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“Not all of it was a lie,” he said. “That's not possible. There's always some truth between the layers.”

“I don't know,” I said. Everything in my life seemed like a listless vision. Dreams were built between memories. The building blocks of my world were made of clouds, lacking anything that resembled solid earth.

“I know,” Vega said with firmness. “I know it wasn't all a lie.”

“Maybe it wasn't, but which parts are real?” I dragged my hands through my hair as I looked into the dimly lit room. “How am I supposed to tell the difference between reality and illusion?”

“I know your mother loved you. That wasn't a lie. I know she tried to give you a better life. And I know she tried to protect you.”

“What about the rest? If that's all I have—”

“That's all that matters,” he said with confidence. Vega pulled me against him and stroked my hair. “The rest can be forgotten.”

“I don't want to forget. I want to remember so history doesn't repeat itself. I barely remember my childhood, and I don't know if what I remember is even real.”

“It will come back to you eventually. And when it does, you'll have all the answers you're looking for.”

“I just don't understand. What happened to me?”

“Your father happened to you. I'm sorry, Poppy, but he took everything from you.”

“How? How did he do it?”

Vega held up my bottle of prescription pills and shook it. “With these.”

“I don't understand. He drugged me?” My eyes widened as tears bubbled up, making Vega's face fuzzy. “Why would he do that?” I shook my head in disagreement. “No. It doesn't make sense. He had no reason to erase my memory.”

“You were a threat, Poppy. You and your mother.”

“No. You're wrong. You don't know what you're talking about. My mother was sick. She was a schizophrenic. She had delusions, and my father tried everything to help her.”

“Your mother was getting in his way. She threatened to leave him and expose him for the criminal he is.” Vega opened the bottle and poured one of the pills into his hand. He picked it up between two fingers and began rolling it around. “Your father has spent years building his empire. Why do you think he's so powerful? How do you think he made his millions? It's not from curing cancer or treating high blood pressure.”

“He's in the pharmaceutical business,” I answered. “You can make that kind of money if you know what you're doing. My father is brilliant.”

“He's an evil genius.” Vega stared at the pill, rolling it around like a sparkling gem. “You know why he did this to you. It's just buried in your memories someplace, waiting to be found.”

“No. I don't believe you. You're making this shit up to keep me here.” My chest tightened as the realization set in that this was a trap. Vega was trying to lure me into his den and keep me here willingly. “Do I look stupid? You're just using me. You want something, and I'm how you get it.”

“You're wrong.” Vega shook his head with a frown. “Poppy, your father sells this shit on the black market. He pedals different drugs he creates to foreign countries, drug lords, even our own government. He's not the man you think he is, Poppy. And I know deep down you see that, too.”

“No. That's not true. You're lying.” It was hard to wrap my head around the thought. I was in denial, like an alcoholic refusing to see the beer in their hand. “Why would he do that? He has no reason to do that. He wouldn't. He makes millions creating medication. My father helps people. He helped me. He tried to help my mother. That medication has helped to keep me sane for years.”

“Sometimes there isn't an explanation for why people do things. Sometimes evil is just evil.”

“But my mother—”

“Your mother wasn't sick. Her paranoia and delusions weren't in her head. They were real.”

Tears streamed down my face. “No. You don't know that.”

“Yes, I do, and I can prove it. This fucking medication is what's holding you back. It's blocking your memories.”

“So, it could be true. . .” I let my words fade. Could Vega be right? Had my father been drugging me for years?

“What could be true?”

I told Vega about what happened when I was a little girl. He listened intently, allowing me all the room to cry and talk. WhenI finished, he simply hugged me. He hugged me like no one in the world could reach me. His arms were steel, encasing me like the fortress of a castle. I was protected from the world.