Serena’s POV
I woke up the next morning to find Ryan already gone. The empty space beside felt colder than usual, my mind still swimming with fragnts from yesterday’s conversation. Find my family? After all these years of emptiness, could it really be possible?
After finishing my breakfast, the housekeeper approached with that perfectly practiced professional smile.
"Mrs.Quinn, Mr. Blackwood has sent a car for you," he announced with a slight bow.
"Thank you. I’ll just change into sothing more comfortable first," I replied, already feeling a flutter of nervousness in my stomach.
"Please take your ti, Mrs.Quinn. There’s no rush."
I nodded, making my way back to our bedroom. My fingers trembled slightly as I chose a loose-fitting sweater and comfortable pants. What would I discover today? Would I finally learn who I really was before the accident?
The car first took to Blackwood Tower to pick up Ryan before heading toward the suburbs. During the ride, Ryan held my hand tightly, his thumb brushing over my knuckles in that reassuring way I’d grown to depend on.
"We’re going to see a leading specialist in mory recovery," he explained, his voice gentle but firm. "If anyone can help you rember your past, it’s him."
I nodded, not trusting my voice. Part of desperately wanted to rember everything—my childhood, my parents, who I truly was. But another part was terrified. What if my past was filled with pain? What if there was a reason I’d forgotten everything?
The car pulled up to an elegant old house that looked more like soone’s ho than a dical facility. Ryan guided inside, his hand steady against the small of my back.
An elderly man with kind eyes and silver hair rose to greet us in the entrance hall. Ryan’s assistant handed over so beautifully wrapped gifts, which Ryan acknowledged with practiced courtesy.
"Dr. Shaw, these are just a small token of our appreciation for seeing us today."
The doctor smiled warmly. "No need to be so formal. And you must be Mrs. Blackwood. Your husband already filled in on everything—I’ll do my best to take care of you."
I didn’t correct him.
Selfishly, I let the title sit.
The doctor motioned toward the hallway with a nod. "Co on back. Let’s see how we can help today."
The room he led to was filled with dical equipnt, transford into a private clinic. Dr. Shaw motioned for to sit in a comfortable chair while Ryan reluctantly stayed behind in the waiting area.
"Try to relax," Dr. Shaw said, his voice soothing as he prepared his equipnt. "Your amnesia was likely caused by severe head trauma. Recovering mories often requires triggers—specific stimuli connected to your past."
I swallowed hard, nodding as he began to work.
The session felt like hours, with Dr. Shaw guiding through various mory retrieval techniques. Images flashed through my mind—water, panic, darkness—bringing physical reactions I couldn’t control. My heart pounded against my ribs, my breathing becoming shallow and rapid as fragnts of mories assaulted .
When we finally finished, I stumbled out of the room feeling like I’d been hit by a truck. My face must have been white as a sheet, because Ryan imdiately rushed to my side, his arm wrapping protectively around my waist.
"Serena, are you alright?" The concern in his voice was palpable.
Dr. Shaw followed behind , sighing softly. "Mrs. Blackwood’s condition is quite severe. Given how much ti has passed, she’s only able to recall fragntary images at this point. And considering her pregnancy, we shouldn’t push too hard with emotional stimuli. Mr. Blackwood, I suggest you take her ho to rest."
Ryan thanked him quietly before guiding back to the car. I felt numb, disconnected from my body, lost in the shattered pieces of mories that had surfaced.
Once inside the car, the dam finally broke. Tears welled in my eyes as I turned to Ryan.
"I rembered falling into the ocean," I whispered, my voice shaking. "I was at so kind of celebration on a ship... and then I was in the water."
I started breathing rapidly, feeling the phantom sensation of water filling my lungs. "The water was everywhere—I couldn’t breathe—it was pulling down—"
"Serena, try to calm down," Ryan urged, gripping my hand firmly while his other hand rubbed soothing circles on my back. "You’re safe now. Just breathe with ."
It took several minutes for my panic to subside. Ryan didn’t push to say more, and I was grateful for that small rcy.
Back at the mansion, he helped to our bedroom and handed a warm cup of tea. The familiar routine of his care—sothing I’d only recently rediscovered—anchored to the present.
After drinking half the tea, I finally felt steady enough to speak again.
"Ryan, I think I rembered sothing important," I said, setting the cup down carefully. "That party—it was on a ship. I was celebrating sothing... I had too much to drink, which is probably why I fell overboard."
He nodded encouragingly, his eyes never leaving my face.
I frowned, trying to catch hold of the fleeting images slipping through my mind.
"I don’t think I’m from New York," I murmured. "The city I rember... it was by the sea, but it didn’t feel like this. The air was damper, colder. I rember narrow cobblestone streets, old brick buildings, the sll of rain on stone. It felt older... quieter sohow."
Ryan’s expression shifted subtly—was that recognition in his eyes?
"Did you rember anything else?" he asked carefully. "Like what your parents looked like, or your surna?"
I bit my lip, a theory forming in my mind that had been nudging at since our conversation about Ethan.
"Ryan, I know my last na is Quinn. That’s the one thing I’ve always rembered." I looked up at him, searching his face. "Do you think... could Ethan Quinn possibly be connected to ? Is that why he’s been hanging around Dreamland?"
Sothing flashed in Ryan’s eyes.
"Ethan Quinn is still in New York," he said carefully. "If you’re ready, perhaps you should et with him."
I hesitated. Would it be too forward to approach soone like Ethan with such personal questions? But this was about my identity—my entire life before Ryan.
Ryan must have sensed my internal debate. "You’ve already ntally prepared yourself to face your past, Serena. eting him could either confirm your connection or eliminate that possibility altogether."
His reasoning made sense, and I felt my resolve strengthen. "I’ll go to the studio this afternoon. Maya said his car has been parked nearby. I might as well confront him directly."
Ryan didn’t try to stop , but his concern was evident in the way his brow furrowed slightly.
"Serena," he said softly, "no matter what you discover, rember that I’m your family now. If you learn sothing about your past that you’d rather not face, don’t force yourself."
"Ryan, I’ll be fine," I assured him, squeezing his hand. "You should get back to work. I might be ho late—there’s a mountain of work waiting at Dreamland that Maya needs help with."
He nodded reluctantly, finally letting go of my hand. "Call if anything happens. Anything at all."
I gave him a reassuring smile as I gathered my things. "Don’t worry so much."
The mystery of my past needed to be solved—today, if possible. Whatever I discovered, I’d deal with it. After all, I’d survived everything else life had thrown at so far.
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