Chapter 19: The warehouse memory
384 Words
Chapter 19: The Warehouse Memory
Adrian returned to the hotel room just as Serena was trying to process what Lily had revealed.
He immediately sensed the tension.
"What happened?"
Serena looked at him.
Then at Lily.
Finally she spoke.
"Lily says I taught her martial arts."
Adrian laughed.
Then realized neither of them was joking.
The smile vanished.
"What?"
Lily stood and repeated the same movements she had demonstrated earlier.
This time Adrian watched carefully.
His expression became increasingly serious.
When she finished, silence filled the room.
"That's not beginner training," he finally said.
"No," Serena replied quietly.
"It isn't."
Lily sat down again.
"I told you Mom taught me."
Adrian rubbed his forehead.
The situation was becoming stranger by the hour.
Missing memories.
Old photographs.
A mysterious project called Phoenix.
An arson attack.
And now a ten-year-old girl trained in combat.
None of it made sense.
Suddenly Serena froze.
A sharp pain exploded behind her eyes.
She grabbed the edge of the table.
"Mom!"
The room seemed to blur.
Images flashed through her mind.
Concrete floors.
Metal walls.
The sound of fists striking punching bags.
A whistle.
Commands being shouted.
Again.
Again.
Again.
The vision became clearer.
She saw herself standing inside a massive warehouse.
Rows of people trained around her.
Men.
Women.
Teenagers.
Everyone dressed in black.
Everyone fighting.
Then she saw a familiar face.
Daniel Cross.
The man from the photograph.
He stood beside her.
"You learn faster than anyone I've ever trained," he said.
The memory shifted.
A younger Serena laughed.
"You said that yesterday."
"And it was true yesterday too."
The vision suddenly shattered.
Serena gasped and nearly fell from her chair.
Adrian caught her.
"What happened?"
She stared at him.
Her breathing uneven.
"I remembered something."
The words hung heavily in the air.
"What did you remember?" Adrian asked.
Serena looked toward the window.
Toward the city beyond.
"A warehouse."
She swallowed hard.
"And Daniel Cross was there."
Adrian's eyes widened.
The name immediately got his attention.
"What else?"
Serena closed her eyes.
Trying to hold onto the fading memory.
But it was already slipping away.
"I don't know."
Her voice trembled.
"But he was training me."
For the first time, she had proof.
The memories weren't gone.
They were buried.
And somehow, they were beginning to return.
- Writer
