Page 5 of Begin Again
“No.” I pull myself up from the floor.
“You’re no fun,Xavier,” she huffs. “Or whatever your name is.”
I glance over my shoulder to see she has flopped back on the bed with her arms crossed over her chest. Her auburn hair has started to fall out of the updo she had it in, splayed out beneath her head as she glares up at the ceiling.
God, she’s so dramatic.
I roll my eyes, looking through the dresser for something a little less…tight for her to sleep in, trying to ignore the slight sting in my chest. I shouldn’t let her words affect me so much, I know that, but they sting. I thought we had gotten past the attitude but guess not.
“Middle and bottom drawer,” she calls from her place, her words more sober than they have been all night. She continues to stare at the ceiling when I place a pair of sweats and an oversized T-shirt on the bed next to her.
“Goodnight, Charlie,” I say and leave without waiting for a response.
Things with Charlie are complicated. They have been from the moment I stepped foot on Blackwood Ranch. The welcoming committee wasn’t exactly…welcoming at first. I can’t blame her. She didn’t know me any better than I knew myself. Every day I wake up, I wake up a new person. But as I’ve settled into life on the ranch, Charlie and I have found common ground, albeit still shaky at times, and settled into something, too…Even if I’m not exactly sure what that means.
I open my bedroom door to get ready for work, I can’t help but think about how we’ve ended up here…
CHAPTER TWO
One Year Ago
April 2028
MY HEAD SNAPS FORWARD from its resting place against the cool window, pulling me instantly from sleep, and I have to look around to catch my bearings. To remember where I am. The police SUV climbs up the dirt road of a mountain with nothing but thick trees and brush on either side. To my left is Chief Daniel Sloan, dressed in a starched white button-up with a navy blue tie secured by a gold tie clip, all underneath a black jacket with a sleeve patch that readsBezer Police Department. There’s a white cowboy hat on the bench between us.
Taking a deep breath, I rub my hand over my shaved head and settle back into my seat. I hadn’t been asleep long, but I wonder if I had been able to get a few more minutes if I would have been able to dream of something and it would trigger another memory or a name or anything…
“You okay over there?” Chief Sloan asks.
“Y-yeah,” I say. “Good to go.”
“You sure you want to do this?”
“Do I have another option?”
It’s been three days since I woke up in Bezer General Hospital. Doctor Sanders said there isn’t anything we can do…It’s up to me to remember. And so far, there have been no signs of that happening soon.
Yesterday afternoon, there was a discussion between Doctor Sanders, Chief Sloan, and Mr. Blackwood about what to do with me. The doctor was adamant there must be some way to identify me—fingerprints? DNA? Anything?
“We ran his prints,” Chief Sloan had said, standing in the hospital room. “I took ’em when he came in, but nothing showed up in our database.”
“What’s that mean?” Mr. Blackwood asked. Joseph Blackwood was one of the men who had found me on the outskirts of town two days prior. He was a gruff man with a head full of white hair and a white beard. His broad stance oozed confidence, a kind of confidence only certain individuals had. I was surprised when he walked in with Sloan that morning, unsure what insight he could offer into the situation, but at that point, I was open to just about anything.
“Just means he’s never been arrested. And I’m sorry to say, but until we figure out who he is, or someone comes looking for him…we can’t let him leave.”
“Well, what are we supposed to do with him?” Doctor Sanders asked, his fingers rubbing the white mustache resting on his upper lip. His striking blue eyes narrowed on Sloane.
“Well, we can put his photo up,” Sloan said. “I’ve alerted the sheriff, gave him a copy of the photo too, but he hasn’t had any reports come in.” His words trailed off, shoulders raised in a shrug. He didn’t say the thing we were all thinking: If I had been in Bezer at least four days at that point, and no one had filed a missing person report yet, what were the odds of them doing it at all? Chief Sloan shrugged, hands gripping his waistband. “There isn’t much else I can do until he remembers something.”
The pounding in my head grew with each word as I listened to them continue to go back and forth. The light became toobright, and the sounds of the machines pierced my eardrums. The only thing I could hear was the loud whoosh of blood as it coursed through my veins, making the throbbing between my eyes worse.
A cold hand ushered me to lie back, and I could faintly hear Doctor Sanders on the other side of the thunderous pounding. “Okay, that’s enough for today.”
A moment later, the nurse walked in with a Tylenol and an ice pack, taking over for the doctor and helping me settle back onto the bed.
“Look.” Chief Sloan sighed. “I wish there was more I could do, but this is how we have to proceed when dealing with a John Doe.”
John Doe.
