Elusive Memories

Chapter 16

Erik was pacing with his phone glued to his ear, listening to the explanation the other person was giving him and his anger was getting more and more intense with each word he heard. After shouting at them he threw his phone on his desk and sat down on the chair. He closed his eyes and raked his fingers through his hair. He couldn’t sleep, work or even eat properly because of the mess he was dealing with currently and it wasn’t showing any sign of clearing up anytime soon.

He had to get her back if his life was going to get any better and for that he needed to clear this problem first. He knew that she won’t do anything such as the evidence was indicating she did, but how to prove otherwise? His brother and everyone else were avoiding him, giving him their cold shoulder and he didn’t blame them. But wasn’t he a human being too? Can’t they understand what he was going through? He too needed the support and love from them to get over this situation and he was getting more and more isolated from everything and everyone he cared about. It has started to suffocate him and he needed some sort of relief from all this problems or he was sure that he will go mad soon.

He opened his eyes when he heard the door opening and saw Luke walking towards him. He let out a sigh of relief. At least his brother has stopped punishing him. Even if he was there to shout at him or accuse him of hurting Emily, he will take it because he was too fed up with the silent treatment which they were subjecting him to. He watched his brother taking a seat opposite him and Luke speared him with an angry look.

“You look like a mess and you deserve it.” Luke said.

“How is she?” He couldn’t even say her name. His throat tightened with emotion when he remembered their last meeting here in this same room.

“What do you think Erik? She is struggling with everything. She is not eating properly. Forget about her getting some sleep and its better if she doesn’t because watching her struggling with those nightmares is too much. She jumps out of her skin whenever she hears the front door opening or when the  doorbell rings, as if she is expecting the police at any second. It’s pure torture watching her going through all that.”

He got up from his chair and again started pacing the room. He put her through that. He is the reason why she is living in hell, expecting the worse to happen at any moment and he was helpless to do anything.

Luke watched him for a while and when he got bored he started going through the papers which were scattered on his brother's desk. Erik watched him and thought about their childhood. What he had to go through to make sure that Luke survived each day after he was born. What they both had to go through to keep themselves alive and fed. How he had to take his brother and run to safety and how he had to beg so that he could keep his brother with him when he found that safety. If he could survive all those even before he was a teenager then he could survive this too. He was thinking about their past and his time with Emily. Those were the times he really lived. She showed him, no she taught him how to live and he was absolutely clueless how to move forward without her presence near him guiding him. He needed her and he will get her back at any cost but before that he should clear this mess first.

He saw Luke sitting up straight while looking at the pictures which showed that Emily was at her desk taking extra printouts of certain documents that crucial day the information leaked. The pictures were from the security camera which Jared had installed in and around his office and throughout the floor his office was situated.

“What is it?” Erik asked.

“I am not sure but something is not right with these photographs.”

“What do you mean?”

“None of this shows her face. Only her side and her back are there.”