Distant Memory Read Online Free Page A

front of that lousy excuse for a motel. I suppose I should apologize for that too. There’s not much choice around here, and it was the first place I saw. At least you agreed to stay there.”
    He’s a trucker
. “Do you pass through here often?”
    “Sometimes,” he answered. “I’m an independent. I own my own rig and work for whomever I want.”
    Whomever. Not whoever. He knows the difference. He has some education
. Her mind was desperately grasping for facts.
    “Do you like it?” It was an inane question, but she knew of nothing else to say or do.
    “Yes, and I think you’re stalling.”
    She sat back, uncertain what to say.
    “I don’t mean to be rude,” he said apologetically. “I have no right to ask you any questions. I just want to help, that’s all.”
    A sense of guilt washed over her. He had been kind enough to pick her up and see that she had shelter for the night. He could have just passed her by, leaving her to wander on the road. That was what he’d said, wasn’t it? That he had found her on the roadside. “You found me on the roadside?”
    “That’s right. You were just wandering along the highway like you were in a trance. Lucky for you it’s summer; in winter you would have frozen. Most people don’t realize how cold it can get up here.”
    Why would she be walking along the side of a desert highway? “And I didn’t say anything to you?”
    “Not a thing. You got in the truck easy enough. All I had to do was open the door and you crawled right in, although I could tell it hurt you to do so. That’s why I wanted to go to the highway patrol or to a hospital, but you made it clear that wasn’t going to happen.”
    “I’m sorry if I’ve caused you trouble.”
    He waved a dismissive hand. “What good is it being a knight errant if I can’t help the occasional damsel in distress?” He motioned courteously with one arm and, since he was seated in a booth, bowed as best he could. She smiled and then, touching her sore lip, said, “Ouch.” She scowled. She had grown tired of hurting.
    Nick frowned. “Is the rest of you as sore as your lip?”
    At first she hesitated, all the fears resurfacing in her mind. But she needed help; she needed a friend. Alone, penniless, lost, she had to have help even if it meant taking a risk. “Yes,” she said with a sigh. “I’m damaged but not broken.”
    “You sound like you’re talking about a piece of furniture or something. What else hurts? If I’m not being too personal, that is.”
    “Bruises, and my side hurts. My head aches some too.”
    “Bruises?” He looked thoughtful for a moment. “May I ask where the bruises are?”
    This was uncomfortable. Should she tell a total stranger about the marks on her body? She decided that she had nothing to lose. “Besides what you see on my face, there is a bruise on my shoulder and—”
    “Which shoulder?”
    “What difference does that make?” she asked, puzzled.
    “Maybe nothing; maybe everything.”
    “My left shoulder. And there is a long diagonal bruise from my left shoulder to my right hip.” She felt her face turn hot.
    “Don’t be embarrassed,” he said softly. “What about the lower abdomen? Is it bruised too?”
    She nodded.
    “How is your chest? Is it sore?”
    This time she didn’t answer. The questions were getting personal.
    “I’m not a pervert. I’ll explain why I ask in a moment. Now how about it? Is your chest sore?”
    “Yes, and my left side.”
    “I wouldn’t doubt your right foot is pretty banged up too. Maybe the ankle.”
    “How did you know?”
    “I was in an auto accident once. Flipped my car several times. Your bruises mean that you were in a wreck of some kind.”
    “I don’t get it.”
    “It’s simple. Your split lip and chapped face came from the airbag.That’s also why your chest is sore. Air bags save thousands of lives, but they leave their mark. The diagonal bruise on your chest is probably from the shoulder harness. That would also