Memories have dried up my true feelings

I was released on bail.

Stumbling out of the police station, I found the world had already gone dark. Betty hadn’t waited. She was already at the hospital, “caring for” her beloved Albert.

Alone, I walked the empty street—a ghost haunting his own life.

From my pocket, my phone buzzed. A message from my older brother, Michael. Short and to the point: *Dad wants you home tomorrow.*

Home? I hadn’t set foot in that place for nearly three years.

I didn’t reply. Instead, I turned into a pitch-black alley.

I’d taken only a few steps when rapid footsteps closed in from behind. Before I could turn, something heavy cracked against the back of my skull—and consciousness vanished.

***

I woke in a private hospital room. The sharp sting of antiseptic hit me first, making me grimace.

A doctor in a white coat entered. Seeing me awake, a flicker of surprise crossed his face. “Mr. Roger, you’re awake. How do you feel?”

“Did you save me?” I tried to sit up, but a wave of pain shot through my body.

“Miss Kimberly brought you here,” the doctor said, helping me adjust. “You were attacked. Mild concussion, multiple soft-tissue contusions. Nothing vital, thankfully. Miss Kimberly has handled everything, including the police report.”

*Kimberly.*

The name flowed through me like a warm current, seeping into a heart long frozen.

After finishing his checks, the doctor left. I was alone again, lying there, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Time lost all meaning. Eventually, the door cracked open. Two nurses peeked in. Seeing my eyes closed, they assumed I was asleep and began whispering as they changed an IV bag.

“Poor guy, right? He’s the fiancé of that Betty in the private suite next door?”

“Tell me about it! I heard the bride ran off with her assistant at the wedding today. He snapped, stabbed the guy, got out of jail, and then got jumped. What a mess.”

“Serves him right, if you ask me. How stupid can you be? I overheard Dr. Rowan from Cardiology yesterday—he let it slip. That ‘car accident’ Betty had three years ago? Total scam. Her kidneys were fine. It was all a setup to trick him into donating one. Apparently, he was too healthy. She wanted to weaken him first, make him easier to control.”

“Oh my god, seriously? That’s evil.”

“Who knows? The things that go on in these rich families… it’s all dirty. And that’s not even the worst of it.”

“What?”

“His mother’s suicide… the jump from the balcony? Word is Betty had a hand in that, too. Tampered with her meds, made her depression worse, deliberately provoked her. All to get her out of the way faster. So she could become his sole emotional anchor, have him completely in her grip.”

“No way… that’s murder. That’s terrifying.”

Their voices faded into murmurs I could no longer make out.

But those few sentences were enough. They were branding irons, white-hot, searing themselves permanently onto my heart.

*My kidney… stolen by her.*

*My mother… killed by her.*

The light I’d clung to for life, the one I thought was my salvation… was a meticulously crafted lie from the very beginning.

She hadn’t come to save me. She’d come to drag me into a deeper hell.

I lay perfectly still on the bed. Inside, the dam broke. Tears flooded out—a silent, violent torrent. I didn’t make a sound. I just bit down on my lip until I tasted blood.

That metallic tang, sharp and coppery, was the only thing keeping me tethered, holding the last shred of my sanity together.

Hate.

A tidal wave of it, like fast-growing vines, wrapped around my heart, squeezing, choking the air from my lungs.

With shaking hands, I pulled out my phone and dialed Kimberly’s number.

She answered on the first ring.

“Roger? You’re awake? How are you feeling?” Concern laced her voice.

I took a deep, shuddering breath, forcing every tremor, every sob, down into the pit of my stomach. When I spoke, my voice was the sound of ice cracking over a frozen lake. Ancient. Implacable.

“Kimberly.”

“Yes?”

“I want Betty’s family wiped from the map of Riverbend.”

Silence stretched on the other end of the line—long enough for me to think she’d refuse this insane demand.

Then her voice returned. Clear. Unwavering. A promise forged in steel.

“Alright. You decide how they disappear. That’s exactly how it will happen.”