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The Memory Draining
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Granny Agnes Forrest, an old traveling spiritual medium, said the sister we'd finally found after ten years missing had been so badly frightened that her soul had slipped loose from her body. She needed my memories to burn as lamp oil. Forty-nine days, start to finish, before Harper Ellison's spirit would finally settle. The first time they drained a memory from me, I forgot I was allergic to shellfish. I ate the shrimp my brother Grayson Ellison put on my plate and went into shock, straight into the ICU. Mom and Dad sat in the next room over, watching cartoons with Harper. They said the sound of my monitors was too loud, so they shut the door. After the twentieth draining, I forgot how to act sweet and needy around my own parents. After the fortieth, I forgot how to stay up waiting for my brother to come home from work at night. Today was day forty-nine. The last one. For the first time I could remember, Grayson walked into the basement himself, carrying a bowl of hot soup. "Once we finish draining the last of it today, we'll call it even. You'll have paid off the ten years you took from her. After this, we'll treat you like our real sister too." I looked up and watched him quietly, without a word.
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The Memory Draining Chapter 11
Now, I was just myself.Outside on the street, a familiar car rolled past the flower shop again. It didn't stop this time, only slowing at the corner for a moment, like a belated goodbye.Grayson sat behind the wheel. Through the window, I couldn't make out his expression clearly.I laughed quietly to myself and shook my head.I turned around and flipped the shop sign over, switching it from "Open" to "Closed." I slung my camera over my shoulder and locked up the little shop that had held so much peace and freedom for me.I was ready to go see the ocean somewhere farther away. To go to cities where nobody knew my name. To finally live the life I actually wanted.I didn't look back.The train station was full of people coming and going. Just as I was heading toward the ticket gate, a familiar figure came rushing into the terminal.It was Diana.Her hair was disheveled, none of the poise or pride of "Mrs. Ellison" left in her at all. The moment her eyes met mine, she froze compl
The Memory Draining Chapter 10
Night had settled in.I closed the ledger and got ready to lock up. Outside, Grayson still stood there, stiff and unmoving."Evie." He looked at me. "Even if it's just letting me look at you from a distance. Even if all you do is… call me something awful, the way you used to when we were younger. I'd take even that."I paused with my hand on the lock and turned back to him, my expression unreadable."Mr. Ellison, you're misremembering," I said evenly. "The Sophie you knew might have wanted your attention when she was little. But eventually, she learned to stop expecting it."The Sophie you knew died the moment you started draining her memories from her."He staggered back a step, as if those few words had gone straight through his chest."That was my mistake. I can change. I really can change." His words came out in a rush as he tried to close the distance between us again."Just give me one chance, and I'll hand you the company. I'll sign the entire Ellison estate over to you,
The Memory Draining Chapter 9
I kept my head down, trimming the lilies in my hands."Evie, that guy who came to buy flowers earlier looked so weird. He's still standing at the end of the street." The young man from next door leaned in, whispering with obvious curiosity.I didn't pause what I was doing. "Don't mind him. He's probably just passing through," I said, my voice even.The truth was, I'd known who he was from the start. This was the third month, and Grayson had come by more times than I could count. At first, he'd tried to intimidate me into backing down with a cold, commanding presence. Now, he'd learned to beg instead, humble and small.They seemed to think that once they admitted their mistake, I'd act like a stray dog wagging its tail, happily running back to become the Sophie they used to walk all over again.But they'd forgotten. This backbone of mine had already been broken once, by their own hands."Evie, let's go home." A hoarse voice came from the shop entrance.Grayson didn't come inside.
The Memory Draining Chapter 8
Three months later, I sat on the porch of the bed and breakfast.I'd opened a small flower shop in this town. Every morning, I'd walk down to the market to buy fresh wildflowers.I didn't need to remember who liked their coffee a certain way anymore. I didn't need to watch anyone's expression, waiting to see if I'd upset them.I couldn't remember my own name. But I liked that the people here called me "Evie." It was a quiet name, and I liked the sound of it."Evie, the flower order's here!" A young man from next door jogged over, waving a slip of paper at me.I smiled and took it from him, my hands already moving through the motions of wrapping the order.There was a faint scar on my palm now, left behind from a time I'd traded it for something I'd thought was love. It didn't hurt anymore, though. It was just a reminder of how foolish I used to be.That was when a car pulled up slowly outside the flower shop. It looked expensive, and it didn't belong in this sleepy little town a
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