Detective John Wilson had not been able to interview the nurse found in the basement of the stairwell. Doctors had tried to stop the bleeding in her brain, but it had been in vain. After three hours of emergency surgery, the woman died. The detective hoped to review the hospital surveillance cameras but discovered they had started malfunctioning three months ago. No one at the hospital had bothered to schedule a service call.
The detective made his way back up to Memory’s room at just before five, where he found Nurse Julia attending to the patient. “Can I come in?” he softly asked after peeking through the door.
“Yes,” Memory answered.
“If you need anything, just press the call button,” the nurse offered and walked out.
Detective Wilson stood next to the bed. He had questions but didn’t know if the mystery woman could answer them. Still, they needed to be asked. “So, it’s Memory for now?”
Memory smiled and shrugged her shoulders. “I guess it is, for now anyway.”
Wilson smiled back. “I think it fits.”
“That’s what Brody and Nurse Harper said too.”
Wilson nodded. “Great minds think alike. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to ask you some questions if I could.”
Memory sat straighter in the bed and placed her hands on her lap. “Absolutely, go right ahead. I’ll try to answer them.”
“Good. I’d like for you to close your eyes and relax,” Wilson said as he sat in the chair next to the bed. He wanted to try a technique he’d heard about at an interview and interrogation seminar.
“Okay,” Memory replied and closed her eyes.
Wilson cleared his throat. “Memory, I want you to take things real slow and tell me what you can remember.”
The mystery woman took a moment and thought back as far as possible. “I remember running in the woods. There’s snow. Someone was chasing me,” she said as her eyes blinked quickly.
“Try to think back before that,” Wilson encouraged.
Memory soon saw her hands in front of her. “It’s dark. My wrists are in handcuffs. I have a wrench, and I’m hitting it on a metal pipe.”
“Can you see anything else around you?”
“I… I don’t know! It’s so dark. I smell cigarette smoke. No, it’s not a cigarette. A smoking pipe, maybe?”
The detective grew excited, thinking the victim was on the verge of a breakthrough. “What else is there? Do you smell, hear, or see anything else? What’s around you?”
Memory pushed herself farther up the bed, as if she were trying to get away from someone. “He’s coming!”
Wilson moved closer to the bed. He needed her to continue. “Who, Memory? Who do you see?”
“I don’t see him… He’s behind me, shouting about not being quiet!” Memory’s voice began to tremble.
“You’re okay,” Wilson said softly.
“No… No… He’s come back to hurt me again! He has a gun, and he’s chasing me through the snow. No! Don’t shoot!” Memory cried out and opened her eyes.
“You’re okay, Memory.” The detective reassured her as Nurse Julia rushed into the room.
“What happened? Her heart rate is way up!” the nurse asked as she checked her patient’s vitals.
“We were going over what happened to her and—”
“With everything she’s been through, I think it’s too much right now!” the nurse replied in an angry tone.
Memory took a deep breath. “I’m okay. I just need a minute. What do you mean by, with everything she’s been through?” she asked and looked at the detective for an answer.
John was at a loss for words. He knew she would have to be told about the sexual assault, but he wasn’t ready to have that conversation with her. “Well…”
“John, I’m here!” Brody announced. He had walked in behind the nurse and heard what Memory had asked of the detective.
John turned and looked at his friend. “Hey, come on in,” he uncomfortably said.
Brody greeted them with a smile. “Hello, Memory.”
Memory’s lips turned upward. “Hi, Brody,” she replied.
Brody walked to the bed and held up a white paper bag. “I brought burgers.”
“Oh, good! I had an unsavory turkey loaf for lunch.” Memory glared at Nurse Julia.
“I don’t make the food. I just deliver it,” the nurse replied as she ran a cool cloth along the patient’s forehead.
“Well, this is one of the best burgers you can get in town,” Brody proclaimed as he removed one of the bison burgers from the bag and handed it to the patient in front of the nurse.
Nurse Julia knew that a burger and fries weren’t part of her patient’s meal plan. Still, she also knew she had misspoken earlier. “I’m going to the nurses’ station, and I didn’t see that food,” the nurse said and walked out of the room.
“Is there one for me?” Wilson asked.
Brody gave his friend a disapproving glare. “Yeah, why don’t you eat it in the hall while you check up on those fingerprints?” Brody suggested as he pressed the bag hard against the detective’s chest.
“Yeah, I think I will,” Wilson agreed and hurried out of the room, leaving Brody and Memory alone.
Brody took his usual seat next to the bed. “It’s just a bun with a buffalo patty in it. I had them put everything else on the side. We don’t know if you even like cheese, tomatoes, onions, or lettuce. I also got a bunch of condiments,” he offered as he dug through the bag for the tiny packets.
Memory was staring out the window. It seemed as though everything that had happened to her was starting to surface. “What happened to me?” She dropped her head and sobbed uncontrollably.
Brody placed the bag down, stood, and moved closer to the bed. He didn’t know what to do, so he did what felt right. The deputy bent over and put his arms around her, and to his surprise, she wrapped her arms around him.
Memory squeezed him tightly as tears streamed down her face. “What did he do to me?” she asked between sobs.
The deputy closed his eyes and whispered in her ear. “He did what you’re imagining he did,” he confessed.
The mystery woman may not have known who she was, but she knew what had happened to her in the back of her mind, even if she couldn’t remember it.
L
Lower Downtown Denver, or LODO as locals commonly referred to it, was crowded with people rushing into or out of one busy restaurant or another. Senator Vince Livingston had arrived early to ‘59ers and was seated in the Gold Rush room in the back, where he waited for her to arrive. His two bodyguards stood outside the private dining room, keeping an eye on anyone who got too close.
Lance tapped Porter on the shoulder and nodded his head to the right. Porter looked past his partner and saw her walking toward them. Lance gawked at the woman. She wore a tight blue cocktail dress that left little to the imagination.
“Either I’m late or he’s early,” Kelly said after she walked up and stood in front of Porter.
Porter’s lips turned downward. “He’s early,” he replied with a callous tone. The bodyguard didn’t like Kelly, but the senator did, and that was all that mattered.
Kelly rolled her eyes. “Are you going to open the door for me or not?”
Porter stared at the woman, reached down, and started to open the door.
Kelly shook her head, stepped closer to him, and gently ran her hand along his cheek. She glared at the bodyguard and then leaned in close to his ear. “You’re no better than me. We both take his money in exchange for whatever he desires. Trust me when I say your work is much dirtier than mine,” she whispered and then lightly patted the man’s face before walking into the room to join her date.
Porter felt his cell phone vibrating. He shut the door after the prostitute walked inside and answered the call.
“Yeah,” he said.
“My guys are close. Where should they go? You haven’t sent me the address yet,” Frank Walters asked.
“Have them head west toward the town of Woodland Park. I’ll text you the address,” Porter replied and ended the call. He then texted Jeff’s address to the drug dealer.
“Everything okay?” Lance asked.
Porter turned and faced the other bodyguard. “Yeah, I hope. How are you feeling?”
“I get dizzy sometimes, but the doc said it would pass,” he admitted.
Porter smiled. “Good, I’ve got a bad feeling right now. I may need you later.”
“What kind of feeling?”
Porter took a deep breath. “The kind where too many people are getting involved. Eventually, it’ll be up to you and me to clear some of them out.”
L
Memory spent twenty minutes letting it all out and coming to terms with everything that had happened to her. She knew nothing of her past, and she didn’t care to remember the past few days either. The only thing she was sure of was the man sitting at the side of her bed eating cold fries from a bag. Deputy Brody Katz had pulled her from the brink of death, he had been there when she awoke, and he was there again.
“I ordered yours medium well. I didn’t know how you’d like it,” Brody admitted after watching her tear into the burger.
Memory smiled and wiped her mouth. “Neither do I. I mean, I could be a vegan for all I know.”
“I haven’t seen anything that would lead me to believe that you’re a soymilk-drinking, legumes-and-nuts-eating vegan. Besides, after you tore into that burger, I think you must resign from the vegan club if you were one.”
Memory put her napkin over her mouth and dropped the fry she’d had in the other hand back in the bag. “I’m sorry, I was so hungry!”
Brody laughed and stood. “I’m kidding,” he said, then grabbed the fry and held it out for her to take.
Memory took the fry, placed it in her mouth, and made a playful growling sound when she bit into it. Her comical nature made Brody laugh once more. It also made him think about what he had read online concerning amnesia and the person’s personality. “I have an idea,” he happily declared.
Memory was caught off guard when he moved the chair from the side of the bed. “What?”
He took her dinner trash, placed it on the table, and took her by the hand. “Come with me.”
“Okay,” Memory replied as he led her into the adjoining bathroom, where he put her in front of the mirror.
“Who do you see?” he asked and stood back.
Memory stared at her reflection for a moment. She ran her fingertips along her cheekbone. “I look awful!”
“No, you don’t. You’re beautiful.”
“Yeah, right! I have no makeup on, my hair is a mess, and my face is bruised,” she replied before turning away from the mirror and dropping her head. “Why did you want me to do that?”
“Because now we know more about you,” he answered.
She lifted her head and stared into his bright-blue eyes. “I don’t understand.”
“Well, from what I read about amnesia, a person’s personality doesn’t change. From what I can see, you have a great sense of humor, and you like to wear makeup and have your hair in some way that’s not a mess.”
Memory’s eyes lit up. “What else can you tell?”
Brody took a step back, placed his hand under his chin, and looked the mystery woman up and down. “You’re fit.”
Memory glared at him. “I’m fit! Is that it?”
“Yeah, but that tells us things about you too.”
“Like what?”
Brody took a few seconds to think before speaking. “You’re here in Colorado, and many fit people live here. Maybe you’re from here and are an outdoor enthusiast.”
“What if I’m just here vacationing?”
“You could be, and come to think about it, you do have a nice tan,” he replied.
Memory smiled once more. “Then it’s settled. I’m from California! A beach girl!” she joked.
Brody laughed and nodded in agreement. “Sounds good to me.”
L
Jimmy had arrived to work at three o’clock, and like many nineteen-year-old security guards, he was already bored. He was sitting at the hospital’s front desk, scrolling through the dating app on his phone, when two men in suits approached him. Jimmy stood, placed his phone in his pocket, and looked at the men. “Are you here to visit someone?”
Jeff glanced around the lobby. “Yeah, I’m Agent Ford with the FBI, and this is Agent Shepard. We’re here to see the Jane Doe found in the river,” he answered as he and Bret displayed their forged credentials.
All that Jimmy could focus on were the letters F–B–I next to the tiny gold badge. “Yes, sir. She’s on the third floor. Room three oh six.”
Jeff turned toward Bret. “Let’s go,” he said and started toward the elevator.
Bret followed but then stopped and looked back at the security guard. “Is she still being guarded?”
“Yes, sir. Two deputies are on the third floor. One at the stairwell door and the other at the elevator. There are more deputies roaming around the hospital. I also have a police radio if I need to call for backup. We have it all locked down. She couldn’t be safer,” Jimmy proudly declared.
Jeff had a thought. “Where’s the security office? I need to review the footage from your surveillance cameras,” he asked. The killer hoped to delete all the previous day’s footage and to turn off the cameras before heading to the woman’s room.
Jimmy frowned. “Our security cameras are not in operation right now. A deputy tried to view the footage earlier and found that there was a malfunction. We have someone scheduled to come by tomorrow.”
That was the best news Jeff Doyle had heard since he took the job. “Good, it really needs to be working.”
“Yes, sir. I’ve scheduled the repair myself and I’ll make sure it gets done,” Jimmy added.
Bret gave the guard a friendly grin. “We won’t be long,” he said and started for the elevator.
The two killers pressed the elevator up call button. When the doors opened, they got in, and Jeff pressed the button for the second floor.
“He said she was on three,” Bret whispered.
Jeff looked at his hired man. “Yes, I know. You’ll take the stairwell from the second floor to the third. The stairwell door has a window, so you’ll see me get off the elevator. When I step off, I’ll take the deputy at the elevator, and you take the deputy at the door.”
“Then what?”
“Then we move toward the woman’s room. Kill anyone at the nurses’ station or in the hallway. We do this, and we do it quickly,” he explained.
“You got it,” Bret replied and then stepped off the elevator onto the second floor when the doors opened. He hurried down the hall toward the stairwell.
When the elevator doors closed, Jeff waited thirty seconds for Bret to get to the other end of the hall and into the stairwell before pressing the third-floor button. He reached to his side and pulled his 9mm from the holster. The killer retrieved the silencer from his pocket and screwed it onto the end of the barrel. I gotta make this right and end it now, he thought as he got ready.
In the stairwell, Bret pulled his .45 and attached his silencer to its end. He then hurried up the stairs taking two steps at a time. When he reached the third-floor door, the hired gun paused to peek through the window and saw the deputy sitting in a chair next to the door. He then looked toward the elevator doors at the other end of the hall, where the second deputy stood leaning against the wall. Bret checked his gun, kept his eyes on the elevator, and patiently waited for his employer to step onto the third floor.
L
Harper took a moment from updating her patients’ charts to look up at the detective, who was eating loudly. She thought he was good looking. “How’s your burger? Sounds delicious,” she politely yet sarcastically remarked.
Wilson almost choked. “It’s good,” he eventually answered with his mouth full.
“You know, you should slow down and take time to chew your food more before swallowing it.”
Wilson grinned. “I’m sorry. I’m just in a hurry. I have the sheriff, the press, and the hospital pressuring me to find out who Memory really is. I keep getting the same information back on her fingerprints, and it’s not her. So now I’m out of ideas and looking at a dead end.”
Harper wrinkled her nose. “How do you know the fingerprints are not hers?”
Wilson pressed his lips together and then surveyed the area around them for anyone else who may be close enough to hear what he was about to say. “Her fingerprints come back to an elderly woman—and not just once but twice now. The woman in that room is anything but elderly.”
“Sounds like a computer glitch, or someone entered the information incorrectly when either Memory’s or the elderly woman’s prints were first collected,” the nurse suggested.
The detective wiped his mouth, took a long deep breath, and slowly blew it out. “Yeah, but I won’t know until Monday. I called the FBI, and their person who can check the records by hand will be gone until then.”
Harper huffed. “Seriously! Do they know that there’s a woman who’s a victim of who knows what waiting to find out who she is?”
“Yes, they do. But Memory’s not their problem. She’s mine,” he declared as the elevator door chimed.