Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 80940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 405(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 405(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
He returned the picture to the box and set it aside. “Maybe we should save pictures for another time.”
Nodding, I stood and grabbed another box.
By the time we had opened every single one, I felt mentally and physically exhausted. “Nothing in any of these boxes say where I was going in Chicago.”
Liam looked around the unit. “We need to ask Joyce where you worked before you moved. Maybe you told someone there something.”
“My head is killing me.”
“Let’s go back to the hotel, shower, and get a good night’s sleep. You’ll feel better in the morning.”
I wanted desperately to believe him, but my gut was telling me we were about to go down a hole I wasn’t remotely ready for. I walked to the rental car while Liam spoke with Joyce for a few minutes. I had no idea what they were talking about, and honestly, I was too tired to care.
##
Pacing the small hotel room, I checked the time on my phone again. “Where are you, Liam?”
I tossed it onto the bed and wrapped my arms around my body. Liam had asked Joyce yesterday evening where I’d worked before moving. It was a restaurant called Yoder’s Kitchen. It hadn’t rung a bell, and I was beginning to think I would never regain my memory. Maybe that was for the best. I had no friends, no family, and it was starting to look like maybe I had no home, either. With the sale of my grandmother’s house, maybe I could have afforded an apartment in Chicago.
When Liam had suggested he go and ask some questions at the restaurant, I quickly agreed. The fewer people who knew I was here and suffering from amnesia, the better. After all, we weren’t entirely sure the person who’d kidnapped me wasn’t from here. We highly doubted they were, but that whole human trafficking thing kept replaying in my mind.
The door to the hotel room opened, and I spun around to see Liam.
“What happened?” I asked, rushing toward him. He was carrying a bag, and something smelled delicious.
“I thought I’d get us some lunch while I was at a restaurant. You didn’t hardly eat any breakfast.”
My stomach growled, and Liam arched a brow as he took out two containers, setting them on the desk. “They’re burgers with fries,” he said.
I waited patiently while he opened each Styrofoam container. He slid one to me and set a bottle of water down beside it.
“Are you going to tell me if you found out anything?”
He smiled and pointed to the food. “Sit and eat while I fill you in.”
Doing as he said, I sank into the desk chair and picked up a fry.
“Like we talked about, I told them I was a private detective hired by your father’s side of the family, and that they were trying to track you down.”
“And they bought it?”
He nodded. “You worked there for several years, the manager said. Kept to yourself but were friendly with the other staff. I guess a few of you would go out to dinner or a bar sometimes, but you didn’t have any close friends. She brought up Laura, and said the same thing as Joyce. You two drifted apart once Laura moved, got married, and had kids. When I asked if she thought you had spoken to Laura recently, she said no. You evidently told her you’d tried to call her, but someone else now had her old number.”
“So, I really don’t have any friends at all.”
“No close friends. You had acquaintances, but no one you really confided in.”
“I wonder why I kept to myself?”
Liam shrugged. “I don’t know. She said you were nice and that everyone liked you.”
I dropped back in my seat. “We have no leads at all on where I went when I moved to Chicago.”
He slowly shook his head. “The only thing I know to do is maybe drive around Chicago. See if something sparks a memory. We should probably check the banks to see if you have an account set up. You can’t access it without an ID. Did you happen to notice your birth certificate in the boxes? We should check that again and maybe try and get you a replacement license.”
A bitter laugh escaped. “I don’t even have an address to give them, Liam. And as far as remembering, if my hometown doesn’t, I doubt the place I lived just a few weeks will.”
Liam looked down at his food, a look of defeat on his face.
“I’m sorry, Liam. I didn’t mean to snap at you like that.”
He lifted his gaze to meet mine. “You didn’t snap, Mallory. You’re frustrated, as am I. But listen, I had a thought today…would you be alright if I had a moving company bring your items to Montana? We could go through the boxes more thoroughly back home.”