Chapter 8: The Memory They Stole

I spent the next five minutes trying to convince myself I was hearing something impossible.

But impossible things don’t usually come with your own voice.

Your own words.

Your own signature.

The recording played again.

And again.

Each time, it felt less like evidence against Kane.

And more like a trap closing around me.

Agent Morgan looked at me carefully.

“Lieutenant.””

I didn’t answer.

Because I didn’t know what to say.

I remembered joining the Resolute.

I remembered my duties.

I remembered investigating supply records.

But I didn’t remember that conversation.

I didn’t remember agreeing to anything with Kane.

Marcus stepped closer.

“Reed.””

I looked at him.

“Tell me the truth.””

His face showed regret.

“What?””

“Did I know you before today?””

Silence.

That was enough.

I laughed quietly.

A bitter sound.

“You did.””

Marcus nodded.

“Yes.””

“How long?””

“Six months.””

“And you said nothing?””

His expression broke slightly.

“Because you weren’t supposed to remember.””

The words hit harder than anything else.

“What did you do to me?””

Marcus looked down.

“I didn’t do anything.””

“Then who did?””

Nobody answered.

I looked at Kane.

And he smiled.

“Now you’re asking the right question.””

I stepped toward him.

“What did you do?””

Kane didn’t move.

“You were investigating Deck Four.””

“I know that.””

“No.””

He shook his head.

“You were getting too close.””

Agent Morgan watched him carefully.

“What happened?””

Kane ignored her.

“You found the records.””

I felt a strange pressure in my head.

Fragments.

A hallway.

A locked door.

A conversation.

Then nothing.

Kane continued.

“You discovered something you weren’t supposed to discover.””

“What?””

He smiled.

“Ask yourself.””

I hated that answer.

Because some part of me knew.

Some part of me remembered.

But it was hidden behind a wall.

Marcus quietly said:

“They erased parts of his memory.””

Agent Morgan turned.

“What?””

Marcus nodded.

“Not completely.””

He looked at me.

“Enough to make him doubt himself.””

My chest tightened.

“How?””

Marcus hesitated.

Then said:

“Drug-assisted interrogation.””

The room went silent.

Agent Morgan looked horrified.

“That’s illegal.””

Marcus gave a humorless smile.

“Everything about Deck Four was illegal.””

I looked at Kane.

“You did this.””

Kane shrugged.

“You survived.””

“That’s your excuse?””

“No.””

His eyes became colder.

“My excuse is that I protected something bigger.””

Agent Morgan stepped forward.

“Bigger than people’s lives?””

Kane looked at her.

“You think this is about water supplies?””

Nobody moved.

“What is it about?””

Kane smiled.

Then looked at me.

“Tell them.””

I froze.

“I don’t know.””

“Yes, you do.””

My head started hurting.

A flash.

A memory.

A dark room.

A document.

A conversation.

My hand opening a file.

A name.

Not Kane.

Someone else.

Someone higher.

I grabbed the table.

Agent Morgan noticed.

“Are you okay?””

I couldn’t answer.

Because suddenly I remembered something.

A voice.

My voice.

Six months earlier.

Saying:

“If this gets out, the entire command structure collapses.””

Marcus looked at me.

“You remember.””

I swallowed.

Slowly.

“Yes.””

Kane smiled.

“Good.””

The room felt smaller.

Because the truth wasn’t what I expected.

The Deck Four investigation wasn’t just about exposing Kane.

It was about something much larger.

Something I had discovered.

Something I had agreed to protect.

I looked at Marcus.

“What was the real purpose of Deck Four?””

He didn’t answer.

Because Kane did.

“It was never about stolen supplies.””

My eyes moved toward him.

“Then what?””

Kane leaned closer.

And for the first time, his voice sounded almost afraid.

“Deck Four contained evidence that someone above me was selling military information.””

Nobody spoke.

The accusation was enormous.

Agent Morgan stared at him.

“You expect us to believe that?””

Kane looked at me.

“No.””

Then he pointed at the evidence packet.

“I expect him to remember.””

I looked down.

At the documents.

At my name.

At the mystery buried beneath six months of missing memories.

Then my phone buzzed.

One new message.

Unknown sender.

Only one sentence appeared:

*STOP TRUSTING MARCUS BELL. HE WAS THE ONE WHO ERASED YOUR MEMORY.*

I looked up.

Marcus was watching me.

And before I could say anything, Agent Morgan received the same message.

Her face went pale.

Because beneath the warning was a second line.

A location.

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A place I recognized.

Deck Four.