Things I Almost Remember: A Selection Story

Kate's Story

Kate sighed and pulled her scarf a bit tighter. She had never told anyone her story. It almost was too crazy to believe. Yet, as annoying as Johnny was,  there was something familiar and calming  about  him that she  could not quite name, and  it made her  want to  tell him her story. No one  had ever given her any  attention. He felt like a friend.

"About eight years ago I was found by some travelers on the side of the road in a small town in Belcourt. No one had seen anyone leave me there, and no one in the town recognized me," Kate said.

She glanced over at Johnny to see his reaction. His brown eyes were staring intently at her.

"Please go on," he said.

Kate nodded and continued.

"I was found there with nothing but the clothes I had on, except for a small note that was tied to the button of my coat. The note said, 'This is K, please take care of her and keep her safe. Let her know she is loved,'" Kate said as her breath caught in her throat. She had never told this story to anyone, at least not in such detail.

"I was out cold is what they told me, and I didn't wake up until a few hours later when I was already in the  hospital  where the travelers had taken me. The doctor asked me for my name and what I came from and who I came with, but my mind was blank. I didn't know who I was. I could speak and knew I was in some sort of hospital, but I couldn't remember anything else.,"

"Can you remember anything now?" Johnny asked.

Kate sighed. 

"Only little glimpses and fragments. They seem more like dreams, and sometimes they come into my dreams at night so I can't tell what is real and what is not. I remember a beautiful and sparkling room and someone swinging me around. I remember..."

Kate stopped speaking suddenly.

"What?" Johnny asked gingerly. He could tell that Kate was becoming uncomfortable. 

"I remember being embraced by a woman. I know it was a woman because I can remember the smell of her perfume, it was lavender. I sometimes wonder if she was my mother and if once upon a time I belonged to a family and had a home and was loved."

"No one ever came to look for you or contacted the police?" Johnny asked.

"Never. I was placed in a youth home in a larger city in Belcourt. There were a lot of kids across the country were orphaned in the revolution when the New Northern Rebels and King Marid took power. I went there pretty much right after the hospital. The doctor there told me my name was going to be 'Kate.' I asked him if that was my real name, but he said it didn't matter. It was like they took a piece of my identity," Kate said slowly, her voice fading into a whisper.

"How long did you stay at the youth home?" Johnny asked trying to catch her eyes. 

"Until two years ago, they kick you out when you are sixteen. Well, they had to guess my age because no one knew, and I couldn't remember it. That part wasn't so bad. They treated us terribly there. We barely got to eat, and we had to do hard household tasks. We were supposed to go to school a bit, but no one really enforced it. I was glad to go."

"Where did you go?" Johnny asked.

"Anywhere I could work. I begged on the street for money. I did  odd jobs and any work I could find. I was always hoping to finally get here to Nieve because it was the closest place to get a train out to the coast. I have known I wanted to go to Paris since I was left at the youth home. When I was walking alone in the wintery cold and sleeping in the woods or under a bridge or in a back alley, Paris was the dream that kept me alive."

Kate's eyes suddenly seemed to burn with a passion. She put her hand over heart as if she was clutching her chest. Johnny quickly realized she was clutching something.

"Why do you want to go to Paris? I mean I am sure it is beautiful and what not of course, but why not go somewhere in Illéa? It would be a lot easier," Johnny asked.

"Paris is the only place that I have any hope will have any answers for me," Kate said. "I know because of this." 

Kate pulled what she had been clutching out from under her shirt, and Johnny quickly saw it was a necklace of some sort. Kate unclasped the necklace's chain and held it out for Johnny to see.

The necklace was an antique looking golden heart-shaped that read "Mon cœur est à Paris" in elegant script.

"It means 'My heart is in Paris.' A girl at the youth home told me. The language sounded kind of familiar when she used to speak it to me. We used to talk about going to France together one day and leaving this place that has been so cruel to us," Kate said looking into the distance.

"I've seen a necklace like this before," Johnny said as he examined the locket. "It was a long, long time ago, but..."

"But what?" Kate asked, her blue eyes now looking at him with greater interest.

"Nothing," he said quickly. "I think you should go to Paris though, and I want to help you.