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ELYSIAN FIELDS

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SANGEETHA KAMATH

 


I have no memory of who clicked this picture. I have no memory of even who this man sitting beside me is. Is he a dear friend, a husband…but then why don't I get the feeling that I'm a married woman? There was no wedding band on my finger when I regained my consciousness in a hospital room with strangers around me.

He is looking at me now, worry and concern writ large on his face. Fishing out the wedding ring from his pocket, he said it was removed when I was taken into surgery. He has been saying so for the past one week. Should I believe him? If only I could get one hazy fragment of my past, I would.

I turn my face and he sighs, slumping on a chair nearby. I return the picture to him apologetically. At the back of my mind, I do know that he must have been an acquaintance but in my current state of mind, I wasn't ready to accept just about anything, anyone told me.

****

And then the inevitable has happened. It is  time to go home. 'Nolan' is here to do the needful, signing papers and packing my bags. Anxiety swamps me as I'm in a dilemma. Going home with a stranger? I don't even remember who I am.

Nolan is very understanding and doesn't pursue the matter when we reach home. A pounding headache creeps in as I cross the threshold. The house seems vaguely familiar. The stairs…the balcony…that night…everything rushes back like a flood.

My intuition wasn't unfounded. In a scuffle and in a fit of panic, Nolan had thrown me over that fateful night when I had chanced upon that he was the mastermind behind a national conspiracy. 

Grappling at air, I had come hurtling down on the marble floor, lying in a pool of blood! Weak gasps racked my body. As I heard Nolan scream my name, his voice sounded as though trailing through a never ending tunnel. 

I didn't mean to…please…I'm sorry, please don't die…He had repeatedly lamented, holding my bloodied hands. My vision had blurred and I had slipped into oblivion only to wake up alive and drained.

***

I look at Nolan, restlessness and fear taking over anew. But I mustn't…I must keep pretending that I haven't regained my memory…as yet. I'm safe until I'm an amnesiac. But for how long…I must buy time. Who will believe me?

He's influential, powerful…formidable! He can pull strings.Some stories are best hidden behind happy photographs.

Someday, when the timing is right….maybe. But just not today. I bury the memories I've regained for good.

©️ Sangeetha Kamath 

Pic Courtesy:Image by 15806731 from Pixabay



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  1. Srivalli RekhaApril 5, 2024 at 1:25 PM

    Will it be a thriller or take a paranormal turn? Great going, Sangeetha. :) Keep writing!

    ReplyDelete

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