Chapter 3: The Woman Who Stole My Memories
For several seconds, nobody answered.
Not Victoria.
Not Clara.
Not even my own family.
The question hung in the air like a confession waiting to happen.
“If my mother wrote this…”
I held up the letter.
“Why was she warning me about you?””
Victoria looked at me.
And for the first time since I met her, she looked like someone who had run out of places to hide.
Her lips parted.
“Adrian…”
I shook my head.
“No.””
My voice was quieter than I expected.
“Don’t say my name like you’re still the person who knows me.””
The words hurt her.
I saw it.
But I couldn’t stop.
Because every time I looked at her, I saw another lie.
Another missing piece.
Another version of my life that someone else had written.
Victoria slowly sat down on one of the empty chairs.
The woman who had walked into the cathedral like she owned the world suddenly looked exhausted.
“I wanted to tell you.””
I stared at her.
“When?””
She looked down.
“Before today.””
A bitter laugh escaped me.
“Before or after the vows?””
She closed her eyes.
“I was going to tell you after the wedding.””
The answer was so unbelievable that I almost didn’t know how to react.
“After the wedding?””
My fingers tightened around the letter.
“You were going to marry me first and explain later?””
“No.””
“Yes.””
The word came from Clara.
Everyone turned.
She stood near the doorway, holding the baby.
“She always does that.””
Victoria’s expression hardened.
“Stay out of this.””
Clara stepped forward.
“You stayed out of my life for five years.””
Her voice trembled.
“You don’t get to tell me where to stand now.””
The tension between them felt older than the room itself.
Older than the wedding.
Older than me.
I looked at Clara.
“What exactly happened five years ago?””
She hesitated.
Then she looked at the letter.
“Your mother tried to tell you.””
My eyes moved back to the page.
The handwriting was unmistakable.
My mother’s handwriting.
I remembered watching her write grocery lists when I was a child.
I remembered the way she crossed her T’s.
The way she pressed harder when she was angry.
This was real.
The letter was real.
But my memories weren’t.
That thought terrified me.
“What happened to me?””
Nobody answered.
I looked at Marco.
My brother avoided my eyes.
“Marco.””
He finally looked up.
“I didn’t know everything.””
“Then tell me what you know.””
He swallowed.
“Five years ago, you had an accident.””
Victoria immediately interrupted.
“Marco, don’t.””
I turned sharply.
“Don’t what?””
Marco looked at her.
Then at me.
“Don’t tell him?””
The room became silent.
Victoria’s face changed.
“Adrian, you need to understand—”
“No.””
I stepped closer.
“I need to understand why everyone around me knows pieces of my life except me.””
Nobody spoke.
Finally, Marco continued.
“You were driving home late one night.””
He paused.
“You weren’t alone.””
My stomach tightened.
“Who was with me?””
Marco looked at Clara.
The answer came before he said it.
“Your mother.””
The room went cold.
“My mother was in the car?””
Marco nodded slowly.
“Yes.””
I stared at him.
“But she disappeared.””
“That’s what we were told.””
The way he said it made my skin crawl.
“What does that mean?””
Marco looked away.
“After the accident, you were unconscious for three days.””
I touched my forehead.
A strange pressure formed behind my eyes.
Three days.
I had always remembered waking up in the hospital after a minor accident.
A few bruises.
A headache.
Nothing more.
But now I wondered.
What else had I forgotten?
“What happened to my mother?””
Marco didn’t answer.
Clara did.
“She survived.””
The words hit me harder than I expected.
I froze.
“What?””
Clara looked down.
“She survived the crash.””
My heart started racing.
“Then why did everyone tell me she was gone?””
Victoria stood suddenly.
“Because it was complicated.””
I turned toward her.
“No.””
My voice rose.
“It wasn’t complicated.””
I pointed at the letter.
“My mother was alive.””
Silence.
“You knew.””
Victoria’s eyes filled.
“I knew she was alive.””
The confession landed like a physical blow.
My family reacted immediately.
My mother covered her mouth.
Marco looked shocked.
Even Clara looked surprised.
“You knew?”” I whispered.
Victoria looked broken.
“I found out months after the accident.””
“And you didn’t tell me?””
“I was trying to protect you.””
I stared at her.
“From what?””
She didn’t answer.
That was becoming her favorite response.
Silence.
Avoidance.
A wall.
I walked toward her.
“From what, Victoria?””
Her voice dropped.
“From your mother.””
The room froze.
Even Clara looked stunned.
“You’re lying,” Clara said.
Victoria looked at her.
“You don’t know what your mother did.””
Clara’s expression changed.
“My mother spent her entire life protecting Adrian.””
Victoria shook her head.
“You only know one side.””
“And you only tell the side that keeps you safe.””
Their words cut through the room.
I felt trapped between two women who both claimed to know the truth.
One carried my children.
One wore my ring.
And somehow both had been hiding things from me.
I looked at Clara.
“Why didn’t you come sooner?””
The question hurt her.
I saw it immediately.
She looked down at the baby.
“I tried.””
“When?””
“Three years ago.””
My eyes narrowed.
“What?””
She nodded.
“I came to your office.””
My breathing slowed.
“I don’t remember.””
“I know.””
The sadness in her voice was worse than anger.
“You didn’t remember because Victoria made sure you wouldn’t.””
I turned toward Victoria.
“What does that mean?””
Victoria looked away.
And that was when I knew.
There was another secret.
Another layer.
I walked toward her.
“Tell me.””
She remained silent.
“Victoria.””
Finally, she whispered:
“After the accident, the doctors said your memory might be affected.””
I frowned.
“Might be?””
She nodded.
“You lost parts of your past.””
My chest tightened.
I had always thought my missing memories were just trauma.
Stress.
The human brain protecting itself.
But now…
“What did I forget?””
Victoria looked at me with tears in her eyes.
“You forgot Clara’s mother.””
The room became completely still.
I felt dizzy.
“No.””
“Yes.””
I shook my head.
“No, I would remember.””
Victoria looked at Clara.
“You loved her.””
My entire body went cold.
Clara’s eyes filled with tears.
“You loved my mother.””
The words felt impossible.
I looked at the photograph again.
The young version of me.
The woman beside me.
The happiness on our faces.
A happiness I didn’t remember.
My hand trembled.
“Why?””
Nobody answered.
“Why would I forget someone I loved?””
Victoria whispered:
“Because the accident wasn’t the only thing that happened that night.””
My eyes lifted.
“What else happened?””
She looked terrified.
Then she said:
“You weren’t the only person who lost memories.””
A cold silence followed.
“What does that mean?””
Victoria looked at Clara.
Then back at me.
“It means your mother woke up believing something that wasn’t true.””
My heart pounded.
“What?””
Victoria swallowed.
“She believed someone tried to kill her.””
The room went silent.
I stared at her.
“Who?””
Victoria didn’t answer.
Instead, her eyes moved toward the person standing behind me.
A person I hadn’t questioned.
A person who had been beside me since the beginning.
A person who had held my shoulder during my darkest years.
My own brother.
Marco.
I slowly turned around.
Marco’s face had lost all color.
“No.””
My voice was barely a whisper.
“Marco?””
He looked at me.
And the fear in his eyes told me everything.
He knew.
He had always known more than he admitted.
I stepped closer.
“Were you there that night?””
Marco didn’t respond.
“Were you?””
His silence was enough.
The letter slipped slightly from my hand.
Because suddenly I understood something.
The secret Victoria had hidden wasn’t just about Clara.
It wasn’t just about my mother.
It wasn’t even just about the children.
It was about the people closest to me.
The people I trusted.
The people who stood beside me at my wedding.
I looked at Marco.
“Tell me the truth.””
His eyes filled with regret.
Then he whispered the words that shattered everything I thought I knew.
“Adrian…”
He took a shaky breath.
“The person who caused the accident…”
He looked at Victoria.
May you like
Then back at me.
“Was someone you invited to this wedding.””
