“Sir, do you remember anything about the accident? Anything unusual?” he asks in his usual, straight to the point manner.
I shake my head slightly since any sudden movement makes me dizzy. “Not really, Tucker. I get quick flashes of it but nothing I can piece together yet. They said it was normal to not remember everything.”
“Do you mind if I ask you some questions to try to jog your memory? It’s important,” he states.
“If you say it’s important, I believe you. Go ahead,” I say, curious to see where he’s going with this.
“Was there another car that seemed to come out of nowhere?”
I try to focus on the events of the early morning, “I think I remember seeing headlights coming up behind me.”
“Did your car seem to have a mind of its own after that?” he asks, but it almost sounds more like a statement than a question.
Images of swerving but not being able to steer flash through my mind. “Yes, but how could you know that?”
“Just a hunch, sir,” Tucker responds ambiguously. “Let us do some digging and I will get back with you. I’ve already called in a favor and have another man who will be with us at all times. You may not always see him, but he’ll be there.”
“Who is it?”
Tucker walks over to the door and motions for someone to enter. The biggest man I’ve ever seen walks in. He’s tall, with bulging muscles everywhere, black hair, and blue eyes. His gait is confident and everything about him screams don’t-even-try-to-fuck-with-me. Tucker is a big man, but this guy dwarfs him in size.
“Mr. Powers, this is Shadow, with Steele Security. He flew in from Miami as soon as you didn’t make it to work this morning. Shadow, this is Mr. Dominic Powers,” Tucker makes our formal introductions and Shadow walks over to shake my hand.
“Is that your real name?” I ask the mountain standing beside me.
“As real as it gets,” he replies amiably and with a smile.
“Fair enough,” I chuckle. “I know Tucker wouldn’t call you unless he trusts you.”
“With my life, sir. Shadow has had my back more times than I can count. He won’t let us down,” Tucker confides.
“I have a few things I need to check out, but I will be back to help Tucker with your security detail. I’ll be around, Mr. Powers. I’m not always visible, but I’ll never be too far away,” Shadow says.
“How in the world can a man as big as you be invisible?” I ask incredulously.
Shadow and Tucker both smile, and I think it may be the first time I’ve seen Tucker smile like that. It’s the smile that says they know something I don’t know. They have an inside secret that I’m not privy to know, and they’re also not going to let me in on it.
“There are ways, Mr. Powers. Leave that to me,” Shadow says as he moves toward the door. The way he silently moves, especially with as big as he is, must be an indication of his skills. “I’ll be back as soon as I can. Time is of the essence if this is what I think it is.”
“I’ll be right outside the door if you need anything, Mr. Powers,” Tucker says as he walks out the door.
Sophia’s head is on my shoulder with her face close to my neck. The warmth of her breath fans across my throat and I feel her tears dropping on my skin. “Talk to me, baby. What are you thinking?”
She laughs but it’s a humorless chuckle, “You shouldn’t be consoling me right now, Dom. You’re the one in the hospital.”
“Don’t worry about me, love. I’m fine, really. Now, tell me what’s on your mind,” I say into her hair.
“It’s been a really emotional day. When you didn’t show up at work, I knew something was wrong. I immediately called Tucker and we both left to search for you and met in the middle. He noticed the tracks in the grass where your car went off the road, so we doubled back to search the area. He sent me off to call for help when he saw your car because our cells weren’t picking up service for some reason.
“I rushed back and Tucker was down in the ditch with you. He wouldn’t let me go down there with you, saying it wasn’t safe and that you would be mad if I went down there anyway. I felt so helpless. I couldn’t do anything but watch when the ambulance, the rescue trucks, and the police showed up.
“They had to extricate you from the car and they put you on a backboard. Then several of them carried you out of the ditch. The paramedic was yelling for you to stay awake. You weren’t responding so she had to stop and rub her knuckles in the center of your chest to try to get you to respond.
“You had been awake for a few seconds before that, just when they were getting you out of the car. That’s when you…” her voice fades away and her hand flies to her mouth to hold back a sob.
“That’s when I what?” I ask, but she can’t seem to answer me. “I’m here now, baby, and I’m not going anywhere. You can tell me what happened. Maybe it’ll help jog my full memory.”
She nods and wipes her face. Pushing up to a sideways sitting position, she looks me in the eye and says, “When they pulled you out, you yelled out for Carol Ann.”
