Page 9 of Flint

I grind my teeth to keep my retort to myself, but then my mind has other ideas, and I hope my smile is evil as I feel it twist across my lips. “So have I.” I take my time to look him over, hoping he gets equally put out.

He pushes air out quickly as if it’s a sad joke. “Yeah, and what memory is that?”

I tilt my head, catching his eye as General steps in front of me and starts putting stuff on my head. Think it’s some kind of numbing stuff, because I’m soon a very happy girl, feeling a lot less pain than I was a second ago. Don’t get me wrong, still got a ton more in my system, but the head one was the worst.

“Guess you don’t think too highly of your friends.”

I enjoy the small widening of his eyes. Yeah, that was a direct hit. It helps make the smile real as I turn it on General and tune out Captain Jackass. Not that the good doc says anything. And I really got nothing else to say right now, so I just sit and let him work.

Sometime through it all, a steady beat sounds through the whole place, like music was put on. And with the door to this little clinic still open, I start to hear the words when I close my eyes and focus. I feel like I know the songs, but it’s like a fog that keeps fading away the closer I search my memory for it.

“Don’t push it.”

My eyes snap open. Flint is now sitting in a chair in front of me, but it’s General who draws my attention. He’s still messing with my head, but he must have seen something on my face to get him talking.

“My area of study is more with stitching up the body and sometimes breaking it down. Don’t do a lot with the brain, but I got the basics under my belt. If you’ve got amnesia, then they say don’t rush it. Rushing shit never gets you anywhere. Seen a few patients have similar stories—they fall down and blank on the memory. Not common, but not uncommon either.”

“Can you confirm it?”

I glare at Flint. Is he still questioning me? Dumb question. Of course he is.

“No, not completely. I did a full neurological exam, as well as checked reflexes, muscle tone, muscle strength, sensory function, gait, posture, coordination, and balance from the time you guys came in. I’ll do a few blood draws and get it over to the labs to see if that pulls anything. I would also recommend a CAT scan, but I’m not sure how far you want her treated. If she’s a bag and dump, county hospital is close and open.”

“You are not dumping me on the side of the road like a box of kitties,” I snap.

“What do you remember?” General asks.

“From when? Five minutes ago or five years ago? Be specific, Doc.” Okay, so the “bag and dump” really pissed me off. It shouldn’t, of course. I should have grabbed on to it and said, “Yes, please.” But I don’t like it. Makes me feel like I don’t matter. And who the hell will determine that? Not a bunch of bikers, no matter how hot they all are. So that might explain my little attitude.

“Let’s go from before you woke up. What do you remember?”

“Oh, easy questions. Right, um, I….” I shake my head as I think. And think. And think some more.

“Hey.” He grabs my good arm and shakes it a bit. “Don’t push it.”

I glare at General. He literally asked what I remember. If I don’t think on it, then how the heck will I know? “Right. Honestly, I think I remember graduation. Laughing, caps, gowns. Maybe college? Not sure.”

“That would put it at about ten years she lost, if she’s telling the truth,” Flint states.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake. Who the hell would lie about this?” I have a desire to throw something with this constant questioning.

Flint just raises his shoulders. I look to General, and he does the same.

“Seriously? This stuff happens to you guys all the time?”

“You’d be surprised what people say to get in here,” General quips.

“Okay, well, I’m betting I’m not one of them. Yeah, before you interrupt me”—I hold up a finger at Flint—“which I know you love to do, I get that I have no idea how I would know that. But I’ve got to think if I know Gator boy and no one else is ringing a bell, maybe I didn’t do a rundown on this place or whatever you think I would have done. I mean, I would have had to know what I was walking into if I was that kind of person, right? I would have been smarter than just knowing the boy at the door.”

“Unless you’re lying still,” Flint says with a raised eyebrow.

“Yeah, could still be doing that. Except I’ve called you a jackass to your face since we’ve been here. Wouldn’t I have played nice, or at least been more of a damsel in distress than just calling you out for what you are and not caring if you shot me in the face because it would be an improvement from the pounding in my head? Seriously, Doc, give me some fucking meds. I’m dying over here.”

“Mouthy one.”

I grunt at General and see Flint’s lips twitch again. Seems he finds me amusing.

“She’d fit in nicely around here if we trusted her.” His offhanded comment has Flint stiffening, and my eyes go wide.

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