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Instead of going back home, I took off toward Cedar Landing. It was hard to see out in the dark, but I took my time. Finally, the rain sort of slowed, making the drive a little easier. I was just about to Cedar Landing when a flash of light caught my eye over to the right side. I slowed down and backed up. I got out of my truck and looked down into the ditch and there, deep in the ditch, was Peggy’s car. I looked over the edge of the road to see the front end of her car submerged in the water that had accumulated from the rain. It was too dark to see, so I ran back and grabbed the flashlight out of the back of my truck.
Rain pelting down, I carefully climbed down the slippery embankment to where I could look inside her car. I turned on the flashlight and shone it on the window. Immediately, I saw her laying against the steering wheel. Panic filled me. I tried to open the door, but it was locked. “Fuck.”
I banged on the window, hoping to wake her, but it did no good. I looked around and then thought for a moment before I ran back to my truck grabbing the toolbox from behind my seat, I pulled out a hammer and went back over to the car. Taking the claw of the hammer, I placed it up against the edge of the window and hit it, watching the glass shatter.
Getting my hand inside, I unlocked the door and pulled it open. I unhooked her seatbelt and then carefully got hold of her. She was out cold, blood covering her face from a gash on her forehead.
“Peggy. Peggy,” I said as I shook her, but she didn’t respond. I felt for a pulse, and once I felt a faint one, I carefully pulled her from the car, throwing her up and over my shoulder. I took her over to my truck, where I laid her in the front seat, then I ran around to the driver’s side, hopped in, and took off toward Cedar Landing to the hospital I’d remembered passing.
PEGGY
I blinked a few times, my vision blurry. The sound of steady beeping drilling into my brain, driving me crazy. I looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings. I looked to my side to see a monitor of some sort and looked down at my hand to see a clip on my finger. Then I noticed an enormous bunch of red roses placed on a table beside me. I frowned.Where was I? A hospital? Why was I in the hospital?
“Hello,” I called, hoping I wasn’t alone in the room, since someone had pulled curtains around both sides of my bed.
“One moment,” a voice answered.
I waited for a few moments, when finally, a woman poked her head around the curtain. “You’re awake. I will have to get the doctor,” she said, scurrying away before I could ask her questions.
“Mrs. Hollis.” A doctor stepped up beside my bed. “How are you feeling?”
“Um, my head hurts a little. What happened? Where am I?” I asked.
“You are at Cedar Landing General. Three days ago, you arrived in our emergency department. Your car spun out in the rainstorm we had. You hit your head.”
I thought for a moment, remembering driving home in that horrible rain. “Yes, there was a flash of lightning, and I saw someone or something in the middle of the road,” I said, nodding.
“Well, whatever the cause, you hit your head badly and were unconscious when you were brought in here,” the doctor said, looking into my eyes.
“Who brought me here?” I questioned.
The doctor wrote something in the file he held and then flipped back a few pages. “A friend of yours, Ethan Alexander,” he replied.
“Ethan?” I questioned. That wasn’t possible. Ethan hadn’t known I was coming to Cedar Landing. In fact, I hadn’t spoken to him since the day he walked out of my kitchen.
“Yes. He brought you in. Apparently, he found your car after it had slid off the road,” he said, reading something on my chart.
It was then that I heard a familiar female voice. Trinity came rushing into the room, followed by Thomas. “Oh my god, you’re finally awake!” she cried, rushing over to me.
I smiled at my best friend. “Yes. Hi, Thomas.”
“You gave us a good scare,” Thomas said, patting my leg.
“What happened?” Trinity asked.
“Whoa, everyone, please, calm down,” the doctor said. “I want to examine this cut and give Peggy a once-over now that she’s awake,” he said, his voice quieter. He pressed around on my forehead, causing me to flinch.
I looked over at Trinity, trying to ignore that the doctor was causing me a little pain. “Is Ethan here? Can I see him?” I questioned.
“I’m afraid not. He isn’t here,” Trinity answered. “He brought you in, stayed a while, left the flowers, and called us. He hasn’t been here since.”
I closed my eyes as the doctor continued his examination, trying not to flinch as he pressed around, my head beginning to pound.
“The stitches look good and clean. How does your head feel? Any dizziness?”
“Aside from a little headache now, I feel okay. No dizziness right now,” I said.
“Good. Well, we will get you a little dinner. We’d like to keep you a couple more nights, and as long as you’re feeling okay, you should be able to head home the day after tomorrow. Of course, you will need someone to pick you up.”
