He discovered that Mark owed massive gambling debts and had beaten his wife until she fled.
When I asked him about Rachel, he told me earnestly:
“She really seems to have lost her memory.”
Just yesterday, Mark had taken Rachel to a local church to pray for peace.
My friend arranged for an acquaintance to walk past them, but Rachel acted like she didn’t know the person at all.
“Could she be pretending not to know?”
“No. Her reaction wasn’t staged. It was genuine.”
“Then… maybe she truly doesn’t recognize that person.”
“What do you mean?”
“Never mind. Just keep investigating. Let me know the moment you have anything.”
“Got it.”
Leaving my friend’s house, I rushed to the Rocky Mountains.
By the time I arrived, night had already fallen.
I met Jessica at our agreed location.
She reported the past two weeks of searching: aside from a few animal carcasses, no body had been found at the base of the mountains.
I refused to believe it.
I stayed with them, searching for several more days.
Then my mother called, her voice urgent, not even asking where I was.
“David, you must come back tonight, no matter what.”
“What happened?”
“If you don’t come, Rachel is going to marry Mark tonight!”
I froze.