia was learning to survive on her own.