The hike back to the road where Nina had left her car was a long and difficult one, perhaps more so than when she'd first walked down the same dirt path. She felt the presence of the memory card Alice had left like a heavy weight she had to carry. Thoughts of what the card could contain—of what questions it might answer—played incessantly through her mind.

Throughout the whole walk, Nina paid no mind to either the rain or the cold. She walked with a single minded purpose, doing her best to navigate through the underbrush, the fallen leaves having grown slippery due to the rain and mud. Nina still stumbled as she walked, nearly falling what must have been a half dozen times.

Finally, just as Nina was starting to fear she'd gotten lost, the dark asphalt of the road became visible. A glint of light upon silver told her that her car was just ahead as well. She let out a relieved sigh as she emerged from the woods, looking worse for wear but whole and lacking the hopelessness she'd fallen into on the way to the cabin.

The warmth of the car was a welcome sensation, wrapping around Nina the instant she stepped inside. She took a moment to just sit there, leaning back against her seat and letting out a long exhale, eyes closed and attempting to rid herself from some of the tenseness that had gripped her upon finding the card.

It's what I've been looking for, she told herself.

And yet, she found her hand hovering over the card. Unable, or perhaps, unwilling to see what it hid inside.

Just get it over with, she thought. Get it over with and go home. Go back to your old life.

Nina nearly laughed at the thought. She was all too aware of how unlikely it was that she would ever be able to go back to who she had once been. Things had changed—she had changed—and there was no going back. Not anymore.

Finally, she pulled out her laptop, something she was immensely glad to have grabbed before leaving. The memory card was like new, and Nina wasn't surprised when she was easily able to open it and see the files it held.

There were several files, each labeled and most likely perfectly organized. Nina didn't get a chance to look through them before her attention was taken by a single file.

From Alice.

The cursor hovered over the file for as long as Nina's gaze remained fixed upon it. There it was, what Nina had been looking for all along. Proof that it wasn't all in her mind—that she wasn't going insane.

Alice had been there. Had left something there. More importantly, she'd led Nina there, and now Nina just hoped the answer as to why that had been the case—why it had to be her—was contained in the small card Alice had hidden in the cabin. That thought was enough to make Nina open the file with a simple click.

She was surprised when there was a video there, she felt her heartbeat quicken at the thought of facing Alice again. Of seeing those green eyes staring back at her. Nina hesitated for only a second before deciding to view the video.

The screen was black for a moment, the sounds of slight rustling audible before the image of a very familiar face appeared. Alice, green eyes and alive, sat in front of the camera. She looked different, with her hair tied back and wearing casual clothing, though the same tired look was found in her eyes. Dark circles marred the skin beneath her eyes and the paleness in her face could not be healthy. She looked, Nina thought, sickly. Given the stress she must have been under at the time, Nina wasn't surprised.

It was still a striking thing to see.

"My name is Alice Cassill, I am a Neuroscientist working for the South East Institute of Neurology, otherwise known as SEIN. Currently, I am working on a project regarding implanting fabricated memories into patients. This research is meant to help those with traumas recover through the removal or replacement of negative memories."

Nina sat back and listened to Alice's voice—a soft, measured tone—the rain outside just picking up and the howling winds the only other sounds. She sat there and couldn't tear her gaze from the woman on the screen even as her heart clenched painfully and a mother's voice calling for her daughter echoed in her head.

"Despite all of the research that has been done, the procedure is still risky. Memories are a delicate thing and the misuse of this knowledge is something that, to some, outweigh the benefits. The ethics of implanted memories is still a controversial enough topic that receiving approval for further testing and development has been difficult."

Nina recalled the conversation she'd had with Ben in what seemed like a long time ago, when they'd sat inside a cafe and talked over coffee. Back when Nina had still thought there could be a simple solution to her crumbling mind. At that time, Ben had mentioned people protesting—opposing the very thing Alice was now talking about.

She thought about Alice's mother. About how certain she'd been that her daughter hated what it was that she was working on. Nina thought about how Alice had seemingly wanted to help people pick up the pieces and move on with their life, attempting to reconcile that image with the one of the woman who'd ultimately broken her mind.

The same woman who hesitated on the screen before continuing. There was something in her eyes, some desperate expression mixed with helplessness that looked wrong to Nina. Perhaps it was because, in the memories placed in her mind, Alice had always stared back impassively, but seeing such vulnerability was unnerving.

"I've decided to record this in the event that anything should happen to me," Alice paused, glanced down and then back up at the camera, resolve in her eyes. It was a moment in which she seemed to consider what she was doing and the cost of it, before finding it was worth everything. "The FDA will not authorize the use of this procedure and is intent in shutting down the experiments we are conducting. They think the ethics and risks aren't worth the payoff, but those in charge won't allow the FDA to shut them down. The recent attempt on the Commissioner's life was due to this."

Nina felt cold all of a sudden, a heavy weight settling in the pit of her stomach as she recalled the news of the Commissioner of the FDA passing away. It was something she'd paid little mind to. Now, she wished she'd looked further into it.

"We're being kept in the dark, we're being told that our work will help people, but it's a lie. What we're doing, it's being used to brainwash people, to lie to them about who they are."

Thoughts of Fearnley rushed to the front of Nina's mind. Of the man who'd thought he'd killed a woman he'd hardly known, who thought he had a daughter who'd never existed. And then, there was a crimson smile, and Nina felt a sharp pain shoot through her head.

"The man accused of killing the Commissioner was a patient. Though I wasn't the one to treat him, it's my belief that he is not, in fact guilty, and was instead framed. False memories were implanted in his mind to convince him of his guilt." Alice paused, her brow furrowed and lips pressed into a tight line as she seemed to think of what it was that she was saying. At the same time, Nina couldn't help but think of Fearnley.

Fearnley, who could recall a murder he hadn't committed, who could still hear the gun going off and the life leave his victim's eyes. Whose mind had been shattered beyond repair—who missed a daughter he'd never had. Fearnley, who sat in a prison cell, an innocent man paying for a crime used to hide the truth.

Nina felt sick at the thought. But she couldn't help but feel relief in knowing that she had been right. That Fearnley was innocent and that the evidence she'd uncovered might set a man free.

"The files from this patient—every visit, every treatment and even the fact that he ever came to us—had been erased. With the help on one of my colleagues—Dr. Marcus Han—I managed to save some of it along with other documents proving that what people are being told isn't what is really being done at SEIN. I don't know how much it will help, incomplete as all the records are, but at least it proves something is wrong. Something is going on, and I don't know how far those in charge will go to keep it all under wraps."

Alice let out a sigh, tired and resigned at the same time. She leaned back a bit, stared at the camera, and then Nina watched her expression fall just the slightest bit. There was something in the way she looked, something in her eyes, that made Nina's heart clench.

"We are being watched. The authorities can't help us, there's too great a risk to attempt handing this information to them. I don't know who to trust, I don't know if there's anyone who can be trusted. So, I'm leaving this information in the safest place I can find, at east until I feel it is safe enough for the truth to be revealed."

Nina watched as Alice stopped to take a deep breath, eyes closing for a moment, and knew what it was that Alice was so resigned to. She knew. Nina thought, and the image of her empty office surfaced for an instant.

"To whoever finds this, if anything has happened to me, please know that I am sorry for what I've done. Time and circumstances have convinced me that the only way to keep this information safe is to hide its location only in my memory." Nina saw the guilt clearly in Alice's green eyes.

"I think, what Alice loved more than anything, was helping people." That was what Alice's mother had said, and now, Nina found that she truly believed that. Even with all that she'd done—to Nina, to Fearnley—Nina could look into Alice's eyes and see the knowledge of what she would have to do gnawing away at her conscience.

"If you find this, thank you. I trust that I've chosen someone who will do the right thing."

The video ended. Alice's face disappeared from the screen and Nina was left to stare blankly at the place where she had been. After a moment, Nina went back to the other files, her mind still working through the information she'd gotten from Alice's video even as she sorted through the records Alice had managed to retrieve. It was an attempt to answer at least some of the questions she'd been left with after watching Alice's video.

As she'd said, there were patient records, though incomplete. It was all information that had most likely been wiped away like fingerprints at a crime scene. Nina glanced thought them, wishing once more that she'd looked into the attack on the FDA's commissioner. Perhaps then she would have had a better idea of what it was that she should be looking for. She did, however, have one name she could search for.

"Marcus Han," Nina muttered, thinking of the man who'd apparently helped Alice. Nina pulled out her notes, flipping through the pages until she found the one where she'd jotted down the names of those involved in the same projects as Alice and wasn't surprised to find that Dr. Han's name was missing.

Nina nearly laughed at having briefly expected things to be easier.

Alice said they were erasing information, Nina thought as she closed up her laptop and set it aside.

"I don't know how far those in charge will go to keep it all under wraps." Nina felt a chill run down her spine as Alice's words came back to her. For the second time that day, she pictured Alice's empty office and then Fearnley sitting in a barren prison cell.

Against her will, Nina began to wonder if the worst hadn't happened to Dr. Han. If maybe, like Alice, he'd been silenced already.

No, I can't get bogged down with that kind of thought, Nina told herself, shaking herself and setting her notes aside. She looked at the card Alice had left for her to find and pulled it out, still in awe at how such a small thing could be so important. I need to make sure this gets to the right people.

Nina tucked the card away into one of her coat pockets before starting up the car. The sun was already sinking as she started down the road, the sky still a dull grey, and all Nina wanted was to keep driving until she was out of that town. Until she was back where she belonged.

But that life—the one where she knew what her place was, where she knew who she was—felt much too far away for her to get to at the moment. Nina felt the weight of the card in her pocket, a small thing that felt like too heavy a burden, and knew her time in that town hadn't yet come to an end.

Night was fast approaching, and Nina still had much to do.

- - - - - - - - - 

Hello everyone! Sorry for the delay in updates, but I've been busy. Anyway, here's the next chapter, hope you all like it, and thank you all for checking it out! As always, please vote and/or comment if you can. Have a great weekend! :D