Page 142 of Fought and Freed

Her head throbbed.

“Ms. Walsh, can you hear me?” asked a voice.

She tried to talk, but she couldn’t. Her voice just cracked.

“Can you try to open your eyes?” the voice encouraged.

Maddy nodded and slowly opened her eyes. She licked dry lips.

A young-looking guy in a white coat with a stethoscope around his neck stood in front of her. “Let me get you a drink.”

She sipped from the cup he offered and tried to speak again. “What happened?”

“What do you remember?”

“I was driving here because my boyfriend’s having a baby.” She knew that didn’t make sense, but she didn’t care.

Closing her eyes, she tried to think back. She had gone through a green light but couldn’t remember what had happened after except for the sound of metal crunching.

Cringing, she opened her eyes again. “Was I in an accident?”

He nodded. “I’m Matt, a seventh-year resident. I saw you when you came in. Someone hit you on the driver’s side. The first responder said that they had to cut you out of the car. Your seat belt kept you safe, but you have a mild concussion.”

He drew her attention to the cast on her arm. “Your left arm was also fractured. We did an internal fixation, which means we physically reconnected the bones by using special screws, plates, wires, or nails to align the bones correctly. This prevents the bones from healing abnormally.”

Dazed, she stared at the cast before looking back up at Matt. “Am I free to go? I have a friend who’s having a baby, and I’d like to go find them.”

He looked resigned. “I’d like to keep you for observations, but I have a feeling you’ll just sign yourself out. Have someone wake you up every two hours, and if you have a severe headache or dizziness, I need you to come back in.”

He typed notes into a tablet as he spoke. “As for your arm, you’ll need to make an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon. I’ll give you a referral. And before you leave, there are two cops outside who would like to talk to you. I’ll go get your paperwork.”

As he left the room, two cops walked in.

“Ms. Walsh?” asked the younger female cop.

“Yes, that’s me,” she said, trying to sound cheery.

“I’m Officer Bryant, and this is Officer Rivera.” She gestured at herself and her older male partner. “We’d like to talk to you about the accident.”

“I’ll be honest.” Maddy rubbed her temple. “I don’t remember much.”

“That’s okay,” Officer Bryant said in a soothing tone. “Why don’t you tell us what you do remember?”

“I was coming up on a four-way intersection and the light was green light, so I drove through like normal.” Maddy spoke slowly, hoping anything new would surface, but her memory remained blank. “I don’t know what happened after that. Just the sound of metal on metal, my body bouncing around, and being in a lot of pain. Then, I woke up here.”

“You don’t remember seeing a black truck heading toward you?” Officer Rivera pressed.

“No. Did they hit me?” she asked.

“Based on what we pulled from the camera at the intersection, the truck was parked at the curb, and when you drove through the light, they slammed on the gas and rammed into you.” Officer Bryant shook her head. “It’s a miracle you aren’t seriously hurt. The responders had to cut you out.”

“Your car is a total loss,” Officer Rivera added.

Her chest tightened. Fuck, she’d just bought that car. “Do you know why someone hit me?”

If it was Mike, wouldn’t he have stayed to make sure he finished the job? She’d been passed out. He had more than enough time to take her out. And how would he have known she’d be driving through that intersection right then?

“At this time, no. But we will.” A determined gleam entered Officer Bryant’s eyes. “While they got away, they weren’t too smart. The truck was stolen, but there were prints all over the thing. It will only be a matter of time before we catch them.”

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