Chapter 2: Echoes of the Past
Chapter 2: Echoes of the Past
The transition from the bustling, hostile ballroom to the quiet penthouse suite of the Vance Estate was jarring. Richard had summarily dismissed the gala, leaving a furious Evelyn behind to deal with the press.
Now, Elena sat on a plush velvet sofa, wrapped in a warm cashmere blanket. Leo had refused to leave her side, finally falling asleep with his head in her lap, his small hand firmly gripping her thumb. Richard sat across from her, a glass of untouched scotch on the table. The silence between them was heavy, filled with a million unasked questions and four years of grief.
"Tell me everything, Elena," Richard said softly, his eyes scanning her face, finding the familiar contours he had wept over for years. "The Swiss police told me your car went over the cliff into the ravine. They said the fire left nothing. I buried an empty casket."
Elena stroked Leo’s hair, her eyes unfocused as she tried to piece together the fractured mirror of her mind. "I remember driving. It was raining heavily on the mountain pass. Suddenly, the brakes didn't work. I pumped them, but the car kept accelerating. Then, a black SUV slammed into my rear bumper, pushing me toward the edge. I remember the sensation of falling... and then nothing but darkness."
Richard’s gaze hardened. "Brake failure? An SUV? The police report stated it was an accidental spin due to black ice."
"It wasn't an accident," Elena whispered, a sudden shiver running down her spine. "Someone wanted me dead, Richard. When I woke up weeks later in that charity clinic, the nurses told me a passing truck driver had pulled me from the wreck before it exploded. I had severe amnesia. I couldn't remember my name, my home, or my family. But every night, I dreamed of a little boy crying for me. That’s why I saved every penny from cleaning houses and washing dishes to buy a bus ticket back here. I felt drawn to this city."
Richard got up and sat beside her, gently placing his hand over hers. "You’re safe now. Tomorrow, we go to the best neurologists in the country. We will get your life back."
Meanwhile, across town in a dimly lit penthouse, Evelyn Thorne was pacing like a caged panther. Victor stood by the window, his face shadowed.
"How is she alive, Victor?!" Evelyn screamed, throwing a crystal vase against the wall, shattering it into a thousand pieces. "You assured me four years ago that the job was done! You said the car burned to ash!"
"The truck driver must have intervened before the fire consumed the cabin," Victor replied coolly, unmoved by her outburst. "My men confirmed the car blew up. We didn't account for a random samaritan saving her."
"If she remembers that I was the one who altered her brake lines, or that you were driving that SUV, we are both going to prison for life!" Evelyn hissed. "Worse, Richard will strip the Thorne Group of all its contracts. I was supposed to marry him next month! I was supposed to control the Vance fortune!"
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"She has amnesia," Victor noted. "For now."
"We can't risk 'for now'," Evelyn said, her voice dropping to a sinister whisper. "Richard is keeping her at the estate. He’s going to investigate. We need to eliminate her before her memory fully returns. And this time, Victor, do not fail me."
