Chapter 84: An Alternative Form of Power

Marie felt her heart skip a beat. "What is it?" John inhaled deeply. He started cautiously, "Olivia messed with my memories. She tried to rewrite the past, erase you from my life." "While I was... indisposed," he said. Marie felt a surge of rage, but John held her hand and his eyes met. "It didn't work. The moment I saw you, everything came flooding back. The love, the trust, the shared experiences… you're the anchor that kept me grounded." Marie felt tears rise up in her eyes. "John…" He went on, in a deep, passionate voice. "This whole ordeal has made me realize one thing – life is precious, and I don't want to waste another moment. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, building a future together, a future no memory manipulation scheme can touch." He extracted a little velvet box from his pocket. When John opened it, Marie screamed and put her palm in her mouth to see a ring - not the ostentatious diamond one his parents had made him wear, but a plain gold band set