The wind howled through the broken windows of the burnt house as Caleb stepped into the light. His face was thin, unshaved, and hollow with something deeper than exhaustion—like he'd been running from shadows that never rested.
Lena stood between him and Jay. "First subject? Of what?"
Caleb's voice was low. "The memory reconstruction trial. Jay wasn't the first. I was."
Jay looked shaken. "That's impossible. They said I was the only one."
Caleb chuckled bitterly. "Of course they did. That's what they told me too—until I started remembering who I really was."
Lena leaned in. "What did they do to you?"
Caleb reached into his coat and pulled out a cracked USB. "This. I escaped with a copy of their files. Patient logs. Mind sync procedures. They weren't healing memory loss—they were *implanting* new ones."
Jay's hands trembled. "You mean… they gave me memories?"
Caleb nodded. "Some are yours. Some aren't. You could be a combination of people they experimented on. But your love for her?"—he looked at Lena—"That part feels real. Doesn't it?"
Jay met Lena's eyes. "Every time I look at her, I feel… *home*."
Lena reached for Jay's hand, her grip firm despite the storm in her chest.
"But," Caleb warned, "feelings can be manipulated too. You have to be sure."
Jay clenched his jaw. "I need to see what's on that drive."
Back at the motel, they gathered around the laptop. The files were encrypted. Alina worked quickly, decoding layer after layer until a folder opened: *Project Mnemosyne.*
Inside were logs.
**Subject 1: Caleb Owens– Memory replacement successful. Emotional connection unstable. Escaped.
**Subject 2–6: Failed. Deceased.
**Subject 7: Jay Donovan (Real) – Unrecovered after car incident.
**Subject 8: Jay Donovan (Clone) – Memory matrix uploaded from Subject 1 + Subject 7. Stable emotional responses. High attachment index to Lena Carter.
Lena froze. "Clone?"
Jay backed away from the screen. "No. No, that can't be me. I remember everything… our first kiss, the lake, your laugh—"
"Memories they gave you," Caleb said softly. "Pieces of him, mixed with someone else. Me."
Lena covered her mouth, tears welling. "But you're… *you*. You protected me. Loved me."
Jay turned to her, his voice breaking. "Lena, even if I was made in a lab, my heart… it's yours. Always has been."
Alina looked at them. "There's more."
One final file: *Emergency Extraction Protocol – Subject 7.*
A set of coordinates.
Lena narrowed her eyes. "They kept the real Jay?"
Jay's voice cracked. "Then… who am I?"
Lena stood, grabbing the keys. "We're finding out. Both of you deserve the truth."
As they stepped outside, the motel parking lot was empty except for one car idling at the far end.
A figure stepped out.
Tall. Familiar.
Lena's heart stopped.
It was Jay.
But… not the one beside her.
This Jay's hair was longer. Eyes darker. The way he stood—more cautious. More real.
He looked straight at her.
"I warned you not to come looking for me."