Chapter 65– The Road Away From the City
Ahmedabad felt too loud for JJ now.
Too bright.
Too fast.
Too unfamiliar.
---
Even after being discharged from the hospital—
she still looked fragile.
Too fragile.
Walking slowly beside Care and Lyra through the hospital corridor while holding onto them both carefully.
As if her own body no longer trusted itself.
---
Her memories were still gone.
Completely.
Names.
Places.
Faces.
Nothing stayed properly inside her mind.
Only fragments.
Feelings.
Tiny instincts.
---
And somehow—
the people beside her didn't feel dangerous.
Even if she couldn't remember why.
---
Outside the hospital entrance—
two cars waited.
One black SUV.
One silver sedan.
---
Rhys leaned against the second car dramatically eating chips.
Alex stood beside him checking his phone quietly.
Lyra immediately frowned.
"You're eating after crying for six hours yesterday?"
Rhys looked offended.
"Grief burns calories."
Alex muttered without looking up:
"You're mentally ill."
"Correct."
---
For the first time—
JJ smiled faintly.
Tiny.
Weak.
But real.
---
And all four of them noticed instantly.
Because ever since she woke up—
JJ mostly looked lost.
Like someone standing in a life that no longer belonged to her.
---
Care squeezed her hand softly.
"See? We're funny."
"I think only one of you is," JJ whispered weakly.
Rhys gasped dramatically.
"OH MY GOD SHE INSULTS PEOPLE NATURALLY. THAT'S DEFINITELY OUR JJ."
JJ blinked slightly.
Our JJ.
That phrase did something strange to her chest.
Warm.
Painful.
---
Before she could think more—
another voice interrupted calmly.
"Everyone done?"
---
Cole.
Standing near the black SUV.
Hands inside pockets.
Expression unreadable as usual.
---
JJ looked at him quietly.
Something about him felt… steady.
Safe in a different way.
Like silence during rain.
---
Care immediately turned toward him.
"Wait seriously?"
Cole raised one eyebrow.
"What?"
"You're actually bringing us there?"
"Yes."
Rhys nearly dropped his chips.
"BRO FROM WHEN WERE YOU SECRETLY RICH?"
Cole looked genuinely confused.
"I thought you knew."
"We THOUGHT your family owned like… two cows and emotional trauma."
Alex snorted quietly.
Lyra smacked Rhys's shoulder.
---
Even JJ let out another tiny laugh.
Soft.
Breathless.
But enough to make all of them relax slightly.
---
Because hearing her laugh again felt like proof she was still somewhere inside there.
---
Care looked suspiciously at Cole.
"You never told us you had a house near Polo Forest."
Cole corrected calmly:
"Mansion."
Silence.
Then all four yelled together:
"MANSION?!"
---
Cole sighed tiredly already.
"It belonged to my grandfather."
"You rich snake," Rhys whispered dramatically.
---
JJ watched them quietly.
And for a moment—
something deep inside her heart hurt unexpectedly.
Because this chaos felt familiar somehow.
Like she had once belonged inside another loud group too.
But every time she tried remembering—
pain stabbed through her head sharply.
---
She flinched slightly.
Care noticed immediately.
"Headache?"
JJ nodded weakly.
Lyra instantly supported her better.
"Easy… don't force yourself."
---
Then softly—
JJ asked the question again.
The same one she'd asked nearly ten times already.
"…how do you all know me?"
Silence fell briefly.
Painful.
---
Because none of them knew how to answer that anymore.
Not when the girl standing here no longer remembered loving people across oceans desperately enough to disappear from them.
---
Care carefully pulled out the letters they found in JJ's bag.
Worn slightly now from rereading too much.
---
"You wrote to us."
JJ stared at them quietly.
Her own handwriting.
But it felt like looking at someone else's life.
---
"I still don't remember…"
"That's okay," Lyra whispered immediately.
"You don't have to force it."
---
JJ looked between all of them slowly.
And despite the fear inside her—
despite the confusion—
something deep down still trusted these people.
Instinctively.
Emotionally.
Like her soul remembered before her mind could.
---
So finally—
very softly—
she nodded.
"…okay."
---
And somehow that tiny word relieved everyone.
Because they were terrified she would refuse to go with them.
---
Care smiled shakily immediately.
"Good. Because hospital food was killing me spiritually."
Rhys pointed dramatically.
"She's lying. She stole my sandwich yesterday."
"It was communal suffering food."
"It was MY sandwich."
---
JJ watched them argue quietly while Cole opened the SUV door for her.
Care carefully helped her inside.
JJ moved slowly.
Weakly.
Every motion exhausting now.
---
Cole noticed immediately.
His expression darkened slightly.
Because seeing her condition in reality hurt worse than hearing about it.
This girl—
the one from the letters—
was supposed to be loud chaos.
Not this pale.
Not this tired.
---
He closed the door gently after her.
Then moved toward the driver's seat.
---
Meanwhile—
Alex loaded bags into the second car while Lyra and Rhys argued over playlists loudly.
---
"NO sad songs."
"You literally cried to Arijit Singh yesterday."
"That was character development."
---
JJ leaned weakly against the seat inside the SUV.
Watching all of them through tired eyes.
And somehow—
for the first time since waking up—
she didn't feel completely alone.
---
Then the cars finally started moving.
Leaving Ahmedabad behind slowly.
---
The city disappeared gradually.
Buildings becoming fewer.
Roads quieter.
Air cleaner.
Trees denser.
---
And far away from Manila—
far away from Keifer—
far away from everyone desperately searching for her—
JJ unknowingly moved deeper into another life entirely.
Toward a mansion hidden near the forests.
Toward ancient silence.
Toward people who already decided they would fight fate itself if it meant saving her somehow.
---
The drive lasted hours.
Roads becoming quieter.
Cities fading slowly behind them.
Until eventually—
nature swallowed everything.
Huge trees.
Cold winds.
Fog between hills.
Silence.
---
JJ sat quietly beside Care the whole ride.
Half asleep most of the time.
Weak.
Sometimes staring blankly outside like she was trying to remember something hidden somewhere beyond the trees.
But every time she tried too hard—
her head hurt again.
So eventually she stopped trying.
---
Then finally—
the gates appeared.
Massive black iron gates slowly opening automatically.
And everyone except Cole stared.
---
Rhys nearly screamed.
"WHAT THE HELL."
Even Alex blinked twice.
Because beyond the gates—
stood a gigantic mansion hidden deep near the Polo Forest area.
Modern.
Beautiful.
Quiet.
Surrounded by greenery and mountains.
Almost unreal in the middle of nowhere.
---
Lyra looked at Cole suspiciously.
"…you're secretly Batman."
"No."
"Drug mafia?"
"No."
"Emotionally constipated billionaire?"
Cole sighed tiredly.
"Closer."
---
Even JJ stared quietly through the car window.
The mansion looked peaceful.
Safe.
Like the world couldn't reach here easily.
---
The cars finally stopped near the entrance.
Staff members immediately came quietly to help with luggage.
Which shocked everyone even more.
---
Rhys pointed dramatically.
"STAFF TOO?!"
Cole looked confused again.
"…obviously?"
Care narrowed her eyes immediately.
Something felt off.
Not dangerous.
But hidden.
Very hidden.
---
Inside—
the mansion was enormous.
Warm lights.
Wooden interiors.
Huge windows.
Plants everywhere.
The scent of sandalwood and old books filling the air softly.
---
JJ looked around slowly.
Overwhelmed.
---
"This is… your house?"
Cole answered simply:
"Yes."
No explanation.
Nothing else.
And somehow—
that made Care even more suspicious.
---
Because Cole never talked about his family.
Ever.
No mother.
No father.
No childhood stories.
Nothing.
They all assumed he simply hated discussing personal things.
But this?
This level of wealth?
This hidden mansion?
Something wasn't adding up anymore.
---
Then another thing caught everyone's attention.
Near one side hallway—
a separate room.
Small.
Clean.
Filled with ayurvedic medicines.
Herbs.
Medical oils.
Ancient treatment books.
Special equipment.
Everything arranged carefully already.
---
Care froze slightly.
"…what is this?"
Cole looked toward the room calmly.
"For JJ's treatment."
Silence.
---
Lyra blinked.
"You prepared all this already?"
"Yes."
"When?"
"Yesterday."
Rhys stared at him like he'd grown another head.
"BRO WE DIDN'T EVEN FULLY DECIDE YET."
Cole simply walked past them.
"Assemble quickly. Panic slowly."
Alex quietly muttered:
"That's the most serial killer sentence I've heard this week."
---
But JJ looked toward the treatment room quietly.
Fear flickering across her face.
Because somewhere deep inside—
her body understood something her memories still couldn't.
She was sick.
Very sick.
---
Care immediately noticed.
So she gently touched JJ's shoulder.
"We'll go slowly, okay?"
JJ nodded weakly.
Trusting her instinctively again.
---
Then Lyra suddenly gasped dramatically from upstairs.
"OH MY GOD."
Everyone looked up.
---
"There's an entire library here."
Alex instantly looked interested.
Rhys yelled:
"NERDS."
---
But when they entered the library—
even Rhys got quiet for a second.
It was huge.
Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves.
Rolling ladders.
Soft lights.
Large windows overlooking the forest.
A quiet reading corner near the fireplace.
---
Lyra looked genuinely emotional.
"…I could die here peacefully."
Alex softly answered beside her:
"Please don't."
She smiled faintly at him immediately.
---
JJ watched them quietly from the doorway.
Something warm touching her chest again.
These people cared for each other deeply.
That much she could understand even without memories.
---
Meanwhile downstairs—
Care wandered alone through another part of the mansion.
Still uneasy.
Still thinking.
---
Then she reached the back garden.
And paused.
---
The garden was beautiful.
Fresh flowers.
Herbal plantations.
Vegetable patches.
A small greenhouse.
Everything perfectly maintained already.
Almost too perfectly.
---
And near one tree—
Care noticed something strange.
A tiny decorative ribbon tied around a lantern stand.
New.
Very new.
Like from an inauguration ceremony.
---
Her brows furrowed immediately.
Because this mansion didn't feel lived in for years.
It felt prepared recently.
Specifically.
---
Like someone arranged everything in advance.
For them.
For JJ.
---
A cold feeling crept into her chest slowly.
---
Then she remembered something else.
Cole never mentioned family.
Not once.
No father.
No mother.
No siblings.
No home stories.
Nothing.
---
And now suddenly—
there was a hidden mansion in the forest with a fully prepared treatment room waiting for JJ specifically.
---
Care slowly looked back toward the mansion windows.
Toward the quiet silhouette of Cole visible inside the living room talking to Alex and Rhys calmly.
Expression unreadable as always.
---
Something was wrong.
Not evil.
Not dangerous.
But hidden deeply.
And Care was starting to realize—
maybe none of them truly knew who Cole actually was.