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“Both of you is fine sir. This might sound a little strange but I was wondering if you could help me with something.”
“Are you trying to surprise Gabby with something?” Maggie asked with a bright smile.
“I am. I recently discovered one of the reasons Gabby came back here from Boston, why she left Graves.”
“She told you?” Owen stated surprised.
“Not without some prodding but eventually yes. Did she mention anything about it to you all?”
“When she came back from Boston she was quieter than normal,” Maggie admitted. “She kept telling us that she was homesick but she kept to herself too much for us to buy it.”
“So she didn’t tell you anything about Haley?” Wyatt questioned.
“Who’s Haley?” Owen inquired.
“Gabby said she was a friend from college, she moved to Boston to be close to her and she left Boston because of what happened to her.”
“I’m sorry I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about,” Maggie stated.
“Gabby’s never mentioned a friend named Haley? Never?” Wyatt asked.
“Not as far as I remember,” Maggie told him.
“Okay let me start over…we’d went to the ballet for a business function, it was just after the mugging and I was worried about her. She’d lost so much weight and at dinner she wasn’t eating much, I guess I overstepped and she tried to change the subject. She told them that I was being overprotective but had chosen to attend the ballet for her. It was true and she made a comment that I couldn’t stand them unlike her and that it’d been wonderful. She then made a comment that Haley would have loved it too.” Wyatt paused remembering the way her eyes had flashed with pain and panic before continuing. “That was the first time I’d ever heard her mention Haley, and she quickly continued on asking how everyone else like it. When I brought it up she just said she was a friend from college and that they’d grown apart…”
“I can honestly say I don’t remember Gabby talking about anyone named Haley, not even when she was home for break from school,” Maggie said. “Why are you so concerned about this?”
“Donald Graves showed up yesterday at the park. When I got there to pick up Gabby he was glaring down at her, and there was something in his eyes that made me want to bash his head in,” Wyatt admitted. “Gabby was tense to say the least and he left but not before telling her to say hi to Haley for him.”
“This Donald Graves is the man who owns Graves Corp right?” Owen asked.
“Right, well at least for another week, never mind,” Wyatt said shaking his head. “After we got home I asked Gabby about him and whether the Haley he’d asked about was the Haley she was friends with. That’s when she told me about Haley. She said they met in college, Haley was a couple years older but they bonded quickly, and after she graduated she moved to Boston to be closer to her,” Wyatt continued. “Then she told me why sheleft Boston…apparently Donald Graves had been Haley’s secret boyfriend, an abusive one at that.”
“Oh my goodness…what happened to her?” Maggie asked.
“Gabby said that she’d gotten pregnant and when Donald found out after she’d had the baby he came after them, beating them both severely. Apparently Haley was too scared to go to the police and decided instead to leave town, disappear…once Gabby knew the sort of man Graves was she couldn’t work for him anymore and moved back here,” Wyatt finished.
“That explains why she was so quiet, but not why she never mentioned Haley to any of us,” Owen said.
“I get why she didn’t after she came home but not before then,” Maggie added.
“I don’t get why she suddenly mentioned her out of the blue and then pretended like she was just one of those people who come and go from your life,” Wyatt told them.
“You said she didn’t mention her until after the mugging right?” Owen inquired.
“It was at dinner after the ballet, about two weeks after it, why?” Wyatt asked.
“I’d say that the mugging stirred up some emotions about what happened to Haley, she could unfortunately relate somewhat to the confusion of what had happened,” Owen suggested. “If she and Haley had enjoyed going to the ballet and Gabby was trying to remember the good things associated with it and ignore the questions about her mugging, both things would bring Haley to mind.”
“I see,” Wyatt said understanding his thought process.
“Thank you for telling us, it explains why Gabby was withdrawn, she was missing her friend and worried about keeping her safe. Do you think she knows where Haley is?” Maggie asked.
“She claims she doesn’t which is why I was hoping to find her and surprise Gabby.”
“Wouldn’t that put her in danger, especially if Donald Graves is aware that she and Gabby were friends?” Owen asked.
“I don’t think Graves will be an issue for much longer,” Wyatt told them. “He made some bad investment choices and his company is on the brink, once the SEC gets hold of his financials he’s likely to be in jail for a long time.”
