Page 36 of Help Me Remember

“Did you remember something?”

“Almost.”

“Almost?”

“Yes, almost,” I snapped out of frustration as we reached the bottom of the stairs. “It was like it was trying to come, and then it just…went away, alright?”

“Oh…like a sneeze.”

“Like a—” I began incredulously and then stopped, my hand resting on the door leading outside. “Actually. I guess it was kind of like that.”

“See? I’m helpful,” Eric said brightly.

I eyed him. “I have serious concerns about not only your definition of helpful but these random mood swings of yours.”

“Sometimes in life you either piss your pants out of fear or you learn to smile,” he said, throwing my words from earlier back at me. “Guess I’m the smiling type.”

“Wonderful,” I said with a sigh. “Now stay behind me, got it?”

“Christ, and to think I found your bossiness kinda sexy when we were younger,” he muttered as I pushed open the door.

I’m not proud to say that my hand stuttered as I pushed the door open, glancing over my shoulder to glare at him before edging out into the alley. A large, overstuffed dumpster sat next to the door, blocking my view of the mouth of the alley, while the opposite end was cut off by a chain-link fence covered with a sheet of tattered plastic.

I nodded for Eric to follow me as I stepped out and peered around the dumpster. Only as the door shut behind him with a bang did I realize we weren’t alone in the alleyway. A man, clad in dirty clothes, was huddled against the wall. He looked up, but from the distant, faraway stare in his eyes, I’d have bet he barely noticed us.

Then he caught sight of Eric, and his gaze cleared. His eyes widened, and he glanced toward something on the other side of the dumpster. I froze, holding my hand out to stop Eric as I realized the dripping sound I could hear wasn’t a leaking pipe. A second man backed out from the spot between two dumpsters, shaking his pants in a way that told me we’d interrupted him.

Without thinking, I reached for the side of the dumpster as the man backed up, wrapping my hand around the unused locking bar. The man’s suit stood out as he adjusted his pants and turned to face us. The look of surprise on his face was almost comical, but the “what the fuck” he spat out was less amusing because this time I recognized Russian when I heard it.

He turned, barking out a single syllable over his shoulder before I stepped out and swung the bar. It made a dull, thick noise as it caught the sentry in the side of the head. His cry died instantly, and he crumpled to the ground without another word.

I tossed the bar into the dumpster just in time to see two more people appear at the mouth of the alley. “Shit.”

“So much for stealth,” Eric said, looking down at the unmoving sentry with a wince. “Trying to spread your amnesia?”

I ignored him, nodding at the homeless man. “Thanks, but you might wanna get out of here in case they decide to ask questions.”

“Yeah, go lay low, Dwayne,” Eric said because, of course, he knew the guy’s name. “You know how to stay outta sight better than anyone.”

Dwayne gave Eric a warm smile that was missing more teeth than Mr. Reyes, but there was no mistaking the warmth. I didn’t want to linger as the men started jogging toward us, wearing almost the exact same suits as the man now marinating in the dumpster water of the alley.

“Fence, Go,” I said, turning to give Eric a push.

For once he didn’t have a smart comment, and we both hauled ass toward the chain-link fence with the sounds of the two men’s shouts behind us. With a speed that surprised me, Eric leaped forward and clambered up the fence with a clatter of metal and plastic. He flinched but didn’t hesitate when the first shot rang out.

“Land on your feet!” I barked as I hooked my foot under one of his feet and gave him a shove. I was relieved when I saw him practically flip over the top of the fence, though from the surprised yelp and thud I heard, I was betting he was less happy.

Something told me I was going to hear about that one later.

I didn’t have time to waste on whether or not he’d landed gracefully, as I still had to leap up and clamber over the fence. Sparks flew next to my eyes, stinging my brow as a bullet grazed past me, making a messy hole in the plastic sheet. Grabbing the top where it was safe, I twisted my body and heaved myself over, falling eight feet to the ground and landing on my feet.

“Let’s go,” I barked, grabbing Eric by his upper arm and dragging him to his feet to start running to the opposite end of the alley.

Our feet slammed against the ground as we barreled down the alley to the sound of the fence clattering behind us. I jerked Eric to the side just in time to hear a gunshot ring out.

“Jesus,” he breathed as we reached the mouth of the alley. “Go left, go left!”

I didn’t argue, pushing him ahead and cutting to the left as we reached the pavement. The gunshots had chased off most people, but Eric ran forward, glancing around frantically before darting into the street. I muttered as I hurried after him, checking to make sure we weren’t going to get run over.

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