Page 11 of Storm Warning

“That I’d been pulled from the Baltic Sea and had barely survived due to hypothermia and a head injury. The Baltic Sea? I remember visiting the country of Zarovia, sitting at a small café in the capital city of Novograd. Sure, it’s close to the Baltic in relative terms, but it still makes no sense.”

“I suspect that your brain doesn’t want you to relive those moments.”

“Moments? I’m missingdays, if you count the time I was unconscious in the hospital.”

“This might seem strange, but in my practice, I find it’s beneficial to determine whyyou need to remember. In other words, is itimportantthat you remember?”

“Who wouldn’t want to remember?”

“That’s a fair point, especially with what you’ve just shared. Even so, many people who have gone through terrible traumatic events, some of which they never remember, go on and live fulfilling lives, leaving the dark or missing memories behind. Memories themselves can’t hurt you.”

Dr. Holcomb studied her, then continued. “Let me put it a different way. Sometimes by trying to remember, you can actually make things worse by creating an incorrect understanding of what happened. In my practice, I prefer to focus on moving forward. Usually whatever happened in the past—those lost memories—isn’t what’s hurting you today. What creates the pain is when you continue to think about the memories, lost or found. But we can live in the present and create a new trajectory for our lives.”

“That makes sense, but for me, personally, it’s important that I remember. Can you help me or not?”

“Yes. Of course. I wanted you to understand that you have a choice to remember or to put it behind you. And in trying to recall those events, you risk altering them.” Dr. Holcomb offered a slight smile. “This is progress.”

If you say so.Maybe she’d made a mistake in talking to someone. But she was here and she was doing this. She shared the rest of her story with Dr. Holcomb. Remi had overheard a phone call outside her hospital room that left her disturbed. Someone had come to see her twice andasked her questions and then on the phone had explained that Remi had no recollection of the events.

Despite her amnesia, Remi’s instincts told her that something was very wrong.

“I made my way back to the States to visit my old stomping grounds in Nebraska and tried to make sense of my life. That’s when I spotted the stranger who’d questioned me in Germany.”

“Are you saying he followed you?”

Remi’s gaze drilled into this doctor she was trusting entirely too much. “Yes. That’s why I need to know what happened. I fled Nebraska and traveled all the way here. To lose him.”

Dr. Holcomb moved around to the other side of her desk. “Who was he?”

“No idea. I should have gotten names. I should have faced him and asked him what was going on. But I was still so shaken that I just decided to run and hide.”

“Did you change your name?”

“What? No.” She lifted a shoulder. “I mean, not legally. I just used different names at motels where I stayed.”

“But your real name is...”

“Remi Grant. This is a private conversation, so I’m not worried about someone tracking me here. Look, I’m driving around in an old Bronco I paid cash for in Nebraska. It’s untraceable, especially on lone state highways and small towns. They don’t have cameras on every corner to catch a license plate, right? Then I drove across the country, staying at motels where cash was accepted.”

A bump in the road jarred Remi back to the present and to the lush forest on both sides of her. After Dr. Holcomb sent her to Cedar Trails Lodge, where she’d taken on a different persona, Remi had lived in a dream world, believing she was safe when she was not.

And here in the remoteness of Hidden Bay, nestled upagainst federally designated coastal wilderness, she’d let that itch fester—that need to recall those missing days. Dr. Holcomb had told her to let it go, the memories would come when her mind was ready.

“Like in the middle of a life-and-death situation, hanging from a ladder?” she grumbled out loud. “That’s when it came?” But it hadn’t really been a full memory, just a moment ... a burst of ... images and emotions. A flashback.

Steering from the obscure forest road—the only way to get to her isolated lodge, which amazingly wasn’t included on any global positioning maps—she turned onto Highway 101, then drove another three miles before turning toward Forestview, a small town nestled in the rainforest at the edge of the Quinault Reservation. Mist covered her windshield, and the streets were busier than she would have expected, but then again people were probably stocking up in case of a power outage.

While she steered down Main Street, she scanned the usual places Jo might visit. Though she didn’t want to stalk the woman, it wasn’t like Jo to bethisunresponsive. Then she drove to Jo’s tiny house at the back of an elderly woman’s property. Jo was supposed to stay in her quarters at the lodge over the weekend to be on hand and was usually reliable.

Remi bounded up the two short steps and knocked on the door. The place was too small for Jo not to hear her outside. “Jo? You in there?”

She didn’t want to unnecessarily worry Jo’s father, but if Jo didn’t respond, she’d stop at his shop. She sent Jo one more text, which she might not get, and that’s why they relied so much on the radio.

Where are you?

Concern crawled through her.

A reply came almost immediately. Her heart jumped and relief filled her.

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