Helena's hand tightened around the necklace.
The metal felt cold.
Not unfamiliar—Just… wrong.
Like it carried something heavier than it should.
Marcus was watching her.
Too closely.
"What did you see?" he asked.
His voice was calm.
But there was tension underneath it now.
Helena didn't answer right away.
Her eyes were fixed somewhere beyond the room—Like she was trying to hold onto something that didn't want to stay.
"There was a room…" she said slowly.
A pause.
"Not here."
Marcus didn't interrupt.
"People were arguing," she continued.
Her brows pulled together slightly.
"Not shouting… but deciding something."
Marcus's expression darkened just a little.
"Deciding what?"
Helena shook her head.
"I couldn't hear everything."
Frustration edged into her voice now.
"But I know one thing."
Her gaze snapped to his.
"They were talking about me."
Silence fell.
Heavy.
Because that changed everything.
Marcus stepped closer.
"You weren't just there," he said quietly.
Helena's chest tightened.
"No," she whispered.
A pause.
"I was part of it."
The words didn't feel right.
But they felt true.
Marcus exhaled slowly.
"That night wasn't random," he said.
Helena let out a quiet breath.
"I figured that much."
A pause.
"But this…"
Her fingers tightened around the necklace again.
"This felt planned."
Marcus didn't deny it.
Because he couldn't.
Helena looked down at the necklace.
"I've seen this before," she said softly.
A pause.
"Not just now."
Marcus's eyes narrowed.
"Where?"
She hesitated.
Like saying it out loud would make it more real.
"In that room," she said finally.
Silence stretched between them.
Marcus's voice dropped.
"Then it's not just a coincidence."
Helena let out a faint, bitter laugh.
"Nothing about this feels like a coincidence."
She stepped closer to him now.
"And whoever was there…" she continued,
"They knew me."
A pause.
"Not just my name."
Her voice lowered.
"Something else."
Marcus's jaw tightened.
"What do you mean?"
Helena shook her head slightly.
"I don't know."
Frustration sharpened her tone.
"But it felt like I wasn't just… someone passing through."
A beat.
"I mattered."
Silence.
Because that—That was the part that didn't sit right.
Marcus stepped closer.
"You don't just matter now," he said quietly.
"You mattered then too."
Helena's eyes searched his.
"Then why don't I remember any of it?"
That question lingered.
Sharp.
Marcus didn't answer immediately.
Because the truth—Wasn't simple.
"Sometimes," he said slowly,
"people don't remember things because they don't want to."
Helena frowned.
"That's not how memory works."
"No," he said.
A pause.
"But it's how survival works."
Silence.
Because that—That felt closer to the truth than anything else.
Helena's grip tightened again.
"So you think I just… forgot?"
Marcus looked at her carefully.
"I think something happened that made you leave it behind."
A beat.
"And maybe you had a reason."
Helena didn't like that answer.
Not because it was wrong—But because it meant the answers were inside her.
And she didn't trust them yet.
Before she could respond—A faint click echoed through the room.
Both of them froze.
Marcus turned instantly.
The door slammed shut behind them.
Locked.
Helena's pulse spiked.
"Marcus—"
"I see it," he said sharply.
His eyes scanned the room.
Every corner.
Every shadow.
"Stay close."
This time—She didn't argue.
The lights flickered once.
Then again.
And then—Darkness.
Complete.
Helena's breath caught.
The air shifted.
Heavy.
And then—A voice.
Soft.
Close.
Not Marcus.
"You shouldn't be remembering this."
Helena's blood ran cold.
Her fingers tightened around the necklace.
"I know that voice…" she whispered.
Marcus's entire body went still.
Danger sharpening instantly.
"Show yourself," he said coldly.
A quiet laugh echoed in the darkness.
"Not yet," the voice replied.
A pause.
"You're not ready."
Helena's voice steadied.
"Ready for what?"
Silence.
Then—
"For the truth you walked away from."
That hit harder than anything else.
Because it wasn't about something being taken from her—It was about something she had left behind.
The lights flickered back on.
The room was empty again.
But the tension—Remained.
Helena turned slowly toward Marcus.
Her eyes searching his.
"What happened that night?" she asked quietly.
Marcus didn't answer.
Not immediately.
And that hesitation—Said more than anything else.