Chapter 19 Lina
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Lina
“So, this is where I used to live?”
I stared at the building in front of me, trying to feel some spark of recognition. Four guards surrounded the place, positioned at each corner, their eyes constantly scanning the area. Knox had insisted on the security detail, and after everything that had happened with Isabella, I hadn’t argued.
The building was charming in a cozy, small town way.
A cute storefront with large windows, warm lighting spilling onto the sidewalk, and a sign above the door that read “Winters’ Books & Brews” in elegant script.
Through the glass I could see shelves packed with books, comfortable armchairs, and a coffee bar along one wall.
People inside noticed me standing there and started waving, their faces bright with recognition and relief.
I waved back, trying to look normal. Trying to look like I knew who any of them were.
“Your parents opened this place when you were little,” Knox said quietly from beside me. “After they died, you took it over. Turned it into a bookshop and café.”
My chest tightened. He’d told me about my parents on the drive here.
About how they’d moved to Pine Valley for a quieter life, about how they’d loved books and passed that love on to me, about how they’d died in an attack in the woods when I was fifteen.
How they’d sacrificed themselves to give me time to run.
I’d asked him to stop after that.
The thought of losing them, of experiencing that grief, had been too much to bear. I didn’t remember them, but the sadness was real. Deep and aching in a way that surprised me.
So Knox had changed the subject. He’d told me about our kids instead.
About how Rowan collected rocks that he insisted “smelled important” and growled when he got frustrated.
About how Thea believed she could fight anyone and once tried to tackle a delivery man who got too close to me.
About how the twins had their own weird language and could sense each other’s emotions.
By the time we’d arrived in Pine Valley, I’d been smiling again.
“Yes, that apartment above the store,” Knox continued, pointing upward and bringing me back to the present. “When you had the twins you moved to a house nearby, though. But that one is rented by a different family now, so we can’t go in. Unless we ask. Do you want to go there?”
I shook my head. “No, it’s fine.”
Looking at a stranger’s home wouldn’t help me remember anything. And honestly, I was ready for a fun time with friends, not more emotional weight.
“And my friends?” I asked.
Knox smiled, warm and genuine. “They’re waiting inside.”
He held the door open for me and I walked into the shop, immediately hit by the smell of coffee and old paper. It was a good smell. A comforting smell. People called out greetings as I passed, and I nodded and said polite hellos, trying not to look as lost as I felt.
We made our way to a staircase at the back of the shop and started climbing. Knox stayed close behind me, ready to catch me if my legs decided to give out again. They’d been getting stronger over the past three days, but I still wasn’t steady enough to trust them completely.
Three days since I woke up. One day since I’d been discharged from the hospital. And already I’d launched my “get my memories back” mission with full force.
First stop: my childhood home and my Pine Valley friends.
Knox had told me about them during the drive.
Mika was my friend, worked as a barista and supervisor here at the café.
She had purple streaked hair, though apparently she changed the color regularly, multiple piercings, and took no shit from anyone.
Secretly a romantic, he’d said with a knowing smile.
She was the one renting my old apartment above the café now.
Vivi was my other friend, the baker. Sunshine personified, Knox had called her. A disaster lesbian who made the best cupcakes in three counties. Apparently I was obsessed with them.
I reached the top of the stairs and stopped in front of a door, suddenly nervous. These were supposedly my best friends. People who knew me better than almost anyone. What if they looked at me and saw that I wasn’t the person they remembered? What if I disappointed them?
“I’ll be waiting for you in the café,” Knox said softly. “Take as long as you want.”
I turned to look at him, this man who had been nothing but patient and supportive since I woke up. He was giving me space. Letting me do this on my own, without hovering. I appreciated it more than I could say.
“Okay.”
He leaned down and pressed a kiss to my forehead, lingering for just a moment before pulling back. Then he turned and headed back down the stairs.
I watched him go until he disappeared from view. Then I took a deep breath and knocked.
The door flew open almost immediately.
“LINA!”
Two women burst out, squealing at a pitch that probably only dogs could fully appreciate, and threw themselves at me. Arms wrapped around me from both sides and I found myself in the center of the most enthusiastic group hug I’d ever experienced.
“Oh my god, you’re here!”
“We were so worried!”
“You’re awake and you’re okay and you’re HERE!”
I stood there, overwhelmed and a little squished, while they squeezed me and jumped up and down and made noises that weren’t quite words. Finally they pulled back, and I got my first real look at them.
The woman on my left had to be Mika. Her hair was currently a vibrant teal color, cropped short on one side and longer on the other, with multiple piercings in her ears, nose, and one in her eyebrow.
She was wearing all black and had an energy that screamed “I will punch you if you annoy me.” But her eyes were soft and wet with tears as she looked at me.
The woman on my right was definitely Vivi. She radiated warmth and sunshine, with long hair, a kind face, and a bright yellow sundress covered in flour stains. She was bouncing on her heels, her hands clasped in front of her chest, practically vibrating with excitement.
“Come in, come in!” Vivi grabbed my hand and pulled me through the doorway. “We’ve been waiting forever!”
The apartment was small but cozy. Mismatched furniture that somehow worked together, books absolutely everywhere, plants in the windows, and the faint smell of baked goods wafting from the kitchen. I walked through slowly, curious which things were mine and which were Mika’s taste.
“I changed a few things since I moved in,” Mika said, following my gaze. “The couch used to be against the other wall, but the natural light is better over here. And I added the plants. You always said you wanted plants but couldn’t keep them alive, so I figured someone should give it a shot.”
I walked slowly through the space, running my fingers along book spines, studying photographs on the walls, trying to find any spark of familiarity.
“Are you okay?” I asked suddenly, turning to Mika. “Knox told me you were injured. Defending the shop.”
Mika waved a hand dismissively. “I’m fine. Just a scratch.”
“He said you were stabbed.”
“Okay, it was a big scratch.” She shrugged, but I could see the way she shifted her weight, the slight stiffness in her movement. “But I’m fine now. Really. The doctors patched me up and I’m back to my bitchy self.”
My eyes filled with tears. I didn’t even know why. I didn’t remember this woman, didn’t remember our friendship, didn’t remember anything about her. But the thought of her being hurt, being injured because of my shop, because of me...
“I’m glad you’re okay,” I whispered.
Mika’s tough exterior cracked. Her own eyes welled up and she pulled me into another hug, gentler this time.
“Damn it,” she muttered into my hair. “I told myself I wasn’t going to cry today.”
Vivi joined the hug, wrapping her arms around both of us. “I didn’t make any promises about crying.”
We stood there for a long moment, three women crying softly in a small apartment, clinging to each other because it felt right. My heart recognized them even without the memories
Finally we pulled apart, wiping our eyes and laughing at ourselves.
“Okay, enough of that,” Mika said firmly, her voice only slightly wobbly. “We have work to do. Operation Get Lina’s Memories Back starts now.”
“I made cookies,” Vivi added brightly. “Memory cookies.”
“That’s not a thing,” Mika said.
“It is now. I invented them. They’re chocolate chip with a hint of cinnamon, which is your favorite combination.” She pointed at me. “Your taste buds might remember even if your brain doesn’t.”
I couldn’t help but smile. “Worth a shot.”
They led me to the couch and Vivi disappeared into the kitchen to get the cookies while Mika pulled out several boxes from a closet.
“I gathered everything I could think of,” she explained, setting the boxes on the coffee table. “Photos, ticket stubs, old letters, your favorite books. Anything that might trigger a memory.”
Vivi returned with a plate of cookies and three glasses of wine. “It’s five o’clock somewhere.”
“It’s three in the afternoon,” I pointed out.
“And it’s five o’clock somewhere,” she repeated, handing me a glass. “Drink up.”
The wine was sweet and fruity. The cookies were incredible. And slowly, as I ate and drank and looked through the boxes, I started to relax.
There were photos of me with the twins as babies, tiny bundles wrapped in blankets. Photos of me at the coffee shop, behind the counter, covered in flour. Photos of me with Mika and Vivi, arms around each other, drunk and laughing at what looked like a Halloween party.
“You were a witch that year,” Vivi said, pointing at my costume in the photo. “And Mika was a vampire.”
“And you were a sexy ghost,” Mika added. “Which made no sense.”
“Ghosts can be sexy!”
“They really can’t.”
I laughed at their bickering. This felt familiar. Not the memories themselves, but the dynamic. The easy back and forth. The comfort of being around people who knew you completely.