The Lost Days (Prairie Town Book 3)

by T. E. Ridener

  Stroking his beard in thought, the doctor shrugged his shoulders and then began scribbling on his notepad again. “Not necessarily. I believe that amnesia can oftentimes make a person feel differently from what they used to feel. For instance, a woman who loved cats and had a few in her time may suddenly be petrified of them when she loses her memory. Or a man who was a world famous athlete may suddenly find himself incapable of even hitting a ball with a bat.

  “These are things that I have studied before, Devin. So it’s highly possible that when you hit your head and lost your memory, you somehow forgot the beliefs you were raised with. The man you once were has been buried deep inside your mind, along with your memories.”

  “Beliefs I was raised with? Why do you keep saying that? That’s all I’ve been hearing since I got here. What was I, Doctor? A hardcore Catholic? An atheist? Was I involved with the KKK or something?”

  It sounded wrong. It all sounded wrong. Devin couldn’t imagine he had ever been involved with anything as ghastly as the KKK. Hell, there were several African American patients in the institute with him and not once had he felt disgusted with or threatened by them. They were just people—lost people just like him.

  However, he did get the feeling he was cut from the same cloth when he was around his so-called ‘family’, and that really bothered him.

  “I’ve been told you were quite the troublemaker. You used to get into fights with people all the time, Devin. Do you ever have violent urges around other patients here?”

  “No, of course not. That’s ridiculous.”

  “And what about when you see a pretty girl? Do you ever have...urges?”

  “What kind of urges?” He frowned. “What do you mean by that?”

  “Nothing. I’m just asking you a question.”

  “Well, my answer is no. I need help, Doctor. I’m trying to remember who I was and all anyone can seem to do is bring up the bad things about me. Is there nothing good you can tell me? What about the night I saved Laney and Benji, huh? Surely Laney had good things to say about me.”

  Laney visited him once a month. He looked forward to those visits. She was kind and pretty. She didn’t treat him like a bad person.

  She feels sorry for me. His jawline tightened and pain struck his chest.

  It sucked not knowing who he used to be.

  Do I really want to know? That person was a monster.

  “Mr. Rose? Are you listening to me?”

  Blinking and glancing up at the doctor, he sighed. “No, I’m sorry. What did you say?”

  “I said that I’d like to give you another series of tests and make a decision afterwards. To be quite frank and sincerely honest, I am not comfortable with having you sit in here and being punished for a crime you cannot remember. It doesn’t seem fair, Mr. Rose.”

  “But there’s nothing you can do about it. There isn’t a law for this, Doctor. If the old me was guilty then...well, maybe I should be punished. The law doesn’t care if I remember doing it or not, they only want justice.”

  “I agree with that, but only to a certain extent, Mr. Rose. The young man I see here doesn’t seem to be capable of hurting a fly, let alone kidnapping a young woman—Miss McIntosh, and her boyfriend. Nor do I feel you’d be the type of person to hold them for ransom. Even if you could remember it, don’t you feel that perhaps Mia...”—he glanced at his notepad—“Amelia Carpenter was the mastermind behind the kidnapping of Miss McIntosh and Mr. Palmer?”

  “How do you expect me to answer that, Doc? I can’t tell you whether she was behind it or not. Who is to say I wasn’t behind it? What if it was all my idea?” It was horrifying to even consider it, but Devin didn’t really know the truth.

  What if the person he used to be was more than capable of such atrocities?

  “When Laney visits me, the way she looks at me tells me all I need to know, Doc. She pities me. She feels bad for me, but at the same time, I can see it in her eyes. That’s a girl that doesn’t trust me and I must have done something to lose her trust. I hate...”—he sucked in a deep breath and sighed—“I hate how people look at me. I hate what I see in their eyes when I look at them. Whoever I was, he sucked. I don’t want to be that person, but I can’t change the fact that that’s who I used to be. All I can hope for is a better future.”

  “As far as I’m concerned, the old me can stay gone. I just want this to be over so I can start over. I hate being here, Doc. I feel like you think I’m crazy, but I’m not. I don’t feel crazy; I just feel...lost.”

  “I know, Devin.” The doctor nodded. “And that’s precisely why I’m going to run these tests today. You don’t need to be in here anymore. Your new life needs to start as soon as possible. I think it will benefit you.”

  “Yeah?” Stretching his legs out and crossing his arms over his chest, Devin eyed him. “But what happens if you let me out of here and then I remember everything? What happens if the old Devin comes back?”

  “To be completely honest with you, Devin; I don’t think he’s ever coming back. You’re a very unique case for me. Most patients who suffer from amnesia start regaining their memories within a few weeks, at least. I’d say in your case, my boy, you are quite lucky not to have gotten them back. This is a chance you need to take. I just need to know that you’re willing to make an effort to turn over a new leaf.”

  “Turn over a new leaf?” He laughed. “Doc, I need a new tree altogether.”

  “Then that’s what we’ll do. This is a seed I’m giving you, Mr. Rose. You have to plant it, water it, and allow it to grow into something meaningful. Do you understand?”

  “I think so.”

  “Good.” Standing from his chair, Doctor Thompson extended a hand towards him. “You’ll be called down for your first test in a few hours. Be ready, Devin. Your new life is about to begin.”

  “Thanks, Doc,” he said quietly, and then he shook his hand.

  He should have been excited about the possibility of finally getting out of the institute and moving on with his life. But what kind of life was he returning to?

  Chapter 2

  Kelly

  “I can’t believe how I reacted, Kelly. I’m an awful wife. I wouldn’t blame Callum for divorcing me now.”

  Watching as her friend buried her face into a tissue and blew her nose, Kelly sighed and sank down in the booth seat. For the past 15 minutes of her lunch break, she’d been listening to Lydia’s fears of losing her husband, and it was silly.

  “It was just a small fight and a huge misunderstanding, Lydia. Callum adores you so much. He isn’t going to leave you over this.” She reached across the table and rubbed her arm as soothingly as possible, just as she often did for Justin when he got upset. “Please stop crying. I hate to see you cry.”

  “I can’t h-help it.” Lydia hiccupped, peering over the tissues to gaze at her. “All I’ve been thinking about for months now is how badly I wish I could give him a child. And now he has one. Why did I get so angry about it?”

  She chose her next question very carefully. Lydia didn’t know that she knew. Playing clueless was the smartest thing to do, wasn’t it?

  “So you’re trying to have a baby and it hasn’t happened yet. There’s nothing wrong with that, Lydia. My mother and father tried many times before they were successful. I was their miracle baby, they said. My mom had four miscarriages before I came along.”

  “Oh, Kelly. I’m so sorry to hear that. That’s terrible.”

  And then she began to cry again.

  “Lydia, please. I’m sorry—I shouldn’t have said that. Now I’ve made it worse.” She sighed and dropped her head. What could she say to make her friend feel better?

  And then it struck her.

  “Look on the bright side, huh? Maybe meeting Callum’s son and getting to know him will prepare you for when the day comes that you have your own baby, huh?” She smiled as brightly as she could, hoping to help ease her friend’s grief. “Think of it as an opportunity to learn. Besides, watchin
g Callum with his son may give you an idea of what kind of father he will be to the child you have together.”

  “Oh, I wish.” Lydia sighed. Peering out the window, she began nibbling at her bottom lip. It was easy to see she was struggling with something. “Kelly, I think I should be honest with you about...about me.”

  “What do you mean, Lydia?”

  Oh, man. This is it. Her pulse quickened. Just be supportive. Let her know you’re here for her no matter what.

  “I’m—”

  The tune of Across The Universe filled the air and Lydia grabbed her phone, frowning.

  “It’s Laney. Oh, I’m sorry. I need to take this, Kelly. It might be about Callum. Maybe he’s,”—her voice squeaked—“trying to pass on a message about divorcing me. Excuse me.”

  Bewildered, she watched her friend get up from the table and hurry towards the bathroom. She felt so bad for her, but what could she do? Lydia wasn’t going to listen to her, at least not now. She was overwhelmed with the news of her husband having a child with another woman—and she was devastated over the fact she couldn’t physically give him one herself.

  It was a very sad situation.

  Damn, she was finally going to tell me the truth. Kelly sighed, poking at her salad with her fork. Oh, well. Maybe another time.

  Her phone began ringing a few minutes later and she nearly fell out of the booth. She answered it quickly when she realized it was Mrs. Harrington calling.

  “Hello, Mrs. H. How are my babies?”

  “Oh, they’re fine, dear. They’re being perfect little angels. Jamie was fussy earlier, but I gave her some ibuprofen and found a teething ring upstairs. I cleaned it up and put it in the freezer; worked like a charm. I told you it was her molars, didn’t I?”

  “So, she’s okay now?” She couldn’t help but to worry.

  “She’s fine, sweetheart. She’s asleep. Justin has been such a darling. He wanted to help me put her down for her nap. He sang to her and it was the sweetest thing! You’ve got quite the little man.”

  “He’s a good kid, huh?” She smiled. “Tell them I love them, and I’ll be home just as soon as I can. I’ve still got another four hours to get through.”

  “Take your time, honey. We’re having lots of fun here. I just wanted to call and let you know what was going on.”

  “Well, thank you so much. I appreciate it. I’ll talk to you later.”

  “All right, dear. Goodbye.”

  She hung up just as Lydia returned, a worried frown plastered across her lovely face.

  “Uh oh. What’s going on?” She swallowed hard. “It wasn’t...really about Callum, was it?”

  “Not at all.” Lydia slid into her seat and stared at her. “Laney was calling about Devin. It was weird.”

  “Devin? Why on earth?”

  She didn’t really know Devin as well as Lydia and her siblings did. She remembered how awful he was in school and how badly he’d treated Johnny, but otherwise she’d avoided him like the plague. Patrick hadn’t necessarily been fond of him either, and it seemed justifiable after what he’d put poor Laney through.

  “Apparently his psychiatrist wants to perform some tests today and he needs us to be there.” Lydia sighed. “So Laney, Jeb, Benji, and I have to be at the institute at 6 this evening.”

  “Tests? What kind of tests? Is he really still playing the ‘I don’t remember being a complete and total douche’ card?”

  “Yes, but the thing is Laney believes him. She thinks he’s telling the truth.” Lydia shrugged her shoulders and sniffled. “I can’t help but to believe her. She’s told me the story about that night so many times, Kelly—why would Devin have helped them otherwise?”

  “Because he didn’t want to go to jail?” She scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Lydia, he’s a terrible, horrible person. How can you so easily forget what he did to you when you were little?”

  “What he did to me?” Lydia blinked.

  “Um, I mean...what he did to Laney and Jeb and Johnny.” She dropped her gaze quickly, but it was too late.

  “How long have you known?”

  Shit!

  “Kelly?”

  Bracing herself for whatever was to come, she slowly lifted her head and stared at her friend apologetically. She half expected Lydia to be furious, but she was surprised to find her smiling.

  “What gave me away?”

  “A lot of things. Mostly on Christmas Eve – the way you reacted when I was talking about Johnny. And let’s be honest, those eyes are undeniable. I knew I knew you, I just needed a second to place you.”

  “That identifiable, huh?” Lydia sighed and slowly shook her head, her eyes sparkling. “I suppose I should have known. We were close when we were younger, huh? It’s hard to forget some people, no matter how much they may change.”

  “I could never forget you.” Her hand found Lydia’s and she squeezed it gently. “You were one of my best friends, Lydia. I adored you then and I adore you now. It never mattered to me, you know...”

  “I do know that. I know it now.” Lydia nodded firmly, and with conviction. “I just...I guess I’m scared of people here knowing. I don’t want them to remember that boy.”

  “And they won’t. Johnny McIntosh was just someone who used to live around here. Besides, how can they even think about him when such a pretty girl resides in Prairie Town now, huh?”

  Lydia’s cheeks heated up and she turned her head, laughing. “Oh, stop it.”

  “No, I’m serious!” She giggled, squeezing her hand. “Lydia, you are insanely gorgeous. Like, you could be a super model if you wanted. I’d kill to have your body.”

  “I’m serious—stop it! You’re embarrassing me.” Lydia glanced around and then sank down in her seat, burying her face into her baby blue infinity scarf.

  “Oh, pfft. Since when do you get embarrassed?” She grinned. “Aren’t you supposed to be Tula’s campaign manager for the election?”

  Tula, Lydia’s boss, was running for Mayor in Prairie Town. If she won, she’d be Prairie Town’s first woman mayor. Kelly prayed she’d win.

  “I don’t have to do a lot in the public eye. At least not yet.”

  “But election time is coming up soon. You’ll be doing a lot more by then.” She glanced at her plate of nearly untouched food and frowned. “What a waste of eight dollars, huh?”

  “Nonsense. I’m buying.”

  “I don’t think so. I—”

  “I dragged you all the way out here to cry about my problems, Kelly. And once again you’ve talked sense into me. The least I can do is pay for your food, okay? Please don’t argue with me.” She jutted her bottom lip out and gave her best puppy dog eyes.

  Rolling her eyes, Kelly caved. “Fine. But next time’s on me, all right?”

  “Agreed. Hey, can I ask you something?”

  “Of course. Anything.”

  “Will you come with me this evening, to the institute? I don’t know when Callum will come home and I don’t want to go alone.”

  Even though she knew good and well Laney, Jeb, and Benji would be there, she also knew she couldn’t say no to her friend.

  “All right. I’ll have to call Mrs. Harrington and see if she can stay a few more hours, but I’ll come with you, Lydia. I promise.”

  “Thanks.” Lydia beamed and grabbed for her hand again, squeezing it as tightly as she could. “You’re such a good friend, Kelly. I’m lucky to have you.”

  And I’m lucky to have you. She thought as she squeezed her friend’s hand in return.

  If only she knew what her promise to her friend would mean when 6 o’clock rolled around.

  —————

  Devin

  Doctor Thompson hadn’t been kidding when he said he wanted to do a series of tests. Devin had already seen his mother and father, people he did not recognize, and he’d been interrogated about his past.

  It didn’t do much good though; he didn’t remember anything and couldn’t answer the questions they asked. His fa
ther, as he learned, was an impatient man and didn’t like it when things didn’t go his way.

  His mother, however, seemed very sad when she asked questions about his childhood and he couldn’t confirm them. It sucked not being able to remember the vacations they’d gone on together, or his favorite book as a kid.

  Watching her walk away in tears didn’t help a damn thing.

  It made him feel worse.

  And then came his older brothers. He had three of them, apparently. Lucas, Roy, and Charlie. It was weird to be around them because he could see the family resemblance, but when it came to personalities, they couldn’t have been any more different.

  Charlie was the oldest and he kept asking weird questions about Jebson McIntosh—Devin totally didn’t understand. It was easy to see Charlie held a grudge against the guy, but Devin wasn’t sure why. What had Jeb ever done to them? To him?

  It was exhausting and all he wanted to do was go to bed. Couldn’t he just forget the ‘tests’ and go to sleep? Maybe Doctor Thompson had been wrong...

  But then six o’clock rolled around and his final test arrived. He was surprised when Laney, her boyfriend, and three other people walked in. He didn’t know the man and two women accompanying Laney and Benji, but he stood to greet them anyway.

  “Devin, this is Lydia McIntosh—Laney’s sister,” Doctor Thompson said.

  “Hello. It’s nice to meet you.” He shook her hand and noted how her smile seemed forced. Did she recognize him? Had he done something to her, too?

  “And this is Jebson McIntosh. He’s Laney’s brother.”

  “Nice to meet you.” He reached for Jebson’s hand and felt waves of embarrassment wash over him when the guy completely ignored him.

  “And this is Kelly Spencer. She’s a friend of the family.”

  His eyes landed on the seemingly reserved blonde and his heart skipped a beat. She may have been the prettiest thing he’d ever seen.

  “Hello.” He extended his hand to her and waited, hoping she wouldn’t shoot him down. “It’s very nice to meet you, Ma’am.”