Author's note: this chapter is from Seraphina's point of view

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"Wake up. It's time for school…"

"Mom… five more minutes… pleeeaaasseeee", I whined while refusing to open my eyes.

"Not a second more. Get up or you will be late."

Through my closed eyelids I noticed increased light, which means that my mom parted the curtains, to let the daylight in. I refuse to wake up, my bed is too cozy. Who cares about the school? I buried my face in the pillow and pulled the cover over my head.

My mom yanked the cover, making me whine again: "Mooooom…"

My mom was audibly irritated. "This is not open for negotiation, young lady. You need to be on time. Get up or you won't have time for breakfast."

"Can you pack my lunch?", I asked in a sweet voice.

"I don't have time for that, and you usually don't eat what I prepare so… get up and pack your own lunch if you want one. We don't have money for you to buy lunch so you need to pick between packing your food or skipping lunch."

I groaned. Why can't she be more mom-like and make me those heart-shaped sandwiches? Or at least to cut off the crust from the toast. Even if she just makes the toast, I will be happy.

I opened my eyes, to see where I am, and I found myself in the classroom.

"Ah, my girl is here!", a male voice said cheerfully, and I met with a pair of deep blue eyes that smiled at me.

He winked playfully and sat in the chair next to me. It seems that he is my deskmate.

"Good morning, beautiful."

"You are in a good mood, Duke.", I said.

"I am always in a good mood when you are around…"

He ran his hand through his unruly brown hair and showed me a boyish grin that made my heart skip a beat.

I wanted to ask him something, but in the next moment, the classroom was empty, and it was dark outside… and I opened my eyes. This time for real.

I exhaled. It was a dream. And based on the room where I woke up, the events from yesterday that include a creepy lab and a man named Aldus, are a reality. To top it all off, my memory is blank. Well, the good thing is that I remember yesterday so I don't have daily memory loss.

I closed my eyes and tried to remember the fading details from my dream before I forget them completely. I was talking to my mother, but I didn't see her face and it didn't seem that we are close. And then there was a scene in the classroom with a boy I called Duke, with whom I felt a sense of familiarity. A boyfriend, maybe? But he looked a few years too young for me, like a high schooler.

I stared at the ceiling while wondering if those are pieces from my past or maybe it's complete rubbish. But the boy seemed real… or at least the feelings he invoked in me were. I sounded silly to myself, but at this moment, his face and that boyish grin are the only good things I have to hold onto.

Reluctantly, I got out of bed. It seems that the dream was a part of my memory because I like the idea of staying in bed. Or maybe I just don't want to face the reality that awaits me when I step out of this room.

"I should get going before Aldus comes to search for me…", I told myself.

The view from the window showed a canal that is characteristic of Venice, so… I am still in the city.

…

When I stepped out of my room, I was startled by a maid who was waiting in front of my door.

"Master wants to see you… please follow after me…"

I followed without a word and wondered, how long was she standing in the hallway?

"Did you have a good rest?", Aldus asked me when I entered the living room.

"Yes. You?"

He was amused that I returned the question, but he didn't answer it.

"Come with me to the lab, I want to do a few tests before breakfast…"

…

After what seemed like a regular physical exam at the doctor, he took several blood samples, a few strands of my hair, a piece of my nail, and scraped a bit of my skin. Then he said that we are done, for now.

I watched him as he carefully dripped various liquids in containers with the samples he collected from me.

"How often are we going to do this?", I asked while wondering if I can get off from the exam table or not.

"Until I have enough data to confirm that you are stable.", he mumbled the response while putting vials in some kind of metallic container that looked like a safe, except that white smoke came out of it when he opened the top hatch.

"Do you think I will fall apart suddenly?", I asked jokingly and a second later, I realized that the joke was not funny.

Aldus looked at me seriously. "I don't know what to expect. I told you, you are unique. Do you notice any changes from yesterday? Any aches? Anything unusual?..."

I shook my head continuously until he asked: "Did you remember anything?"

His eyes lit up and I understood that he wants me to elaborate.

"I don't know if I can call it remembering, but I had a dream."

Aldus pulled a chair closer and sat on it while looking at me expectantly. "Tell me about it."

I summarized my dream about mom waking me up and a boy named Duke that seemed to be my classmate (I skipped the flirting part that made my heart flutter).

Aldus was thinking for a few seconds before he reached into one of the drawers of his desk. He handed me a notepad and a pen.

"Keep these with you and write down what you remember or what you dream about, it will help you track and sort out real memories from fake ones. Sometimes an image or a sound might seem confusing, but later you will get access to another piece of your memory that will tie them all together."

"You want me to keep a journal?"

Aldus shrugged. "You can call it as such if you wish. Keep a special note on names, dates, locations… It can help us investigate. Your dream implies that you have a mother, or at least you had one while you went to school, and you lived together. And a classmate with the name Duke. It's not much, but maybe you get a few more pieces and we can find out more."

"You think those are my memories?"

His expression told me that he is not convinced, and then I heard his explanation.

"It can be your personal experience, or a TV show you watched, or a book you read, or maybe it's mixed up, how sometimes we imagine ourselves in a situation with our favorite characters. It can be recent, or from many years ago but whatever it is, your subconsciousness thinks that it's important…"

From the lab, we headed back up to the dining room, for breakfast.

I ate in silence while glancing at the notebook Aldus gave me.

I was uncomfortable sharing my thoughts with anyone, but at the same time, I had a feeling that Aldus wants to help me out. It didn't make sense and I had to ask: "You want me to remember who I am?"

Aldus nodded and corrected me: "Who you were, Serina."

I cringed. He gave me a nickname, already!

"Why? Didn't you say that I can't go back and that I need to stay here as your daughter?"

"Aren't you curious about your past life?"

I hated that he spoke like I died and reincarnated. "Aren't you afraid that I might decide to return to my family?"

Aldus frowned. "I thought we had this discussion. I hate to repeat myself, but I will this once. You can't go back…" He paused whatever words were about to come next and smiled as if he remembered something. "However, I see that you don't believe me, so let's try it this way… I will not prevent you from leaving if you want, but I must request that you stay with me until you recover your memories and I confirm that your condition is stable. While you stay under my roof, you will allow me to examine your body, similar to how I did this morning. Deal?"

I had a feeling that there is a catch. "You will not fake that I have some illness to keep me here?"

Aldus burst into a laugh. "You are smart, Serina. But no, I will not fake anything. Actually, you will have access to your results, and I will explain them to you if you wish. How is that for a deal?"

Reluctantly, I nodded. "Deal."

"Good!", he exclaimed. "After lunch, we will leave this place."

I felt a knot in my stomach. I woke up here yesterday, and now he is taking me somewhere else? "Where are we going?"

"To my primary residence in Genoa. You don't need to worry about packing; clothes will wait for you there."

I wanted to object. Why are we moving? But then I thought that between Venice and Genoa, the location won't make a big difference anyway. At this point, it does not seem that Aldus wants to harm me and that is all that counts.

No matter what his motives are, my primary focus should be on figuring out who I am, and then I can analyze my situation and plan for my next steps. Without knowing where to go, or having any money, or a name (other than the one he imparted me with), I would be absolutely helpless.

I was confident that there must be a reason why Aldus agreed to allow me to leave under such favorable conditions. I can see that he does not want me to leave so that means that either he was lying that he will let me go or he is convinced I will change my mind and stay voluntarily.

Does he think that when I see his riches, I will agree to be the adopted daughter of a tycoon? Sounds appealing, to be the young heiress, but… Why would he do that? And what if I was a young heiress, to begin with? What if Aldus is an enemy of my family and is keeping me as a hostage to extort something from my father? I know it sounds like it came from a cheesy novel, but should I believe that he is a voodoo-scientist who found a corpse on the street, revived it, and decided to keep it as his daughter?

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