James listened to the voices that are conversing from the other side of the door. Eric is talking with the tall dark-haired man that unannounced visited just a moment ago. It's obvious they don't want him to hear what they're talking about so they locked themselves in the study room of the unfamiliar house they're currently staying in.
"How's he?" The foreign yet familiar voice asked that earned a snort from Eric. James had a hunch that they're talking about him.
"He's fine, it's good that he lost his memory," Eric answered and the deep husky voice of the man joyfully laughed at the discovery. James gritted his teeth with eyebrows furrowed.
What's he laughing at?
And what's good about losing one's memory?
"How's Aurelia? Did something happened to her that's why you're here?" The baritone voice of Eric raised a question after the man's finished laughing. James arched an eyebrow and set his ears on the very door to listen closely.
Aurelia?
"Nah, just want to know what's with her and her odd mood swings, I thought you must know since you already stalked her for years." The deep husky voice of the man answered and James heard shuffles from the other side that cause him to step back. Seconds later he sighed, relieved, as the door didn't open, maybe the man just sit himself down or something.
With that, the realization dawned upon him. Eric is stalking Aurelia? For years? Why is that?
"All I know is that she's dangerous. But I know you can handle her, I just want her away from James." Eric replied with his voice void of emotion and James stared at the door, confused. He heard the man laughed again at Eric's response that only fueled up his irritation at the said man.
What's Eric talking about? Away from him? Why?
"I will. She's mine anyway and I think she's not that dangerous as you think. She's sweet you know," James' face scrunched up at that. He couldn't wrap his head with so many questions yet he knows that for sure he's cursing the man with every fiber of his being to die and rot in hell. "You don't have to worry about your James, he's all yours, Cousin." James heard a slapping sound on the other end and shuffles as the man added, this time he's sure they will come out anytime soon so he hid in the other room warily.
Soon enough the two men exit the room as he just heard a door closing. They mumbled to each other so James couldn't hear what they are talking about now that he's far.
When the other side of the door is already quiet, his fist clenched and the knuckles crack on it.
"Bastards, planning this all behind my back." He heaved a deep sigh so he can calm down while counting backward. When his rage subdued a little, he combed his hair upwards with his fingers and looked outside the window.
Sure enough, Eric is an enemy. Now he knows why he waited for days and just give James first aid when they had an accident a week ago instead of rushing him to the hospital. Now he knows why Eric knows where that doctor is living at. Now he knows that it was because they are blood-related, damn, that two lunatics are cousins!
So it's true that being crazy runs in the blood.
He sighed frustratedly, he needs a plan. How he can save Aurelia if now they're two of them that's crazily want to pull them apart.
Why is Eric doing this anyway?
No, why they're doing this?
He's lost for a moment as all of his plans had been busted. He didn't know what's next to do. But then he realized that acting like he really lost his memory will be at his advantage. He can pull on a show to deceive the enemy.
That's right.
Hide a secret to seek the truth.
---
After minutes of a pep talk, he decided to come down to the kitchen. Eric is on the sink, seeming to clean the dishes and utensils that he used when he's cooking. He looked back at James and smiled when he felt his presence.
"Let's eat?" Still, with a smile, Eric invited him to dine at the table that he answered with a nod and a smile that he mustered to appear genuine. Eric dried his hands on the towel near the sink and he set the table with a light air that James couldn't believe he's deceiving him all this time.
Well, that's human nature. This world is all about deception, deceiving, or being deceived.
"Do you have any idea where Aurelia is?" James carefully asked while fiddling with the table napkin to appear upset and frustrated. Eric stops in his tracks for a moment but then sighed and sit himself down on the wooden cushioned chair.
"I told you, I don't know and I'm sorry." Sighing again, Eric looked down and if James didn't know better he will be really fooled with his sorry actions. "When we arrived at the location I've informed you it's deserted but we saw traces of bloodshed on there, that's why you're distressed and then the accident," Eric shook his head as a continuation with horror plastered on his face seemingly reliving the memory.
James willed himself not to clap at the award-worthy of an acting Eric's exhibiting. If they're in better circumstances he will advise the shrewd to apply to an acting school so the society will at least benefit from his talent.
"But, I think we should continue our search," James suggested with a quiet voice and displayed a dejected face. Eric could only sigh again at the request. He's becoming irritated on the inside but tried to appeared to be patient with the man that he's sitting across with.
His heart brooded with bitterness with Aurelia this and Aurelia that. It's all about Aurelia! This man never takes his eyes off of Aurelia and it's annoying him.
"We will." Eric holds James's hands that are now resting on the table peacefully. The latter was taken aback by this action but didn't mull on it further. "For now, just focus on your recovery hm?" Eric raised his pair of eyebrows and smile at him. The light atmosphere had gone back as James nodded and started to eat.
"Who's the man that had visited earlier by the way?" James started again while dining. The warm glow of the setting sun at its last minutes when their visitor came had already gone as the moon peak its head on the early night sky. He takes note that the twisted bastard of a visitor just leaves Aurelia somewhere and who knows, maybe she's starving there.
"Hmm, He's Dr. Castro, my colleague when I'm still in the field," Eric answered while eyeing his face for recognition or any reactions. But James set his face innocently just curious firmly. He didn't give away the fact that his eyebrows have been aching to lift themselves up to the ceiling at the response.
Dr. Castro, huh? Colleague? Yeah right.
It's not unknown to him that Eric is a little suspicious about him forgetting the Doctor's face that he despises but not the incident where he found out that Aurelia was in fact not dead. It's an enigma to him but as the doctor that checked James said that he may have a Dissociative Amnesia where he couldn't remember fragments or a whole event of the past because of trauma, he reluctantly accepts that that's just it.
Though James really did have Dissociative Amnesia he remembers the recent events, just not the ones where he and Aurelia met or first had a relationship. That's still what he's fretting about.
That he did forget something.
"Why is he here though, do you want to go back to work?" James implored after a while that earned a half-hearted laugh from Eric. The latter just shook his head in denial and chew his food before answering.
"No, I will not leave you hanging of course. He's just consulting me with his patient." James looked at the side to hide his twitching eye. Patient? What a crafty man to call his victims a patient.
"But you are a forensic pathologist? Isn't it weird to have a colleague that is a surgeon?" He asked while looking at Eric that calmly nodded and just carefully lower his utensils.
"Yeah, he's one of the surgeons that is usually joining medical missions and traveling by himself. We met at an unfortunate event with the soldiers and all. But there, we became friends and the rest is history." Eric answered vaguely that James just smiled and snort to himself. Of course, the enemy is prepared with an alibi.
"He actually needs me to help him with his dead patient." Upon the words, James's heart thumped on his chest. Though, he knows Aurelia is still alive the unusual stress on the word dead had him disturbed.
No, they're just talking about Aurelia and her mood swings, calm yourself down. James reprimanded himself.
"What, happened?" He probed with pausing as he's quite quick to pick the glint that passed through Eric's green eyes. It seems that Eric also noticed his reaction to the extra information.
"Hm, he's not quite sure on what causes the body's patient to die after he performed a small bowel and liver transplant. The surgery goes well but after two days the patient had died with ruptures in his stomach." Eric explained while eating nonchalantly as he looked back and forth at James who in return just nodded.
Small bowel and liver transplant? It's not the patient that goes missing after Aurelia, is it? James couldn't comprehend why Eric is saying this additional information that is deemed unnecessary for him.
"It's seemed like he has been stabbed based on the description," Eric then continued and wipe the corners of his mouth with the napkin as he finished eating. "And by the looks of it, by a more weak individual or maybe...by a girl." James looked up at Eric at the statement with a bewildered expression as he stilled.
He's none the wiser but he knows how to put two and two together and immediately gets what Eric is implying.
What the hell, did he mean Aurelia killed the man?