What Now

26. One Big Slumber Party

I shot up and looked around, trying to take in my surroundings. I was in Sean's room, in his bed. I put my hand to my head as I tried to recall what happened and how I got here. It all came back to me in a rush. We were watching the surveillance from the art show, trying to figure out who the mystery villain was who beat up Ryan Sweeny. Maria pointed someone out and...

"Oh my, God." It was my father. He was the man who beat up my mystery caller. What was he doing here? What was he doing out of prison? How did he find me? It couldn't have been a coincidence that he was at that show. 

"Lydia?" 

I looked up and saw Maria enter Sean's room carrying a glass of water. I jumped from the bed and backed away from her until I felt the wall at my back. "He's here, isn't he? In New York?"

She stopped where she was and simply looked at me. She didn't need to answer my question; it was written all over herself. "Yes, he's here."

"Is he here for me? Did he come here to hurt me? How is he even out of prison?" Even though I knew Maria didn't have the answers, I couldn't stop myself from asking the questions. This was all too much. I couldn't deal with something like this. 

Maria's voice was barely a whisper when she spoke. "I don't know, Lydia. I had no idea he was out or why he's here. Agent Caffrey already has the NYPD running facial recognition to try and locate him. He also wants you and I to stay here until things get sorted out. For our protection. There's no way of knowing if Jonathon knows where your dorm is or where I'm staying."

As I listened to her words, I felt like I was going to throw up. I was currently under house arrest because my psychotic father was on the loose for some unknown reason. The last thing Maria said clicked in my brain and I looked up at her. "Wait, do you think he could be here...for you?"

She had a sad expression on her face as she shook her head. "I have no idea. I hope not." 

I ran my hands over my face. I wanted to run. Run far away from here where he could never find me again. But I knew that wasn't an option. Not this time.

For one, that wouldn't solve anything. Two, I would be abandoning the people I cared about, and who also cared about me. No, I couldn't run. I was tired of running. I've been running my whole life. It was time to end this once and for all. 

I dropped my hands and let out a long breath. "So, what do we do now?" 

Sean entered the room and answered, "Now, we send his ass back to prison." Sean came towards me and pulled me into a hug. I wrapped my arms around him and buried my face in his neck. He rubbed my back soothingly as he whispered, "It's going to be okay, baby. I promise." 

"How do you know? You can't possibly know that." 

He kissed the top of my head. "I won't let him hurt you. You or Maria. Caffrey has the FBI and the NYPD on this. My apartment is secure. There's no way he can sneak in here."

I pulled away from him and took a step back. "I shouldn't have to be a prisoner." I gestured to Maria. "We shouldn't have to be prisoners. Why is he doing this to us? Why can't he leave us alone?" 

Sean kept his voice steady and I knew he was trying to remain calm for me. I knew him pretty well. I could see it in his eyes that he was just as freaked out as I was. "We'll figure this out. By the way, Michael is on his way." 

That surprised me and I felt my eyebrows raise. "Michael is coming here? How did-- You called him, didn't you?" 

"Yes, I did. Before you yell at me, I wasn't going to keep something like that from him. Besides, he actually called me before I had a chance to call him. He was worried because he had been expecting a call from you and couldn't reach you. I wasn't going to lie to him, Lydia."