CHAPTER 18: THE FORGOTTEN PAST

CHAPTER 18: THE FORGOTTEN PAST

Amber’s POV

The orphanage looked smaller than I remembered.

Or maybe I had simply grown too much since the last time I stood in front of it.

The old brick building sat quietly beneath the gray afternoon sky, surrounded by tall trees whose branches moved with the wind. The iron gate creaked as Steele pushed it open.

I remained inside the car for a few seconds.

I didn't know why.

I had faced murderers, criminals, armed men, and situations where one wrong decision could have ended my life.

Yet standing in front of this place made my chest feel strangely tight.

"This is where you grew up?" Steele asked.

"Yes."

I stared at the building.

"I was brought here after the plane crash."

"Do you remember anything?"

I shook my head.

"Not much."

"Try."

I glanced at him.

"You sound like you're interrogating me."

"I'm trying to understand what happened."

"So am I."

I opened the door and stepped outside.

The moment my feet touched the ground, a strange sensation ran through me.

I stopped.

A faint ringing filled my ears.

Then—

A child's laughter.

I looked around.

Nothing.

"Amber?"

I blinked.

The sound disappeared.

"I'm fine."

Steele studied me.

"You heard something."

I frowned.

"How did you know?"

"Your heartbeat changed."

I sighed.

"Of course."

He walked beside me as we approached the entrance.

The door opened before either of us could knock.

An elderly woman stood there.

Her silver hair was tied neatly behind her head, and she wore a simple dark dress.

Her eyes immediately landed on me.

For a moment, she didn't move.

Then the color drained from her face.

"Anna?"

My heart stopped.

Steele's body stiffened beside me.

I stared at the woman.

"I'm Amber."

She looked at me for several seconds.

Then she whispered,

"No..."

Her hand trembled against the door.

"You can't be."

"I think you know me."

The woman swallowed.

"Twenty-two years..."

She looked at Steele.

"Who is he?"

"My colleague."

Steele said nothing.

The woman stared at him suspiciously.

Then her gaze returned to me.

"You shouldn't have come back."

I felt a chill.

"Why?"

She stepped aside.

"Come in."

Steele immediately stopped me.

"Wait."

The woman looked at him.

"You know what happened."

"I know enough."

Her eyes narrowed.

"Then you know she shouldn't be here."

Steele's voice became cold.

"That's exactly why we're here."

She looked between us before finally stepping away from the doorway.

"Come inside."

I followed.

The moment I entered, memories struck me like lightning.

A narrow hallway.

Children running.

A wooden staircase.

A small hand holding mine.

A woman's voice saying my name.

Amber.

Then another voice.

Anna.

I stumbled.

Steele caught my arm.

"Amber."

"I'm okay."

"You aren't."

I pulled my arm away.

"I said I'm fine."

The woman watched me with concern.

"You are remembering."

"What happened here?"

She looked down.

"Some things are better left forgotten."

"Not to me."

I stepped closer.

"I spent twenty-two years trying to understand what happened to my parents. I deserve the truth."

The woman sighed.

"My name is Mrs. Evelyn Hart. I was the director of this orphanage when you arrived."

"You remember me?"

"I remember the night they brought you."

My heart began pounding.

"What happened?"

She looked toward the old staircase.

"You weren't alone."

I froze.

"What?"

"You were brought here with another child."

Steele's eyes narrowed.

"Another child?"

Mrs. Hart nodded.

"A little girl."

"Who?"

"I don't know her real name."

"Then what did you call her?"

"Anna."

The room suddenly felt colder.

I stared at her.

"Anna?"

"She told us that was her name."

Steele's expression became unreadable.

I noticed his hands slowly curling into fists.

"What did she look like?"

Mrs. Hart looked at me.

"Like you."

My breathing stopped.

"What?"

"She looked exactly like you."

I shook my head.

"No."

"Amber—"

"No."

I stepped backward.

"That's impossible."

Mrs. Hart's eyes softened.

"That's what we thought."

Steele finally spoke.

"Where is she?"

Mrs. Hart looked at him.

"I don't know."

"Don't lie."

"I'm not."

She turned toward an old wooden cabinet.

"After the plane crash, the authorities brought Amber here. She was unconscious for days. She had no identification except a small necklace."

"A necklace?"

"Yes."

"What happened to it?"

Mrs. Hart hesitated.

"It disappeared."

Steele exchanged a glance with me.

"Who else knew about her?"

Mrs. Hart looked uncomfortable.

"Several people."

"Names."

"I can't remember all of them."

"Try."

She looked at me.

"There was a man who came here three days after you arrived."

My stomach tightened.

"What man?"

"I never learned his name."

"What did he look like?"

"Young. Very pale. Black hair."

Steele's eyes darkened.

"A vampire."

Mrs. Hart's face paled.

"You know?"

"We know about them."

I turned toward Steele.

"You think the man was from the Black Shadow?"

"Possibly."

Mrs. Hart shook her head.

"He asked about the little girl."

"Anna?"

"No."

She looked directly at me.

"He asked about you."

I couldn't breathe.

"What did he want?"

"He wanted to know whether you remembered anything."

I felt my hands become cold.

"What did you tell him?"

"That you had been unconscious."

"Did he believe you?"

Mrs. Hart looked away.

"No."

Silence filled the hallway.

"What happened after that?"

"He left."

"Just like that?"

"No."

She walked toward another room.

"He came back."

"When?"

"A few weeks later."

Steele followed.

"And?"

"He brought someone with him."

My pulse quickened.

"Who?"

Mrs. Hart stopped in front of an old locked door.

"A woman."

I stared at her.

"What woman?"

She slowly turned around.

"The woman who looked exactly like you."

My entire body froze.

"Anna."

Mrs. Hart nodded.

"She came here looking for you."

Steele stepped forward.

"Where is the woman now?"

"I don't know."

"What happened?"

Mrs. Hart looked at me.

"She took something from the orphanage."

"What?"

"A photograph."

"Of me?"

"No."

Her voice dropped.

"Of your parents."

I stared at her.

"Why would Anna want a photograph of my parents?"

Mrs. Hart didn't answer.

Instead, she unlocked the door.

The room smelled of dust and old paper.

Inside were shelves filled with boxes.

She walked toward the far corner and pulled out a small wooden chest.

"This was kept for you."

She placed it on the table.

My eyes remained fixed on it.

"Why didn't you give this to me before?"

"Because I was told not to."

"By whom?"

Mrs. Hart looked at Steele.

"By the woman who brought you here."

Steele's expression changed.

"Anna?"

"No."

Mrs. Hart shook her head.

"Your mother."

My heart slammed against my chest.

"My mother?"

"Yes."

I stared at the chest.

"That doesn't make sense. My mother died on the plane."

"She knew she might."

My eyes widened.

"What?"

Mrs. Hart opened the chest.

Inside was an old envelope.

My name was written on it.

Amber.

My fingers trembled as I picked it up.

The handwriting was unfamiliar.

I opened the envelope.

Inside was a single sheet of paper.

I unfolded it slowly.

There were only a few lines.

If my daughter survives, keep her away from the people who come looking for her.

She must never know about Anna.

And whatever happens, never let her remember what happened before the crash.

My blood ran cold.

I looked at Steele.

He was staring at the letter with an expression I had never seen before.

"Steele..."

He didn't respond.

"She knew."

"Yes."

"My mother knew I might survive."

"Apparently."

"Then why did she want me to forget?"

He remained silent.

I read the letter again.

Then I noticed something beneath the writing.

A symbol.

The same symbol that was on my neck.

I immediately touched the mark.

"It can't be."

Steele grabbed my wrist.

"Don't touch it."

"That's the same symbol."

"I know."

Mrs. Hart looked terrified.

"I've seen that mark before."

I turned toward her.

"Where?"

She stared at my neck.

"On the little girl."

My heart stopped.

"Anna had this?"

"Yes."

Steele released my wrist.

The room became unbearably silent.

I looked at the letter again.

My mother had known about Anna.

The orphanage had known about Anna.

The vampires knew about Anna.

And Steele had spent centuries searching for her.

Yet somehow, every path kept leading back to me.

I whispered,

"What am I?"

Steele looked at me.

For once, he had no answer.

Then a loud crash came from somewhere outside.

Mrs. Hart jumped.

Steele's eyes immediately turned gold.

"Stay here."

"Not happening."

He looked at me.

"Amber."

"I am tired of everyone telling me to stay behind."

Another crash echoed through the building.

This time, I heard something else.

A low growl.

Not human.

Steele moved toward the door.

Then suddenly, he stopped.

His expression changed.

"What?"

He looked toward the hallway.

"They're here."

"Who?"

He turned to me.

"The scent."

My heart pounded.

"Vampires?"

He shook his head.

"No."

His eyes narrowed.

"Werewolves."

The lights in the orphanage went out.

Mrs. Hart gasped.

I heard footsteps approaching from the hallway.

Slow.

Heavy.

Deliberate.

Steele stepped in front of me.

Then a voice came from the darkness.

"Alpha."

Steele's eyes burned brighter.

The voice continued.

"We finally found her."

I held my breath.

The stranger laughed softly.

"After twenty-two years."

Steele growled.

"Who sent you?"

A shadow appeared at the end of the hallway.

Then another.

And another.

Three figures stood in the darkness.

The one in front smiled.

"The one who knows what your little human really is."

My heart sank.

Steele slowly turned his head toward me.

And for the first time since I met him, I saw genuine fear in his eyes.

Not for himself.

For me.