Chapter 6 - The Memory Arthur Lost
Arthur watched the video again.
Then again.
And again.
Each time, the same image appeared.
A younger version of himself standing in the parking lot.
Talking to his mother.
Talking to Victoria.
Talking to the people who had changed his life forever.
But Arthur remembered nothing.
Nothing about that night.
Nothing about the conversation.
Nothing about why he was there.
The most terrifying part was not seeing himself in the recording.
It was realizing that someone had taken away a piece of his own memory.
Marcus watched Arthur carefully.
“Are you sure you don’t remember?”
Arthur shook his head.
“No.”
He looked at the frozen image.
“That’s me.”
“Yes.”
“But I don’t know why I was there.”
Marcus leaned back.
“Then someone wanted you to forget.”
The words stayed in Arthur’s mind.
Someone had not only hidden the truth.
Someone had rewritten his entire understanding of his own life.
That evening, Arthur sat alone in the living room.
The house was quiet.
Too quiet.
Usually, Maya’s laughter filled the space.
Ethan’s footsteps echoed through the hallway.
Now everything felt different.
Arthur looked at the family photographs.
Pictures from years ago.
Pictures where everyone smiled.
Victoria.
Arthur.
The children.
A perfect image.
A perfect lie.
Then he noticed something.
A photograph from seven years earlier.
The night his mother disappeared.
He had never looked closely before.
In the background was a small detail.
A silver car.
Arthur knew that car.
It belonged to him.
The realization made his heart race.
Why was his car there?
Why was he there?
What happened?
Arthur searched through old medical records.
Old messages.
Old calendars.
Anything that could help him remember.
Then he found something.
A hospital report.
The date matched the night Eleanor disappeared.
The report was for Arthur.
Not his mother.
He had been treated for a head injury.
A mild concussion.
Arthur froze.
He had forgotten.
Someone had injured him that night.
Marcus arrived immediately.
“This changes everything.”
Arthur handed him the report.
“I was hurt.”
Marcus nodded.
“Which means your memory loss may not have been accidental.”
Arthur looked at him.
“You think someone caused it?”
Marcus did not answer.
He did not need to.
The next day, Arthur confronted Victoria.
She was sitting in the guest house.
Alone.
For the first time, she looked smaller.
Not powerful.
Not untouchable.
Just someone who knew the truth was closing in.
“You knew I was injured that night.”
Victoria looked up.
Her face changed.
“How did you find that?”
Arthur’s expression hardened.
“So it’s true.”
Victoria looked away.
“I was trying to protect you.”
Arthur laughed quietly.
“Everyone keeps saying that.”
A pause.
“But nobody ever protected me.”
Victoria’s eyes filled with tears.
“You don’t understand what happened.”
“Then explain.”
She remained silent.
And Arthur realized something.
She was not afraid of him.
She was afraid of someone else.
Later that night, Victoria finally spoke.
“There was someone controlling everything.”
Arthur stared at her.
“Who?”
She whispered:
“Your uncle.”
Arthur froze.
“My uncle died years ago.”
Victoria shook her head.
“Not before he finished his plan.”
Arthur felt the room spin.
Another name.
Another secret.
Another person who had shaped his life from the shadows.
Before Arthur could ask more, Maya entered the room.
She held something in her hand.
“Daddy.”
Arthur turned.
“What is it?”
She opened her small fingers.
A tiny piece of paper.
“I found it under my bed.”
Arthur took it.
His expression changed.
Because the handwriting was familiar.
It was his mother’s.
The message was short.
“Arthur, if you remember the night I disappeared, you will know who to trust.”
Arthur looked at Maya.
Then at Victoria.
Because the past was no longer hidden.
May you like
It was coming back.
Piece by piece.
