When Cory woke next the house was quiet and the kitchen chair gone. He sat on the side of his bed, staring at the carpet. Nausea overwhelmed him and for the first time he realised how much his circumstances affected him. His mind wreaked havoc with his rational thoughts and his body screamed with tension. He had to keep it together.

Cory inhaled and reached for his back pocket to discover he wasn’t wearing pants. He sat in his boxers and shirt not recalling when his jeans had been removed. Panicked, he scanned his bedroom, finding his jeans hanging over his chair. Cory stood and searched the back pocket. The flight details were missing.

Further panic engulfed him. He needed those details to leave the country safely. He hadn’t studied them enough to know their exact details. What if they'd been found by one of his family? What if Neve now had them? What if a stranger found them? Too many what-ifs circled around in his head and Cory fell to a heap on the ground, jeans still clenched in his hands, as he cried.

He didn't hear the sounds of his parents entering his room until his father lifted him up under his arms and got him back onto the bed. Cory collapsed against his pillow, his jeans still held tightly in his hands. Sarah crouched down and said, “Cory, sweetheart. You have to tell us what's going on.”

Cory kept his eyes closed. He couldn’t bring himself to glance at his mother.

“Cory, we found your itinerary to leave for Italy on Monday. When were you going to tell us?” His father sounded angry yet slightly disappointed, causing Cory to cry harder.

“Deep breaths, Cory.”

Sarah sat on the bed, rubbing his back in small gentle circles as she did when he was a kid. It tore Cory to pieces. He heard the hushed whispers from his parents, but was not able to make out what they were saying. Sarah leaned over and held him tight, pleading with him to talk to them.

Perhaps it was his mother's warm arms wrapped around him or his father's pleading voice that brought a resolution to Cory. He realised then he had to lie to his parents. To save them – and himself – he had to lie.

Cory pulled himself up and Sarah let go, moving to allow Cory room. He inhaled, wiped his face with the hanky Derek passed him, before looking at his mother. Over and over he continued to tell himself – he had to lie to his parents if he wants to live.

He attempted to speak, but no voice came out. Only now did he realise how dry his mouth had become and looking over to his bedside table saw the glass of water. Sarah took the glass and handed it to Cory. His father came and sat down on his other side.

He drank the entire glass before handing it back to Sarah. Cory steadied his breathing, licked his lips and whispered, “I’ve seen something I shouldn’t have.”

“Seen what?” Derek questioned.

“I can’t tell you. It'll put your lives in danger.”

“Cory, sweetheart. Please tell your father and I what's happened? We can help you?”

Cory looked at his mother. Pain pierced his heart at the expression on her face.

“You can’t help me. No one can. If I don’t leave the country, they’ll kill me.”

“We’ll go to the police,” Derek said but Cory gave a violent shake of his head.

“The police can’t help me, Dad. They're influenced by these people. No one can save me but me. I need to leave now or it'll be too late.”

"But we're talking innocent lives here, Cory. In this day and age, there can't be an organisation or group of people more powerful than our country's protectors." It was obvious from the tone of his voice that Derek was upset.

The room fell into silence, and Sarah took Cory's hand as tear fell down her cheeks.

“I’m sorry. I never meant for this to happen. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”.

What Cory told them wasn’t exactly a lie, but withholding so much of the truth was crushing him.

Derek stood and, without a word, left the bedroom. Together, Cory and his mother watched.

“I’m sorry,” Cory whispered.

“Shhh. It’s all right. We’ll think of some way to help you.”

“You can’t help me, Mum. If you get involved, it'll put you and Dad in danger. I could never live with myself if anything happened to the both of you or to Molly.”

Cory pulled his hand from his mother's hand and rubbed them over his face. He was so tired.

“When was the last time you ate?”

Cory shrugged. Sarah stood and reached down once again to take Cory's hand.

“Come on, let’s get you something to eat and then we’ll talk some more.”

Cory glanced up at his mother. He no longer had the strength to fight. His body shut down. Sarah gave his hand a tug, bringing Cory up to his unsteady feet, and led him to the kitchen.

At the kitchen table, Sarah put food in front of him and Cory ate. After talking to his parents his body craved food, and he ate everything placed in front of him. When he could eat no more, Cory functioned better both physically and mentally. Derek joined them while Cory ate and sitting down at the table, pen in hand and a notebook in front of him, he wanted to discuss Cory’s situation.

As much as Cory didn’t want to discuss it, the guilt he experienced from abandoning his family compelled him to listen to what his father had to say.

“This trouble you are in is very serious, right?” Derek questioned.

Cory nodded.

“And you can’t tell us what's going on?”

Cory shook his head and whispered, “Please, Dad. I would never put you or Mum in any unnecessary danger. Even knowing I’m leaving might cause you problems as it is, but I’m hoping that with me gone you'll both be left alone.”

Sarah took Derek's arm and gave it a squeeze. “We'll need to do what we can to help him get out of the country alive.”

Derek looked between Sarah and Cory.

“I’m sorry, Dad. I never meant for this to happen.”

His father nodded and put the pen and paper to one side. “Then let’s discuss what you need after you leave. You’ll need access money to support yourself.”

“Dad, I need to disappear. I need to cease to exist as the person I am if I don’t want them to find me. They're powerful, with many connections. Any kind of help you give me would be discovered, and they'd find me.”

His father ran his hand through his hair and let out a big sigh. “So, what do I do? Let you leave not knowing if you’re alive or not? Fear for you as you run for your life? How many years will you need to run before this goes away or will they continue to track you until you are dead? What can we do?”

Derek was almost hysterical. Sarah wrapped her arm around his shoulder and hugged him.

Cory dropped his head and murmured, “I don’t know, Dad. Please… let me leave and when I’ve set myself up, I’ll contact you.”

“You'll need a new name,” Sarah said. Cory and Derek stared at her. She went on, “If Cory has a name he can contact us with we may be able to send money over to him. An alias – something only we know.”

“That might work.” Cory sat up in his chair, looking at his mother.

Derek nodded but his face looked grim. Cory reached over the table and took his father's hand. “I have to do this dad. I have to go.”

“And you’re sure you can’t go to the police?”

“It’s no use. They can't help me. They would expose my identity to those looking for me.”

“But…”

Cory didn’t let his father finish.

“They’re looking for me, Dad. I can’t hide any longer. They have people in places that would make my death appear like it was an accident. And if I died before I leave, anything you said about this conversation would be ignored. I need to leave, it’s the only way.”

“Then you'll need cash. Derek, there’s still time. I’ll head down to the bank now and withdraw money. Enough to get Cory by.”

“Why Italy?” Derek asked.

Cory shrugged. “Any of the western countries are easily influenced by the authorities here. They'll have me the minute I get off the plane. Europe seemed the best choice because there are more countries to hide in if I need to.”

“But you’ll need your passport? Won’t they be able to track you with that?”

“Yes, but I won't use it once I get there..." Cory trailed off. "If I get there.”

“You said they don’t know who you are.”

Cory let out a deep breath. “They know I exist. They're looking for me but haven't been able to identify me yet. No doubt once they've identified me I won't be able to leave the country.”

“Are they that powerful, Cory?”

Cory stared at into his mother’s eyes. “They would kill us all without blinking if you knew what I knew.”

They fell quiet. Sarah stood looking more determined than Cory had ever seen her before.

“I’ll go to the bank now.”

Derek nodded, and they remained silent as Sarah picked up her handbag and left. Cory avoided his father's gaze. As Derek stood up, Cory’s heart broke. Tears threatened to spill again and Derek came around the table and wrapped his arms around Cory, holding him tight. For the rest of his life, Cory would remember the heartbreak and pain of that moment.