Page 197 of Show Me

I do. Pain blooms behind my temple.

He watches my eyes before clicking the light off. “Any nausea?”

“Yes.” Too much. I haven’t thrown up this many times since I had that stomach bug three years ago.

“Dizziness?”

“Also, yes.”

He parts the hair around the bandage, fingertips probing along my scalp. “Tell me if this gets significantly worse.”

“It already hurts.”

“I imagine it does.” He presses lightly once more before stepping back. “You most likely have a concussion. We’ll get a CT scan to rule out anything more serious.”

My stomach drops. Anything more serious? “What does that mean?”

Emily rests her hand on my forearm. “It’s a formality. There’s nothing worse.”

“Fine.” I’m not sure I believe her, but I lean back into the pillow again, taking her at her word because I’m not mentally prepared for worse.

Dr. Reynolds glances between the three of us, the corner of his mouth lifting. “You’ve got quite the support team.”

Bella points at me. “She’s the glue.”

I manage a weak smile. “Don't say it as if I died.”

Bella's expression falls. “You scared us.”

“I'm sorry.”

Emily’s entire face tightens. “You don’t apologize for getting attacked.”

Dr. Reynolds gives me one last look. “We’ll get imaging ordered. Try not to fall asleep until we've finished the scan.”

“I’ll do my best.”

He nods once, jots a note on the chart, then slips back through the curtain.

A knock sounds against the doorframe a few minutes later. Jake steps inside. His expression stays neutral, but I catch the way his eyes find the bandage near my hairline.

His spine straightens. “You up for answering a few questions?”

“Yeah.”

Bella and Emily step back to give him room, but neither of them leaves.

Jake pulls a small notebook from his jacket, flips to a clean page, and settles onto the stool beside the bed. His pen clicks once as the girls take seats. “Start from the beginning.”

I swallow hard over the lump in my throat. “I went outside to feed the pigs.” I share with him the details of what I remember.

“Did you ever see them?”

“No. I didn’t see anything.” I shake my head before remembering that’s something I told myself I wasn’t going to do again. Pain shoots through my temple. That was stupid.

Bella folds her arms. “Jesus.”

Jake finishes the line before looking back up. “Same handwriting?”