Page 47 of Her Greek Inheritance

The young man, who went by Edward, pulled in the fishing line. He smiled at the fish that would soon become dinner. He’d been living on the island now for about a month and a half, and while pieces and parts of his past had returned, the sudden influx of memories earlier this morning had sent him off to think alone.

He remembered the storm. The ship had been badly damaged by the ferocious waves and vicious winds. He remembered the ship going down and how he and his crew had climbed aboard the lifeboat. Two days later, both crewmembers were dead from their injuries. Alexi was all alone, adrift on an endless sea.

He’d despaired of ever going home again, and then another storm had come up and he’d all but given up. After the raft had capsized, he didn’t remember anything... Not until he woke up five weeks earlier, tangled in seaweed and lying face down in wet sand. He couldn’t remember his name or how he’d arrived there, but the people of the island had taken him in and nursed him back to health.

Since this morning, he remembered most of what he’d forgotten.My name is Alexi Moustakas and I have a family who loves me.He remembered his parents and his brother. He even remembered his cousin who lived with them all. He couldn’t remember a wife or a girlfriend, and frankly, he was done speculating about that part of his life. Trying to force the memories only resulted in a blinding headache. Right now, he needed to get passage back to Greece.

After dropping off his catch of the day for the communal kitchen to prepare, he headed for the center of the community. He’d heard a rumour that someone with their own boat was visiting the island. His luck was good. After explaining his plight, he was offered passage back to Greece.

Saying goodbye to the islanders that had taken such good care of him was hard. Alexi promised to visit and check up on them from time to time. He left Ranongga that evening, determined to never return again unless it was by his choice. There were a few minutes of his life he couldn’t remember. At all.

But there were some things he remembered all too vividly. He knew he had a life waiting for him in Paris and in Greece. He wasn’t sure how long he’d been gone, he just knew he needed to get back. There was something he needed to do but it had disappeared along with his memories.Time to go home and figure out what I left behind.Alexi smiled, tasting the spray of the waves as the boat shot toward the horizon.I wonder what my brother’s been up to.

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