Celeste's POV
The wall in my mind is trying to kill me.
I push against it with everything I have. My magic burns through my veins like fire. Sweat drips down my face. My hands shake so badly I can barely hold them up.
But the wall doesn't move.
It's not natural. Memories don't work like this. When someone forgets something, there's just... nothing. Empty space. A gap.
This isn't a gap. This is a fortress.
Someone built this inside my head. Someone locked away thirteen years of my life and threw away the key.
I shove harder. The wall shoves back.
Pain explodes through my skull. I scream and fall sideways, gasping. My magic cuts off like someone flipped a switch.
For a long moment, I just lie on my bedroom floor, shaking and crying.
Damian was telling the truth. Someone erased my memories. Someone stole my life.
And I need to know why.
My phone is across the room. I crawl to it my legs won't work right and pull up Luna's number. My fingers are trembling so bad I almost drop it twice.
It rings four times before she answers, voice thick with sleep.
Celeste? It's three-thirty in the morning. Are you dying?
Yes, I gasp. Maybe. I don't know. I need you.
I'm coming. I hear rustling, then footsteps. What happened? Did that guy hurt you? I swear if he
Just come. Please.
Ten minutes. Don't move.
She hangs up. I sit there on the floor, hugging my knees, trying not to fall apart completely.
The flashes keep coming. Damian's face. His laugh. His hands. And now I know they're real. They're pieces of my stolen life trying to break through.
Luna arrives in eight minutes. She bursts through my door wearing pajama pants and a hoodie, her pink hair wild, carrying a bag that clinks with wine bottles.
Talk to me. She drops down beside me and grabs my hands. What's going on?
That man tonight. Damian. He said we were married. He said the Council erased my memories. The words pour out of me. I thought he was crazy. But Luna, I checked. I tried to read my own memories and there's a wall. An actual magical wall blocking everything before I turned sixteen.
Her eyes go huge. What?
Someone did this to me. Someone locked away my memories and I don't know who or why or I'm hyperventilating now.
Okay, breathe. Just breathe. Luna squeezes my hands. We're going to figure this out. Together. That's what best friends do.
I don't even know where to start.
We start with evidence. She stands up, pulling me with her. If someone erased your memories, maybe they missed something. Maybe there's proof hidden somewhere in this apartment.
We tear the place apart.
Luna goes through my kitchen cabinets while I check the bedroom. We pull books off shelves, dump out drawers, and look under furniture. I feel insane, like one of those conspiracy theorists who sees patterns in everything.
But I can't stop.
An hour passes. We find nothing.
Maybe there's nothing to find, Luna says gently. Maybe they were thorough.
No. I'm standing in my closet now, shoving clothes aside. There has to be something. I wouldn't let them take everything. I'm smarter than that.
My hand hits something hard at the back of the closet. Behind my winter coats, wedged into the corner, is a metal box.
I've never seen it before in my life.
Luna. Luna, come here.
She rushes over. What is it?
I don't know. It's locked.
The lock is old-fashioned, heavy. I blast it with magic and it breaks apart, pieces scattering across the floor.
My hands shake as I open the lid.
Inside is my entire stolen life.
Photographs first. Me and Damian at a restaurant, laughing. Me and Damian on a beach, his arms around me. Me in a purple wedding dress just like he said kissing him while fireworks explode behind us.
I look so happy in these photos. I look like a completely different person.
Oh my God, Luna breathes. Celeste, these are real. Look at the background details, the lighting these aren't fake.
I dig deeper. There's a wedding ring, simple and silver, engraved on the inside: D + C, ForeverBound.
A marriage certificate. Celeste Thorne and Damian Cross. Dated three years and two months ago.
And at the bottom of the box, a journal.
I recognize the handwriting immediately. It's mine.
My hands won't stop shaking as I open it. The entries are short, scattered across months.
Met someone today. Damian Cross. He's human but he knows about magic. I should stay away. I won't.
Third date. I'm falling for him. This is dangerous. I don't care.
He proposed. I said yes. I've never been this happy.
We got married today. Small ceremony. Just us and our friends. I married my best friend.
Each entry is a punch to the chest. This is my handwriting. My words. My life.
A life I don't remember.
Luna reads over my shoulder, her hand covering her mouth. This is insane. This is absolutely insane.
I flip to the last entry. It's dated three years ago, right around the time my memories start.
If you're reading this, it means they did it. The Council found out about the evidence we stole. They're going to erase my memories as punishment. Damian tried to take the blame, tried to protect me, but they want me to forget. They want me to lose everything.
I'm writing this while they prepare the spell. I don't have much time. I'm hiding this box, putting up every protection I can so future-me can find it.
Celeste future Celeste who doesn't remember any of this please know: what we did was right. We were trying to save people. Damian loves you more than anything. Trust him.
I'm so sorry I can't fight this. I'm so sorry you have to wake up alone and confused.
I love you, Damian. I love you so much.
Don't let them win.
I read it three times. Then I read it again.
The words blur as tears fill my eyes.
That's your handwriting, Luna says softly. That's you. You wrote this knowing they were going to erase you.
I was trying to save myself. My voice breaks. I left myself clues so I could find my way back.
And you did. You found it.
I look at the journal, the ring, and the photographs. Evidence of a love I can't remember. A husband I don't know. A crime I apparently committed that was important enough to lose everything for.
What did we steal? What evidence? Who were we trying to save?
I need to see him, I say suddenly, standing up. I need to see Damian. Now. Tonight.
Celeste, it's almost five in the morning
I don't care. I grab my jacket and shove my feet into shoes. The journal goes in my pocket. The ring goes on my finger not the wedding finger, I'm not ready for that, but on my right hand where I can see it.
Then I'm coming with you, Luna says firmly.
No. Stay here. If something goes wrong
If something goes wrong, you'll need backup. I'm coming.
I want to argue, but the truth is I'm terrified. Going to see Damian means accepting that my entire life is a lie. It means facing a husband I don't remember and a past I can't access.
But I have to know the truth.
We're halfway to the door when my phone rings.
I don't recognize the number. I almost don't answer.
But something makes me pick up.
Hello?
Celeste. The voice is cold, female, familiar. It's your aunt Aurora. We need to talk. Right now.
My blood turns to ice.
I'm busy
I know you found the box. Aurora's voice is sharp now, dangerous. I know you've been asking questions. And I know you saw Damian Cross tonight. That was a mistake, darling. A very dangerous mistake. Come to my house immediately, or I'll make sure you regret it.
The line goes dead.
Luna and I stare at each other.
She knows, I whisper. She knows everything.