THE WIFE HE FORGOT

Rain beat the glass walls of St. Regis Memorial Hospital like a thousand restless memories wanting to get in. The city outside was hazy silver lights fading into darkness, while inside, Elena Carter remained still at the end of a silent hallway, peering through the observation glass of Room 407. He was there. Living. She had thought about this moment a thousand times in the last year: his grin, his voice, and the warmth of his hands. But she wasn't ready for the fact that the guy on the bed wasn't actually her spouse. His jawline was still sharp, and his black hair was still the same as when she used to sweep it back from his eyes. But his face was blank and inscrutable. Alexander King, the man who had formerly been in charge of her life, gazed at her like she was a ghost. Her heart raced. The heart monitor's constant beep appeared to match it: too loud, too rhythmic, and too genuine. She put her hand on the cool glass as if touch alone could verify what her sight wouldn't believe. Daniel Brooks, Alexander's long-time aide and the only person who had phoned her, stated, "He woke up an hour ago." His voice was low and scratchy from being tired. "The doctors said that the memory loss could be... big." "Loss of memory?" Elena's throat became constricted. "How big?" Daniel thought for a while. "He doesn't recall the accident. Or the year before that. He doesn't remember you. The words were like a punch in the gut. Elena's fingertips fell off the glass. Thunder rumbled across Manhattan outside. The quiet between them was filled by the buzz of fluorescent lights and the sound of footfall in the distance. "Does he know who he is?" she eventually inquired. "Yes." His family, his business, and his name. Just not his wife. Daniel's eyes became softer. "I thought you should be the one to tell him." Elena took a deep breath and swallowed hard. She had buried Alexander King a year ago, cried for him, loathed him, and then forgave him all in private. Now he was alive, but she was no longer a part of his life. "Is he okay?" she questioned. "They're keeping an eye on him." But he's smart in his mind. But I'm not sure. You need to be cautious. "Suspicious?" she said again. Daniel stated, "He keeps asking why there aren't any pictures of his fiancée." "Charley, Victoria has been here. She said you two were no longer married. Elena's stomach turned. Victoria Hale was Alexander's business partner and, at one point, nearly his fiancée. Elena didn't want her to be near him at all. Daniel grabbed Elena's arm as she made a stride toward the door. "Elena, think about it before you go in there. He doesn’t know you. If you press too hard, the shock could” “I’m not leaving him again,” she muttered, breaking free. Her fingers shook as she grabbed for the door handle. “Not this time.” The aroma of antiseptic permeated the room, clean, harsh, dead. Machines hummed gently. Alexander sat straight against the white cushions, IV tubing dangling from his arm. When his gaze lifted to her, Elena felt her world shift. There, there was that same deep stare that had once undone her, calm and calculating even while he adored her. Now it contained nothing except polite bewilderment. “Mr King,” she started quietly, bringing calm into her voice. He observed her. “You know me.” It wasn’t a question. More like an appraisal, a CEO reading a contract. “I do,” she responded softly. “Very well.” “Then perhaps you can explain why the doctors insist I’ve been in a coma for eight months and why a woman named Victoria claims to be my fiancée.” His tone was measured, but resentment flared under the surface. “Who are you?” The words pierced through her like glass. She pushed herself to breathe. “My name is Elena.” He waited, expression blank. “Elena Carter,” she continued. “I’m”, she paused, her pulse hammering “, your wife.” Silence grew in the room like fog. For a while, she believed he might recall some spark, some flash of recognition. But instead, he flashed a weak, almost dubious grin. “My wife?” he repeated. “That’s interesting. Because according to my lawyer, I’m not married.” Elena’s breath caught. “Your lawyer is wrong.” His eyes hardened. “Then prove it.” She slipped it into her purse with shaky fingers and took out a slender chain with his wedding ring, the one they had custom-made. The platinum bracelet sparkled faintly beneath the hospital light. “You gave this to me on the night we eloped,” she remarked. “You said you didn’t need witnesses, just the truth.” He peered at it, unblinking. “And yet I don’t remember saying it.” “Memory doesn’t change truth,” she whispered. For a second, something flashed behind his eyes, perplexity, maybe recognition, but it faded as swiftly as it came. He slumped back against the cushion, inhaling gently. “I’m sorry, Miss Carter,” he responded calmly. “But I don’t know you.” Elena remained there, the ring shaking between her fingers, while the sound of rain receded beyond the walls. She wanted to shout, to wail, to shake him until he recalled. But all she could do was stand and watch the guy she loved stare at her like she was nothing. A nurse arrived gently, adjusting the monitors. Alexander’s eyes never left Elena. When the nurse departed, he spoke again, gentler this time. “Why are you here?” “Because you’re alive,” she stated simply. “That’s not an answer.” “Because I never stopped believing you would be.” Her voice broke. “And because someone tried to kill you.” That attracted his attention. His eyes narrowed. “What did you say?” “The crash wasn’t an accident,” she muttered. “I think someone wanted you dead.” For the first time, something stirred in his face, a spark of terror, rage, or maybe the echo of an ancient instinct. “Do you have proof?” “Not yet,” she said. “But I will.” He eyed her, and a stillness stretched between them like an implicit challenge. Then he looked away, his jaw tightening. “Victoria said you’d say something like that.” Elena froze. “She what?” “She told me you might… exploit my condition,” he observed, his tone reserved. “She said you’d use stories and emotion to drag me back into your life.” Elena’s heart cracked. “You believe her?” “I believe evidence,” he observed coolly. “And right now, I have none.” She approached closer, her voice quivering but calm. “You’re alive because I pulled you out of that wreck. I lost everything that night: my home, my job, you. I didn’t come here for pity or money, Alexander. I came because you deserve the truth.” Something in her tone made him pause. His fingers stroked his temple as if suffering a headache. “Stop.” “What?” He glanced at her, his words barely above a whisper. “When you said my name… for a moment, it felt” He hesitated, shaking his head. “Never mind.” Elena’s breath hitched. “Felt what?” He didn’t answer. Instead, he went for the water glass on the table, his hands twitching slightly. “I need rest. Please leave.” Her throat tightened. She wanted to argue, to stay until he remembered, but the exhaustion in his face stopped her. She set the ring softly on the bedside table. “I’ll be back tomorrow,” she muttered. He didn’t glance at her. But as she reached the door, his voice stopped her. “Elena.” Her name on his lips felt like brightness breaking through storm clouds. She turned slowly. He was glancing toward the ring. “Why did I take it off?” She smiled sweetly, but her eyes blazed. “Because you thought you’d never see me again.” And then she departed before he could see her cry. Outside, the rain had halted. The city glimmered under a veil of mist, and the environment appeared suddenly awake, hesitant, terrifying, alive. Elena hurried out onto the sidewalk, wrapping her coat securely about her. Her phone buzzed in her pocket. Unknown number. She hesitated, then answered. “Hello?” A familiar voice purred along the line. Victoria Hale. “You shouldn’t have come back, Elena. Some ghosts are better left buried.” The call disconnected. Elena glanced up at the dark sky, the sound of Victoria’s warning still reverberating in her ears. Inside the hospital, Alexander King, the person who had forgotten her, was alive. And somewhere in the city, the person who tried to kill him knew she was, too.