Page 2 of Stone Coast (Tyson Wild Thriller)

A month earlier, I had woken up in a hospital room.

The room was a blur when I peeled my eyes open for the first time. The monitor beside the bed blipped with the craggy peaks of my heartbeat. It read out vital statistics like blood pressure and oxygen saturation.

I was dressed in a pale blue hospital gown with an indecipherable pattern on it. An IV stabbed a vein in my arm, and a bag of fluid hung near the bed. The nasogastric tube in my nose was an indication that things had gone seriously wrong.

Both hands had been restrained.

I was stiff, sore, and weak.

I'm not sure how long I had been out. It felt like I had hibernated for an eon.

I didn't recognize the man clasping my hand. His concerned eyes gazed at me, brimming with what appeared to be tears of joy. "Savannah? Savannah? ”

I gave him a curious look.

“Oh, thank God!” he exclaimed.

I had no idea who the hell he was, but obviously I meant something to him. He wore a white lab coat and teal scrubs. But he was a little too excited for a doctor. His name was embroidered above the breast pocket of his lab coat, but my vision was too blurred to read it.

He hit the call button, and a nurse crackled over the intercom a moment later. "Can I help you?"

"She's awake," the man said.

"What's going on?" I scratched out, my voice dry as the Sahara. My mouth felt like I'd swallowed glue.

"There was an accident," he said. "Well, not really an accident, but…"

The nurse entered the room and looked astonished. "Well, look who decided to join the party."

She wore royal blue scrubs and had her hair pulled back into a ponytail. She was a skinny girl who looked like she did a lot of yoga. "How are you feeling?"

"Thirsty," I said.

"I bet."

"Hungry.”

"That's a good sign. But you have to go slow. You haven't had solid food in a while. We’ll need to start you off easy until your digestive system grows accustomed." She paused. "What's the last thing you remember? "

I thought hard for a moment, trying to pull the memories out of the black box in my brain, but I couldn't.

It was just emptiness.

It was almost painful trying to think about it. Then I realized the side of my skull was bandaged and throbbing.

"I can't remember,” I said.

"That's okay. Don't worry about that. It's very common. People often block out traumatic moments."

This was more than a block of a traumatic moment.

I couldn't remember anything. It was like I had no existence prior to this moment.

I couldn't remember my childhood, my parents, my best friends, nothing.

The only reason I knew my name was because the man beside my bed called me by it.

Even then, I had to rely on the fact that he actually knew who the hell I was.

He could have been making it up, for all I knew.

Today was like my birthday. The first day of my new existence.

"I'm Nancy," the nurse said. "I've been taking care of you for almost a week now."

"A week?"

"You've been in dreamland for a while.”

I tried to move my arm, but the restraint stopped me.

“We didn’t want you pulling out your feeding tube,” she said in a compassionate voice.

The tube wasn’t comfortable. I wanted it out. Now !

“Do you know where you are?"

I shook my head.

It hurt to shake my head.

"You’re in the Pineapple Bay Hospital in a trauma unit. You suffered a gunshot wound to the head. It's a miracle you're still alive. Somebody was looking out for you."

"If somebody was looking out for me, I don't think I'd have been shot in the first place."

Nancy laughed.

The man by my bedside kept squeezing my hand.

“If you promise not to pull out your feeding tube, I’ll remove the restraints.”

I nodded.

She released the leather straps lined with lambswool.

I felt liberated.

"I'm gonna ask you a series of basic questions. Don’t stress about it. If you don’t know the answers, that’s fine.”

I nodded again.

“What’s your name?"

I hesitated. "Savannah?"

I tried to sound confident, but I was just repeating what I’d heard. It sounded foreign to me. Like someone else’s name.

Nancy waited for more. I looked at the ID band around my wrist. Nancy gently covered the band with her palm. "No cheating. "

I frowned at her. I couldn’t have read it anyway. The fine print was still fuzzy.

"Stone. Savannah Stone,” Nancy said. “Does that ring a bell?”

I gently shook my head.

“What's your birthday?"

I tried to answer, but it was like searching through a dark closet for a lost pair of socks. I knew the answer was in there somewhere, but damned if I could find it.

"Who's the president?"

I couldn't answer that one either.

“Do you know this gentleman?" Nancy asked, nodding to the man beside the bed.

He looked at me with hopeful blue eyes. He was good-looking. A square jaw lined with dark stubble. He had wavy, dark hair and a nice physique. By the way he was looking at me, I figured there was something between us. I hated to break his heart, but I had never seen him before in my life.

"It's okay," Nancy said. "It may take a little time for you to start firing on all cylinders. I wouldn't be alarmed just yet." She smiled, but there was concern behind her eyes.

I felt like she might have been sugarcoating things. I didn’t like the just yet part.

“We’re going to run through a few basic tests. Can you smile big for me?"

I didn't feel like smiling, but I did anyway .

Nancy stared at my face to make sure my smile was the same on both sides and that I wasn't drooping. I guess I passed the test because she held out her finger. "I want you to squeeze as hard as you can."

I grabbed her index finger with my left hand and squeezed.

She seemed impressed. "Good. Now your right."

I repeated the process with the other hand, and she gave a satisfied smile.

"Can you wiggle your toes for me?"

I did, and they all moved like they were supposed to.

Nancy tickled the bottom of my left foot. "Can you feel that?"

I thought the answer was pretty obvious by the way I jerked my foot away. She repeated the process on my right foot, and fortunately, I had sensation.

"Are you experiencing any dizziness or nausea?"

"No."

“All good signs,” she said with a reassuring smile. “I don't see anything out of the ordinary. I'll let Dr. Russell know that you’re awake. If he doesn't stop by today, it'll be tomorrow. Then maybe we can remove the nasogastric tube and start you on something light."

"When can I get out of here?"

She laughed. "Let's take it slow. We need to get you eating and walking. The doctor will want to run a few tests, and you'll need physical therapy to regain your strength. It goes quickly when you don't use it. "

"What happened? How did I get here?"

Nancy looked at the handsome man in the lab coat.

He hesitated. "We’re not really sure, but the cops think someone tried to mug you. You were shot in the process. You must have put up a fight."

I searched my memory banks, but there was nothing.

"If that ever happens again, just give them what they want," Mr. Lab Coat pleaded.

"I'll leave you two alone to catch up," Nancy said. She whispered, “By the way. He's a keeper. He's been here every day, sitting by your bed, holding your hand, telling you stories about your life together." She almost misted up talking about it. "If only I could find a man like that."

She darted out of the room, giving us some privacy.

Mr. Lab Coat clasped both his hands around mine. "You don't know how hard I prayed for this moment. I’m so glad you're back. I thought…" He misted up, not able to say it.

“Tell me your name again?"