Deadly Deception - By Andrea Johnson Beck Page 0,43

beside her, motionless. Relief washed over her with the knowledge he was dead. She could let go. Silently, she said good bye to Adam and then, there was nothing…nothing but peace.

CHAPTER 16

The blinding white light grazed Anne’s cornea while Dr. Rasmussen examined her. She could hear the humming of machines and smell the aroma of bleach and latex. He glanced at each eye, with his own eyes displaying worry. That was not comforting her at all. Her body ached and throbbed.

“Can you hear me, Anne?” Dr. Rasmussen asked.

She willed her voice to come forth but it rebelled.

“Can you feel this?”

He squeezed her hand. Anne could see in her peripheral vision that various tubes and wires twisted over her watery skin. She could feel him but couldn’t respond. Anxiety plagued her trapped body. Her heart rate accelerated, announcing her anxiety through the machine that sat next to her.

“Calm down, Anne, you’re all right. That’s good that you’re responding.”

Anne concentrated on the liver spots that dotted Dr. Rasmussen’s hand. Why couldn’t she move? Was she paralyzed? Her inner dialogue began spiraling out of control. Where was Adam? Was Carter dead?

“Listen to me, Anne, this is good news. You’re making progress.”

Anne could feel his warm hand pat hers. A tall red-headed nurse swept in with a syringe and administered the contents into the IV. A wave of euphoria overtook her, calming her muffled hysterics.

“Good morning, Anne, my name is Judy. I’m one of your nurses. This will help you relax, okay?”

She didn’t wait for a response because she knew there wouldn’t be one.

“Anne, you were in an accident. You’ve been in a coma for three weeks. You have bruised ribs and pelvic fracture, and there was swelling in your brain. You opened your eyes early this morning. Do you think you could blink for me?”

In Anne’s puffy, muddled brain, she coaxed her heavy lids to do as she was asked.

“Good girl.”

Polaroid flashes of that night lit up her mind. She had found Adam. Carter killed him then tried to kill her. Carter clung to the railing before reaching for her. She lost her balance and flew over the railing, falling toward the concrete floor. She thought she had seen Adam, with grief etched across his face. But how could that be? Carter had shot him.

Dr. Rasmussen stepped to the side, revealing Dr. Lindsey standing rigidly in the corner. His face held a look of melancholy but he gave Anne a weak smile. She observed their whispered exchange, and then Dr. Rasmussen was gone. Dr. Lindsey cautiously approached her hospital bed. She had never seen this side of him. His typical therapist façade was non-existent. He was just a middle-aged man wearing jogging pants and a T-shirt.

Anne continued to coax her limbs to move and her voice to demand answers, but there was nothing. She could feel a tear escape, trailing slowly down her cheek. Dr. Lindsey sat down in a small blue chair, and then he wiped her tear away.

“Oh Anne, I know you are frustrated. I can see that you want to move and talk so badly but you can’t.”

He paused, contemplating how to explain to her what was happening.

“You’re in a private facility being cared for by the best doctors in the country. Your recovery will depend on how badly you want retribution. Blink once if you understand what I’m saying.”

She blinked, leading him to go on.

“Carter survived.”

Those two words set her machines off.

“Anne, calm down or they will come in again. They are under Carter’s thumb. You must stop. Control your breathing.”

She tried to focus on Dr. Lindsey’s soft voice, just as she did during their many therapy sessions. Her muscles trembled at just the thought of Carter still roaming this earth alive. She had survived—why not him? He never dies. The man has nine lives. The machines slowly quieted while Dr. Lindsey waited for someone to barge in, but no one did.

“He’s more mobile than you are, but that’s due to the medication they are giving you. They are keeping you incapacitated until Carter gives the go-ahead. He has a plan and, unfortunately, you’re right in the middle of it all. I will try to keep you as safe as I can because I have a plan of my own.”

Anne blinked once to show him she understood everything he was telling her.

“Adam is alive as well.”

Internally, Anne gave a sigh of relief. She had indeed seen him. The tears began again. Dr. Lindsey dabbed them with a tissue. She