Page 27 of Please Remember

I shake my head as I look around. "It was in the middle. It wasn't far, but it wasn't right outside the back door, either. None of these houses are right."

"Are you sure?" Detective Parsons asks. "You only saw the back of the house."

"Yeah, I'm sure. There were no houses near it. I looked around and saw nothing, so I don't think this is the right area."

"This is the only area accessible, Allie. Are you certain it wasn't just dark?" Shields asks.

Her dark hair pulled back into a bun makes her features sharper than normal, and for a moment, I wish I looked like her. Or maybe it's just theconfidence she exudes. She also doesn't need nearly as much makeup as I feel I do, which adds a whole other layer of intimidation.

"I'm not certain of anything, but nothing here looks familiar," I say. "I am positive that there weren't houses this close to the one I ran from. If there was a house nearby, I would've run there for help. And with how quiet it gets at night, they would have heard me screaming when I was first down there. There was nothing. Just woods."

"When you were running through the trees, did you weave a lot? Did you run into any animals? Any idea how long you ran for?" Parsons asks.

I look into his green eyes, and I see nothing but mistrust in them. He doesn't believe anything I'm saying, and it makes me dislike him even more.

"My adrenaline was rushing, so I don't remember a lot. I remember coming out and seeing the police station, but then I saw the road. It felt familiar, so I followed it. That's how I found the house I remembered. Not that you believe that."

"This is the only area where you'd have been able to make it out of the woods in as short of a timeframe as you seem to think. Any other area likely would have had you lost or in there for hours. It's also strange to me that you'd bypass the police station and go to the only place you remember, even though you don't ever remember being there."

Glaring at him, I cross my arms over my chest. "I get it, okay? You don't agree with the decisions I made. And you don't trust that I'm telling the truth, do you?"

"I don't believe you don't remember anything, Allie."

"You really think I'd pretend I don't know the man who looks at me with such pain when I can't remember the memories he talks about?Or my parents? How about my best friend? You think this is all an act? Why?"

Shields holds a hand up. "That's not—"

"Yeah, that's what I think. I think you're playing all of us," he says.

"Why? What could I possibly have to gain?"

He shrugs. "Attention. Maybe money when you give your exclusive interview to someone. Some big network talk show host who wants to know what you went through."

"You think I hid away for seven years, biding my time, just for attention? That's a lot of commitment for attention. Yes, I also really enjoyed starving myself to the point I look like I have an eating disorder, and I just really love the feel of metal shackles on my feet while I piss in a five-gallon pail. I suppose you think I hit myself on the head, too? No, actually, you think Jax did that, don’t you? That we planned this whole elaborate scheme together."

"I've seen stranger things."

"Then I guess you suck as a detective, don't you? If two people who only want attention can make a ruse last seven years, what does that say about you?”

“I’m not saying—"

“No, let’s follow this through. How’d we keep the location I stayed at from you? Or how about all those secret meetings we obviously had to have? Considering you watched Jax at every turn, we were pretty damn crafty. And forget about the communication you never found. We probably had burner phones. No, not phones. Carrier pigeons. That’s how we communicated and got everything past you. Either we’re really smart, or you’re really dumb.”

His eyebrows lift as he studies me. "Allie—"

"Why the hell did you even bring me out here, then? What are we doing? Are you trying to find a way to trip me up? You think I'll slip up and let you in on my big, elaborate scheme. How about this? How about you take me home, and you can call all the cops off? I don't need to be watched if I did this to myself. I have no interest in participating in any more of your tests, and I'm done with you."

"We can't take the police protection away, Allie. We need to make sure you're not in danger," Shields says.

I shake my head and turn my back to them. "No one's attempted to come after me, so I doubt I'm in danger. But, then again, since I did this to myself, no one will show up, right? Jax and I just sit in the house and laugh at how we got one over on the big, bald detective.”

"Allie," Shields sighs, "we're not trying to test you or trip you up."

"No, I don't think you are," I say and turn to her. "I think you're actually trying to help. Parsons? Not so much. He just wants to close this case and put a big fat LIAR stamp on my forehead. You guys don't think I've been wondering every night for over seven years why whoever took me didn't just kill me? Why they chose to shackle me up in the cellar of an abandoned house? I couldn't figure out what they got out of it, and I still can't. I mean, why even bother feeding me? Or treating my head wound? What was the point?"

I wipe away my tears and turn away from them again. It's hard enough dealing with Jax and Sage wishing I'd just remember them, but feeling like I'm a criminal and a liar is too much right now. Too much for how overwhelming everything is.

"We're trying to figure that out, too," Shields says, her voice soft. "For what it's worth,Ibelieve you."

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