Then he was gone, leaving her alone with the doctor.
I didnt get your name, she said to the doctor.
Dr. Brady Ambrose, he answered briskly, reaching for her wrist to check her pulse. Even the skin of her wrists hurt when he touched them. How long have you been awake?
I dont knowa few minutes?
He checked her eyes with a pen light. Headache?
Oh, yeah.
Anything else hurt?
Everything else hurts, she admitted. New aches and pains seemed to be cropping up with each passing second. She looked at her wrist, which still stung from the doctors touch, and saw a deep purplish-red bracelet of bruises and abrasions. She lifted her other hand and found the same marks.
Those were ligature marks, she realized with rising alarm.
What day is it? she asked.
Friday. The doctor looked at his watch. Actually, Saturday by now, he added with a rueful smile.
The date, I mean.
September 8.
Her alarm exploded into full blown panic. September? That wasnt possible. Just this morning, shed flown from D.C. to Chattanooga to meet her parents at the airport for the drive to their vacation cabin north of Dahlonega. The last thing she remembered was
What? What was the last thing she remembered?
Nothing. The airport was the last thing she remembered. Walking through the terminal, grabbing her suitcase from the baggage carousel and heading off to look for her parents, who would be waiting to pick her up.
That had been August 18.
Almost three weeks of her life were missing.
* * *
S HE SEEMS LUCID , Wade told his brother Jesse, who sat across from him in the fourth floor waiting room. But I dont think she remembers what happened to her and her parents. It would have been the first thing shed have asked about, dont you think?
Jesse ran his palm across his face, his eyes dark with frustration. So its not going to be the lead we hoped.
Next to him, their sister Megan shot Jesse a sharp look. A woman I was pretty sure had to be dead turned out to be alive, she said flatly. Thats not nothing.
Of course not, Jesse agreed with a faint smile. But we arent any closer to decoding General Rosss journal than we were before.
Maybe she doesnt remember now, Megan said, but that doesnt mean she wont remember eventually. Remember when Hannah was attacked and lost some of her memories? They eventually came back.
Eventually, Jesse agreed. But three weeks have already passed. And apparently she escaped from her captors, which may put her parents in even graver danger.
Shes not out of danger, either. Wade looked toward the waiting room door, remembering the look of confusion and vulnerability in Annie Harlowes caramel-brown eyes. If she escaped, she may know something that could lead us to the kidnappers. And theyll be looking to stop her from telling what she knows.
The kidnappers wont be the only people wholl want custody of her, Jesse warned. I imagine the Pentagon will want to know everything she knows about what happened to her father, too.
Wade nodded. The Department of Defense certainly wasnt feeling very sanguine about a recently retired Air Force general with years of operational secrets stored in his brain going missing for three weeks. The hunt for the missing general was all over the news, with conspiracy theories flying all over twenty-four-hour cable news channels.
Coverage of his missing wife and daughter had been tangential in comparison, thanks to the generals potential significance to American national security. But the news shows had flashed their photos often enough. Someone in the hospital could have already recognized Annie Harlowes name and face.
Wade stood and limped over to the window, which looked down on the front entrance of the hospital four stories below. No news trucks yet. But information would get out soon enough. Then what?
We have a limited window of opportunity to get anything out of her, he told Jesse, whod crossed to stand next to him at the window.
Aarons supposed to be here any minute to ask her questions in an official capacity.
Aaron had called in a crew of Chickasaw County deputies to do a grid search of the woods behind Wades house. Along with his wife, Melissa, hed stayed with them to direct the search while Wade followed the ambulance to the hospital.
That may not be soon enough, Wade warned, spotting a Huntsville television news van moving up the drive toward the hospital entrance.
Megan joined them at the window. Here come the newsboys, she said with a grimace.
Theyre just doing their job, Jesse said.
Theyll be all over her like stink on a pig.
Wade had to smile at his sisters description. Apt, probably, but Jesse was right. The news people had a job to do.
Just like he did.
Im going to go see if the doctor is finished examining her, he told his brother and sister. Why dont yall go see if you can waylay the reporters for a little while?
Jesse clapped him on his shoulder. What are you going to tell her?
The truth, Wade answered simply.
The door to Annie Harlowes hospital room was half open when he reached it. He listened for the doctors voice but heard only a soft, snuffling sound coming from within the room.
Crying, he thought, his heart twisting with a disconcerting mixture of sympathy and dread.
He made himself knock lightly on the door. Annie, its Wade Cooper. Can I come in?
There was a long pause before she answered. Yes.
He crossed to her bed, trying to keep his limp to a minimum. He wasnt very successful. She lay with her head turned away from him, as if she were staring out the window. But the window shades were drawn.
What did the doctor have to say?
I have a concussion. Some scrapes and contusions. She turned her face toward him. Her eyes were red-rimmed but dry. And Im missing three weeks of my life.
* * *
I NTERESTING , A NNIE THOUGHT, watching Wade Coopers face for a response. His only reaction was a softening in his dark eyes, a hint of sympathy creasing his forehead.
Her words came as no surprise to him.
You already know who I am, she whispered.
Wade sat in the chair by her bed. Youve been all over the news for three weeks.
Why arent my parents here? Has anybody even thought to call them? They must be frantic, she thought, showing up at the airport only to discover their daughter had disappeared from the airport without a trace.
Or had there been a trace? She didnt know. Everything after the baggage carousel was a big blank.
Whats the last thing you remember? Wade asked.
Arriving at the Chattanooga airport, she answered, not liking the fact that he hadnt answered her question. Where are my parents?
We dont know, Wade said. You all went missing at the same time.
She stared at him, nausea rising in her gut. My parents are missing?
You dont remember anything after the airport?
No. I thoughtI assumed thats where I was abducted or whatever. A new, horrifying thought blackened her mind. Was Idid anybody check to see if I was raped?
Wades face blanched. I dont know.
She struggled against a sudden flood of nausea. I think Im going to be sick.
Wade grabbed a small bedpan from the table by the bed and thrust it into her hands. A series of dry heaves racked her aching body, but apparently her stomach was empty, for nothing came up.
Wade disappeared from view for a moment, returning with a wet washcloth from the bathroom. He handed it to her and she took it gratefully, pressing the cool cloth against her mouth.
I know they looked you over carefully in the E.R. before they brought you to a room, Wade said gently. There was a female deputy with you, so they probably checked for that. I think the doctor would have told you if theyd found anything.
Three weeks, she rasped, her throat aching. They might not even find anything after three weeks
Wade closed his hand over hers. Heat spread through her from his warm, firm touch, helping to settle the shakes that threatened to take over her body. She took a couple of deep breaths, willing herself to deal with what she knew rather than what she didnt.
She had to separate herself from how the story affected her personally and stick with the facts. She had to think like a reporter.
Is there a theory behind what happened to me and my parents? she asked aloud, dreading what Wades answer might be.
He hesitated before he spoke, drawing her gaze to his eyes to see whether shed find truth in them or more secrets. The official story is that the investigators have formed no theories.
And unofficially?
The fact that your father is such a high-ranking military officer suggests a national security angle.
Of course, if she were thinking straight, the thought would have crossed her mind already.
And there was also her fathers odd behavior when hed called her the Monday before her flight to Chattanooga to ask her to make time for a family vacation the next week. Theres something I need to tell you about, hed said, sounding serious.
Had he ever gotten a chance to tell her whatever hed wanted to share?
How did anyone kidnap all three of us from a busy airport? she wondered aloud.
They didnt, Wade answered, squeezing her arm with gentle strength. She looked down at his long fingers, at the play of muscles and tendons in the back of his lean hand as he squeezed again and let go. You and your parents arrived at the cabin on the eighteenth of August as planned. The caretaker handed the key over to your father, and you and your mother were both there with him. You were seen the next morning in Dahlonega, where youd apparently gone for breakfast. The caretaker remembered seeing you and your parents return in your fathers silver Ford Expedition around ten-thirty on the nineteenth. Thats the last anyone saw of you.
She shook her head. I dont remember any of that.
Your concussion could have caused a memory loss.
Will I get it back?
I dont know.
The nausea was knocking on the back of her throat again. She wrestled it back to mere queasiness. Why do I get the feeling you know more about what happened to me than I do?
I dont think I do.
He sounded honest enough, but she saw more mysteries behind those big brown eyes. Youre keeping something from me.
Wade Cooper was saved by a knock on the door. When nobody entered a moment later, Wade stood. Ill see who it is.
He crossed to the door, favoring his right leg. His right knee looked a little larger than his left, straining against the faded jeans he wore. Bum knee?
He spoke in low tones to someone outside the door. The other voice sounded male as well, but she couldnt make out what he was saying. Wade closed the door behind him and returned to her side, pulling his chair closer. His dark eyes were deadly serious.
Two men from the Air Force Office of Special Investigations are downstairs asking to talk to you. Its up to you. If you want to talk to them, fine. If you want to wait until youre feeling better, thats fine, too.
The last thing she wanted to do was face an interrogation by the A.F.O.S.I. But all shed be doing was putting off the inevitable. You can tell them Ill see them.
Wade nodded and stood. Reaching into his pocket, he drew out a narrow wallet. He removed a card from one of the inside pockets and handed it to her. That has my cell number on it. You need to talk to me about anything, you call. Understand?
His urgent tone made her stomach hurt, but she nodded, wincing at the flare of pain in her head. Are you leaving?
He shook his head. Ill be just down the hall. Call that number, and Ill come running.
As he disappeared through the doorway, she released a slow, shaky breath. She wasnt used to feeling weak and vulnerable. She hated it. But her world had upended in the span of a few minutesor, more accurately, three missing weeks. She had to find her feet again.
She had to find out what happened to her parents.
A brief knock on the door preceded two men dressed in dark suits who entered the room in tandem. They filled the small space with an air of authority, introducing themselves as Braddock and Hartman from the A.F.O.S.I. Braddock, who was taller, darker and leaner than stocky, sandy-haired Hartman, did most of the talking. Hartman stood slightly behind the other man, holding a small duffel bag. Annie eyed the bag with curiosity.
We need to know everything you can tell us about the incident in Georgia, he began without further preamble.
I cant tell you anything, she said carefully. I have a head injury and I dont remember any of it.
Braddocks eyebrows inched upward. Nothing?
Nothing.
The two men exchanged a look that gave her the creeps.
Could I see your identification? she asked.
Their gazes snapped to her. Braddocks tense expression melted into an engaging smile. Certainly. He reached into the breast pocket of his suit jacket.
Annie tensed, an image flashing through her muddled brain. A needle, glistening in the glow of a single, bare bulb. A tiny droplet of moisture trembling on the point before it fell.
Panic seized her insides, threatening to turn them to liquid.
The man withdrew his hand. It held only a flat black wallet. He flipped it open and showed her an official-looking name badge. Arthur Braddock with the Air Force Office of Special Investigations. Looked legit.
So why couldnt she shake the feeling these guys were anything but what they claimed to be?
What is the last thing you remember before waking up?
I was standing at the luggage carousel at the Chattanooga airport, she answered.
And you remember nothing else? Braddock sounded skeptical.
I have vague memories of being in the emergency room earlier tonight, I think, she answered carefully. She didnt mention the image of the needle, mostly because she didnt really trust these two men. But the truth was, she did have some memories of being examined in the emergency room. Theyd cut off her clothes. Poked and prodded and X-rayed. She had a vague memory of being in a cool, white caverna CAT scanner?
Why were you and your parents in Georgia?
Vacation. We like to get together once or twice a year.
Just the three of you?
We had plans for lunch with my aunt Phyllis on Thursday. Her mothers sister lived in Gainesville, Georgia. They usually tried to meet her for lunch or dinner at least once during each trip. Annie guessed they hadnt made it to lunch, if the last time she and her parents had been seen was on the nineteenth.