Chapter 13: The Truth in the Bullet
The gunshot echoed through the hidden room.
For one second, nobody moved.
Then Megan screamed.
“Ryan!””
I didn’t know which one she meant.
The darkness swallowed everything.
I heard footsteps.
Someone knocked over a shelf.
Glass shattered.
A child cried.
Then the emergency lights flickered on.
A red glow filled the room.
I looked around.
Everyone was still standing.
Except Dr. Harris.
He was on the floor.
Blood spread across his shoulder.
The bullet had missed his heart by inches.
Lucas rushed toward him.
“You idiot.””
Dr. Harris laughed weakly.
“You sound just like your brother.””
Lucas froze.
I stared.
“Your brother?””
Dr. Harris looked at me.
“Not the one you think.””
My head spun.
“What does that mean?””
Before he could answer, another shot hit the wall.
Everyone dropped.
This time, we heard voices outside.
“They’re moving in!””
Ethan pushed the hidden door shut.
“We need to leave.””
Nobody argued.
Not even me.
Because I finally understood something.
Answers wouldn’t matter if we didn’t survive long enough to hear them.
Ethan grabbed Lily’s hand.
“Stay with me.””
Emma stayed beside Lucas.
Megan stood next to me.
For a moment, we looked at each other.
There were a thousand things I wanted to say.
A thousand accusations.
But there was no time.
“Are you okay?”” she whispered.
I almost laughed.
“Do you really want the honest answer?””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“No.””
A strange silence passed between us.
Because for the first time in hours, we both understood something.
We weren’t enemies.
We were two broken people trying to survive the same nightmare.
The other Ryan stood near the doorway.
Watching us.
I expected anger.
Instead, I saw something worse.
Loneliness.
“You really love them.””
I looked at him.
“What?””
He nodded toward Lily.
“And her.””
Emma.
“And Megan.””
I didn’t answer.
He looked away.
“I forgot what that felt like.””
The words surprised me.
Before I could respond, Lucas grabbed his arm.
“Not now.””
The other Ryan pulled away.
“Don’t touch me.””
“You’re not stable.””
“Neither are you.””
The tension between them was obvious.
I looked at Lucas.
“What is happening?””
He didn’t answer.
Then Dr. Harris spoke from the floor.
“Ryan.””
I turned.
“Tell me.””
His breathing was shallow.
“You deserve the truth before I die.””
Megan immediately looked at him.
“Samuel.””
“No.””
He looked at me.
“I lied to you.””
That wasn’t exactly new.
But something in his voice was different.
Regret.
“The accident wasn’t just an accident.””
I waited.
“You and Lucas were working together.””
I looked at my brother.
“We were?””
“Yes.””
Lucas looked away.
“You discovered the company was creating artificial memories.””
My stomach tightened.
“You mean fake memories.””
Dr. Harris nodded.
“And you discovered something worse.””
“What?””
He closed his eyes.
“You discovered they had already tested it on someone.””
I looked at the other Ryan.
And suddenly…
I understood.
“No.””
Dr. Harris whispered:
“Yes.””
The room went silent.
The other Ryan’s face changed.
“What are you saying?””
Dr. Harris looked at him.
“You’re not the original memory copy.””
Nobody moved.
“You were the first successful one.””
The other Ryan stepped back.
“No.””
Lucas looked devastated.
“I didn’t know.””
Dr. Harris continued.
“Ryan Carter died in the accident.””
My heart stopped.
I looked at Megan.
She was crying.
“No.””
Dr. Harris looked at me.
“The man standing here now…”
He pointed at me.
“…was created from his memories.””
The room disappeared.
My knees weakened.
“No.””
The other Ryan looked at me.
His face had lost all anger.
Only shock remained.
“We’re both copies.””
Dr. Harris nodded.
“Yes.””
Nobody spoke.
Not even the people trying to kill us outside.
Because everyone had just learned the same impossible truth.
I wasn’t the forgotten original.
He wasn’t.
We were both pieces.
Fragments.
Versions of someone who no longer existed.
Then Dr. Harris whispered the final piece.
“But one of you has the original memory.””
Everyone turned.
Toward him.
“Which one?””
Dr. Harris looked at me.
Then at the other Ryan.
May you like
And smiled sadly.
“I don’t know.””
