Page 67 of Lost Echoes
“You won’t.” Sofia’s voice is firm. “You’ve already broken the pattern by remembering it without falling into it. You own it now, not him. It’s just a memory, nothing more.”
I want to believe her. I do. “You’re sure?”
“Completely.”
Another thought strikes me, and I glance at her again. “There’s something else. I want Graham there.”
She blinks. “You do?”
I nod. “He’s family. He’s been searching for answers as long as I have, and I know he hasn’t stopped while I’ve been under your care.”
Sofia studies me for a long time. “I don’t know how the others would feel. It might not be a good idea to bring a cop into this before we expose everything. Once he steps in, there will be protocols and red tape.”
“Isn’t there already? You’re a doctor, and I’m a patient.”
“We also aren’t the only ones involved in this. There’s a lot on the line, and I can’t imagine Florencia being on board.”
My heart sinks. “Will I be able to go home after all of this is done? I don’t think I can spend another day away from my family. Seeing Ember made that much clear. My heart nearly exploded out of my chest. I nearly stepped out of my role.”
She draws a deep breath. “I was going to wait to tell you this?—”
“What?”
Her gaze softens, but her tone stays gentle and firm. “If this goes the way we hope, you’ll have time for that. You’ll go home to them all. To a real life. I’ve already secured your release from the hospital.”
The words hit me like a truck. I picture the kitchen light in the mansion, the smell of morning coffee, the sound of Fenna’s laughter that still feels like a memory from another world.
“Home,” I repeat quietly. “It feels like a story I heard once. I can’t tell if I believed it.”
“You will,” Sofia says. “That’s your release plan—recovery, testimony, reintegration. No more stages, no more scripts. Just returning to your life.”
The image of being home with everyone settles like a warm blanket. “Family.”
“After tomorrow.” Sofia gives me a firm but reassuring nod.
My chest aches. “And if tomorrow goes wrong?”
Sofia meets my eyes. “Then we improvise. The others will be there too.”
I smile. It’s small and unsteady, but real.
She rises, squeezing my shoulder. “Get some rest. Tomorrow, we change everything.”
After she’s asleep in her bed, I lie awake in mine, staring at the ceiling. This room has no locks on the outside, but I don’t have the urge to escape.
Tomorrow I could be back home in my own bed with Graham next to me and Fenna in her crib. I thought we’d move her to her own room soon, but after this I can’t imagine ever letting her go.
As my body relaxes and my mind drifts toward sleep, I whisper the phrase again, just to prove I can. “The curtain falls when the children sleep.”
Nothing happens. No fog, no lost time, no voice in my head.
Just silence.
And in that silence, a fragile power begins to grow.
I really am strong enough to do this.
We can bring down Dr. Radley. Not just him, but the entire operation.