To Where It All Began ✔

7. A SMALL STEP TO THE TRUTH BEHIND

The morning air hung with stillness as Shreekant leaned against the kitchen counter, sipping coffee, his gaze distant and reflective. He had been up all night, the weight of his plans pressing down with an intensity he hadn't felt in years. The smell of freshly brewed coffee mingled with the aromas of breakfast as Nimrita and Manvi prepared for college, chatting softly and moving with the casual haste of routine. Shreekant, however, seemed preoccupied, glancing at the door from time to time as if awaiting someone's arrival.

As he glanced toward the door, his thoughts turned to Ratna, who should be returning soon from her night shift at the hospital. He was also waiting for Amna, who had promised to be here early to speak with Ratna and clear up her fabricated memory loss story. Shreekant had agreed to support her in this, hoping to keep her confidence intact for the next steps of their journey to Mumbai. He took another sip of his coffee, feeling a mix of tension and amusement at the lengths Amna was going to in order to keep her story plausible.

He didn't have to wait much longer; soon enough, Ratna returned, the fatigue from her night shift visible in her eyes but softened by her warm smile as she entered. She immediately noticed Shreekant's presence and greeted him with a tired but genuine kindness. Before long, the faint sound of footsteps approached the open doorway, and Amna entered, knocking gently as she stepped in.

"Good morning," she greeted them, her voice carrying a hint of nervousness, though she tried to hide it with a polite smile. Ratna looked up from her seat at the table and gestured for her to join them. "Come, come, dear. Did you have breakfast already? If not, there's plenty."

Amna smiled politely, shaking her head. "Thank you, Ratna Aunty, but I actually came to speak with you about something."

Her words drew the attention of the entire table, including Nimrita and Manvi, who paused, their expressions curious. Shreekant, taking another sip of his coffee, observed her carefully, sensing the discomfort she was working to mask. She took a deep breath before beginning, her voice steady but measured.

"Mr. Mhatre showed me a fragment of the missing person complaint," she began, keeping her tone calm, though she was acutely aware of the scrutiny from each pair of eyes in the room. "When I saw my name written—Dr. Amna Biswas—on that document, something... shifted. It was like a trigger, almost. Memories came flooding back, and at first, they were fragments, incomplete and confusing. But gradually, things became clearer."

Her explanation seemed to catch everyone's attention, and they listened in rapt silence, each trying to absorb the news. Nimrita's eyes narrowed slightly, a flicker of doubt crossing her face as she listened to Amna's carefully chosen words.

"It all started," Amna continued, her gaze settling on Ratna, "When I saw Vinod Uncle collapse. At that moment, I suddenly remembered... things. Medical knowledge, details that only a doctor would know. The diagnosis came to me so naturally—it felt as though I'd done it a thousand times before. From there, other memories started returning in fragments until, eventually, I remembered most things."

Nimrita shot a quick glance at her sister, who remained impassive but visibly intrigued as they heard Amna speaking about herself. She couldn't shake the scepticism that lingered at the edges of her thoughts, and her suspicion became evident as she leaned forward. "So... your memory just happened to come back because you saw a missing person complaint?" Her tone was cautious, yet there was a sharpness to her question.

Amna felt a wave of discomfort as Nimrata's words sank in. She stole a glance at Shreekant, who gave her a subtle nod of encouragement before setting his coffee cup down. "Sometimes you just need a trigger and it looks like everything that happened yesterday was a big trigger for your memory."