Page 22 of The Thief

Tak nudged Salem’s arm. “What do you think of this, Doc?”

“It’s uncommon but not unheard of. If her wolf suffered a brain injury and didn’t shift back in time, it could easily affect both their memories.” He stroked his beard. “That might explain why her wolf is so timid.”

“That’s fucked up is what it is,” Archer blurted out. “What’s your last memory before the lights went out? Were you driving? Crossing the street?”

“If it happened in wolf form, she wouldn’t remember,” Salem reminded him.

Archer drew invisible designs with his finger. “Circle back to your life before the accident. What do you remember?”

I thought back to when I’d left Arkansas. “I was living in a small apartment in Cognito.” I pinched between my eyebrows.

“Back in olden times, most women didn’t live alone,” Archer said. “Not unless they came from money. Were you rich?”

“No.”

“You must have had a roommate. They might know something.”

During that period of my life, I’d found it difficult to trust anyone, so I didn’t have a roommate or close friends. City life had been a massive adjustment, and one thing I remembered well was the struggle to find decent work.

“What about a job?” Archer lazily rested his elbow on the table. “You obviously had a job. Someone’s gotta know what the hell happened.”

A sharp pain lanced through my head, and I rubbed my temple to soothe it.

“What’s wrong?” Bear asked.

“I sometimes get headaches.”

Salem’s gaze drifted downward. “What’s the first thing you remember after the gap in your memory?”

“Walking down the street.”

“Where were you coming from?”

I winced and rubbed my head. “This is too much.”

Archer flew back in his chair. “Girl, that’s not amnesia.”

“I’m not making it up!”

The men exchanged glances.

Tak shook his head as if signaling them not to speak. “What did you do for a living before you lost your memory? You said you can remember everything up until you were a young woman.”

“I’d just moved to Cognito. Back then, cities were bustling with change. It was exotic to a country girl like me who’d never been outside my small community. I had enough money saved for an apartment, but finding employment was a challenge. Back then, you really had to hustle. I worked for a spell in a diner, but they’ve long gone out of business. The only records I found showed they were in business for six years. He paid his women under the table, so maybe that’s why they shut him down.”

“You weren’t involved with anyone?”

“I wasn’t dating back then.”

Bear steepled his fingers. “A stranger came by our property yesterday, looking for Mercy. He claimed to know her. Then he showed up in the bar today, but she didn’t recognize him.”

“To be fair, I’ve had amnesia for most of my life,” I explained. “I’m sure there’re a lot of people I’ve forgotten. I’ve just never run into one before.”

Bear locked eyes with me. “Yeah, but how did he know where to find you?”

Salem took my hand. “Look at me.”

I twisted to the right and searched his soulful eyes. Salem looked at people as if he knew their darkest secrets. His confident yet calming demeanor made you want to trust and confide in him.

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