Page 37 of Shrouded Past

Piper couldn’t imagine how hard it had been for him to lose his wife in such a violent way.

“I get that. Is there something I can help you with?” Stella asked when a moment of silence followed.

“There is.” Bryce told her about what Jenna had said. “Do you remember her talking about the incident?”

“I don’t,” Stella told him, and Piper’s heart sank. “But I was out during that time. If you remember, I was recovering from the flu. I’m sure she didn’t want to worry me. You think this was the same man who killed her? The one who was arrested?”

“I think it’s a different man, Stella. I don’t think the real killer was arrested.” He told the woman about how he believed the man in custody and his crew had taken the fall for the real person who had ended Jenna’s life.

“That’s unbelievable.”

Piper couldn’t tell if Stella believed him or not, and Bryce’s expression said he wondered the same thing.

“The real reason why I’m calling is because of the woman who stayed at the shelter a while back. The one the man was asking about. It’s been probably more than three years. She showed up at the shelter and couldn’t remember anything about her past.” He reached for Piper’s hand and entwined their fingers.

“Oh, yes. I remember. I was there when it happened.” Stella sighed deeply. “Such a shame. The poor thing couldn’t remember anything about herself, and she’d been wandering around the streets terrified. I can’t even imagine. Thankfully, she had a happy ending.”

Piper tensed.

“What do you mean by a happy ending?”

“Her uncle came in and collected her. He said she’d lost her mother recently and had suffered from shock. I thought it strange, but he had a photo of her with himself and another woman, whom he claimed was her mother. And when he showed up, she appeared to recognize him.”

Her spirits sank. This couldn’t be her. She didn’t remember anything about her past beyond waking up in Edmon’s basement.

“If I send you a picture, can you tell me if this is the woman who stayed at your shelter?” Bryce wasn’t giving up so easily.

“Of course. I’ll never forget her. Such a pretty young woman, but I sensed she’d gone through something awful and it was responsible for what was happening to her.”

“Thank you, Stella. I’m sending it now.” Bryce attached the photo of Piper to a text message and sent it.

“Hold on, it’s coming through now.” Seconds ticked by while Piper wasn’t sure what she hoped for.

“Oh, my goodness. That’s her, Bryce. That’s the young woman who was here.”

“That’s not possible,” the whispered words slipped from her lips.

Bryce gathered her close. “What can you tell me about her?”

Piper couldn’t stop shaking. Why couldn’t she remember being in a homeless shelter? Or why Protector took her?

“She was scared, as I’ve said. She had a terrible cut on her head but she wouldn’t let us look at it.”

“Where was the cut on her head?” Bryce’s attention fell on the small scar on Piper’s temple.

“On the back of her head. It looked like someone had hit her hard.”

Obviously why she didn’t remember her name or anything else about her life. Was it the only reason for her amnesia?

“What about the man who came to pick her up?” Bryce was asking. “The one who claimed to be her uncle.”

“He seemed nice enough, but kind of odd. Like he was socially awkward or something. He did give contact information but I’m not holding out much hope it’s legit.” Stella gave it to Bryce and then hesitated. “Did we do wrong by sending the poor young woman off with that man?”

Bryce did his best to assure her she didn’t. “If you think of anything else about the woman or the man who came to get her, will you give me a call?”

Stella assured him she would. “Take care of yourself, Bryce. Jenna loved you so much. She wouldn’t want you to spend the rest of your life grieving for her. She wouldn’t want that.”

He made some murmur in the way of answer and then ended the call. “Do you mind if I examine the back of your head?”

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