Chapter 22: Reaffirmed

Originally, Ian had planned to have Mina locked up in a regular guest bedroom, but she had tried to jump out of a window at the hospital, and he could not risk her dying before he figured out who sent her. So he and Luna decided to put her in the room she was now staying in. The only way she could kill herself there, would be if she hit her head on the furniture and that would take extreme willpower and strength. He didn't think she had the guts to take her own life, but he couldn't afford to be wrong. She looked very determined in the hospital. If he had not caught her in time, she may have actually jumped.

Mina had successfully done two things by attempting suicide. She reaffirmed his belief that she was an assassin or spy and that she had been lying to him this whole time. Ian felt that she might not even have had memory loss, but Ian promised his sister that he would wait for the drugs in their system to become undetectable. That way the polygraph results would be clear and they would have a better picture of her character.

During this waiting period, Ian was free to do whatever he wanted. They may not even need the polygraph if he were able to get the truth out of her without it. One of the first things his staff was ordered to do was to starve Mina for the next three days. They did not question him, and now with Nanny Ruby gone, he did not have to pretend to be a gentleman toward this woman.

On his screen, Mina was still looking around the room and taking note of her environment. She studied everything and quickly noticed the furniture nailed to the ground. She attempted to push a chair and when it did not move, she turned her attention elsewhere. She walked into the restroom and Ian could see her fling her clothes out of the open door. He furrowed his eyebrows. There was no way she did not know she was being watched. Even Luna knew that if left unattended in enemy territory it was likely that you were being watched from all corners. Apparently, Mina did not get that memo. Ian closed the screen and turned off his laptop. Mina was obviously trying to seduce him. She must have known that the drug in his system was still active, and she was attempting to use it against him. He would not allow it.

Ian and his sister had already decided that they would not kill Mina until after they were able to give her a polygraph test. They also decided that they would not give her a polygraph for at least three weeks at the suggestion of Dr. Bell.

Dr. Bell had told them that the drug's suggestive properties could affect the polygraph results, so they agreed to hold off. They also decided not to personally look into Mina's background to avoid being swayed by her upbringing.

For the next three weeks they would only have people dig up any and all information regarding Mina and her family from the day she was born. Then, when the time was right, they would review the information about her and compose a list of questions to ask her during the polygraph test. Since Luna was a psychoanalyst, Ian resolved to step back from the matter and follow his sister's guidance.

When Ian turned his laptop back on; Mina was already in bed. She appeared to have fallen asleep. From this distance, he could not see her face clearly, but he could tell her eyes were closed and she was breathing deeply. He thought about the first time he had seen her. Even before this, Ian thought about Mina often, but there was no record of her in his building, other than security footage. How long had she been stalking him and why did he only notice her on that day?

Ian was starting to get angry again, he had never been a lustful person, he had never paid attention to women, and now suddenly the one woman who made him look twice, ends up being his adversary. What were the odds?

Ian quickly jotted down a few questions to ask Mina when the time came. He wanted to know how long she had been following him, and how she was able to make him notice her. Ian had a sinking feeling that Mina may have used small amounts of, whatever drug he was given, on him for a long time. Maybe they had already met and he just did not remember. He knew he was being paranoid but how else could he explain it?

Ian's phone rang. Li Lee was calling. He did not feel like talking to her right now, but he would feel guilty if he did not. He answered the phone and Lisa's voice rang in his ear. She did not have a deep voice but compared to Mina's… - No, what was he doing? Was he comparing them? He sat up abruptly and walked out of his study and into his bedroom. He plopped himself on the giant bed and closed his eyes. Lisa was still talking, but Ian could not hear what she was saying. He was trying to force Mina's image from his mind.

After a while, Ian was successful. Lisa was still complaining to him about something that happened to her company. Apparently she fired half of her staff and replaced them with new, younger people and now she was losing profit. She really felt as if this was the worst thing in the world, and he could tell she was beginning to cry. Mina and Lisa were nothing alike… - He had done it again. He could not talk to Lisa right now. Ian quickly ended the call, saying that he had an emergency at work. He did not want to speak to her while the drug was still in his system. He wasn't doing it on purpose, but he was comparing them. This was unacceptable.

Ian fell asleep wondering if Mina would dream about him.