by Simon Wood
Josh opened his eyes. Kaleidoscopic images that
made no sense came into view. His world twisted and turned, objects meshed into others to make new ones.
Slowly, everything locked into place.
He was in a white bed in a white room. A man
dressed in a white lab coat stood over him with a benevolent smile that exposed straight teeth. In the distance, a disembodied voice mumbled inaudibly. A
scrubbed-clean freshness filled the air, but the sour taste remained in his mouth.
“Are you Saint Peter?” Josh said.
The man blurted out a laugh. “I’ve been called many things, but no, I’m not Saint Peter. I’m Dr. Robert Green—and you’re not in heaven, you’re in Sutter Memorial Hospital.” ,
“How did I get here?”
“You were very lucky. Two guys in a boat found you on the riverbank,” Dr. Green said, still smiling.
“I don’t feel very lucky.”
“I would say you are. You swallowed quite a bit of the Sacramento River, which is not exactly the cleanest water you can drink. That means your stomach is going to be upset for awhile. I’ve put you on a course of antibiotics to kill any organisms swimming inside you
that should be swimming in the river. Other than that, you just have some superficial bruising.”
“When will I be allowed to leave?”
Josh started to sit upright, but winced. His body told him where every bruise was hiding. The doctor helped his patient up and moved pillows for support.
“I want to keep you in tonight for observation, then you should be okay to go home. Anyway, like I said, some people are here to see you.”
Dr. Green turned his head to indicate two people
waiting expectantly by the door to the private room.
Kate and Abby rushed to his bedside. Kate smiled
weakly with a furrowed brow, but Abby smiled
brightly at her father.
For Josh, it was easy to produce a big smile. Kate and Abby were the most important people in the world to him. Seeing them from the hospital bed, he saw them through new eyes.
Kate looked beautiful. She was the only woman he
knew who could make jeans and a tank top look sexy.
Her shoulder-length straw-colored hair hung loose around her face. Her beauty was at the crossroads of youth and maturity, creating a sensual fusion of what was and what was to come.
Abby was a reflection of her mother, possessing the same straw-colored hair, although hers was drawn
back into a ponytail. She was his little girl, but Josh knew she would break his heart one day when she became someone else’s.
“Hey, hon,” Kate said from the side of the bed. She hugged and kissed her husband.
“Daddy, you’re alive!”
The matter of fact statement made the adults in the room laugh.
“Abby!” Kate flicked a look at the doctor and Josh.
“Don’t say things like that.”
“Well, she’s not wrong,” the doctor said in Abby’s defense.
Abby looked at everyone, unaware of the impact of her remark. Quickly, she forgot about it and stood close to Josh’s bedside.
Josh had never been so happy to see them and his
smile extended into a broad grin. The pressure of the grin on his face squeezed out a couple of tears.
“I’ll leave you all alone for awhile, but I’ll be back in a few minutes to check up on you. Remember, you still need rest, so please, no excitement.”
“Thank you, Doctor,” Kate said.
Dr. Green smiled pleasantly and left the room.
“Oh, Josh, what happened?” Kate said.
“Somebody forced me off the fucking road and into the river.” His anger spewed out at the recollection of the incident on the road.
“Josh … Abby.” She indicated their daughter with her eyes. Kate disliked bad language spoken in front of her.
“Don’t say bad words, Daddy,” Abby said.
“I’m sorry. Daddy was mad, but I shouldn’t say
things like that. Forgive me?”
“Yes.” Abby scrambled onto the hospital bed and
hugged him.
He felt her small arms wrap around him as tightly as they could and he hugged her back. He ignored the ache from his bruises in favor of the affection. It felt like he’d been away from his family for a lifetime. He released Abby from his embrace.
“You’re going to have to let Daddy go now, hon,”
he said.
“The police are waiting outside to talk to you,”
Kate said.
They were the last people he wanted to talk to right now, but if he wanted that son of a bitch caught, he’d have to talk to them.
“Wheel them in,” he said with a frown.
Abby broke from the hug and snuggled herself next to Josh.
“Come on, Abby. Let’s get the police officers. You’re going to sit with Uncle Bobby while Daddy and I talk to the policemen.”
“Is Bob here?” Josh said.
“Yeah, he brought us. He’s waiting outside. They
won’t let him in since he’s not family.”
Bob Deuce had been Josh’s friend since they were
twelve. “Tell him thanks for coming.”
Kate helped her daughter down from the bed after
she had given Josh a kiss. He promised to tell Abby all about the accident when he returned home. They left and Kate returned with two uniformed officers.
The officers stood at the end of the bed. Kate sat on the bed next to her husband. The officers introduced themselves as Brady and Williams. Brady did the talking and Williams took notes. Brady was in his mid
forties and a good thirty pounds overweight for his six feet. He fixed Josh with a piercing look, like he was the guilty one. Josh thought he probably had too many people lie to him over the years. Williams was a young, well-groomed black man who looked as if he’d been out of the academy a couple of years and lacked the case-hardening that came with the position.
“Could you tell us what happened, Mr. Michaels?”
Brady asked.
“I was driving back home on Highway One-sixty
two when a car overtook me approaching the river.”
“What speed were you doing, sir?” Brady interrupted.
“Sixty-five.”
Brady nodded to Williams, who made a note of the
speed.
“And are you aware of the speed on that road, sir?”
Brady inquired.
“Yes. It’s not sixty-five. If you want to give me a ticket then do it, but do me the courtesy of letting me tell you what happened,” Josh responded. His irritation blistered at the attempted slap on the wrist for speeding.
“Josh,” Kate said softly. She put a hand on his arm.
“We’re just trying to establish what happened,”
Brady said without apology. “Carry on, sir,”
“As we came to the bridge, the car behind me, I
think it was an Explorer or Expedition—”
“Color, Mr. Michaels?” Williams asked.
“Black.”
“New or old?” Williams said.
“It was a current model. It looked as if it had come straight out of the box.”
Williams’s interruption of his account with simple, objective questions relieved Josh’s tension, bringing his anger down to a simmer. Brady was a pain in the ass, but at least the other officer seemed genuinely interested in Josh’s case.
“He overtook me as we reached the bridge, but
when the SUV got just past me, it cut back across. I swerved to avoid it and went onto the shoulder. I tried to stop, but I was too close to the edge of the river. The car went over the embankment.”
“So it was an accident,” Brady said.
“No way, this guy meant for me to go over the side,”
Josh said, cutting the assumption down before it had a chance to beco
me fact.
“What makes you say that?” Williams asked.
“When I was in the river I looked back and I saw him watching me, then the asshole gave me the thumbs
down. This bastard definitely wanted me dead,” Josh said bitterly.
“He did what?” Williams asked.
“He gave me a thumbs-down.” Josh demonstrated.
He straightened his arm with his thumb up and twisted his arm until his thumb pointed down. It was an exact representation of the gesture the man on the bridge had performed.
Kate gripped his arm tighter. “Why did he do that?”
Josh shrugged.
“And why would this man, a stranger, want to kill you?” Brady added, seemingly unimpressed by Josh’s account.
“I don’t know. You’re the ones I hope are going to find out,” Josh said, incredulous at the lack of concern shown by the cop.
“Can you give us a description of this man, sir?”
Williams asked.
“No, not really, the sun was in my face and I
couldn’t make out his features, but he was white. He wore sunglasses and a baseball cap. I couldn’t tell you how tall he was.”
“So, you’re saying that a man you don’t know and
couldn’t see ran you off the road without reason?”
“Yes, I am.”
“I find that difficult to understand. Are you sure there isn’t anything you aren’t telling us, Mr. Michaels?”
“No, there fucking isn’t.”
“Mr. Michaels, there’s no need for the profanity,”
Brady said sternly.
“Sorry,” Josh snapped back.
“Nowadays, the department is getting more and
more cases of road rage. Drivers are making it personal when they don’t get their way. Everyone thinks they’re a law-enforcing road vigilante. They’re not. The police enforce the law, not citizens.” Brady paused after his sermon. “Now are you sure nothing happened that
would have provoked the SUV driver?”
“No. Nothing happened. We weren’t racing each
other. I hadn’t cut him off and I hadn’t been riding his tail. He just ran me off the road and waited around to see me drown.”
“I think we have enough for now. We’ll take another look at the area and we’ll see if there’s any physical evidence that will allow us to make any progress,” Brady
said, dismissing Josh’s final statement like he’d already passed judgment.
“Is there anything else you can tell us about the man or his vehicle? Like a license plate number?” Williams asked.
“No, nothing.”
“Your wife has given us your details and we’ll be in contact in the next few days. And sir, can I recommend that you watch the speed? You never know, ten miles an hour slower and you might have stopped in time. Good night to you both,” Brady said.
“Good night, sir… ma’am,” Williams said.
“Good night officers,” Kate said.
Williams pocketed his notebook and smiled. Brady
put his hat back on and tipped it to both of them. The two policemen left the hospital room.
Josh waited for the policeman to get out of earshot before he exploded. “They didn’t believe a word of it.
They won’t do a damn thing.”
“Calm down,” Kate said firmly. “You didn’t give
them much to work with. Give them a chance.”
“Don’t you side with them.”
“I’m not, but I think you just came across some road crazy that thought he’d have some fun. He probably got off on terrorizing you. All we need to know is that it’s over and you’re okay.” Kate hugged Josh tightly.
She fought back tears, but they came anyway.
Kate’s embrace felt tight enough to crack his ribs. It was hard to be angry when Kate was so upset. “You’re probably right, but they didn’t have to treat me like a criminal.”
“Never mind that now, I’m just happy to see you
alive.” Gently, she rocked him while she spoke. “I have no idea how you swam to shore.”
“Neither do I. God knows. Self-preservation, I suppose,”
Josh said, the anger subsiding. The rocking
soothed his frustrations, but deep down, he wasn’t satisfied.
He was sure it was no accident. It didn’t matter
if the cops didn’t believe him.
Dr. Green returned to his patient and called it a night for Josh’s visitors. He told Josh to get some rest and ushered Kate out of the room.
CHAPTER THREE
When Dr. Green entered his room the next morning, Josh was feeling hungry, but not for hospital food.
He’d left most of the breakfast they’d brought him. It had tasted like the contents of a bedpan. He would have killed for a turkey sandwich with a side of potato salad. He looked up from the magazine.
“Hi, Doctor.”
“Hello, Mr. Michaels. I thought I’d check up on you to see how we’re doing.”
We? I don’t remember you at the bottom of the river.
I could have done with the help, he thought with good humor. “We’re doing okay.”
“Stand up for me, please. How’d you sleep?”
Josh put the magazine down and hopped out of bed.
He let Green prod and poke him. “Not bad,” he lied.
His sleep had been fitful. In his dreams, he had relived distorted versions of his attempted murder at the river. In one dream, the tailgater had been at the wheel of Josh’s car and Josh had fought for control of the vehicle.
Even at close quarters Josh was unable to see the man. In the dream, everything was distorted. The baseball cap’s bill was three times its normal size. The
man’s mirrored aviator sunglasses covered half his face.
After the fight of his life, Josh lost control to the tailgater and drove the car off the bridge with both of
them in it. In another dream, the killer simply blew the bridge out from underneath Josh as he drove across.
The bridge vaporized, engulfing him in flames as the car plunged into the river. More dreams had followed.
Each time the events had varied but the outcome was the same. He hadn’t survived. Waking at the moment of death had saved him.
Finishing his examination, the doctor asked, “How’s your stomach acting?”
“I puked around three this morning.”
“Sit down. How about now?”
“Okay, I suppose. I feel hungry.”
“That’s a good sign.” Staring at Josh like he could see through to his internal organs, the doctor thought for a moment. “I think you’re okay to go home. You seem all right, no serious physical injuries. I’ll sign you off and you can go any time you want.”
“Thanks.”
“Go home, rest up, and take a few days for yourself.
Take a holiday if you want. You’ve had a traumatic episode and it’s time to put it behind you.” With a smile, he pointed at Josh. “Doctor’s orders, okay?”
“Okay, I’ll try,” Josh said begrudgingly.
Leaving the room, the doctor said. “Don’t try. Do.” Easy for you to say, he thought. The doctor had not been there. He had not experienced what Josh had experienced.
How many times had the doctor found
himself trapped in a car at the bottom of the river?
None, that’s how many. He couldn’t forget the experience just like that, nor could he forget the demented
tailgater. He believed the driver had wanted to kill, not scare him.
As soon as Green left, Josh got out of his hospital johnny and into his own clothes from an overnight bag Kate had brought with her. He wanted out of the hospital.
The facility was a reminder of the helplessness
he’d felt in the sinking car. He was in an environment he had no control over, one where he couldn’t dictate his next move. He picked up the phone and called Kate.
Kate a
nd Abby picked him up from the hospital and took him home. It felt good to see the familiar surroundings of his home of the last six years. It was nothing special, just a two-story, three-bedroom Cape Cod on the southwest side of Sacramento. But it was comfortable and fit him like a favorite chair.
“Here we are, honey. Home,” Kate said.
Looking from the passenger window, Josh said.
“Yeah, I sure am.”
Kate tugged at his arm and he turned to face her. She pulled him over to her and kissed him full on the mouth.
Their kiss was interrupted by laughter. They stopped and looked at the person laughing in the backseat.
“What are you laughing at, Abby?” Josh said, fighting back a grin.
“You two,” she replied.
“I wouldn’t laugh too much if I were you. I haven’t thrown away those adoption papers,” he said, raising an eyebrow.
Lightly, Kate punched him in the arm. “Stop that.”
Josh and his family clambered out of the minivan, and with a female on each arm he was led inside. They supported him as if he were a china doll that would break at any moment. He had the feeling this was going to be his treatment for the next few days. He
imagined they would be attending to his every whim. He might as well enjoy it while he could. After Kate opened the door, Abby raced ahead.
“Wiener, we’re home,” she called and disappeared
into the living room.
The three-year-old long-haired dachshund ran in
from the kitchen with his tail wagging. The dog was black and tan with a smudge over each eye giving him a permanently surprised look. Josh had bought the dog after Kate had miscarried and they knew she would never have another child. The dog was to be Abby’s substitute sibling. It was a stupid and insensitive gesture at a time when they were all looking for something to make up for the hurt, but that was forgotten now.
Wiener was part of the family. The dog came up to Josh for a moment to be stroked before he bounded off to Abby.
Kate slid her arm around Josh’s waist. “Is there anything you want?”
“I wouldn’t mind a sandwich or something. The
food in the hospital was what you’d expect.” He
frowned.
“Roast beef sound good?” Kate’s eyes shone with
love and affection.
Before Josh could answer, Abby interrupted. She
raced up, clutching a picture in her hands, with Wiener close behind.