“Why am I here? Was I in an accident?” Eva searched her mom’s tired expression for an explanation.
“You don’t remember what happened?”
Eva shook her head. The muscles in her neck were sore and tight, and she massaged them with her hand.
Lori opened her mouth to speak, but a hollow knock interrupted her.
“Come in,” Eva called instinctually.
The door opened and a tall dark-haired man walked through. His five o’clock shadow enhanced his strong jaw. “Hi, Eva, Ms. Kostas.” He nodded in Lori’s direction.
“Detective, this is probably not the best time. She just woke up.”
“No, it’s okay, Mom,” Eva said, patting Lori’s arm.
He approached the foot of the bed and hesitantly put a hand on the railing. “I rode in the ambulance with you. You’re looking much better. But, I can come back later. I understand if you’re not ready to talk yet.” His kind smile lifted the corner of his eyes.
“I don’t know what it is you want to talk to me about, but I’m good to talk now.”
“Eva, this is Detective Graham. He and his partner are the men who’ve been handling your case. I’ll be just outside the door if you need me.” Lori walked to James and put a hand on his shoulder. “She doesn’t remember anything. Please go easy on her.”
Eva waited for the door to close to ask her first question. “Mom said you’re handling my case? Did I do something wrong?”
“What’s the last thing you remember?”
Eva didn’t need time to think. Her actions felt like they’d happened only moments before. “I met Bridget at a party. Why aren’t you answering me?”
“You’ve been unconscious for three days. I need to figure out how much you remember about what actually happened.”
“Three days. I’ve been in here for three days?” Her heart beat wildly in her chest. “Why? What happened?”
“You were abducted after you left the party,” he said, matter-of-factly.
Snippets of memories flashed before her eyes. She gulped air and squeezed the bedrails to keep the room from spinning.
“Eva, are you okay?”
“There’s someone in the backseat.” She closed her eyes against the repeating images and steadied her breathing. Familiar laughter seeped into her ears, and she blocked it out along with the memories of her abduction.
“Yes, he hid there and waited for you to leave the party. I can stop if you need me to.”
She relaxed her grip. “No, no it’s fine.”
“Do you remember anything else?”
She shook her head.
“Is it okay if I show you some pictures?” She nodded and he handed her his phone. “Just scroll to the left. If you see anything that looks familiar, or if it’s too much, let me know.”
“That’s the inside of my car,” she said, recognizing the first image.
“Do you see anything missing or out of place.”
She studied the picture. “No. It looks the same as it always does.” She hesitated before tapping the screen for the next photo, not wanting to trigger another avalanche of memories.
“Is this a picture of Bill?”
“Yes, your mother’s boyfriend. No one’s seen him since the night we found you.”
Scream for me! A wild voice rumbled through her mind, and a shadowed wild-eyed face threatened to break through her hazy recollection. Scream for me! The voice echoed.
“It wasn’t Bill.”
“Do you remember someone else?”
“No, I can’t remember who. I just know it wasn’t him.” Laughter tickled at her throat and spilled out of her lips. “I’m sorry. This isn’t funny. I…I don’t know where that came from.”
“It’s okay, Eva. This is stressful. I can’t imagine how I would react if I were in your place. No one expects you to handle this a certain way.” His tone was soft.
“Thank you.”
She held his gaze, and he swiftly darted his eyes. “Just doing my job.”
“But really, thank you. Waking up in the hospital. Finding all of this out. I feel like I’m going crazy.”
“You’re not crazy. Whoever did this, he’s crazy.”
“You said that no one’s seen Bill since you found me.” She placed the phone face down on her lap. “Where exactly did you find me?”
“Actually, I didn’t find you.” He left the foot of the bed and circled to the side. He picked up the phone from Eva’s lap and skipped ahead a few pictures. “He found you. At least he claimed to.”
She took the phone and examined the young man pictured. The familiar, delirious chuckle rippled through her thoughts. You must not deny your warrior’s heart. Eva covered her eyes with her hand and massaged her temple with her thumb. Laughter shook her torso, and she choked it before it burst out of her mouth.
“I need a break. I’m sorry, Detective.”
“Knock, knock.” A smiling Bridget opened the door. “Oh, I didn’t know anyone was in here with you. I’ll come back when you’re finished.”