The Memory Painter

After she had dressed, she left the bathroom and located her purse. Next to it was an almost empty vodka bottle and halfhearted sketches of the Sphinx. As she was looking for a pen and paper, she saw the poem Bryan had written. Diana’s memories of Natalia’s lifetime had made her fluent in Russian, so she picked it up and read it. It was a poem full of longing about a woman whose child had died tragically before it could be born.

The words hit her hard, and Linz let out a deep breath. Bryan was close to remembering. With a steady hand, she wrote her note beneath the poem, struggling to keep her words in English—her mind was not yet fully grounded. There was so much she wanted to tell him, but in the end she kept it brief. She placed the note on the pillow.

She took all the cash in her wallet from her purse and set it on her laptop, which she left behind as well in case he needed it.

She watched him sleep and her heart filled with emotions she could not even begin to describe. Renovo had opened a window, and Linz had climbed through it first. Now it was her turn to wait for Bryan so they could embrace their destiny together.

*

Linz stood at the elevator bank with perfect stillness. The doors opened and she locked eyes with the person exiting. Linz instantly recognized her.