Chapter 7: The Girl in Adrian’s Forgotten Memory
“The girl you left behind.””
Those words stayed in the room long after the call ended.
Adrian stood frozen, the phone still pressed against his ear.
The darkness around us felt heavier.
Like the house itself was waiting for someone to confess.
I watched his face carefully.
Because I had never seen him look so afraid.
Not when he discovered Camille’s lies.
Not when he learned about Victor.
Not even when he realized his entire life had been manipulated.
This was different.
This was personal.
“Adrian,” Lucas said quietly.
No response.
“Adrian.””
He finally lowered the phone.
His eyes moved toward me.
And I knew.
Whatever that voice had awakened…
It was something buried deep inside him.
“What did they mean?”” I asked.
He looked away.
“I don’t know.””
But his voice was uncertain.
I stepped closer.
“Adrian.””
He ran a hand through his hair.
“There’s something I don’t remember.””
The room went silent.
Camille looked at him.
“What?””
He looked at her.
“I don’t remember everything from before the accident.””
My breath caught.
“What do you mean?””
He looked down.
“After the accident, the doctors told me I had memory gaps.””
Lucas nodded slowly.
“That’s common with trauma.””
Adrian shook his head.
“But my family told me it was nothing.””
His jaw tightened.
“My father said I should focus on recovering.””
I felt a chill.
“Because he knew?””
Lucas didn’t answer.
He didn’t need to.
Adrian walked toward the desk and picked up the USB drive.
“The person who left this wants me to remember something.””
He looked at me.
“Something about you.””
My chest tightened.
“I don’t know what.””
A painful silence followed.
Then Adrian said something that hurt more than I expected.
“I’m sorry.””
I looked at him.
“For what?””
“For not knowing.””
The answer surprised me.
He stepped closer.
“I spent months believing you were hiding something from me.””
His eyes lowered.
“I thought you were the person who betrayed me.””
I swallowed.
“And now?””
He looked at me.
“Now I think I never knew the truth about anyone.””
The honesty was difficult to hear.
Because it came too late.
But it was still honesty.
Before I could answer, Lucas interrupted.
“We need to open the drive.””
Adrian looked at him.
“You said not here.””
“I said don’t open it before we understand why they gave it to us.””
He looked toward the door.
“Now we understand.””
“What?””
Lucas’s face was serious.
“They wanted us together.””
Nobody spoke.
Camille frowned.
“Why?””
Lucas looked at the USB.
“Because whatever is inside affects all of us.””
Adrian sat down at the desk.
He connected the drive to his laptop.
The screen lit up.
One folder appeared.
No name.
Just a date.
Three years ago.
My stomach tightened.
Adrian clicked it.
Inside were dozens of files.
Photos.
Videos.
Documents.
The first image opened.
And everyone froze.
It was Adrian.
Three years ago.
Before the accident.
Standing outside a hospital.
But he wasn’t alone.
A young woman stood beside him.
My heart stopped.
Because I recognized her.
Even though I had never met her.
Adrian stared.
“Who is that?””
Lucas stepped closer.
“I don’t know.””
I looked at the screen.
The woman had dark hair.
A soft smile.
And she was holding Adrian’s hand.
Camille looked confused.
“Adrian?””
He shook his head.
“I’ve never seen her.””
But then another photo appeared.
This one was older.
The same woman.
And a younger Adrian.
Together.
Happy.
My chest tightened.
Because I saw something familiar.
Something I had seen in myself.
The way she looked at him.
The way he looked at her.
Not like strangers.
Like two people who had loved each other.
Adrian whispered:
“Why don’t I remember?””
Nobody answered.
The next file opened automatically.
A video.
The screen showed a hospital room.
A woman was sitting on a bed.
The quality was poor.
But her voice was clear.
“If you’re watching this, Adrian, then something happened.””
Adrian went completely still.
The woman on the screen smiled sadly.
“I knew you would forget.””
My heart started racing.
Adrian moved closer.
“Who is she?””
The woman continued.
“I knew they would try to erase what happened.””
She looked directly into the camera.
“Especially Victor.””
Lucas’s face changed.
The woman took a breath.
“Adrian, if you don’t remember me, that means the accident was worse than we thought.””
Adrian covered his mouth.
“No…”
The woman smiled.
“I’m sorry.””
A tear rolled down her cheek.
“But you need to know the truth.””
The video glitched.
Then her voice returned.
“The girl who saved you wasn’t a stranger.””
Adrian froze.
The room went silent.
“She was the person who loved you.””
My blood ran cold.
The video continued.
“She risked everything for you.””
The woman looked away.
“And after the accident, she disappeared.””
Adrian stared at the screen.
“Why?””
The woman answered.
“Because Victor made sure everyone believed she was dead.””
The video ended.
Nobody moved.
I felt dizzy.
A thousand questions raced through my mind.
But one stood above all.
Who was she?
Adrian slowly turned toward Lucas.
“Who is that woman?””
Lucas looked uncomfortable.
“I don’t know.””
“Don’t lie.””
“I’m not.””
Adrian looked at me.
Then back at the screen.
The photograph remained visible.
The woman holding his hand.
The woman who apparently loved him.
The woman everyone thought was dead.
Then Camille spoke.
Her voice was barely a whisper.
“I know her.””
Everyone turned.
Adrian stood.
“What?””
Camille looked terrified.
“I’ve seen her.””
“When?””
She looked at the picture.
“Before I met you.””
Adrian’s expression hardened.
“Where?””
Camille swallowed.
“At Victor’s office.””
The room went silent again.
Lucas stepped forward.
“Explain.””
Camille looked at all of us.
“She came to Victor three years ago.””
Adrian stared.
“She was alive?””
“Yes.””
My heart pounded.
“Who was she?””
Camille hesitated.
Then she said:
“Her name was Emma.””
Adrian’s face changed.
Like the name itself triggered something.
“Emma…”
He repeated it softly.
His hand moved to his temple.
A sudden flash of pain crossed his face.
I stepped forward.
“Adrian?””
He closed his eyes.
“I know that name.””
Everyone froze.
“What do you remember?”” Lucas asked.
Adrian breathed heavily.
“A voice.””
He opened his eyes.
“A woman crying.””
He looked at the photograph.
“Someone saying my name.””
His face turned pale.
“And someone telling me to run.””
A loud crash came from downstairs.
Everyone turned.
The front door.
Someone had broken in.
Lucas immediately moved.
“We’re not alone.””
Adrian grabbed the laptop.
Camille stepped back.
“What do we do?””
Lucas looked toward the hallway.
“Get out through the back.””
We started moving.
But before we reached the stairs, Adrian stopped.
He was staring at the photograph again.
Because something had appeared on the screen.
A hidden message.
One line.
One sentence.
And it was addressed directly to him.
*“Adrian, if Olivia is alive, then Emma is not the person you should be afraid of.””*
Adrian’s face went white.
Below the message was another name.
A name that made Lucas whisper in horror.
“No…”
I looked at the screen.
And my heart sank.
May you like
Because the name was mine.
*Olivia Carter.*
