Chapter 2

My palms were cold as I left the sunroom. The Allens had agreed, their faces a mixture of heartbreak and resignation. The first chain was broken.

But as I walked down the hall, Mrs. Allen caught up to me, her touch gentle on my arm.

"Emely," she began, her voice hesitant. "I know you've made up your mind. But... would you do one last thing for us?"

I knew what she was going to ask before she said it.

"We can't get him to come home," she said, her eyes pleading. "He doesn't trust us. But you... he might listen to you. We just want him back here, where he can be safe, where doctors can monitor him."

I saw the hope flickering in her eyes. The hope that if Grady saw me, some dormant piece of his memory would wake up, that their perfect world would snap back into place.

Mr. Allen appeared behind her. "We're just so busy with the company, Emely. We can't get away. Please. Just go talk to him."

I knew their intentions were pure, born from a lifetime of loving both of us. I couldn't refuse them.

But I also knew their hope was a fantasy.

The man I was going to see wouldn't be moved by my presence. He was no longer mine.

They gave me the address, a small, rundown cabin by a lake hours outside the city. It was the place Kandy had taken him after his accident.

When I arrived, I saw him before he saw me. He was sitting on a rickety wooden dock, skipping stones across the water. He was wearing clothes that weren't his-faded jeans, a simple t-shirt. He looked younger, less burdened.

He was whittling a small piece of wood. My gaze lingered on it, and in that instant, he looked up, his eyes sharp and guarded.

"Who are you?" he asked. His voice was flat, cold.

"I'm Emely," I said, keeping my own voice calm. "I'm not here to hurt you."

He didn't relax. His brows furrowed. "I'm not going back with you. Kandy needs me."

I had never heard him speak with such cold dismissal. The Grady I knew spoke to me with a warmth that was mine alone. This stranger's voice was a shock, a physical jolt that left me momentarily breathless.

Just then, a figure emerged from the lake. Kandy Paul, her hair slicked back, water dripping from her lithe frame. She was beautiful, vibrant.

Grady was on his feet in a second, rushing to the edge of the dock. He pulled her out of the water, wrapping a large towel around her shoulders. He fussed over her, gently dabbing water from her cheeks with the corner of the towel.

He was holding the piece of wood he'd been carving. He pressed it into her hand. It was a crude, half-finished bird.

Kandy beamed, her face lighting up. She stood on her toes and kissed his cheek. "Don't let anyone see you, silly," she whispered, tugging his hoodie up to cover his face. "You're my secret."

A memory surfaced. Grady had been missing for three weeks before we found him. He hadn't just been lost; Kandy had hidden him.

Her eyes met mine over his shoulder. She froze. Her hand shot out, grabbing my wrist with surprising strength.

"I didn't hide him on purpose!" she blurted out, her voice high and panicked. "He was hurt, and he didn't know who he was! I was just taking care of him!"

I looked at her, at the raw fear in her eyes. I didn't need to say a word. She knew that I knew.

"I love him," she confessed, her voice cracking. Her grip on my wrist tightened. "Please, don't take him away from me. I know who you are. You're his fiancée. You have everything. I just have him. I'll die if he leaves me."

I didn't answer. My gaze shifted to Grady. He was watching Kandy, his expression fierce and protective. He was a guard dog, ready to attack anyone who threatened her.

The sight of it was a strange mix of pain and relief. He truly loved her. My sacrifice wouldn't be in vain.

I couldn't be selfish again. I couldn't bind him to me with a past he didn't remember and a future I didn't have.

"I'm not here to take him from you," I said calmly, my voice pulling Kandy from her spiral of panic.

She looked at me, bewildered.

"I'm here to take you both home. To his home."

Her eyes widened. "What?"

"If I leave you here," I explained, my logic cold and clear, "he won't come with me. So you have to come, too."

I remembered the stories from my first life. After Grady's memory returned and he went back to me, he had been frantic to find her. He' d barely eaten or slept. He'd threatened to jump off the Allen Corp building if his parents didn't help him find Kandy.

When they finally located her, it was too late. She had taken an overdose of pills.

His grief had been a terrible, silent thing. It had settled over him, a permanent shadow. And that shadow had transformed into a heavy sense of responsibility toward me.

I would not let that happen this time.

"Pack your things," I told Kandy, my voice gentle but firm. "His parents know about you. They won't object to your relationship."