Because for the first time in his life, the man who could command armies, didn’t know how to introduce himself, to the woman who had once called himhome.
“…Who are you?” She spoke again.
For a moment, he thought he hadn’t heard her right. That maybe his mind was twisting reality into something cruel. But the way she looked at him told him everything.
His throat went dry as his gaze flickered toward the doctor, silently asking for an explanation he wasn’t ready to hear. “I’mRafael De Luca.” Even saying his own name felt strange. “…your husband.”
The wordhusbandechoed in the space between them.
But it meant nothing to her.
Amara frowned slightly, her eyes drifting past him, scanning the unfamiliar room, the machines, the white walls, the quiet hum of a place that smelled like antiseptic and survival.
“Where am I?”
No recognition.
No memory.
Nohim.
Rafael’s chest tightened painfully.
He had been waiting for this moment. Waiting for her to wake up. To tell him everything. To scream. To cry. Toremember.But instead, she looked like a child lost in a world she didn’t belong to.
And worse, she looked… afraid.
The doctor stepped in, voice calm but cautious. “It’s a complicated case, Mr. Luca.”
Rafael didn’t look at him. His eyes were still locked on her. “Given the severity of her head injury, we suspected neurological complications, but we couldn’t assess the extent until she regained consciousness.”
The doctor exhaled slowly. “Now it’s clearer. The concussion… along with the trauma… has affected her memory.”
Rafael finally turned, his jaw tightening. “…Affected how?”
The doctor hesitated. That hesitation alone made Rafael’s blood run cold.
“From her reaction… she doesn’t seem to recognize familiar faces. Not you. Not the environment. And based on her currentemotional state it’s likely she doesn’t remember the events leading to her injury either.”
Rafael’s brows furrowed. “That doesn’t make sense.”
“Even with retrograde amnesia, recent memories are usually affected first. Older ones stay intact longer.”
His eyes darkened. “She should remembersomething.”
The doctor sighed, rubbing his temple. “This may not be purely retrograde amnesia.”
“It’s likelydissociative amnesia.”
Rafael went still. The doctor continued carefully.
“It happens when the brain blocks out traumatic memories as a defense mechanism. Not just events… but sometimes people associated with that trauma.” Rafael’s heartbeat slowed.
“So you’re saying…” His voice dropped. “…she forgot because shechoseto?”
“Not consciously,” the doctor corrected quickly. “Her mind is protecting her. If the people or situations in her past caused her severe psychological distress, her brain may have isolated and suppressed those memories entirely.”
Rafael swallowed.
