Underestimated (35 page)

vendor of old-time candies and thought that it would make

a perfect fitment for the shop, and I of course grabbed one

of his catalogues. There were candy cigarettes, those

necklaces that you had to bite the candy off, wax lips, and

every flavor of jellybeans imaginable. I crinkled my nose

at the thought of sardine flavored jellybeans, but knew they

would sell, just because they were different.

The four of us went out for supper again at the

same restaurant. I was the one that drank a little too much

that time, but I didn’t care. I was having the time of my

life, and I don’t think I have ever laughed that much in my

entire life.

I said goodbye to Sunny, Marsha and Wendy and

headed back to the airport with the rental car the following

morning. Sunny and Wendy were staying another night.

They wanted to catch one of the shows before heading

home the next day. Marsha was flying out the same

evening. I couldn’t wait to get home and see Dawson. It

was crazy how much I missed him. If someone would have

told me two years prior that I could be in love with

someone the way I was with him, I would have deemed

them crazy.

I parked the rental car where I was supposed to. I

called Dawson just before boarding and told him that I

would see him in eight hours. I had another layover in

Chicago for an hour, but I was fine with it. I would be

going to bed in his arms that night. That was all that I

cared about. I told him that I loved him and was getting

ready to board when I realized that I had the keys to the

rental in my hand.

“How much time do I have?” I asked the lady at

the gate.

I told her that I would be right back. I had ten

minutes to board. I wished that I would have just taken the

keys and sent them in the mail.

I rushed out to the parking lot to deposit the keys in

the glove box of the car, where I was supposed to have

left them. I was just crossing the crosswalk and like an

idiot, turned when I heard someone yell.

“Morgan?”

I knew it was Derik before I ever turned my head.

Fuck…

What the hell was I supposed to do now? I

panicked and sprinted to the rental car, started it and

backed out of the parking space, trying to get out of there

in the ridiculous traffic. I would catch the next flight. I

knew they would track down every name on that plane if I

would have gotten on it. I wasn’t chancing that. Every

thought possible was going through my mind. What if he

caught me? What would Drew do to me? I couldn’t go

back there, and for the first time since I had met Dawson, I

wished I would have given him his name or even mine

before I became Riley Murphy. He had no way to find me.

He thought that I was on a plane heading toward Chicago.

I kept a close eye on my rearview mirror. Derik

was one car behind me. I could see him on his cellphone

and knew exactly who he was talking to. I could hear

Drew’s voice on the other end, telling him not to lose me.

I felt like my world was crashing in on me. Everything that

I had worked so hard for, for the past two years was

hanging by a thread, all because I was stupid. I should

have never chanced being there in the first place.

I was finally out of the airport traffic and into even

more traffic darting in and out of lanes, trying to lose him.

I had no idea where I was or where I was going. I wanted

to call Dawson. I had to call Dawson. He had to be able to

find me if I was caught. I reached into my purse to retrieve

my phone and looked up just in time to keep from hitting

the stopped bus. My purse and all of its contents landed on

the passenger floor.

This could not be happening. It was like one of

those movies that kept you on the end of your seat, waiting

to see what happened. I went around the bus, and Derik

was now right behind me. I shot back in front of the bus

and took the next street to the right. I kept darting in and

out of traffic, up and down different streets with Derik

right on my tail.

I finally got out of the city enough to get some

speed, still passing cars, illegally. I didn’t care. I would

have loved for the cops to see me and stop me. They

didn’t, and I was left to fend for myself. I was a few cars

ahead of him when I came up on a sports car with the top

down, full of young girls. They were yelling and having

the time of their life, but they were driving too slowly. I

knew I shouldn’t try it. I couldn’t see if anything was

coming from the little knoll.

I darted around them, and I was right. I shouldn’t

have done it. Neither I nor the city bus driver had time to

react before my car was under his bumper. I don’t

remember much after that. I could vaguely recall sirens,

voices and the sound of a saw. I was hot. I was so hot, and

I could smell smoke. Was the car on fire? Was I being cut

out of the car? I didn’t know. I was drifting away. I felt my

body becoming lighter and lighter as I floated into the

dark.

I’m sorry, Dawson…

***

I didn’t know how long I had been there. I coughed

and didn’t like the tube in my throat. The lights were

bright, and I was confused. I gagged on the tube inserted

into my throat as I tried to move my head.

The tube was being pulled out. That was why it

was gagging me. I managed to get my eyes opened and saw

a doctor, a nurse and a man that looked familiar, but I just

couldn’t put my finger on who he was just yet.

“Mrs. Kelley, can you hear me?” the doctor asked.

Mrs. Kelley? Mrs. Kelley? I repeated over in my

head unable to speak. That didn’t sound right. Was that my

name?

I let my eyes close again and drifted back into the

darkness. I don’t think I was out very long. I think the

doctor had continued to call my name or somebody’s

name. None of it made any since. I had no recollection of

anything.

“Mrs. Kelley, can you tell me your name?” the

doctor spoke.

I looked at the man who felt familiar, and he

looked worried. Was he worried about me? Who was he?

“Where am I?” I asked.

“You’re in the hospital, baby,” the man who

seemed to know me said. I pulled my hand away from him.

I didn’t know who he was.

“What’s wrong with me?”

“You were in a bad car accident, but you’re going

to be okay,” the man that thought he knew me replied.

“How long have I been here?”

“We have had you in an induced coma for five

weeks now. You suffered a ruptured spleen, broken pelvis

and a serious head injury. Your brain had swollen

severely, so we put you into an induced coma so it could

recover.”

“Five weeks?” I asked. I wasn’t sure why it

mattered. I couldn’t even remember my name.

“Mrs. Kelley, can you tell me what your name is?”

“Who are you?” I asked, turning to the man who

seemed to care about me.

“It’s me, Morgan, Drew. I’m your husband.”

What the fuck??? I don’t think so…

“I don’t think that is right,” I assured him.

“You might suffer some memory loss from your

head injury, but I am highly optimistic that you will have a

full recover. Memory loss is a common side-effect of

serious head injuries. It is highly likely it will return in

time,” the doctor explained.

I drifted back off. That was enough. I couldn’t take

anymore. Maybe the next time I woke it would be over.

Maybe it was just a bad dream. Yeah, that’s what it was. I

will wake to my real life the next time.

I think I was out for a long time. The room was

dark, and the same man that was there earlier was sitting

in the chair. He jumped up when he saw that I was awake.

“Hey,” he softly spoke. I pulled my hand out of his

again. It took every bit of strength that I had. My arm felt

so heavy.

“You should leave. I don’t know who you are,” I

demanded.

“I’m your husband, Morgan. We’ve been married

for almost eight years.”

“I don’t believe you.”

He got my purse and showed me my Nevada

driver’s license. The picture looked familiar but was it

me? That didn’t prove anything.

Every time I woke this man was sitting there. Why

wouldn’t he leave?

I don’t know how many more days I was there

drifting in and out of consciousness, but every time I woke

this man was there. He was there when I was moved to the

rehabilitation center as well.

I was starting to come around and was awake more

and more. This guy who claimed to be my husband was

always there, always telling me how much how much he

missed me being home with him.

Evidently I had just gotten home when I had my

accident. Apparently I had been studying English

Literature in France, and hadn’t even made it home yet or

so I was told. I didn’t remember being in France either. I

was scared, and I felt like my whole life had been erased.

Why couldn’t I remember something? Anything? It was so

frustrating. I felt a massive void, and despite the things this

Drew character had begun telling me about my past, it was

all alien. He said that we were getting ready to start a

family, we lived in a beautiful mansion and that I loved

books. It all sounded so superficial, and for some reason I

didn’t believe him.

Each morning, I'd wake up hoping it would be the

day everything would come flooding back. It was

frightening and frustrating because each day was as

strange as the one before. No matter how hard I tried, I

had absolutely no idea who Drew was or how much we

meant to one another. He seemed to care about me a lot

more than I cared about him. He was always there.

I did start seeing less of him because he said that

he had to work. I didn’t care if he went to work. I didn’t

want him there. He still came every night, but sometimes it

was a few days because he had to go out of town. He

could have stayed out of town.

I spent three weeks in the rehabilitation center

learning to walk and regaining my strength. Had I known

that the doctor was going to release me to that man I would

have contrived injured longer.

“Where are my parents?” I had asked when the

doctor talked to me about going home.

“Honey, both your parents are gone,” Drew

explained.

“Gone where?” I wanted to know. I knew that I

was only twenty six. My Nevada driver’s license said so.

Why didn’t I have parents?”

“Your dad passed away a few years back, and you

never really knew your mom. She left when you were just

a little girl?” Drew explained. He sounded sincere. I guess

I didn’t have a reason not to believe him.

“What about brothers or sisters? Don’t I have any

family?”

“Not really, Morgan. You and I were getting ready

to start our own family, remember?”

No. you fucking idiot, I don’t remember.

Another familiar face picked us up from the

hospital. I was wheeled out, and Drew helped me into the

back seat. I was doing much better and could walk on my

own, but moving into the car hurt.

Drew sat right beside me in the backseat. I wished

that he would move over, and every time he tried to take

my hand, I pulled it away. It just didn’t feel right to me.

I know that my eyes had to be wide open when we

pulled into the long drive with a security gate. I read the

sign above the gate.

‘Callaway Estates.’

Wow, was this where I lived? None of it looked

familiar. The house was a mansion. I mean big enough to

get lost in. This didn’t seem right either. I didn’t think that

I had really lived there at all.

“What the fuck is he doing here, Derik?” Drew

asked the driver, and then looked to me like he was afraid

of scaring me or something.

“I don’t know, but I’m sure he has a right to be

here whenever he wants,” the driver stated, and I

wondered what that meant. Who were they talking about?

I saw the frail older man in his wheelchair

waiting. Was he waiting for me? I didn’t know him either.

There were three nurses with him. Was he sick?

Drew helped me out of the car, and the older