Page 109 of Fireworks

Chapter Thirty Six

*****

Nate

As I stumbled through the brush and rubble of the crash my brain felt like it had a heartbeat of its own the way it was throbbing. A few hours must have passed since I started walking before I finally found my way to an old dirt road. The entire thing was mud and gravel. I was grateful to have found it; a glimmer of hope that I wouldn’t die out here alone.

At least the rain had stopped, making it a little less dangerous to be walking out here alone. My leg was killing me as each step I took sent a searing pain through my thigh. Praying to myself, I needed to have a car pass by or find someone's house to help me get to a hospital. Hopefully wherever I was had some nice people around that would stop to help me.

*****

It had been three days since I hobbled through the emergency room doors; blood covering a good deal of my body. My shoulder was dislocated, my leg was killing me, multiple lacerations needing stitches, and burns on both arms. The worst of all my injures was I had no friggin clue who the hell I was. Checking my pockets I had no wallet, no phone, no indication at all as to who I was and where I had come from. The only thing that I could remember was the sound of the instrument panel beeping viciously before it died out as I tried to gain control of the plane before I landed.

It was far from a smooth landing. Hitting several trees on the way down I was lucky to be alive right now. I missed the empty strip of field I was aiming for when an unexpected wind gust caused me to lose control. By the time I tried to correct myself I was already headed into the trees. The last thing I felt as the nose of the plane headed straight for the tree ahead of me was searing pain as my head slammed into the panel in front of me. The strangest part was that I wasn’t afraid knowing that it may be my last moments alive.

I had lost communication with the air traffic controller so not only did I crash the plane, but they also had no clue where I was. The thought crossed my mind a few times about if anyone would wonder where I was. The problem was I couldn’t be sure if there was anyone if I was stupid enough to be flying during such a bad storm.

“Savannah is here, is it ok if she comes in?”

I nodded as one of the nurses peaked into my room trying not to disturb me.

“Hey there stranger. How are you feeling today?”

Looking down at myself I shrugged.

“I guess I could be worse off right?”

My leg was in a cast, my arm in a sling, and dressings on both my forearms. I looked like I had been through hell. Settling into the chair next to my hospital bed she patted my hand.

“You know the offer still stands. My family can always use an extra set of hands on the farm. At least until you can get back on your feet and hopefully remember who you were.”

Her long blonde hair was usually tied up in a high ponytail but today two braids lay on her shoulders. When she first told me she worked on a farm I was sure I had heard her wrong. She wore jeans and pink polo paired with riding boots. I thought for sure she had just come from some country club. I was beyond grateful no matter where she came from that she pulled over on the side of the road and brought me to the hospital. Savannah had a kind and gentle heart, between breaks of her farm work she visited me each day.

To keep my mind off the fact that I was stuck in this hospital bed with no memory of my own life she would tell me about hers. Spending time with her kept me busy. She was one of seven kids, second oldest so her responsibilities weren’t just the farm itself but also helping keep her siblings in line.

“I’ll think about it. Thank you though. For everything.”

Smiling back at her there was no way she could ever truly know how grateful I was for her. The blue in her eyes glimmered.

“It was my pleasure. I just wish I knew your name.”

“That makes two of us.”

*****

Katie

“These boxes are so heavy. What did you pack?”

Doing my best to place the box down gently, I wiped my brow with the back of my arm. Ryder laughed behind me.

“I’m pretty sure that one is kitchen stuff. You should have picked the one that said bathroom things much lighter.”

She wiggled the box she was holding in her arms taunting me with how light hers was.

“Lesson learned.”

The last two weeks had been torture but getting out of my house and moving into the apartment Ryders dad rented for us was helping keep my mind off of Nate. Harry had contacted Mrs. King. They had located his plane, but it was completely destroyed. There was blood all over the place but no sign of Nate. She had contacted all the local hospitals but no one she talked to seemed to know anything.