Stolen Identity: Mute Heiress

Chapter 78: Impostor

At the cinema, Genevieve sat beside Stefan, chewing her popcorn as they saw a RomCom which she had chosen for them.

The cinema wasn’t very full since it was still a weekday, and they had chosen the seat at the middle of the hall.

Although Stefan’s gaze was fixed on the screen but his mind somewhere else. He wasn’t following the story. Not really. Instead, his thoughts circled around the woman beside him— Genevieve and the relationship between her and Abigail.

It had to be the same Abigail, right? It couldn’t possibly be a coincidence. How could Jamal have been so lucky to just so easily end up meeting the girl he had done all he could do to find five years ago, if fate wasn’t involved? How come the two ladies he had ever loved were so closely related? And why did he need to do a DNA test? Was Genevieve not who she was claiming to be? Who then was she?

He glanced at her from the corner of his eye. She was sitting still, watching the romantic comedy unfold on the screen. Soft laughter rose from the audience as the main character tripped over her own feet and landed in the arms of her lover and Genevieve laughed too, but he noticed she was rubbing her arms slowly, like she was cold.

Stefan frowned. He looked down at his own jacket, then back at her. She didn’t have to be Dawn for him to be nice to her, right? He thought as he shrugged off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders without a word.

Genevieve turned to him, surprised. ”Oh... you don’t have to.”

Stefan raised a brow, and then she shook her head.

”Thank you.”

Stefan simply nodded and turned back to the screen.

After a few moments, she spoke again, her voice light. ”Are you enjoying the movie?” She asked, turning to look at him.

Stefan let out a small breath, tilting his head slightly. ”Not exactly. Romcoms aren’t really my thing. I prefer something with more action.”

Genevieve raised an eyebrow. ”Then why are we here? Why didn’t you say so when I chose the movie?”

He smirked, eyes still on the screen. ”Because I wanted to see what kind of movies you liked. A person’s choice of movies tells me a lot about them.”

She hummed in thought. ”I don’t think the kind of movies someone watches says anything about their personality. Even a psychopath could watch a romcom.”

Stefan turned his head toward her, amusement flickering in his eyes. ”Really? Are you one?”

Genevieve narrowed her eyes playfully. ”You can’t tell?”

Stefan chuckled. ”I can tell you’re not one,” he said with a knowing look. ”You are quite sentimental. I noticed you tearing up earlier when the girl told the guy how she felt. You believe in sappy love.”

She folded her arms. ”And you don’t?”

”I believe in entertainment. That’s why I like action movies. I watch it solely for entertainment. Romance is just filled with a lot of unrealistic stuff that people want to believe in.”

She tilted her head at him. ”So can we say because you like action movies you believe in violence?”

He let out a low laugh. ”Sometimes, violence is necessary. But I don’t watch action movies for their philosophy. I just like the thrill.”

Genevieve sighed dramatically. ”Then didn’t it occur to you that some of us watch romance movies just for the thrill and not necessarily for the philosophy?”

Stefan smiled as he nodded, ”Yep. I know. Just wanted you to say it. You’re smart.”

Genevieve blinked, taken aback by the compliment. That was the first time anyone was calling her smart and not because of something Abigail had done. ”I am?”

Stefan looked at her, wondering why she seemed so touched by what he had said, ”Of course, you are.”

”You’re not saying that just because you think I’m the genius Dawn, right?” She asked, and he paused, wondering what was going through her head.

The way she phrased her question let him know that he seemed to be on the right track in thinking that she wasn’t Dawn.

”Does it matter whether or not I’m saying it because you’re the genius Dawn? You’re the same person so whether you’re the genius Dawn, or you’re Genevieve, you’re smart,” he said with a shrug.

Genevieve flashed him a happy smile, ”Thank you,” she said, genuinely grateful for the compliment. If you’re not enjoying the movie, let’s go.”

Stefan raised an eyebrow. ”The movie isn’t over.”

”I’ve seen it before,” she said simply. ”And if you don’t like it, we should leave and do something else that you’ll enjoy.”

Stefan studied her for a moment, then leaned closer. ”I’d enjoy talking to you.” His voice was lower now, more serious. ”Finding out more about you,” he said since it was true that he wanted to know who she was and why she was pretending to be someone else.

It was funny to him that right now they were both pretending to be who they were not.

Genevieve blinked. ”What do you want to know?”

”Everything that makes you Genevieve,” he said without hesitation, since he couldn’t outrightly tell her what he really wanted to know.

A small smile tugged at her lips. ”My life isn’t that interesting. There’s not much to tell.”

Before Stefan could respond, someone behind them let out an annoyed hiss. ”Can you two keep quiet?”

Genevieve rolled her eyes, then stood up. ”Let’s go.”

Stefan sighed but followed her out of the cinema. As they stepped back into the busy mall, she turned to him. ”Should I check on Pete? Let’s see if he’s done with them at the hotel and resolved whatever the issue is.”

Stefan nodded and pulled out his phone, glad that he could speak to Jamal. He dialed the number and as soon as the call connected, he stepped a little away from her, lowering his voice.

”Jamal, what’s going on?” he asked, glancing back at Genevieve. ”Are you done at the hotel?”

”No. Not yet. I told Genevieve’s Dad that they’re getting some work done in your suite. So, I’m here waiting for it to be done,” Jamal explained.

”You’re not alone, are you? The mute Abigail with you... is she the same Abigail I’m thinking about?” Stefan asked, needing to confirm his suspicions.

Jamal’s voice was calm but amused. ”Yes.”

Stefan raised a brow, ”Is she also the second person you want to run a DNA test on?” He whispered even though Genevieve wasn’t close to him.

”Yeah, but the DNA test won’t be necessary anymore. I already confirmed it. Abigail is Dawn. Genevieve... she’s just an imposter.”

Stefan slowly turned his head toward Genevieve. She was waiting for him a few steps away, her hands tucked into the sleeves of his jacket. When she noticed him looking, she smiled.

His stomach twisted.

Although he had suspected it, but now that Jamal confirmed it, he became even more curious.

Who was she? And why was she pretending to be someone else?

Stefan turned back to his phone. ”What do you want me to do? Should I just leave her now?”

”No,” Jamal said quickly. ”Not yet. Things are a bit complicated. I’ll explain better to you when we talk. For now keep being Jamal to her.”

Stefan let out a slow breath. ”I feel uncomfortable now. I hate that you’re making me do this.”

Jamal’s voice softened just a little. ”I know. Just keep your eyes on the prize. You will get it when you get back to Ludus.”

Stefan glanced at Genevieve once more, then smiled at her. ”Sure, boss. I’ll give it my very best.”

Jamal chuckled, ”I know I can always count on you.”

There was a pause, then Stefan spoke again. ”Anyway... congratulations.”

Jamal raised a brow. ”For what?”

”For finding your true love after all,” Stefan said and then ended the call.

Then, forcing a smile, he walked back to Genevieve.

”Is he done at the hotel?” she asked.

”No. They’re working on my suite, so he’s there to make sure my personal stuff is not tampered with,” He said, slipping his hands into his pockets. ”Let’s go.”

Back at the suite, Jamal faced Abigail after the phone call with Stefan. She had been about to answer his question when Stefan’s call came in a moment ago.

”You were going to do a DNA test?” Abigail asked, and Jamal nodded, realizing he hadn’t mentioned it.

”Yeah. I needed to confirm if truly Genevieve was Dawn. Tell me about you, Dawn. How long have you been able to talk?” he asked, reminding her that she was yet to answer his questions.

Abigail was silent for a moment as she looked at Jamal, trying to figure out if this was the right time to tell him about Josh or not.

Finally, she let out a deep breath. ”I wasn’t pretending to be mute five years ago. I really couldn’t speak back then. I thought I was born mute. I told you,” she said, and Jamal nodded.

”So, what happened?” He asked, and she shrugged.

”You happened,” she said, and he raised a brow.

”I began to regain bits of my memories after we met. I think it was because of the stuffed panda. In my dreams I saw myself talking and I realized I could speak,” she said and then went on to tell him about the dreams she had.

”Gunshots? But there was no news of the deaths being a murder. It was only reported as an auto crash,” Jamal said with a frown.

Abigail shrugged, ”Ryan probably covered it up because he knew eyebrows would raise if it was reported as a murder.”

Jamal nodded, ”That makes sense. I doubt the Hanks would have let him have you had they suspected a foul play.”

”I asked him about it. The nightmare,” she said, and watched as Jamal’s eyes widened slightly in surprise. ”I didn’t give him all the details. I just wanted to confirm if there was any iota of truth in what I saw. He confirmed it, though he added just enough lies to throw me off. And then he decided to get me a therapist to help me ’regain’ my memory,” she said, making a quote gesture with her hand.

Jamal paused, ”Hold on, I need to understand something. Did he pull you out from the school after you told him about the nightmares? Was that the reason he changed your school? You mentioned you were no longer in school six weeks after our meeting, and he only sent you out of the country after I put out the drawing of you, right?” He said, and she paused.

This was it.

Should she tell him why she was withdrawn from the school or not?