Page 1 of Cassidy

ChapterOne

Snowflakes melted on his face. Blinking in confusion, he wondered why in the world he was outside lying on the cold, hard ground.

Pushing himself into a sitting position, he winced when his head throbbed with pain. He lifted his hand and found the source, a large bump and a gash of broken skin on the back of his head. When he saw the blood on his fingers, he grimaced and cleaned them with the freshly fallen snow.

He was in danger. The primitive instinct to get away couldn’t be ignored. But as he gazed around, he didn’t see a car or any other source of transportation.

Had he walked there? Or been dumped like garbage?

A sense of urgency hit hard. He needed to get far away before whoever had hit him returned. His thoughts were muddled; he couldn’t remember what had happened. How he’d gotten there. Or why he was even there. Yet a single thought flashed through his mind.

Cassidy. He desperately needed to find Cassidy.

The image of a beautiful redhead was the only clear memory that came to the forefront of his mind. Somehow, he managed to get to his feet. His sneakered feet slipped in the snow, and he frowned when he realized his feet were wet and cold.

His hands too. He patted his coat pockets but didn’t find gloves. Or a phone. He checked his back jeans pocket and shouldn’t have been surprised to find his wallet was gone.

Had he been robbed?

Where exactly was he? Why was he there? And how long had he been unconscious?

Stepping carefully, he made his way down the slippery and deserted stretch of road. He scanned his surroundings. Something about the area was vaguely familiar. Not that he remembered ever having been there before, but because of the open space where some construction work appeared to have been done. Hadn’t he overheard someone talking about a deserted building along an isolated stretch of road? The memory hung like mist in the air, just out of reach.

Why couldn’t he remember?

The lights whizzing by made him realize he wasn’t far from the interstate. Yet seeing cars wasn’t exactly reassuring. What if the person who assaulted and robbed him returned?

A sense of panic hit hard. How would he manage to find Cassidy?

He stumbled but managed to stay upright. Nausea swirled in his belly, and the pain in his head grew worse with every step. Still, he kept moving, placing one foot in front of the other toward the highway that seemed impossibly far away.

As he grew closer, it was clear the road he was on crossed over the highway. A gas station sign gave him hope. He had to believe whoever was manning the gas station would allow him to borrow a phone.

Headlights from a car illuminated the road up ahead, and he instinctively ducked and darted into the clump of trees. His heart thundered in his chest as bitter fear coated his tongue. Were the bad guys coming back to finish him off?

Crouching down behind the bare trees, he watched as the vehicle rolled past. Maybe it was his imagination, but he thought the car moved slower than the weather conditions dictated.

A cautious driver? Maybe.

Yet once the car disappeared from his line of sight, he didn’t move. Didn’t head back out toward the gas station. He didn’t trust anyone.

Except Cassidy.

But she wasn’t there. He forced himself to stay where he was, despite the cold winter wind. When he began to shiver, he realized he was being foolish. There was no reason to risk hypothermia.

Leaving the relative shelter of the trees, he quickened his pace, lightly jogging to get the blood flowing through his veins. The motion made his head hurt, but he did his best to ignore the discomfort.

At this point, pain meant he was alive.

And he fully intended to stay that way.

He finally reached the gas station, thrilled beyond reason to see it included a small store. A bell jingled when he walked in, and he stood for a moment, savoring the warmth.

A dark-skinned man behind the counter eyed him suspiciously. He tried to smile, but his face felt frozen.

Maybe he had frostbite. He wasn’t an expert on that sort of thing.

What was his expertise? Again, there was nothing but swirling mist where his memories should have been.

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