It felt like hours before Ana finally made it to the main house, but it was only minutes. She peered through the windows, thinking how cliché it was for rich people to have their curtains open. The inside looked empty, but there were several cars parked in the huge driveway, so somebody was inside. Even if 10 people were living there, it could still look empty. Ana opened the front door and walked in. She thought if she touched anything alarms would go off, but no such thing happened. She heard music coming from around a corner and down a hall, but she didn't investigate. Her braveness wore off being inside this huge place. It felt like a maze and she was the mouse. Ana squeezed the shovel and went the opposite way of the music, which was upstairs.
She kept glancing at her ring, reminding herself why she was here. Because every step she took, she felt like running outside and leaving this place to rot. Even though she had no idea where she'd go or how'd she get a phone, "Keep it together," Ana murmured to herself. The sound of her voice was soothing. She stopped in front of the first door she saw upstairs, slowly opened it, and walked inside. It was vacant and dark. Except the bathroom door was open and the light was on, and the water was running. Ana's breathing quickened as she made her way to the bathroom. She didn't have a plan, but she had a shovel. She walked into the bathroom and saw it was empty as well. She frowned as she shut off the water. Who would leave the water running? As she turned back into the room a shorter woman around her age — maybe even younger — walked out of a walk-in closet in a fluffy white robe.
"Oh my," the woman said as she stared wide-eyed at Ana. Ana wasn't sure who was more scared of whom. "I'm so sorry. Please put the shovel down."
"No," Ana replied as she gripped the shovel tighter. "Who are you?"
"It is me, Mia," she raised an eyebrow, but she looked relieved. "You don't remember, do you?"
"No, I don't. I was kidnapped and woke up in a basement."
Mia's expression softened, and she stepped forward. "Oh Ana, I don't know what you're talking about. There must be a mistake."
"How do you know my name? Don't walk any closer!"
Mia stopped. "Okay, calm down. We're friends. You were with my brother. Just please put down the shovel."
Ana nodded, but she didn't put it down. "Who put these markings on my body?"
"What markings?"
Ana's face flushed as she realized the markings were all under her jacket and she didn't feel comfortable taking it off and being exposed to this stranger. Mia slowly took a step forward and reached out for the shovel. "Ana, sit down, and we'll talk about this. Whatever has happened to you, we can fix together, ok?"
Ana frowned, but agreed and let Mia take the shovel. Mia set it down against a dresser next to a chair. "Here, you can sit in this chair and be next to the shovel," she said with a hint of humor.
Ana gave a small smile as she sat down, feeling slightly silly for getting the shovel in the first place. She just wanted this to be over.
"I'm gonna get you some clean clothes. You'll be able to fit mine."
"Thank you," Ana whispered as Mia walked away to look through her drawer. Ana cupped her face in her hands. Maybe Mia was right and somehow this was all a big misunderstanding. It didn't make sense, but she didn't have much to go on. She was so happy she felt like crying. She finally found somebody to help her. She rolled her eyes at the shovel, and the reflection from the metal plate showed Mia grabbing something discreetly out of the drawer. Ana squinted as she watched Mia in the shovel's reflection. It was more distorted than a mirror, but it was clear that Mia carried no clothes as she walked towards Ana again.
"I found the cutest outfit. I hope you like it," Mia said in a sing-song voice.
"Mia?" Ana said as she continued to stare at Mia's reflection. She kept going over their conversation in her head.
"Yes?"
"Why did you apologize when you first saw me?"
Mia stopped in her tracks as Ana held her breath. The elephant in the room was out and it felt like time had frozen.
"Because," Mia said as she raised her arm in the air, and Ana could barely make out an object in her hand. "I thought you remembered," she added as she lunged forward just as Ana turned around and grabbed her wrist. Mia was holding a syringe that contained a clear liquid.
"Why are you doing this?!" Ana said through gritted teeth as she held off the syringe that Mia tried to push into her.
"Because you would have ruined everything!"
"I don't know what you're talking about!"
Mia grinned as her innocent demeanor turned dark. "You will. But by the time you remember everything, the only thing you'll be worth is your organs."
A vivid memory of guts in containers made Ana want to vomit. She pushed Mia backward. Mia fell hard onto the floor but still clutched the syringe. Ana quickly grabbed the shovel as Mia was getting up and swung it as hard as she could. The blade of the shovel connected with Mia's neck with a deafening crack sound.
Ana dropped the shovel as she stared at Mia's limp body. Before she could help it, she was crying and shaking. She wondered if anything Mia had said was true? She knew one thing was true though; her memories were coming back. Even the house seemed familiar. She knew the layout even though she hadn't moments ago. But this didn't help. Ana felt even more confused than she had before. Ana tried to calm down and walked out of the room and back downstairs. She would try her luck outside this time. Even if she found her husband, she wouldn't know who to believe anymore until she remembered everything. The music from earlier stopped (was it a piano?), and she slowly crept across the floor. Her trembling hand touched the doorknob when she heard a voice.
"Anastasia?"
Ana glanced over her shoulder and saw a man maybe a couple of years older than her. His casual attire and aurora made it clear that he lived here.
"Stay away from me," Ana tried to say firmly, but her voice was quivering.
"I thought I'd never see you again. I thought you'd be - "
"What? You thought I'd be dead?"
"Yes, I did. This is all my fault, Anastasia."
"Why does everybody know my name?"
He frowned. "You don't remember?"
"No!" yelled Ana. She was sick of everybody saying that. "I woke up in this mansion chained to a bed with surgery marks, and everybody is trying to kill me!"
His jaw tensed. He seemed genuinely upset that people were trying to kill her, but then again, she thought Mia was genuine too. "We should have left when we had the chance," he muttered more to himself. "I know how crazy must this seem, but just stay close to me. I'm Christian and we... knew each other."
"How did we know each other?"
"It doesn't matter what I say, because you won't believe me."
Ana knew that was true. She couldn't trust anybody, and she hated that she left the shovel upstairs. She felt so vulnerable near him.
"I'm not gonna hurt you," said Christian as he read the look on her face. "Come here."
Ana felt her legs moving towards him, despite her mind saying stop, but she didn't have a choice. He was stronger and taller than her, and she couldn't outrun him in her condition. She figured she might as well play along. He embraced her, and his warmth was so familiar like she had done this a thousand times. It didn't feel creepy or awkward like she thought it would be.
"We have to get out of here," Ana mumbled as she hugged him back. "Christian?" She looked up at him when he was hesitant to reply.
He sighed. "Anastasia, we can't leave."
