Blackness consumed me. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t breathe.
What was happening?
Panicked, I again tried to breathe.
I couldn’t.
The earth beneath me was rough. Sharp stones bit into my skin. I was wet. Cold.
Still, there was nothing but blackness.
Someone was pounding on my chest, crushing me. My sternum and ribs screamed in pain.
Was I dying? Was someone killing me?
Then I felt the sudden urge to sit up and cough. I retched out water. The water that spewed forth tasted like dead fish. Spasms wracked my body.
Light filled my world again. But pain. So much pain.
I wanted so badly to breathe.
Water continued to pour from my mouth.
A large, firm hand pressed against my back, helping me sit up. A man was speaking to me. “You’re okay. You’re okay.” His voice was raspy and direct.
The spasms subsided.
I gasped for breath. Precious air filled my lungs.
My stomach hurt, and my throat was on fire, but I could breathe again.
I took another deep breath, but that caused another round of coughing. I was choking. Water filled my mouth again. I turned to spit the foul liquid onto the ground. I took another breath, shallower this time.
“Take it easy, take it easy.”
My lungs heaved in breath after breath, alternating with coughing.
As the coughing ceased and my breathing quietened, I turned back to see a police officer kneeling next to me. I tried to read the name on his uniform, but my vision was still foggy. I blinked hard to focus. It read, D. Reed.
His expression was somber. “Can you tell me your name?”
The words meant nothing. I glanced around me. I was sitting on the bank of a river. I looked up and saw a road. A single image flashed through my mind. Headlights.
I had been driving home on Highway 151. It was around midnight. Headlights blinded me. Without warning, a car swerved into my lane.
I blinked.
The memory was replaced with the scene above me. Part of the guardrail was dangling twenty-five feet above. Another part of it was missing. My eyes followed the dangling rail to the river below. The water was still. But along the bank, there were jagged car parts everywhere. Shards of glass reflected the moonlight.
My car. I turned my head from side to side in panic, looking everywhere for it. “Where’s my car?”
The officer pointed to the river. “It’s submerged over there.”
I squinted at the water. Surely, I would be able to see some hint of my car.
I saw nothing.
“Now, I need you to concentrate,” the officer said. “Can you tell me your name?”
I stared into the river. Half-formed questions flooded my mind as the officer tapped me on my shoulder again. I dragged my gaze away from the water and met his eyes. “Devin. My name is Devin Shephard.”
“Devin, thank you. I want you to remain calm, okay? You’ve been in an accident. I need you to continue talking with me.”
I stared blankly at the river. It took me a moment to comprehend what had happened. Eventually, I nodded my head. I started to shiver from the cold.
“Good,” the officer continued. He wrapped a blanket around my shoulders. “What can you tell me about your accident?”
“Where’s Lara?” I croaked.
“Who’s Lara? Was there someone else in the car with you?”
I blinked, trying to think. Then I remembered.
“No,” I breathed. “No. She’s okay.”
Everything came back to me in a flash.
If the officer was still talking, I didn’t hear him anymore.
