Chapter 2

After that day, Brandon assigned more people to look after me.

Nominally for protection, but in reality, it was surveillance.

Even when I went for a walk in the garden, two bodyguards followed me every step of the way.

The next time Scarlett came, I didn't hide.

She carried a fruit basket, smiling innocently.

"Miss Brown, I heard you were ill, so I came to visit."

I stared at her face, trying to recall any memory.

"Did we know each other before?"

Scarlett paused in peeling an orange.

She looked up at Brandon behind me, her eyes subtly shifting.

"Didn't Brandon tell you? We were college classmates."

Brandon frowned, sharply rebuking her.

"Scarlett!"

"Oops, I guess I let that slip."

Scarlett covered her mouth with a light laugh, but there was no apology in her eyes.

"But Miss Brown is like this now, she probably won't remember anyway, right?"

My nails dug into my palms.

At dinner, Brandon tried to feed me soup.

I turned my head away, not wanting to look at him.

"Throwing a tantrum?"

Brandon put down the bowl, a hint of impatience in his voice.

I looked at him, suddenly feeling exhausted.

"Brandon, if I never remember anything, will you always be this good to me?"

He paused.

Then he took my hand, kissing it to his lips.

"Yes, I'll take care of you forever."

That night, I dreamt again.

This time, a boy appeared in my dream.

He stood under a sycamore tree, waving at me.

I wanted to walk over, but a pair of large hands gripped me tightly.

I turned to see Brandon's sullen face.

"Alice, you shouldn't remember him."

I woke up, my pillow soaked with tears.

Such sweet words.

But I knew that his "taking care" was just a pretty way of saying "imprisonment."

Scarlett started coming to the villa frequently.

She always chose to come when Brandon wasn't around.

Today, she brought a bottle of perfume, claiming it was Brandon's favorite scent.

Tomorrow, she'd deliver a nightgown, impossibly sexy.

"Brandon picked these out."

She didn't hide anything, smiling as she looked at me.

"He was too shy to give them to you directly, so he asked me to."

I looked at the almost transparent lace nightgown in her hand.

My stomach churned.

"Take it away."

My voice was flat.

Scarlett placed the nightgown on the sofa, leaning close to me and lowering her voice.

"Alice, is faking amnesia fun?"

My breath hitched.

"I know you've remembered."

She stared into my eyes, triumph sparkling within them.

"But what good is remembering? Brandon trusts me now."

She stood up, looking down at me.

"Those shares your parents left you, they'll be ours eventually. As for you?"

She paused, her smile brilliant.

"I've already picked out a mental institution for you. It has a wonderful view."

I grabbed the glass of water from the table and threw it at her.

Scarlett shrieked, dodging, but the water splashed her skirt.

Just then, Brandon pushed the door open.

He saw me holding the glass and Scarlett retreating in disarray.

"Alice!"

Brandon rushed over, snatched the glass, and smashed it on the floor.

Glass shards scattered, cutting my ankle.

But he didn't even look. He turned to help Scarlett.

"Are you alright?"

Scarlett shook her head, her eyes red-rimmed, but deliberately showed her reddened hand.

Brandon's gaze suddenly turned cold.

He looked at me as if I were a strange lunatic.

"Apologize!"

I stood still, blood dripping from my ankle onto the floor.

"I didn't do anything wrong."

I heard my voice trembling.

"She provoked me first."

Brandon released Scarlett, stepping closer to me, one by one.

He grabbed my chin, his grip so strong it felt like he might crush my bones.

"Alice, you've been increasingly disobedient lately."

He leaned close to my ear, his voice so low only I could hear it.

"Isn't it time for a follow-up check-up?"