Her heart skipped several beats and then pounded against her aching ribs. Two days would have given her husband time to free himself of the scarves and begin his search for her. She tried to sit up and cried out in pain when she put weight on her arm.
“Steady there, Jane,” the nurse eased her back into the bed and fussed with the IV in her arm.
She frowned up at the nurse. “Jane?”
“Sorry,” the nurse grimaced. “I’m Abby, the night-shift nurse. When they brought you in two days ago, they didn’t find any identification on you and your car...” Abby winced. “Well, it burned. The fire was so hot that anything inside would’ve been incinerated. You were lucky a truck driver pulled you and your baby out before it exploded.”
“A truck driver?”
“He was treated for minor burns and abrasions and released. Because we didn’t have a name, your chart reads Jane Doe. But now that you’re awake, we can fix it.” She smiled. “What’s your name, and who is your next of kin. We can contact them and let them know you’re going to be all right. I’m sure they’re worried about you.”
Her mouth started to form around her name when she realized that was the last thing she needed to reveal. Instead, she shook her head. “I don’t know.”
The nurse’s brow dipped in concern. “Oh, sweetie. You did suffer a concussion. It’s possible you have some temporary memory loss. Do you remember your baby’s name?”
Again, she shook her head. “No.”
Nurse Amy patted her hand. “Don’t worry. The doctor will be by to see you soon. I’m sure you’ll be fine. In the meantime, relax and rest. I can bring your baby in for a few minutes if you’d like.”
She shook her head and closed her eyes. “Maybe later. My head is...woozy.”
And it was. But she also needed time to think.
No. She needed to leave.
“I’ll be back with the doctor,” Nurse Amy said.
When the door to her room swung shut, she pulled the IV from her arm and eased out of the bed, using her good arm for leverage. As soon as her feet touched the floor, her knees buckled. She lay over the bed until she steadied, breathing in and out, hoping to clear her vision.
Feeling a little better, she pushed to stand straight and glance down at the hospital gown someone had dressed her in.
Where were her clothes?
She shuffled slowly across the floor to a closet and pulled the door open. A plastic bag lay on a shelf. Her sneakers, muddy and ragged, had been placed neatly on top of the bag.
She dug in the bag and pulled out the blouse she’d worn. It had been cut into pieces. Tossing it aside, she found her jeans and fought, one-handed, to pull them up her legs and zip them. She didn’t bother to button the rivet. There wasn’t enough time for her to fool with it. Her shoes were another challenge she managed to overcome. Since her shirt and bra had been cut from her body, she tucked the hem of her hospital gown into the waistband of her jeans. Dressed as best she could, she hurried to the whiteboard on the wall and scrawled a hasty message. Then she dug into her pocket, thankful the little box hadn’t been lost in the accident. She removed the necklace with the letter B engraved on the silver disk and hung it on a magnet next to the message.
Her heart ached more than her injured shoulder as she eased open the door and peered out.
Nurse Amy carried a tiny cup full of pills and a Styrofoam cup with a straw into a room several doors down.
Other than a male patient walking slowly down the hallway, wheeling a pole with an IV bag, the coast was clear.
Her heart heavy, fear giving her the adrenaline she needed to fuel her escape, she slipped out into the hallway.
As she passed the man with the IV pole, she asked, “Where’s the elevator?”
He tipped his head to the right. “Just past the nurse’s station.”
Murmuring a soft thank you, she ducked her head and scurried past the nurse’s station, her arm around her middle to apply gentle pressure to her broken ribs while she held her injured arm to keep it from swinging.
Once in the elevator, she pressed the button for the ground floor and leaned against the wall for support as it descended.
When the door opened, she stepped out, crossed the lobby and exited the hospital. She didn’t know where she’d go, or how she’d survive, but somewhere in that hospital her baby would be cared for. If they followed her instructions, they would find a loving family who would give her baby the life that she deserved.
Having done all she could to save her babies, she disappeared into the night.
Chapter 1
