Chapter 4
I was crying, and I couldn’t stop myself. Tears fell down my cheeks. I didn’t know what was happening. All I knew was that I was completely beat up and no one was familiar to me. I couldn’t remember anything.
They’d done a CT and an MRI, but no results yet.
The doctor said he’d be back when they had results.
Ella remained, hovering outside the door. She would look in every now and then but I didn’t want to be seen.
I wiped at the tears and thought about throwing the left over food at … something.
The constant beeping of the monitors beside my bed punctuated the silence.
I wished so hard I could remember something.
After what seemed like forever, he walked in.
The cop from the night before. He was handsome and I didn’t want to notice that. Jet black hair. Blue, penetrating eyes.
McCrae.
What a strange name.
Ella walked in behind him.
Our eyes met, and it felt like something passed between us.
“Did you find out anything?” I blurted.
He stepped up to my bed. “How are you feeling?”
I wiped my face, embarrassed that everyone could see that I’d had a breakdown. “I’m fine. Will you explain everything to me from last night, please?”
He looked pensive, then looked at Ella and back to me. “We got reports that people had spotted someone wandering along the edge of the road, next to the Wyoming–Colorado border.” He cleared his throat. “When I pulled up, I noticed a car wreck and saw you wandering nearby.”
I already knew this. “What else?”
“Are you okay?” he asked.
I shook my head. “No. I’m not. I can’t remember anything. Please, tell me something.”
McCrae looked concerned. “After we got you in the hospital, a team of policemen went to the accident and searched for any kind of marks or tracking, but it had been raining so hard that it would’ve been washed away.”
I gently touched the bandage on the back of my head and winced. “So you don’t know where I came from?”
“I don’t.”
There it was. The emptiness again. “And no one has called about me?”
McCrae cleared his throat and glanced at Ella.
Ella looked worried.
I let out an off pitch laugh. “I’m sorry.” I felt like I was freaking out again. More tears rushed down my face. “I’m sorry.” I covered my face and cried harder. “Who am I?”
Ella was at my side, patting my arm. “It’s okay. It’s going to be okay.”
The rhythmic sounds of hospital equipment filled the silence.
I sniffed and tried to get ahold of myself. “I’m sorry.”
She nodded. “It’s okay.” She squeezed my shoulder. “Look, I have some paperwork to fill out. I’m going to leave you two to talk for a little bit. Then I’ll be back, and I think Dr. Chavez will be back as well with answers about those tests they ran.”
She left, and it felt like the room got smaller.
McCrae stared at me.
I wanted to cover my face again, but I simply sucked in a long breath.
“This situation sucks, I’ll give you that.”
I nodded, feeling hopeless. Suddenly, I noticed a mirror on the wall and noted that while the blood was gone from my face, my hair was haphazardly pulled back in a rubber band, and the bandage was there.
The harsh hospital lights emphasized the paleness of my skin and the dark circles under my eyes.
I looked at my hands like I was surprised. The IV tube snaked from my arm to the machine beside the bed, a constant reminder of my current state.
“So you really don’t remember anything?” McCrae asked quietly.
I turned and met his dark blue eyes. Again, I noticed the man was handsome and intense. He was very muscly and probably six foot two.
“What?” McCrae asked.
“I don’t remember,” I said, feeling frustrated and looking away toward the small window that offered a view of the town below. “I don’t remember anything, except that card I gave you.”
His face went somber. “Yes, you did give me a card with ‘Pete’s Trucking,’ and on the other side, it had ‘T. Carter’? Do you have any idea what that could mean? Does that jog anything in your mind?”
T. Carter, T. Carter, T. Carter. I shook my head. “No, nothing.” My mind tried to find some answers. “Where’s Pete’s Trucking?”
“Someone I know said that Pete’s Trucking is located in Casper, and I guess last night there was also a search and rescue going on in Casper for someone who had an accident. I’m going to go back to the police station and see if they’ve tracked down any leads for any of this.”
I was dumbfounded. The continual beep of the heart monitor quickened slightly with my pulse. “Wait a second, you think I could have been the accident from Casper? How far is that?”
He shrugged. “About two and a half hours away from here, give or take.”
“Okay.” I sputtered out a laugh and then got frustrated. The rough texture of the bandage irritated my scalp as I shifted on the pillow. “That doesn’t mean anything to me.”
McCrae didn’t respond.
Dr. Chavez walked in, carrying his tablet, and Ella was behind him. The door closed with a soft thud behind them.
McCrae nodded to him. “Hey, doc.”
Dr. Chavez nodded in return, then turned to me. “The tests are normal. But, I just got off the phone with the Denver hospital, and I’m thinking maybe we should transfer you there. There are more brain experts there, and it seems like you have some short-term amnesia going on.”
My heart rate quickened. The monitor beside me beeped more rapidly, reflecting my anxiety. “What? No, I’m not going anywhere.”
Dr. Chavez hesitated. “But you don’t remember anything. They have experts in Denver.”
I put my hand up, the IV line tugging slightly. “But I don’t know anyone there. If someone is looking for me, how are they going to find me?”
Ella moved to my side, putting a hand on my forearm. “This accident is going to be all over the news, and if someone is looking for you, they’ll probably come here first, and then we’ll refer them to the Denver hospital.”
Fear pierced my soul, and I couldn’t explain it. Tears came to my eyes again. “No!” I shouted. “I’m not leaving. I don’t even know anyone. I don’t remember anything.” I reached out and grabbed McCrae’s arm. “You can’t let them take me.”
His eyes locked on mine, and something passed between us. The room seemed to fade away, the antiseptic smell and the constant beeping receding into the background.
McCrae turned to the doctor. “What other tests do they need to run in Denver that you can’t run here?”
Dr. Chavez frowned. “I’m not sure. That’s why I want to send her to Denver.”
“She really should go to a bigger hospital,” Ella told McCrae. “They have more resources and more—”
“No!” I shouted, my voice bouncing off the bare walls.
“I don’t know anyone, and I’m terrified.
” My voice cracked, and to my horror, more tears were forming in my eyes.
I clutched at McCrae’s arm. “I’m not going.
You can’t let them take me. You found me, and you’re responsible for me.
” I sounded like a frantic, sullen child, but I didn’t have anything else to hold on to.
“Please. I don’t know anyone, and I’m scared. Please.”
McCrae’s whole face darkened, and then he turned to the doctor. “Let’s keep her another day before we do anything. I’m going to go to the station and try to figure some things out, but we’re not going to transfer her for another day. Okay?”
Dr. Chavez looked like he wanted to complain, but then he nodded. “Okay.” He turned to me, the shadows from the blinds striping across his concerned face. “Don’t worry. You’re going to stay here for a day. Hopefully you’ll start remembering things, and we’ll get some answers.”
Slight relief took the edge off my panic. I pulled my hand back. “I hope so.” For some reason, I trusted McCrae, and I hoped he wouldn’t let me down.