Chapter 8
Ansley woke up in a medical facility. She could tell it was military based on the dull color of the walls. Her head ached and her body hurt, but she was alive.
How had she survived? Her memory was Swiss cheesed, broken flashes, and half thoughts. The bits and pieces she remembered didn’t make sense. Then one face seemed to overshadow everything.
Link.
He’d gotten her into a helicopter. That had saved her. She guessed the pain, the knock to her head, and whatever else happened had taken her down into a foggy abyss.
Where was he? Not here. She sighed, knowing she would never see him again. She could just imagine driving up to Fort Bragg and asking for Link. They would laugh her off base.
Oh well, it was for the best. She didn’t need to be tied down, and she didn’t need to tie anyone to her. She wasn’t good luck, and that fact would be very apparent to him once her history was revealed.
A shiver raced through her as she thought about the last guy she dated, an image of him hanging from the end of the pier lodged in her brain.
The accident had been so freakish that people still talked about it.
He'd slipped and fallen, but not in a smooth way.
No, he'd been walking on the railing of the pier, which had been slick because, duh, ocean.
He'd fallen and ended up suspended from his hoodie string that had caught between the ends of two pieces of wood.
The whole scene had been awful. His family still blamed her. They said she'd pushed him even though there was CCTV footage showing that she was nowhere near him when he fell.
The dude she dated before him also didn't live after crashing his car into the side of a mountain. She was lucky she had an alibi for the entire few months before the crash since she'd been overseas. If the police could have pinned it on her, they would have in a heartbeat.
Then there was the guy she dated in high school who climbed the water tower and fell to his death. She'd told him not to go up, but he hadn't listened. Luck had been with her in that situation, and a camera caught her begging him not to go up, then her leaving to find a phone to call the police.
Three guys and three deaths that were all freak accidents that she had nothing to do with, but the police in all three situations originally accused her of having something to do with their deaths.
Rotten didn’t even begin to describe her luck with guys. Cursed was more like it, not that she really believed in curses. But how else could she explain all three of her boyfriends ending up dead? It would be best if Link stayed away from her.
The door opened, and though she knew it would be best for Link to disappear, hope still rose as she waited for the person to step in. It was only a nurse, not Link.
“You’re awake. That’s good. How do you feel?”
She grunted. “Like hell.”
“At least you’re feeling something. We’ll count that as a win.”
“Yeah, that is a win.”
The nurse checked the monitors hooked up to her while making notes. She worked efficiently, then turned, her lips pulling up to one side.
“I’m going to see if we can get you more pain meds. Nothing too heavy, just something to take the edge off. You need to get up to use the restroom. Your leg will probably hurt, but I’ll help you over to the bathroom and let you go in peace.”
“Thank you. Any chance of a shower today?”
The nurse shook her head. “No, not today. Maybe tomorrow. We don’t want you falling and hurting yourself.”
The lack of a shower would eventually get to her. She hated being dirty. That didn’t match well with being a Marine, but she’d put up with it because she had to.
Soon, she wouldn’t have to get dirty and stay dirty. She would never get dirty again, not like Marine dirty. It was a special type of grit that got on and stayed on all Marines. Sometimes, even showers didn’t get the stink off.
“You ready to get up and walk to the bathroom?”
It was now or never. She nodded and drew in a deep breath as the nurse raised the head of the bed. Pain shot through her. Why did her whole body hurt?
“That’s it, you’re good,” the nurse said as she swung her legs over the side so she could stand. “Take it slow.”
She nodded and slid forward with the nurse's help. When her sock-clad feet hit the floor, she moaned as pain danced up her leg, nearly stealing her breath. "What did they do in surgery?"
“The doctor will be in to explain later.”
“Okay. I think I can walk.”
“We’ll take it one step at a time. Use the walker, though your arm will probably hurt a little.”
It was slow going, but she made it to the bathroom with the aid of a walker and didn’t have to use the wheelchair.
After using the toilet, she stood at the sink and washed her hands. It felt good to get her hands clean, so she took a moment and washed her face, removing the grime.
When she stood and glanced in the mirror, she was surprised by the bruises that she’d thought were dirt before washing her face.
“You okay in there?” the nurse called through the door.
“Yes. Just washing my face.”
The door cracked open. “Can I come in?”
“Sure. I’m decent-ish.”
The nurse propped the door open and brought in a stool. "So, would you like to take a mini sponge bath in here? I can help you get some of the harder-to-get areas."
“Do you have time?”
“Sure. We won’t be able to get your hair washed, but we can get some of the grime off your body.”
“Thank you.”
"Let me get everything set up." The nurse braced the fold-down bench in the shower, then pointed at it. "Take a seat there, and we'll get going."
“Thank you so much.”
“Sure. I just want to make sure you don’t get your leg wet, so I’m going to get another stool to put your foot on and raise your leg.”
It only took another minute to set up, but after washing off, Ansley felt so much better. Before the sponge bath, she'd been able to smell herself, but now she could only smell the soap. Next, she would need to wash her hair, but that could wait until the next day or so.
After getting back into bed, exhaustion hit. More painkillers were given, and she drifted off. She wasn’t sure when she woke, but she could hear someone in the room with her before she opened her eyes.
Slowly, she blinked her eyes open and couldn't believe what she was looking at. Link was sitting in the recliner next to her bed, his eyes closed. After a few seconds, he blinked open his eyes and a slow smile curved up his lips.
"You woke up. I have to take off in about thirty—well, now twenty minutes. I wanted to make sure you had my information. When you get back stateside, come find me. I have a three-bedroom house. My roommate moved out two weeks ago, so there's an extra bed where you can crash for a while."
Ansley pushed the button to raise the head of her beds, glad she’d taken the sponge bath. She wished her hair was clean, but at least she didn’t stink as badly as she had before.
“You’re here.”
He nodded and sat forward, placing his hand on hers. “I am. I had to leave for a bit, but I wanted to stop by before we take off.”
“Thank you. I thought you were gone.”
“Not a chance, not without talking to you first.”
He held her gaze, heating her with his intensity.
Could she actually believe that he was interested in her?
Maybe he was just being a friend. And what about her track record?
She didn't want anything bad to happen to him.
She wasn't cursed because curses weren't real, but still, she worried.
Going to North Carolina to see Link wouldn't make anything bad happen, at least she hoped it wouldn’t.