Chapter 52: Shattered memory
Daisy’s heart leaped when she finally laid eyes on Alessia.
Relief washed over her features, but it lasted only a second before confusion struck.
Alessia sat there, her delicate self perched on the edge of the hospital bed, eyes wide and distant, as if the world around her was a puzzle she couldn’t piece together.
Daisy forced a chuckle, trying to ease the tension. "Nice joke, Alessia. Seriously, girl, you scared me.
Anyways, how did you even get here? We came to sneak you out. Something about this hospital doesn’t feel right." Her words carried a mix of urgency and familiarity like a friend trying to mask her fear with humour.
Alessia’s gaze lifted, cool and searching, her voice soft yet sharp with curiosity. "Excuse me... I don’t know you. Who are you?"
The words were a dagger to Daisy’s chest.
For a second, she stood frozen, unable to breathe. "What? Alessia, stop playing games. It’s me, Daisy. Your best friend since childhood. We survived everything together,, schools, working as maids for the moranos, heartbreaks, all of it."
But Alessia only tilted her head, her brows knitting as though she were grasping at smoke. "Alessia... is that my name?" she asked, her tone as innocent as a child’s.
Daisy’s knees nearly buckled.
She stepped forward, gripping Alessia’s hand tightly, desperation dripping from her voice. "Yes, Alessia. That’s your name. Please, if this is a joke, end it now. You’re scaring me."
The tension in the room thickened, the sterile scent of disinfectant suddenly suffocating.
Romeo, standing silently at the corner, finally stepped in, his voice calm, almost coaxing. "It’s okay. Don’t force it. She’s been through a lot, Daisy. Maybe something happened that made her forget."
But before Daisy could respond, the sound of slow, deliberate clapping echoed from behind them. It was like thunder in that still room, chilling and mocking.
Daisy spun around, instincts sharp, and Romeo’s hand instinctively went to his side where his gun rested, though he didn’t draw it yet.
There, at the doorway, stood two figures that turned the air cold.
Seraphina elegant, dark-haired, her smile the kind that promised danger.
Beside her, a man whose presence made Daisy’s stomach twisted, Lorenzo.
His face was calm but unpredictable, his eyes trained on Alessia like a predator spotting prey.
"Well," Seraphina purred, her voice sounded smooth and deadly. "Isn’t this a touching reunion? Though I must say, it seems a little... incomplete.
Alessia doesn’t even remember you. How tragic."
Daisy moved closer to Alessia protectively, her chin lifting. "What are you doing here, Seraphina? This place is off-limits. And you.... " she nodded toward Lorenzo.... "You shouldn’t even be alive."
Lorenzo’s lips curved into a half-smile , his intonation was light. "Life has a way of surprising us, Daisy.
But it seems Alessia’s memory loss is an even greater twist. How convenient, don’t you think?"
Alessia, stared at them like strangers in a dream. Something in her eyes flickered at Romeo’s name. A spark, then nothing. She shook her head slowly. "I... I don’t know you either. Why are you here?"
Romeo finally stepped forward, placing himself between the newcomers and Alessia. "You’ve got ten seconds to explain yourselves before I make a call Luca won’t like you interrupting." His voice was cold, with much authority.
Seraphina laughed softly, stepping further into the room, unafraid. "Oh, Romeo, always so loyal. But you know as well as I do, Luca isn’t the only one who cares about her."
Her gaze flicked to Alessia, softer for a heartbeat, then hard again. " But she doesn’t remember any of you. That makes things... interesting."
Daisy tightened her hold on Alessia’s hand, her mind racing.
They had to get her out of here. Every instinct screamed that something was wrong, that these two had motives far darker than their calm faces betrayed.
Romeo caught her eye and nodded subtly.
An unspoken agreement. But before they could make a move, Lorenzo stepped closer, his voice dropping low. "Alessia, listen to me. You don’t know this people, but trusted us, with your life earlier. There are things you need to remember, things that could save you... or destroy everything."
Alessia blinked, confusion morphing into unease. "Save me? From what?"
The lights flickered once, then again, as if the building itself sensed the tension boiling in the room.
A nurse appeared briefly at the doorway, only to back away quickly at the sight of the armed standoff.
Seraphina smiled wider, that wicked edge sharpening. "From yourself, dear sister."
Daisy’s world tilted at that word "sister". The revelation slammed into her like a blow.
Her grip on Alessia tightened, and her voice shook. "What are you talking about, Seraphina?"
Seraphina tilted her head, like a cat playing with a cornered mouse. "Oh, Daisy, you’ve been so close to her and never knew? Alessia isn’t just anyone. She’s blood... my blood. And that makes everything more complicated than you could ever imagine."
Alessia’s lips parted, shock and disbelief mingling with confusion. A sister? Nothing felt real anymore.
She’s lying, you we’re never sisters. Daisy said to Alessia. "Don’t believe what she’s saying". she added.
But before she could ask more, the building’s alarm suddenly blared a shrill, unending scream.
Red lights flared across the room.
Security footsteps thundered down the hall.
They were after Lorenzo, he’s always wanted by the police and an information reached them that Lorenzo was in that hospital.
Lorenzo cursed under his breath and pulled Seraphina toward the window.
"Move... They have found us," he barked.
"This hospital isn’t safe. They’re locking it down."
Romeo smirked. "They were always going to find you. But you’re running out of time."
Seraphina took a step forward, her expression unreadable now. "You want answers, Alessia? Come with me. Or stay with them and risk never knowing the truth."
Daisy yanked Alessia to her feet, heart hammering. "No.. way you are not leaving. I don’t care what game you’re playing."
But before Alessia could respond, Seraphina’s cut through the tension. "Leave her alone, Daisy."
The sound was silk and steel.
Seraphina stepped forward, every inch the lethal beauty she was known to be.
Her gaze moved from Daisy to Romeo, her lips curling into something that was far from friendly. "She doesn’t know you. And I see one of my men has been a little too comfortable playing both sides." Her eyes locked onto Romeo. "Dear Romeo, my trusted manager. I’m disappointed. You were a snitch to Luca once, using Bianca as your pawn. And now? Here you are , so pained same game was played at you?... sniffing around where you shouldn’t." daisy yelled at Seraphina.
Romeo’s stance tightened, his jaw locking but his hand steady at his side. "Careful, my ex boss Seraphina. You know better than any body, loyalty cuts both ways.
"You betray me, and you won’t like the outcome." Seraphina’s smile was almost bored she continued.. Threats bore me. My people don’t betray me, Romeo. You should remember that you took an oath to always be by my side. "
Daisy stepped forward, protective and firm, her voice trembling with anger. "Alessia belongs with me, not with you. Whatever game you’re playing, it ends here."
But before another word could be exchanged, Alessia’s voice rose, fragile but cutting, every syllable laced with fear. "Please. Stop arguing. I’m scared. I just... I want to go home. Somewhere quiet, somewhere safe. I don’t want strangers around me."
Daisy’s chest ached at the word. "Strangers? Alessia, it’s me.. Daisy. Your best friend. We grew up together. Don’t you remember?"
But Alessia’s eyes Were Going blank, her body turning slightly toward Seraphina as if drawn by an invisible thread. "Please," she whispered. "Just take me away. Anywhere but not here."
Seraphina moved, smooth and graceful, slipping an arm around Alessia’s shoulder. "You heard her. She’s coming with us."
Daisy’s voice broke into a whisper. "What are you doing, Alessia? We aren’t strangers. They are the strangers."
Alessia flinched as if the words caused her pain. "Don’t talk to me again," she said quietly, but her voice carried the finality of a slammed door.
Without another glance, she let Seraphina guide her out, Lorenzo falling into step behind them like a shado, from the underground building.
Alessia hesitated, torn between the faces around her, the words echoing like a storm in her mind.
She didn’t know who to trust.
But then, her body moved almost instinctively, clutching Daisy’s arm, letting herself be led toward the unknown.
As they rushed toward the emergency exit, the alarms growing louder, Seraphina’s voice followed them, cutting through the chaos like a blade: "Run if you must. But the truth always finds its way home, little sister. And when it does... nothing will ever be the same."
The last thing Alessia saw before the door slammed shut was Lorenzo’s calm, haunting stare, as they drove off.
****
The hospital corridor seemed to narrow as Daisy and Romeo watched helplessly.
The sound of Seraphina’s heels clicking against the tile was like a countdown, and then they were gone.. vanishing into the night.
Outside, the low hum of an engine roared to life. Seraphina’s sleek black car waited, its tinted windows swallowing the dim lights.
Alessia climbed in without hesitation, the door closing softly but sounding like thunder in Daisy’s ears.
A moment later, the car pulled away, leaving nothing but fading taillights and the echo of their failure.
"Damn it," Daisy breathed, hands trembling as she gripped the cold railing. "I shouldn’t have let them go. I should have fought harder."
Romeo, always calm in the storm, stood beside her. "You think I wanted this? I moved when you moved. I thought you wanted her to choose.
But listen calm yourself. They won’t hurt her. Alessia isn’t just another person to them. She’s their asset, maybe even their obsession. They’ll keep her safe... for now."
Daisy turned, anger flaring. "Asset? She’s a human being, We can’t trust them."
Romeo’s eyes softened slightly, but his voice stayed firm. "I know. And that’s why we’ll find them. But rushing blindly will only make it worse. Trust me on this."
Before Daisy could answer, the rumble of engines filled the air. A convoy of dark flashy cars sped into the hospital lot, headlights cutting through the night.
The lead vehicle skidded to a halt, and the door burst open.
Luca Morano stepped out.
His presence was magnetic, his anger palpable, radiating like heat waves in the cold night. His men spilled out behind him, armed, disciplined, ready.
He didn’t waste a second his sharp gaze swept the lot, landing on Daisy and Romeo, demanding answers before a word was spoken.
The tension was electric. Daisy’s lips parted, ready to explain, but the storm in Luca’s eyes said everything, he had come for Alessia, and nothing else mattered.
Luca took one measured step forward, his voice quiet but lethal. "Have you seen her, where is she?"
*****
Earlier that day, Luca Morano was a storm contained in a well designed suit.
The cold, sterile light of the private lab reflected off the silver band of Alessia’s bracelet as he held it in his gloved hands.
The technician’s voice was steady, but there was tension in the air.
"Sir, we found something. Two sets of foreign prints. Lorenzo and Seraphina."
The names landed like blows. Luca’s jaw tightened, fury simmering under a mask of composure. "Confirm it."
"Yes, sir. A match. Both were on the bracelet."
Before the rage could fully ignite, one of his men, A lean, sharp-eyed tracker known as Harley Davidson entered briskly, carrying a sleek black laptop. "Boss, I’ve got something. Seraphina’s location. Just finished tracing her. She’s at Saint Louis Vuitton Hospital."....