"Cemre, what are you doing here? Where's Reyhan?"
The worried looks between Cemre and the nurse have him nervous. It's as if they know something he doesn't know. What's going on? Is it about Reyhan? Why aren't they saying anything? At their continued silence, he repeats his questions.
"Cemre? Don't make me ask again. Where's Reyhan?"
He's really starting to worry now. Questions about where he is and why he's strapped to this bed can wait. He needs to know how Reyhan is because nothing else matters otherwise.
"Is he still having the memory gap?" the nurse asks Cemre. No. Not a nurse. Emir's opinion on who this woman is changes when she pulls out a tablet and starts taking notes. Must be some kind of doctor. Or maybe a detective. Has he been in some kind of accident?
"What's going on here?" Emir finally asks, before repeating the one question he's already asked multiple times. "Where's Reyhan?"
"Calm down, Askım," Cemre says, coming next to Emir to take his hand when his terror becomes evident. "I know this is scary for you. But you're going to hurt yourself."
Her touch makes his skin crawl. He doesn't want her. He wants Reyhan. But since he's still strapped down, he can't pull away from her.
"Your wife is right, Emir bey."
Did she say wife?
"This isn't my wife," Emir roars, starting to pull against his restraints when he realizes something strange is going on. He doesn't know what's happening, but he needs to go. "Let me out of here. Who are you people? What are you doing to me?"
"This is a counselor, Emir," Cemre explains. "You had a bit of an ... incident so we brought you here for help. And it's okay. It's fine. We're going to get you the help you need."
Emir continues to struggle against his restraints. He has to get out of here. He still doesn't know what's going on, but it seems like something crazy. He wants no part of it.
"Listen, there's clearly been a mistake," Emir says to both of them. "Let me up and we can talk about it. I need to check on Reyhan."
"Reyhan is the ex-wife?" the counselor asks Cemre, jotting down more notes when Cemre nods.
"Ex-wife? No!" Emir yells. "Reyhan is my wife. Cemre most definitely is not my wife."
"Emir bey, you really need to calm down," the counselor says. "Given all the drugs in your system when you came in, we can't give you a sedative or anything right now. Hence the restraints. You need to calm yourself before you hurt yourself."
"Drugs?"
"Your overdose," the counselor explains, as if he's the one not understanding. "You're lucky your wife here found you and brought you in."
"Overdose?"
Nothing is making sense. But he knows who to blame. Emir glares at Cemre. This is her doing. He doesn't know what she's plotting, but he'd bet his life she's done this. But the counselor is right. He needs to calm down if he wants to get out of here. He just needs to explain the situation - making a few phone calls if necessary - and get away from this madhouse.
"Listen," he says, trying to sound reasonable. "This is all one big misunderstanding. I don't know what you think is happening, but here is the truth: my name is Emir Tarhun. I'm from Istanbul. My wife's name is Reyhan Tarhun. My mother's name is ..."
"Cavidan Tarhun. Yes," the counselor says, checking her notes. "We've already spoken with your mother. She confirms everything your wife Cemre is saying."
"Cemre is not my wife," Emir corrects her. "My wife is Reyhan."
"Reyhan is your ex-wife. I have the paperwork here to prove it." The counselor scrolls through her tablet and pulls up a document, showing it to Emir. Divorce papers. Dated almost a year ago.
He examines them closely. And for a second, he almost believes. But then he remembers who he's dealing with. Cemre. And if what the counselor says is true, his mother as well. The two of them have cooked up this scheme to essentially kidnap him. Probably brainwash him into thinking Reyhan is gone and that he's actually married to Cemre. He has to get out of here. Now. But he needs to think and come up with a plan. And to do that, he needs these two gone.
"I'm tired," he says, closing his eyes and letting out a heavy sigh. "I want to be alone."
"I understand," the counselor says with a nod. "But we will have to start our sessions soon. Once you face your problem, we can get to the root of why you overdosed. Once you accept your reality, you'll start to get better. Don't you want what's best for Cemre?"
He slowly blinks his eyes open, turning a rage filled glare on Cemre.
"Oh, I want Cemre to get exactly what she deserves," he growls. "And she will get what's coming to her. I'll make sure of it. If it's the last thing I do."
On that ominous threat, the two women leave him. Emir meant what he said. He's going to make Cemre pay. But first, he has to make sure her plan, whatever this is, fails. And to do that, he needs to convince someone in here that Cemre is lying about everything. All he needs is one person to believe him. Which means he has to get out of these restraints and out of this room somehow.
"Be calm, Emir," he says to himself. "Relax. Stay cool."
He needs to stay alert and stay ready. He needs to make these people believe he's no threat. He needs to bide his time. Get to a phone. Call for help. But he has a bad feeling that none of this will be as easy as he thinks. And he doesn't have forever. Reyhan has to be worried about him. And if she worries, she'll make herself sick. And if she makes herself sick, then who knows what will happen to the baby. He has to get back to her. To his family. They need him.
"Hold on, Reyhan. I'm coming."
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Three days go by and there's no word at all from the police. It's almost as if they've stopped looking. Murat and Emine want to take Reyhan back home, but she refuses to leave the beach house. It was the last place she saw Emir. She's afraid if she leaves, she'll never see him again.
"Reyhan. Kızım."
She turns to find her mother standing there, a worried look on her face. They're all worried about her. But it's taking everything in her to just keep breathing. And the longer Emir is gone, even that is getting harder and harder. She doesn't have the energy to pretend she's okay with any of this. None of this is okay.
"The detective is here," Emine announces. "You need to come listen to what he has to say."
Whatever color Reyhan did have left in her face completely leaves and she goes white as a ghost. From the sound of Emine's voice, this isn't good news.
"Emir? Is he ..."
Reyhan starts to panic, her breaths coming faster and faster. But she manages to get to her feet as quickly as possible to go out into the living room where the detective is.
"DId you find my husband?" she asks him, a pleading look in her eyes.
"Why don't you sit down, Reyhan hanım," the detective says.
"Just tell me," Reyhan says, barely noticing when Emine guides her down into a seat. "Where's Emir? Why haven't we heard anything about the search?"
"There is no search anymore," the detective says. "I don't know how to tell you this, Reyhan hanım, but we now have every reason to believe your husband left on his own. The search has been called off."
Silence in the room. No one moves. No one even breathes.
"What do you mean?" Reyhan asks when her mind finally processes what the detective just told her. "What do you mean Emir left on his own? I'm almost 8 months pregnant. My husband wouldn't just leave. You're mistaken."
"Reyhan hanım, why didn't you tell us about the divorce in the beginning?"
The detective holds out an envelope. Reyhan is too much in shock to take it.
"What divorce? There is no divorce."
Emine has taken the envelope and is looking through the papers. She gives Reyhan a worried look.
"Those papers say otherwise," the detective points out.
"They're from about a year ago. Not long after you and Emir married," Emine explains.
Reyhan takes the papers and looks them over, remembering all the times Emir threw divorce papers in her face in the beginning. But neither ever signed any of them. The papers always ended up being torn up or tossed out. These papers look the same. For a second she almost believes. Just for a second. But Emir was also fooled before by forged documents. She won't make the same mistake.
"These aren't real," Reyhan says, calm suddenly filling her soul. Emir is fine. She knows that now. She recognizes the game now. Cavidan. Or Cemre. Maybe even both. They're behind all of this. She just knows it.
"His mother gave them to us," the detective tells them.
Reyhan just smiles.
"Then I know for a fact they aren't real."
"Excuse me?" The detective looks perplexed. "I don't understand."
"Emir's mother wants to drive Reyhan and Emir apart," Emine explains. "I think if you check into these papers, you will find that these documents have been forged. My daughter has never signed divorce papers. In fact, Reyhan and Emir went through the adoption process not too long ago. A divorce would have shown up in the background check."
Reyhan tunes out at that point. The news is bittersweet. On the one hand, she's sure now that Emir is fine. But for how long? Where is he? Has Cavidan done something to him? Or is she in league with Cemre again? In any event, Reyhan knows that either woman will do whatever they can to keep Emir from her. She has to find him and she has to find him now. She waits until the detective leaves before calling for help. Zafer knows and loves Emir as much as she does. If anyone will be able to find him, it will be Zafer. Cavidan and Cemre may be their only clues, but it's a start.
"We'll find him," Zafer promises her after she explains everything the detective just said. "I swear we'll get him back."
She has hope after the phone call. But she knows it won't be easy. A strong kick from the baby reminds her time is not on their side. Will she have to have this baby without Emir? No. She can't. She has to find him. There's no other option.
But she now knows she won't find him here. Not anymore. She can leave now. Any answers will be wherever Cavidan and Cemre are. So that's where she needs to be.
"Anne? Baba?" she says, when she goes back out with Emine and Murat. "Let's go home."
It's time to find her husband.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Cemre is frustrated. It's been a week since she rescued Emir from that pathetic marriage and he hasn't once thanked her for it. What is it going to take for him to see that the perfect woman is right in front of him? She hasn't been able to see him in days. He refuses to let her into his room. But at night, after he's gotten his medication, she goes in to sleep with him. He's a big guy and the bed is too small for the both of them - and believe that she tried - so she sleeps in the chair next to him. But being there with him is good enough for her. And the counselor believes the closeness can help with his memory.
However, for the most part, the amnesia plot has turned out to be an exhausting lie, Cemre admits. At first, it seemed like the best course of action. She knew Emir would ask about and talk about Reyhan. So Cemre decided to go with the story that Emir and Reyhan divorced, but that Emir has no memory of it. She thought she'd be able to convince him of even the possibility he has amnesia. But he refuses to give in.
Another mistake may have been giving him so much of the drugs on the boat after she took him. She wanted him to stay unconscious, but she ended up giving him too much of the drug. This hospital wasn't her original plan. Her original plan was to take him across the water from Izmir to Greece. When he woke up, he would have realized how relieved he was to finally be away from Reyhan and eventually realize he's always loved Cemre. Then he and Cemre would finally be able to live the life they were meant to live.
They did make it to Greece, but then the overdose happened. That wasn't just a cover story. She actually did give him too much and he needed medical attention. She let the hospital believe Emir did it to himself. And that she was his wife. A crazy plan with more risks than she anticipated, but it seems to be working. She even got Cavidan in on the plan. She has to admit, it wouldn't have worked without her verifying Cemre's lies. Cavidan also had to convince the police that Emir had left on his own. Cemre helped with that. She put Cavidan in touch with her friend who forged the other document for them to come up with some phony divorce papers. They of course won't hold up in court, but they look real enough to convince the police and these doctors that Emir and Reyhan are divorced.
But the doctors are talking about releasing Emir soon. She can't let that happen until she knows Emir will stay with her. If he walks out these doors on his own two feet, there's no way she'll be able to get him to their house. Behind locked doors where only she has the key. They'd have a good life in that house. They'd have children to replace the ones Reyhan tried to force on him. He'd forget all about Reyhan and the love he thinks he has for her. Cemre is the one Emir is supposed to love. But he clearly doesn't know how far she's willing to go to make that happen.
He's about to find out.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Emir awakens again to cloudiness and confusion. He groans in frustration when he realizes he's still at the hospital. That groan turns into a moan of pain when his head starts to pound. It feels like he's been drugged again. He tries to lift his hand to his head and realizes he's been restrained again. And that his bed is moving.
"What's going on?" he asks. Or at least he thinks that's what he said. His words are slurred. What drugs did they give him this time? Some time later - he's not sure because he must have gone unconscious again - he wakes in a different room. This room has a coded entry and a large window in place of a wall for observation. The door has a slot at the bottom, just wide enough for a tray of food. Emir starts to panic. This isn't a room. It's a cell.
"Why have you locked me in like this?" he asks when he realizes where he is. He had earned his freedom by his good behavior over the past few days. They even said they'd be releasing him soon. He passed all their tests and they didn't think his so called memory gaps required him to stay any longer. It wasn't the ideal solution to the problem, but he figured they'd have to let him out eventually and then he'd be able to get away from Cemre and call Reyhan.
But if he's locked up again, he has no idea why. Something must have happened to change their mind.
Then he sees.
Cemre walks up to the window and stares in at him with a grin only he can see. Her face is swollen and bruised. And she's favoring her left arm, cradling it gently against her chest.
"What happened to you?" he asks, getting a bad feeling. Especially when Cemre's smug grin turns into tearful pleading to the large man standing next to her. This man is wearing a white coat and appears to be a doctor.
"You see? He doesn't even remember doing this. He wasn't himself," he hears Cemre say, her voice coming through an intercom that allows two way conversation between the inside and outside of the room. They have no intention of coming in here. He's being isolated. Because apparently Cemre told them he beat her up. Unbelievable.
"I didn't do anything!" Emir insists, starting to struggle against his restraints again. He hates them. He worked hard to get out of them. He's not going to let Cemre's lies have him locked up again. Enough is enough.
"So I hit myself?" Cemre asks.
That stops him cold. Because he realizes that's exactly what she did. She beat herself and made these people think he did it. And now he's locked away like some dangerous animal.
"Cemre, what is wrong with you?" he asks. "How can you do this to me? How can you be so evil? I get it. You hate Reyhan. But what about my children? You grew up without your father. Why are you trying to make my children do the same? My daughter is wondering where her father is, Cemre. Let me go back to my family."
Emir screams in frustration when Cemre just shakes her head and wipes away fake tears. She starts to lose her balance, forcing the doctor to catch her to keep her from falling.
"I need to get away here," he hears her say before the doctor leads her away.
Unbelievable. Cemre is truly unbelievable. Even knowing the things she's done in the past, this is far beyond anything he'd ever expect she could do. His mother too. How could she be involved in this? But all of that can wait. He has more important things to worry about. Like how is he going to get out of this place now? He's locked up even tighter. He's truly trapped. And now, he's truly worried. He might not ever see his family again. A pain like one he's never felt fills his heart and he finally breaks down. His tears leave him exhausted and he falls into a restless sleep, a dream angel there waiting to comfort him.
"Reyhan," he mumbles incoherently in his sleep.
At least she's there in his dreams. He'll just stay there with her and forget about the nightmare he's living through.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Something isn't right here. The doctor stares through the glass at his new patient with a frown. He's read the history they gave him on this patient, but things just aren't adding up. The man comes in for treatment for an alleged drug overdose. But there's no indication he has any kind of addiction. There's been no signs of withdrawal. No attempts at getting any more of the drug. No physical signs he's ever even done drugs in the past. It doesn't make sense.
He's also spoken with the man's wife. The wife insists she just wants her loving husband back. But the man only looks at her with hate in his eyes. Has apparently beaten her. Calls another woman's name in his sleep. Again ... it doesn't make sense. None of this is making sense. If anything, the wife is the one giving off strange vibes. She sometimes gets a strange look in her eyes. It's possible it's because of the abuse. But that story is off too.
In any event, his first priority is to this patient. As soon as he wakes up, they will be having a conversation. He's very interested in finding out who the mysterious Reyhan is. She may hold the key to this whole situation.