Chapter 6: The Night I Was Supposed to Forget
The name on the paper refused to make sense.
Mine.
*Ethan Vance.*
Written beneath the date Amara disappeared.
I stared at it under the weak emergency light, waiting for the letters to rearrange themselves.
They didn’t.
My mind searched for an explanation.
A mistake.
A setup.
Another lie.
Anything except the possibility that there was something about that night I didn’t remember.
The woman on the floor groaned.
I turned immediately.
“Ethan: Are you hurt?””
She pushed herself up slowly, one hand pressed against her shoulder.
“Woman: I’m fine.””
Her eyes moved to the paper in my hand.
Then her expression changed.
Not surprise.
Recognition.
That bothered me.
“Ethan: You know what this means.””
She looked away.
That was all the answer I needed.
I stepped closer.
“Ethan: Who are you?””
She hesitated.
For eight years, I had chased answers from people who refused to give them.
I was tired of waiting.
“Ethan: Tell me your name.””
The woman looked at me.
“Woman: Naomi.””
“Ethan: Naomi what?””
She swallowed.
“Naomi Carter.””
The name meant nothing.
But the way she said it told me it should.
“Ethan: What was your connection to Marcus?””
Her eyes dropped.
“Naomi: I worked for him.””
“Ethan: Doing what?””
Silence.
“Ethan: Naomi.””
She looked at the warehouse floor.
“Naomi: Cleaning problems.””
The words made my stomach turn.
“Ethan: You mean covering them up.””
She didn’t deny it.
That was worse.
I looked at the empty space where Marcus had disappeared.
My brother.
The person who knew every weakness I had.
The person who knew exactly how to hurt me.
“Ethan: What happened that night?””
Naomi closed her eyes.
For a moment, she looked like someone reliving something she had tried to bury.
“Naomi: Eight years ago, Marcus discovered Amara was going to expose him.””
“Ethan: Expose him for what?””
“Naomi: Financial fraud. Theft. Illegal transfers from your company.””
I nodded slowly.
The documents.
The fake signatures.
The stolen assets.
It all connected.
“Ethan: And Amara found out.””
Naomi nodded.
“Naomi: She found evidence.””
“Ethan: So Marcus made her disappear.””
Naomi looked at me.
“Naomi: Not exactly.””
I hated those words.
Not exactly.
They were always followed by something worse.
“Ethan: Explain.””
She took a deep breath.
“Naomi: Marcus planned to make it look like Amara abandoned you.””
My chest tightened.
“Ethan: He wanted me to hate her.””
“Yes.””
“Ethan: Why?””
Naomi looked at the paper in my hand.
“Naomi: Because you were the only person who could stop him.””
I laughed once.
Not because it was funny.
Because it was impossible.
“Ethan: He stole from me.””
“Yes.””
“Ethan: He threatened my wife.””
“Yes.””
“Ethan: He destroyed my family.””
Her eyes softened.
“Yes.””
I looked at her.
“Ethan: Then why does this have my name on it?””
Naomi didn’t answer.
That silence felt heavier than any confession.
“Ethan: Naomi.””
She finally spoke.
“Naomi: Because Marcus needed one final piece.””
“Ethan: What piece?””
She looked directly at me.
“Naomi: Your memory.””
The words landed strangely.
Not because I understood.
Because I didn’t.
“What are you talking about?””
Naomi walked toward the old workbench.
“Naomi: The night Amara disappeared, you were supposed to meet her here.””
I froze.
“No.””
The answer came before the thought.
“Ethan: I wasn’t.””
Naomi looked at me sadly.
“Naomi: Yes, you were.””
I searched my memories.
That night.
The last night I saw Amara.
I remembered coming home late.
I remembered the empty house.
I remembered Lily crying.
I remembered the note.
The note that said she needed time.
The note I kept for years.
But before that…
There was something missing.
A blank space.
Like a page ripped from a book.
“Ethan: What happened here?””
Naomi’s voice became quieter.
“Naomi: You came.””
My heartbeat increased.
“Ethan: No.””
“Naomi: You came here angry.””
The warehouse seemed to shift around me.
“Ethan: Why?””
Naomi looked down.
“Naomi: Because Marcus told you Amara was leaving you.””
I felt a cold wave move through my body.
“No.””
“Naomi: He showed you fake messages. Fake evidence.””
My hands tightened.
“Ethan: I would remember that.””
Naomi looked at me.
“Naomi: Would you?””
The question hurt.
Because suddenly, I remembered fragments.
A heated argument.
Amara crying.
Marcus standing nearby.
My own voice.
My own anger.
But the details were blurry.
Impossible.
Like trying to remember a dream after waking up.
“Ethan: What happened after?””
Naomi looked terrified.
“Naomi: There was an accident.””
The word hung in the air.
“Ethan: What kind of accident?””
She hesitated.
“Naomi: You and Amara argued near the loading area.””
I shook my head.
“No.””
“Naomi: She fell.””
My breath stopped.
“Ethan: No.””
“Naomi: Ethan—”
“No.””
My voice echoed through the warehouse.
Because there was one thing I knew.
One thing I refused to accept.
I would never hurt Amara.
Never.
Naomi stepped closer.
“Naomi: She survived.””
I looked at her.
The anger paused.
“Ethan: What?””
“Naomi: She survived.””
The words came again.
“Naomi: But Marcus used that moment.””
My mind raced.
“Ethan: Used it how?””
“Naomi: He told Amara that if she stayed, he would frame you.””
My expression changed.
“He blamed me.””
Naomi nodded.
“He convinced her that protecting Lily meant disappearing.””
I looked away.
The pain was different now.
Not the pain of abandonment.
The pain of realizing the person I hated for eight years had been suffering too.
“Ethan: Why didn’t she tell me?””
Naomi’s voice softened.
“Naomi: Because Marcus showed her something.””
“What?””
“Naomi: A video.””
I looked at her.
“Ethan: Of what?””
Naomi hesitated.
“Naomi: You.””
The word felt impossible.
“Ethan: Doing what?””
She looked at me.
“Naomi: Saying things you don’t remember saying.””
My stomach dropped.
“Ethan: He edited it.””
Naomi didn’t answer.
She didn’t need to.
I knew Marcus.
He didn’t just destroy people.
He controlled the story.
He created doubt.
He made everyone question reality.
A sound came from outside.
A car door closing.
Naomi immediately turned.
Her face changed.
Fear.
“Ethan: What?””
She whispered.
“Naomi: We need to leave.””
I looked toward the entrance.
“Ethan: Who is here?””
She grabbed my arm.
“Naomi: If Marcus came back, he didn’t come alone.””
I pulled away.
“Ethan: I’m not running.””
Naomi stared at me.
“Naomi: You don’t understand.””
“Ethan: Then explain.””
She lowered her voice.
“Naomi: Marcus was never the person in control.””
A chill moved through me.
“Ethan: What does that mean?””
Before she answered, headlights appeared through the broken windows.
Multiple vehicles.
Not one.
Several.
Naomi looked toward the entrance.
“Naomi: It means someone bigger has been protecting him.””
The warehouse doors slowly opened.
A figure stepped inside.
Not Marcus.
Someone else.
Someone I recognized.
Someone I never expected to see again.
The person stopped under the light.
And spoke my name.
“Ethan.””
My entire body froze.
Because that voice belonged to someone who was supposed to be dead.
Someone who could not possibly be standing there.
May you like
Someone from the night my life fell apart.
Amara.
