35 She Left Without A Word

He looked offended beyond words. "Believe me, you will live a long life."

She nodded, trying to placate him. "Sure. Sure."

Ghost agents like her had no legal existence in the world. Their fingerprints and DNA were not in the systems and they had no real names. The identity they were born with that been considered dead before they turned into adults.

She couldn't be considered alive in the normal sense of the word. Moreover, she was already thirty. Contrary to her baby face, she was actually closer to the age of the professors. And she had outlived most of the other ghost agents so far. There were about two people left in her group who were older than her by a few years. But all of them had joined later than her.

It could be said that she didn't have much time left in this life. She was okay with it.

"Don't use that tone with me," his voice was hard. "But why are you not drinking coffee today?" he asked finally.

"It's too scalding for me."

But as the time wound down, she didn't take a sip. Her coffee was almost cold by the time they were done talking.

"Your class begins in two minutes. You should rush."

He finally remembered the time. "I'll get going. Finish the coffee and lock the door behind you, will you?" he said. "I'll see you next day." He indeed rushed out, leaving her staring at his back as it disappeared outside the door.

She looked at the coffee mug in front of her. The door clicked as it locked behind him and she stared at the mug for a little longer.

Finally, she inched forward and clutched at the mug. In one shot, she gulped down the bitter liquid. Finally, she shuddered. She took both the mugs and took out a pair of plastic gloves from her bag to do the rest. She washed the cups thoroughly and then looked around the room to see if she had left something behind.

Once she went out, she closed the door with the gloves on.

Now, she only had to alter the final few videos and then leave.

And it took about an hour at the apartment to finish everything.

What did she do after that? She entered the airport during rush hours as usual. As she sat at the terminal, she opened the only bag she had on her. Everything else had been donated. The two lone paper cups still stayed in her back, neatly inside a ziplock bag. She looked at the overflowing dustbin in front of her and finally discarded the last piece of Anna Dunn as she had played for all these years.

The flight was miserable, but it was the perfect ending to the mission. It was time for her to take a break and train like a monster once again.

- - - - -

Ladislas was ready for another class. Albeit this one was different as Anna would be sitting in it. He felt a smile crawl up his lips as he entered the room. There were a few minutes left for the class to begin but most of the students had already arrived.

He spotted Anna's friend, Marie at the back of the class, looking like she had not slept in a while. He shook his head, wondering if Anna had gone along with her so-called friends as well. He was surprised she had not arrived yet.

The minutes passed slowly. Even Lewis entered a few seconds before the clock struck twelve. But Anna didn't come.

Apart from coming late to his office, she was never late. He checked the watch just in case and then sighed. Maybe she took a day off. He continued to teach until the lecture ended. As the students filled out of the class, he found himself stopping Marie on her way out.

"Your friend didn't come today?" he asked with the most nonchalant voice he could muster.

Marie didn't respond. She hung her head.

"Is she unwell? It isn't like her to skip class," he pressed.

"She hasn't come home in a while. I don't know where she is."

Ladislas' brows furrowed as Marie scrambled out of the room. He was confused for a second. He pulled out his phone and called her.

'The number you have dialed does not exist.'

He pulled it away and stared in horror.

She had come to see him just two days ago, run an errand at university too. How was she missing all of a sudden? It made no sense. She still hadn't submitted her thesis, so there was no way she would miss classes intentionally.

The reality hit when he went to the professor's common room to check in about course progression. He heard whispered gossip and didn't pay much attention. He was just filling in his paperwork when he heard her name clear as day. His head snapped up and he paid attention to the conversation.

"I spoke to her roommate. She just moved out of the apartment without warning. Didn't even leave a note. The roommate said that her room was so clean that it looked like Anna had never lived there. Not even a speck of dust to be found."

The person speaking was the head of the department.

"Why did he drop out of college all of a sudden?" another professor asked. "I heard how wonderful her thesis paper was turning out to be. Her mentor was pushing her to submit an abstract for it to the upcoming international conference." He tutted as he spoke.

"Are you talking about Anna Dunn?" he asked. His voice cut through the air, making the others turn sharply in his direction. They were stunned by his tone, never having heard it so grave.

"Professor Forrester!" the head of the department exclaimed. "You were her secondary mentor, right?" he asked.

Ladislas nodded.

"And you had no idea she dropped out?"

Ladislas frowned. "I saw her two days ago. She didn't mention it. The university was closed yesterday. When…" he trailed off. Suddenly understanding.

"She dropped out early that morning. She met you after that?" the other sounded horrified.

"Did she mention why?" he sounded desperate.

The conversation kept going but Ladislas zoned out. He tried to piece the puzzle. How had she spoken? Had she shown signs of leaving? How had he missed it?

That fucking girl!

She left without a word.