Five years ago Joah was culled -- kidnapped by the government to be trained as a soldier. In the process, they erased his memory, destroying his past, his dreams, everything but his name. Armed with that alone, Joah escapes from the facility in search of someone to help him recall the man he used to be.<br><br>That person is Tobin, Joah’s husband, who never gave up hope of finding him again. He refuses to believe that the strength of his love alone won’t be enough to bring back Joah’s memories of their shared lives, and he’s determined to bring back the man beneath the soldier, the man he knows has to love him.<br><br>But an alarm in the chip blocking Joah’s memories was triggered at his escape, and if it isn’t removed soon, it will shriek his life away. Removing it won’t bring back his past, and may destroy the present that Tobin has tried so hard to build between them. How can the love they once shared possibly survive?

Persistence of Memory

He lets me take my time, touching things I don’t remember, trying desperately to find something in this house that will help me recall the life I led here. There are more photographs on the wall, these in heavy wooden frames, larger pictures than the ones he showed me yesterday. I recognize the two of us in them, the easy way we stand so close together, the way Tobin’s always touching me or I’m always holding his hand. I look over the photos and wish desperately to remember someof that love, some part of it—even just a tiny sip would be enough to fill me up. 


“This is your mom,” he says, pointing at one picture. It’s me and him and two women, smiling. In all these pictures I’m always smiling. I don’t remember ever smiling at the facility. Somewhere between here and there I forgot how. Maybe they took my smile away with the rest of my memories when I was culled, and like everything else I’m just now getting it back. 


“Is this your mother?” I ask, pointing to the other woman. 


Chapter 5