Swallowing the disappointment, she stammered, “C-can I see them? Maybe they’ll look familiar.”
Faith pulled out a pair of blue suede slip-on shoes. They looked comfortable—dressy, yet casual—but not familiar. She shook her head and looked away.
Faith put the shoes back in the bag and thanked the nurse. After the nurse left, Faith sat on the edge of the bed. “It will come. Don’t force it. You’ll only make yourself more upset.” Then she picked up the pen and continued to talk as she wrote. “I’ll get you some sandals or flip flops as well as sun dresses, slippers, sweatpants, and t-shirts. How about underclothing?” When she didn’t respond, Faith continued, “I don’t suppose you recall your bra size and what type of undies you prefer.”
Heat flooded her cheeks at Faith’s directness. She shifted uncomfortably in the bed, and pain lanced through her ribs. She closed her eyes, attempting to focus on something else, but her mind was blank. All she recalled was two tall, handsome brothers.
“I’m sorry, dear. I’m causing you to overdo it, aren’t I?”
“No. It’s okay. I shouldn’t have tried to move.”
Faith reached for the bag withJane Doe’sbelongings. “Let me see if they put your underclothing in here.”
She stopped herself from nodding and shot Faith a smile.
Faith copied down sizes from the clothing in the bag then asked, “How about makeup and other toiletries?”
Do I wear make-up?She stared at Faith as the question rattled around inside her head. Raising her right hand to her face she touched her cheek. Panic rose in her chest, stealing her breath. She frowned at Faith.
Faith’s voice was quiet when she spoke again. “Has anyone brought you a mirror? Do you even know what you look like?”
She shook her head, and Faith said, “I’ll be right back.”
The other woman walked out of the room, leaving her to wonder if she really wanted to know. She returned a few moments later and held up a mirror. “Here.”
She bit back a gasp as her stomach twisted. The left side of her face was purple from the cheek bone to the hairline, her eye partially swollen shut. Stitches ran along her hairline. No wonder her head hurt so bad. Her right eye sported a much smaller, blue bruise. She tried to look beyond the bruises.
Shouldn’t the color of my eyes be familiar?
What had happened to make her forget everything so completely that she didn’t even recognize her own face?
Faith took her hand. “Every thing’s going to be okay. It’ll come back. In the meantime, I’m going to take good care of you.”
She blinked back the tears that blurred her vision and squeezed Faith’s hand. “Thank you, but... why are you helping me? I’m a stranger.”
“You won’t be a stranger for long, dear. And helping people is what I do.” Faith shrugged and picked the pen up again. “Now, let’s see... I don’t think you need any makeup. As much as you’re going to want to hide the bruises, I wouldn’t suggest trying to rub much makeup on them. Should I get you some powder foundation?”
She looked back at her reflection. A tear clung to her long, thick lashes. She might as well accentuate the positives, even though they were difficult to see amid the bruising.
“Mascara too, please.” Then she touched her dry cracked lips. “And lip gloss.”
“Sheer? Or would you like colored gloss?” Before she could answer, Faith continued. “You have beautiful lips, so red and full.”
Were her lips naturally this red? Or did they look red because her face was so pale?
“Sheer is fine, or maybe a frost,” she responded, wondering if that was her preference.
The room fell silent a few minutes later after Faith left. The woman picked up the mirror again and studied her face.Jane Doe.
How long will it take for the sheriff to identify me?
Chapter 5
Jake pulled his truck to a stop in the hospital parking lot.What am I doing here?
It was seven thirty in the evening, and unable to get the auburn-haired woman with emerald eyes out of his mind, he’d decided to visit her.
Robert had texted him this afternoon; fingerprints identified the woman as Emily Anderson. Robert was attempting to locate her family.
