The Hidden Box

Oh Brother!

Matt

I wanted to escape from this world of crime. Being an orphan on the streets makes you do things which you regret later on. I was never the type to be silly and find the kind of ways that kids in PG movies do to survive. I was always hardcore and was fascinated by Bryan. He had treated me like an adult and gave me a sense of importance and I had revelled in all that but look where it took me? Bryan seemed like such a nice guy at first, he sort of was now too, but it was only when he was getting something. His means of survival were questionable given the fact that he got involved in a lot of illegal activities...

I squashed the thought before it arose. No. I would definitely not take Bryan to the authorities. It was more trouble than it was worth. But I needed to be close to Sarah as well. Bryan would not let me as long as I was with him, what if I escaped? But then Bryan would probably hunt me down and I would never see Sarah again. My chances of being with her were better if I stayed with Bryan and waited for the right time. Nick would not hurt Sarah if it was not necessary, which it wouldn't be. I had told Bryan about Sarah's memory loss. Heck! I had guilt-tripped him to being the cause of it and the doctor's reports would prove it. Nick would have to help Sarah jog her memory and recover the box, though I wish I could be the one to have done it.

The waiter came with a french vanilla for me and I quietly sipped it as I watched Bryan sitting in a car outside the diner. If this was my life, I had to make the most of it. I was gonna kick fate's butt.  I would end up with Sarah no matter what the consequences or how hard the journey. Nick had given me one long glance while leaving. He had wanted me back to how things were before, but I knew the old Matt was dead and gone..

After I paid the bill, I walked upto Bryan. "Where to now?" I asked him. Bryan smirked, knowing he had won this one, "You have just come back from a long assignment. Tonight's gonna be a party for us all to wind down, relax, chill, spend some time with your old buddies".

I wanted to ask if Nick would be there but stopped myself. I needed to get back on Bryan's good side. Though he didn't show it right then, he was very skeptical of my motives. Not like I could blame him.

Nick

Bryan had told me to paint a really negative picture of Matthew in Sarah's head, I was supposed to tell her how he had plotted with Bryan all along and how I am her husband and I had handed them both over to the police but we needed to recreate her memory just enough so that she could remember where the box was hidden so that we could get rid of it once and for all. I needed her to build enough trust in me to hand it over once we found it.

When I went over to see Sarah, I couldn't help but develop a soft corner for her. A black lady was on the chair next to her, asleep. I wondered who she was and was about to call up Bryan when Sarah woke up.

I had dealt with all sorts of people before, one's who had bad intentions and aced at whatever I did in all my interactions which was why I was Bryan's right hand man; but taking advantage of an innocent girl like Sarah? It seemed so wrong. She was deprived of the truth. Always. Her mother lied to her and her father had turned into a psychopath. I held Bryan in high regards until he hurt his own daughter. So when Sarah woke up and asked who I was, I knew I couldn't lie to her, but we could develop a tender bond and I ended up saying the first thing that came into my mind, "I am your brother".

Bad mouthing Matthew like Bryan asked me to was completely out of question. It was something I could never do. Not in a thousand years, but I would have to come up with a believable story of why he wasn't coming back.

Sarah looked at me, confused. She furrowed her eyebrows as in deep though. Trying to assess whether I was saying, but she soon turned into a big smile and opened her arms to hug me. I went ahead and gave her an awkward hug. It was not a type of thing I did. It could possibly be the first time I ever hugged a woman.

"Nice to see you! Where have you been? Did Matt tell you that I was in the hospital?" Sarah asked with a chirp in her voice.

I felt my chest tighten when I heard her say his name. Matt. What would I say about him now?