Fragments Of A Stolen Past

A Whisper from the Past

The silence inside Haven felt alive, pressing against Theo's chest like a phantom weight. The photographs in his hands trembled slightly as he and Evelyn stood frozen, staring at the undeniable proof of a past they had once shared—a past that had been erased.

Evelyn traced the edges of one picture, her fingers featherlight. "These don't feel like strangers," she whispered. "They feel like us."

Theo swallowed hard. "Because they are."

His gaze flickered back to the bookshelf, his instincts humming. The fact that they had hidden the first set of clues in a book meant there might be more.

Without hesitation, he started pulling books from the shelves, running his fingers over the spines, searching for anything that felt out of place. Evelyn caught on quickly and joined him.

Minutes passed. Nothing.

And then—

A soft gasp left Evelyn's lips. "Theo."

He turned just as she pulled an old wooden box from behind a row of books. Dust coated its surface, but the latch was slightly loose—as if it had been opened recently.

Theo took it from her hands, his pulse roaring in his ears. With a deep breath, he unlatched the lid and flipped it open.

Inside were letters.

Dozens of them.

And all of them were addressed to themselves.

---

Messages from Themselves

Evelyn lifted one of the letters, her breath shallow as she unfolded it.

"To the Evelyn who might forget," she read aloud, her voice barely above a whisper.

Theo's fingers clenched around the edges of another letter. "To Theo, in case we lose ourselves."

A lump formed in his throat. "We knew this was going to happen," he murmured. "We knew someone was going to erase us."

Evelyn's hands trembled as she read the next line. "You must remember what we were searching for."

Theo tore open the letter he held, his eyes scanning the hurried handwriting.

"Haven was never just a hideout. It was where we kept the truth safe. But if we ever return without our memories, there's something you need to know—

They will be watching.

And they will come."

The moment he finished reading, a sound echoed outside.

A twig snapping.

Theo and Evelyn's eyes met. Their blood turned cold.

They weren't alone.

---

A Sudden Attack

Theo moved first. He blew out the lantern, plunging the room into darkness. Evelyn's breathing was shallow beside him.

Footsteps crunched against the dried leaves outside. Slow. Calculated.

Then—a voice.

Low. Dangerous. "They found it."

Evelyn stiffened. Theo grabbed her wrist, pulling her behind him just as the front door slammed open.

Three figures stepped inside.

Their faces were obscured by shadows, but the gleam of metal in their hands was unmistakable.

Gunmen.

This wasn't just about memories. This was about survival.

Theo didn't hesitate. He grabbed the wooden box and threw it at the nearest attacker. The impact made the man stumble, giving him just enough time to grab Evelyn's hand and yank her toward the back exit.

"Run!"

Evelyn didn't need to be told twice.

They bolted.

Bullets shattered the window behind them, glass raining down as they sprinted through the trees. Their breaths came in sharp gasps, but fear pushed them forward.

The forest was thick, but Theo's instincts guided him. They had been here before. Their past selves had known this might happen.

They must have left an escape route.

Think, Theo. Think.

Then—like a whisper from the past, it hit him.

The old riverbed.

"Left!" he shouted.

Evelyn veered sharply, following him without question. The underbrush clawed at their clothes, but they didn't slow down.

Gunshots rang out behind them.

Too close.

Theo's pulse roared in his ears as they finally burst through the trees—and saw it.....

The dried-up riverbed stretched out before them, a shallow ditch that led toward an old, rusted bridge.

"Go!" Theo urged.

Evelyn jumped first, sliding down the steep embankment. Theo followed, his boots skidding against the loose dirt.

The moment they reached the bottom, they crouched low, pressing themselves against the earth.

Above them, footsteps pounded...

The gunmen stopped at the edge of the riverbed, scanning the darkness.

Theo held his breath.

One second.

Two.

Then—

"They're gone," one of them grunted. "For now."

A tense pause. Then retreating footsteps.

The moment they were alone, Evelyn exhaled sharply. "What the hell is happening, Theo?"

He looked down at the crumpled letter still clutched in his hand.

"They don't want us to remember," he murmured. "And now we know why."

---

Unraveling the Truth

The drive back to the city was silent. Evelyn sat in the passenger seat, her arms wrapped around herself, staring at the wooden box they had managed to escape with.

Theo kept his eyes on the road, but his mind was spinning.

They had nearly died. And not just because of forgotten memories.

Because someone had made sure they wouldn't live long enough to remember.

Evelyn's voice was quiet. "There's something bigger at play here, isn't there?"

Theo nodded. "Yeah. And we're running out of time to figure it out."

He tightened his grip on the steering wheel.

They needed answers.

And there was only one place left to go.

---

The Vault of Lost Memories

The next morning, Theo and Evelyn stood in front of an unassuming brownstone building.

Inside was the only person who might have the missing pieces of their past.

Margaret had given them a name—a researcher who specialized in memory loss cases. Someone who had once worked with them before they had forgotten.

His name was Dr. Elias Reed.

Theo knocked on the door.

It opened slowly, revealing a tired-looking man with silver-rimmed glasses and wary eyes. He studied them for a long moment before sighing.

"So," he murmured. "You finally came back."

Theo's breath hitched.

Dr. Reed opened the door wider. "Come in. We have a lot to talk about."

---

The Truth.....

Inside the dimly lit study, books and files covered every surface.

Dr. Reed motioned for them to sit before sinking into a chair of his own. His gaze was heavy.

"You don't remember me," he said. "But I remember you. And I remember what they did to you."

Evelyn swallowed. "Who?"

The doctor's jaw tightened. "The people who stole your memories. The same ones who tried to kill you last night."

Theo's fists clenched. "Why?"

Dr. Reed sighed. "Because of what you were trying to expose."

He stood and pulled out a dusty file from a locked cabinet.

Then he placed it in front of them.

Theo and Evelyn leaned forward, scanning the document.

And their blood ran cold.

Inside were classified reports. Medical experiments. Cases of individuals who had undergone memory suppression.

At the top of one file was a familiar name.

Evelyn Carter.

Her hands trembled. "This… this is me."

Theo's stomach twisted as he reached for another file.

And there—printed in bold letters—was his own name.

Theo Bennet .

His vision blurred.

Their erased past wasn't just a mystery.

It was a cover-up.

Dr. Reed's voice was grim. "You weren't just victims. You were test subjects."

Silence.

Theo and Evelyn stared at the documents, the weight of the truth settling over them like a suffocating fog.

Memories had been stolen.

Lives had been rewritten.

And whoever was behind it—whoever had hunted them down—wasn't finished yet...

Theo looked up, his voice filled with quiet determination.

"How do we stop them?"

Dr. Reed's lips pressed into a thin line.

"You don't," he said. "Not unless you want to die."

But Theo and Evelyn had already made their choice.

They weren't running anymore.

They were going to remember everything.

And they were going to fight back.

---

End of Chapter 5