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“No, that’s right,” I said. “It’s all kind of blurry, though. I think I’m between homes.”
He frowned slightly. “You were in the middle of moving?”
“Yeah, maybe. Moving cities, though I don’t think I had anywhere lined up.” I knew I was basically saying I was homeless, but that sounded right to me. I couldn’t imagine myself with a cozy little place somewhere. I didn’t know why, but I couldn’t. What kind of person was I?
“We checked the address on your license, and they said you hadn’t been there for months. It was a rental and you’d moved on and hadn’t left a forwarding address.”
“Oh, right.”
“The bank for your credit card still had the old address as well, so you must not have changed it when you left, I’m afraid.”
“It’s okay.” I couldn’t remember, but I was filled with a certainty I didn’t want him to probe any further. Why wouldn’t I want him to? Why wouldn’t I want to know exactly who I was and how I’d gotten here? Someone had shot me. Shouldn’t I want the police to investigate? For some reason the idea of cops probing into my background filled me with a rising panic.
“It’s fine,” I said, trying to put more confidence into my voice. “I know who I am. I was just between homes. I’ll find a new place as soon as I get out of the hospital.”
The cop frowned at me. “What about when you were shot? Do you remember any more about that?”
I twisted my lips and shook my head. “No, sorry. I assume if all I was found with was a driver’s license and a credit card, it must have been a mugging. I guess they took the rest of my stuff, and I got shot at the same time.”
“But you don’t know where?”
I pretended to think again. “It must have happened down by the river, but honestly, I can’t remember.”
Exhaustion was starting to pull at my limbs, dragging my body deeper into the bed. My head started to thump with pain, and I could feel my eyes slipping shut.
The police officer snapped his notebook shut. “Well, thank you for your time, Mr. Mason. I can see you need your rest.”
I nodded, barely finding the energy to speak. “Yes, thank you.”
I was aware of him leaving the room. My thoughts whirred. I was a man called Lee Mason, who was without a home or family, and had a dangerous job.
I thought someone else came into the room, felt the flash of a camera against my eyelids, but I was too weak to do anything about it, or perhaps I was dreaming already …
Oblivion claimed me once more.
