Darian.
She staggered back, the visions cementing in her mind, overwhelming her. She tripped, and her head snapped back. Two caught her before she hit the ground. His stunted memories collided with the others running through her mind. His honey-colored eyes were visible in the harsh lighting of the room.
"Darian!"
His pupils dilated. He placed her on the table and retreated, shaking his head and swiping at the air around him, as if plagued by bees.
"Darian," she repeated.
Kiri, answered the tortured voice of the man in her head.
Seizing control of himself, Two stepped forward and pushed her back, binding her to the table again. Her hope soared, and she watched him return to his corner.
"Your name is Darian. Your brother is Damian. You were born two years apart. You were supposed to marry Claire …" She went on, closing her eyes as she repeated everything from the memories of others.
He didn't move, didn't respond. She spoke until she was hoarse. Her hope flagged, and she cried then tried again. She spoke until she drifted into an uncomfortable doze only to awake when he released her. Cramped, she stretched before approaching him again. She pulled the necklace from her neck.
"Look," she said and touched his bicep.
Mechanically, he rolled his sleeve and pricked his wrist. The curtain blocking him from his memories was less defined, like ice beginning to thaw.
"This is who you are," she said, holding up the symbol. "Your name is Darian. Your brother is …"
She started over, talking until he bound her to the table once more. But he showed no sign of life as he took up his position in his corner, and desperation crept through her. She cried and kept talking, her sentences punctuated by sobs. At last, she stopped speaking and lay, exhausted. If there was a way to make him see what was in her head … to make him remember … she focused on Damian's memories, the ones before the dark age, when he and his brother were happy.
"Hungry," she whispered.
Two obeyed and moved forward, slicing his wrist for her again. As she drank, she replayed Damian's memories over and over.
Damian needs you.
"Kiri." His hoarse voice threw her off guard.
"Think, Darian, think," she said. "Do you remember your brother Damian?"
An image flashed, that of Damian chained to a wall. Tears formed in her eyes.
"Yes," she choked out. "Damian. Your brother."
"Don't cry, kiri." He was struggling. She replayed the home videos, closing her eyes and focusing. If he were like his brother, he would hear her thoughts.
Two returned to his corner. She kept the movies playing, focusing on nothing other than the brothers' time together. She drifted into a doze.