“Well, young lady,” the doctor said coming into the room few minutes later. He was looking at her chart and he had not looked at her yet. “Let’s see what we can do for you today.” Then he looked up at her and stopped dead.
Shay was getting tired of the looks and she said with a hint of frustration, “I am tired of getting that look from everyone. I should have never stopped in this damn town.”
Her words snapped the doctor out of his daze and he shook his head as he said, “I am sorry, Miss…” looking down at the file one more time, “Montgomery.”
Shay sighed looking at him with wary green eyes, “No, sir, it is my fault. I should not have spoken to you like that in my frustration. It is just that…oh, never mind.”
The doctor looked at her more closely, and he said politely, “Let’s take a look at that head.” He checked her head and told her that she given it a good bump. He made sure that she did not have a concussion and then gave her a prescription for painkillers, which she knew she never would fill.
Shay sighed as she looked up and said, “Dr. Jameson, do you think I can get someone to take a look at my car?”
“Matt Ferguson is the mechanic for the town,” Dr. Jameson said turning to the nurse who had been standing quietly at his side, “Annie, do you think you can get hold of Matt?”
She blushed as she nodded and hurried out of the room. Dr. Jameson smiled and shook his head as Shay chuckled softly then moaned as her head throbbed.
“You need to take it easy for a few days,” he advised and watched her frown then sigh with resignation as she nodded her head slowly.
Dr. Jameson looked at the young woman who looked so much like Charity McCloud that he would not have known the difference if they were passing each other, but he could now. Charity had been a vibrant and bright young woman although she had been a little on the conceited side. This young woman had the same green eyes but they were wary and cautious as she looked at him. Charity had acted like a fragile flower although she had not been, but this young woman was not fragile and he had the impression that she would stand on her own before asking anyone for help unless it was absolutely needed.
Annie came back to the room and said, “Matt said that he will go out now to your car and see what he could do for you, Miss Montgomery.”
“Thank you, Annie, and please call me Shay,” she answered with her head still in her hands. She looked up and smiled wearily as them.
“Do you think there is a place I could stay until Matt could take a look at my car?” Shay asked them.
Annie bit her lip then said, “My aunt runs the bed and breakfast, and she may have a room that you can use for the night.”
Shay gave her a slight nod and a smile whispering, “Thank you.”
“Annie, take Shay over to your aunt’s and see if she could give her something to eat,” Dr. Jameson advised and then he smiled at Shay.
Shay slid off the table saying, “Do I talk to the receptionist about the bill, Doctor?”
He nodded his head as Annie straightened the room getting it ready for the next patient. Shay nodded her head as she followed Annie out of the room. Dr. Jameson followed them and watched as they stopped at the front desk where the young woman paid the bill and received a receipt. She smiled wearily at them before following Annie out the door. The doctor stood there for a few seconds longer as he was lost in thought until his receptionist said, “Doctor Jameson” that he snapped himself out of his thoughts.
“Sorry, Sherrie,” he said smiling before he turned around going to his next patient.
Shay followed Annie to the bed and breakfast that was a few blocks from the doctors’ office. Shay had to admit that the house they stopped in front of was amazing and she followed as Annie walked inside.
“Aunt Nettie,” Annie called and a door to the left opened as an older woman walked out her gray hair short and she wore a knit shirt and a pair of trousers.
“Annie, hello dear,” she said coming up to them and when she looked at Shay, her face paled before she took a step back.
Shay sighed softly as Annie introduced her, “Aunt Nettie this Shay Montgomery. She had an accident while she was heading out of town, and Matt is taking a look at her car.”
Aunt Nettie took a closer look at the young woman then she apologized, “I am sorry, dear, but you reminded me of someone.”
Shay smiled although a little wary, “That is okay, ma’am. I have been getting the same look from everyone I have come across since I entered the town stopping by for supplies.”
“Aunt, do you have a room that she can have for the night?” Annie asked as she looked at her watch.
Nettie noticed the tiredness of the young woman and the bump on her head. She frowned as she said, “I do, but it is only the room off of the kitchen. I am sorry but my other rooms are filled at the moment.”
Shay nodded her head, “That is fine, ma’am. I just want a place to lay down for a little until I can talk to this Matt, and I will pay the same that you normally charge for the other rooms.” Nettie was filled with curiosity but she did not show it as she led her to the room after they said goodbye to Annie who had to head back to work. Before she left though she told Shay, “I will tell Matt to see you or give you a call here.”
Shay had nodded her head as she said, “Thank you for all your help, Annie.” Annie had smiled and left. Now Shay was standing in the middle of a small room that brought a smile to her face and Nettie seeing the smiled looked at her in confusion.
Shay answered the unasked question, “It reminds me of my first apartment when I was 18. I had just moved out of the orphanage and my apartment was maybe a little bigger than this.” Shay stopped there for she rarely talked about her past.
“Thank you, Miss Nettie,” she smiled gently sitting down on the bed.
“Get some sleep, Shay,” Nettie said looking at this young woman. Something told her that this young woman had not had many breaks in her life. “I will call you when Matt comes by.” Shay nodded her head and watched as the door was closed. She sighed as she took off her shoes and lay down on the bed. She drifted off to sleep the second her head hit the pillow.
“Who in the hell is she?” the voice whispered.
“Shay Montgomery from what I understand,” the other voice said gravely.
“Find out who she is and what she is doing here,” the voice said harshly.
“Understood,” was the reply. They hung up, and then a curse filled the room.
Shay, in her temporary room, shivered as her eyes flashed open. She let her eyes scan the small room and she had very bad feeling as she sat up pulling her knees up to her chin, and she wondered why that dream came back to her so vividly. In the last six years, she had plenty of dreams of herself, or a young woman who looked like her, but this was the first night that she had the dream, or nightmare, which started all the others in such detail. She sat in the bed with arms wrapped around her legs wondering what she got herself into when she pulled off the exit and into this town.
Chapter 4
The next day, Cordial walked into Miss Nettie’s house as she came out of her office.
“Hi handsome,” she said giving him a smile. Cordial smiled back although his eyes showed that he had a restless night.
“Hi, beautiful,” he said giving her a kiss on the cheek. Nettie gave him a quick look as he looked over the sheet she gave him. Cordial O’Ryan was a gorgeous man with silver eyes that turned to steel when he was angry and coal black hair that he kept a little on the long side; it brushed the collar of his shirt. He was a little over 6’1’’ and had a very nice build that was a little on the lanky side even though he had muscle, but there was not an ounce of fat on his body. He wore a plaid shirt over a white tee and pair of black jeans with his work boots. It amazed her though that he still worked on her place even though he owned his own construction company and it was a growing business, but still made time to help her fix the little things that broke down around here.
“I should be able to do this in a few days, Miss Nettie,” he said looking back up at him.
“Thanks Cord, I appreciate it,” she said and looked over as Matt came in with Annie.
“Hi, Aunt Nettie, Cord,” Annie said and they noticed the blush that stained her cheeks. Nettie smiled as she said, “Give me a moment and I will get her.” She nodded her head as Matt smiled and they started a conversation with Cordial.
She went back to the kitchen where Shay was doing dishes. She watched her for a moment before saying, “Matt is here, Shay.”
Shay turned to her at the sound of her voice but she had not jumped. She nodded her head and dried her hands on the dishtowel lying on the counter.
Shay followed Nettie back into the hallway where Annie, Matt, and Cordial stood talking.
“Hi Shay,” Annie said seeing them as they entered the hallway. Shay nodded her head as she looked at the other people in the hallway.
“Hi, I am Matt,” the blonde-haired man said giving her a smile and holding at his hand.
“Shay,” she said shaking his hand but not holding onto it long. The other man did not introduce himself but glared at her with silver eyes. Shay had a flash for a moment and she frowned before giving him a nod and turning back to Matt.
“So what is the damage Matt?” Shay said and noticed his look of discomfort. “Give it to me honestly.”
“Well, I can fix the car but it will take at least two weeks at the most. The front axel broke when you went into the ditch and unfortunately, I do not have that part for your car at my garage. I have to order it,” Matt explained then he frowned. “Did you know that the brake line was cut?”
Shay sighed as she ran a hand through her hair, which showed the bump on her forehead, and nodded her head once.
Matt looked at her in speculation as he stated, “You knew they were cut.”
Shay shook her head, “No, not they were cut. I just knew something was wrong. I am heading to a new job at least another 500 miles from here. I made sure that my car was in working order before leaving. I even had my friend, who is a mechanic; take a look at it for me.” She did not mention that he had scolded her for going to him when she could work on her own car and do a damn fine job of it.
Matt nodded his head, and then said, “Here this was on the windshield when I went to pick it up. I figure it may be from the sheriff fining you so I thought I would bring it along. Also I would need your keys, which I should have requested from the start since it required me to hot start the car.” He grimaced lightly, but Shay only nodded her head as she took the paper and without looking up as she was unfolding the sheet of paper, asked, “How much do I owe you for the tow?”
“I will charge you everything when I finish fixing the car,” Matt said and then frowned for her face had turned puzzled.
Annie noticing the look thought to tease her a little, “Oh, new in town, and already you have a secret admirer. Let me see.” She reached forward and grabbed the letter before Shay could stop her.
Annie read the letter and she paled but before Matt or Cordial could look, Shay snatched it back and folded it back up.
“Matt, do you think I could get a lift with you to my car?” Shay said. “I need to get my things out of it if I am going to be staying for a while.”
“Sure,” Matt said noticing Annie’s pale face and wide eyes.
“Annie,” Shay said softly, “It is nothing. Don’t worry about it okay?” Annie looked at her and nodded her head. Shay turned around saying over her shoulder, “I will be back in a minute.”
She headed to her room to get her jacket and her wallet. She noticed when she walked in the kitchen that the biscuits she had made earlier where no longer on the table. She shrugged for she had been bored so helping with the breakfast meal helped past the time.
“What is wrong, Annie?” Matt said laying a hand on her arm. Cordial frowned himself as he looked at her, and she turned shocked eyes to his.
“What is it?” he asked gravely as a frown crossed his face.
“The note, it was not a love letter although I had been joking about it. Someone was telling her to watch herself for woman who looked like her did not last long in this town. If she had any questions, maybe she should look up the name Charity McCloud and see what she would fine,” Annie whispered slightly her eyes troubled.
“What?” Cordial whispered his eyes widening in disbelief as the frown became fiercer.
Annie swallowed her as she said softly, “I think someone wants her to know about Charity but I do not understand why.”
Matt said flatly, “I do. If her brakes were cut as I suspect, then someone was trying to hurt her. They are referring to Charity for the simple fact; she is a dead ringer for her.”
Annie paled as she looked at Matt, “You think someone was trying to kill her, but why? Charity died six years ago, and I seriously doubt that Shay even knew her.”
Matt said shaking her head, “I don’t know, Annie.”
Cordial had stayed silent the entire time but his mind was working furiously. What did Charity have to do with this stranger and why was she even being told about Charity?
“I am ready,” Shay called as she walked forward, and Cordial turned to her, his eyes narrowed on her so severely that she froze. They stared at each other for a few minutes before he turned on his heel and left.
Shay took a deep breathe as she tried to understand what just happened. The sooner she got her car fixed, the faster she could leave this town. She did not understand what was going on, but she had a bad feeling and she did not like it at all.
Chapter 5
Matt had taken her to his garage where she got her suitcases and her laptop out of the trunk.
“I can give you a lift back,” he said a second before there was a honk outside.
“Hey, Matt,” a voice said coming into the garage. They both looked at him and Shay felt a shiver go through her body. The man was good-looking with deep blue eyes and rich brown hair a few strands of gray weaving through it, but Shay felt as if she had seen him before. She frowned slightly as he turned to her with his blue eyes and said, “Hello, I am sorry to interrupt. Dillon James.”
Shay nodded her head, her green eyes blank as she said, “No problem. I was just leaving.”
Turning to Matt, she said, “Thank you, Matt. Let me know if you need anything up front with money, okay?” She began to walk away when she stopped putting down her case and turned back to them, “Oh, here is the keys to my car. I almost walked out with them.”
He chuckled as she dropped the keys in his hand and nodded her head before she turned back around to get her bags. Matt watched her leave with her laptop strap over her chest and carrying the two suitcases before turning back to his customer.
“What can I do for you today, Dillon?” Matt asked noticing that his blue eyes were narrowed on Shay’s retreating form.
“Who is she?” he asked turning back to him and yet Matt detected a note in his voice that he already knew who she was.
“Shay Montgomery, she had an accident as she was leaving town,” he said as he headed out of the garage. “What is it that you want me to look at Dillon?”
“My car has been sounding funny for the last few days,” he said. Matt looked at him weirdly for a second, but all he said was, “Turn her on and let’s see what the problem is.” He could find nothing wrong and Dillon just shook his head scowling as he left. Matt watched him drive away and for some reason he had a feeling that he had used that as an excuse. What an imagination, he said to himself as he walked back into the garage. He saw the camero immediately and started to get to work.
Shay was only a few blocks from the bed and breakfast when a truck pulled up next to her. She glanced over to see the steel-eye man looking at her.
“I will give you a lift back to the B&B,” he said stopping the truck and getting out. Before Shay could say anything, he had taken her bags and thrown them in the back. Shay scowled but opened the door of the truck and hoppe
d inside as he slid into the driver’s seat.
“Cordial O’Ryan,” he said, and then nothing was said as he drove her back to where she was staying.
“Thank you,” she muttered quickly getting out when he pulled in front of the house. She had to use the little step on the side of the truck to get her cases, but she had them out of the truck before Cordial could get out to help her.
“Thank you again, Mr. O’Ryan,” Shay said quietly as she carried her cases up to the front porch, and even though she was tempted to look behind her, she did not for she knew that Cordial O’Ryan was still standing there watching her. She was about to open the door when a harassed Nettie pulled the door open.
“Shay, I am so glad that you are back. Could you help me please?” she asked grabbing a case and pulling Shay inside closing the door behind her, and in Shay’s mind closing off his stare that was resentful but was giving her the weirdest feelings she had ever experienced. As she followed Nettie, and listening to her request, she told herself that she needed to stay away from him for something told her he could break her heart in so many ways that she would never be able to put it back together.
Cordial did not know why he stopped for the woman but he saw her walking with the two cases and he pulled over. He saw the scowl on her face but he pretended not to see it although it had amused him. Telling her his name was something else he had not planned to do, but it slipped out before he could stop it. It had irked him when she had gotten out as soon as they got to Nettie’s not even giving him time to help, and now he stood there looking at a closed door.
He ran a hand through his hair as he frowned. Shay Montgomery had gotten his attention and he was telling himself the reason for that was that she looked so much like Charity. Charity, he thought to himself as he leaned back against his truck. He remembered the first time he saw her. His family had just moved to this town, and he was entering his senior year. His sister was more upset with the move then he had been because he knew after he graduated he was heading to college away from here. He met her that same day as he was heading to his P.E. class and she had been standing in the hallway flirting with some boy that was in his first period class. He had taken a quick glance at her and had been startled by her green eyes although he had kept walking. After that day, he had made sure to keep a look out for her. She had left an impression on him and he would have to get to know her, and more, to get her out of his mind. She had been the one to approach him, and although he fallen for her fast, he knew deep down inside that she was not what she appeared to be, but he ignored it.
A Ghost of the Past Page 2
