Wrong Memories

by Edna Curry

  Dave rose also, and quickly stepped between them. “Please, you two. You’re talking about different people. Lucy, calm down and think, okay? You’re Lucille Denton, remember? He’s not talking about the Johnsons.”

  ***

  “Oh!” Lucy’s hand flew to cover her mouth and she closed her eyes against the pain. Oh, no. She’d done it again. Of course the people Dirk meant weren’t the Johnsons. They’d been dead for over fifty years. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I keep forgetting.”

  “Maybe we should sit and talk a few minutes before we go, okay?” Dirk said.

  Lucy hesitated, then dropped into a chair at his table. “Okay.”

  The men also sat. Dave asked Dirk, “You know she has amnesia, don’t you?”

  “Yes, I heard that. I guess I didn’t quite realize what it meant, though.” He rubbed his eyes which had tears of his own in them, then looked at Lucy again and said gently, “I’m not lying to you, Lucy. You’re my brother Tom’s child. I’ve known you since you were a baby and I love you. Maybe these will help prove who I am.” He dug out his billfold again and flipped it open to some pictures, then turned it around to show them to Lucy.

  “Here you are last Christmas with your parents and twin brothers, standing by the tree.”

  Lucy leaned forward to eye the photo. A nicely dressed couple stood beside an elaborately decorated Christmas tree. Two identical, nice looking young men stood beside them on either side of a young woman who looked like her. They were all smiling and happy. She stared at the picture. “My parents are really alive?”

  “Yes, they’re both fine, but worried sick about you. Tom and Betty Denton.”

  “That’s me? I have twin brothers?” Lucy asked, filled with awe as she studied the picture.

  “Yes. Rob and Rick Denton. They’re three years older than you and are both commercial airline pilots. They love flying all over the world.”

  He flipped to another photo. “And here’s me and your dad fishing last fall at their cabin on Gull Lake, near Brainerd.”

  Lucy looked from the photo to Dirk. It certainly looked like him. And yet the idea of her having a family who hadn’t been there when she needed them angered her. “Huh. If you and these people are my family, then where have you and they been all this time? I’ve been looking for people who knew me. Why didn’t anyone miss me or report me missing to the police?”

  Dirk sighed. “You were supposed to be on vacation with your boyfriend in the Bahamas.”

  “Huh. What boyfriend? And I never called or texted anyone or emailed them? Nobody had contact with me there?”

  “Just emails. Your folks haven’t had internet access. You were always an independent tomboy. You hardly ever call your brothers and they’re always flying off somewhere or other. Your father just called me a couple of days ago. Your mother got several emails from you that she said were suspicious. She didn’t believe you’d really sent them.”

  “So they contacted you?”

  Dirk nodded. “As I said, Tom and Betty are on a group tour that’s been going around the world. They haven’t always had internet access. They’re in Hawaii right now. Your mother doesn’t trust your boyfriend. So when she got the odd emails, she tried your cell phone and only got your voicemail service. She said you always carry your phone and never turn it off or forget to charge it. So she got worried. Your dad called me and asked me to find you to make sure you were okay. And here I am. None of these pictures brings back any memories?” His voice sounded hopeful.

  Lucy shook her head. “No. I’m sorry, but they’re just pictures of nice looking people who mean nothing to me.”

  “Well, let’s go. I’m hoping seeing some familiar places will help. It can’t hurt, can it?”

  Lucy shrugged. “I guess not. Anything’s worth a try.” She glanced at Dave. “Did you talk to Georgia about this?”

  “Yes. She says we should do it. Okay?”

  Lucy nodded, reaching out a hand to Dave.

  Dirk said, “You can ride with me, okay? No sense taking two cars.”

  “But then you’ll have to bring us all the way back here,” Dave objected.

  “I don’t mind,” Dirk said. “Besides, Lucy can ask me a million questions on the three hour drive each way.”

  “Okay.”

  “Do you want to say goodbye to your mom?” Lucy asked, turning to Dave.

  “No, she’s busy in her office. I already called her and let her know what’s going on,” Dave said.

  Lucy sent him a questioning glance. She’d never told Vi about her memory loss for fear of losing her job. But since he merely smiled at her now, apparently Dave had squared it with his mother.

  Lucy sighed in relief and she and Dave followed Dirk to his car.

  Chapter 11

  On the drive to Minneapolis, Dirk talked, telling Lucy details about her life. She listened, not sure whether to believe him or not.

  She stared at the passing corn fields along the highway as she listened. What if he was feeding her a line of bull about all this? But why would he do that? What would be in it for him? He had a familiar look about him. She wasn’t sure why, but he seemed…comfortable. Yes, that was the word. And the life he described seemed wonderful. Could it be true?

  “You have a nice apartment that you’ve lived in for the past three years,” he told her. You leased it when you took the job with IBM. Your folks were pretty disappointed when you told them you’d given up that good job,” he said, tossing her a questioning look. “You never did give them a good reason for doing that. Did something go wrong there?”

  “I have no idea,” Lucy said with a sigh. She frowned at him. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I told you, I don’t remember any of this.”

  “Sorry.” He turned back to watching traffic, slowing to go through St. Peter. A blue sedan he’d noticed earlier was still behind him, staying two cars back. He took a left up the hill without signaling, earning himself a couple of angry-sounding honks. Then he drove until he came to the turnoff for Gustavus Adolphus College and pretended that’s where he’d intended to go all along.

  “Here’s the lovely glass enclosed chapel you talked about, remember, Lucy? You wanted to go to college here, but then decided on the U of M instead.”

  “I’m familiar with the college here, yes,” Lucy said. “But I could never afford to go there.”

  “You had your choice of any college, ’cause you had very good grades and your folks told you they’d pay for wherever you wanted to go,” Dirk said.

  “Really?” Lucy said. She stared at the lovely buildings around her. “It is pretty up here on the hill. You can see the whole town from here.”

  “Yes, you can.” Dirk headed back down to the main street. Sure enough, the blue sedan was parked near the street corner where he’d turned off.

  “Lucy? Dave? Do either of you recognize that blue sedan on the corner?” he asked. “Get the plates if you can.”

  Dave craned his neck as Dirk slowed to a stop at another light. “Yes, I’ve got it. It looks like the same car that followed us the other night in Mankato, don’t you think, Lucy?”

  She nodded. “Looks like it to me, too.”

  Dave pulled out his phone and called Len, Georgia’s policeman friend, reporting the license number. He closed his phone, explaining, “He’ll get right on it. Said to try stopping for coffee somewhere, see if he’s still with us when we go on again. In the meantime, he’ll run the plates and try to ID the guy.”

  “Okay. Here’s a restaurant.” Dirk pulled into the restaurant and parked. They spent a half-hour having pie and coffee, then resumed their trip. A few miles further, Dirk said, “There he is, two cars back again.”

  “I’ll let the cops know.” Dave phoned it in, and a few miles further on, they saw the man being stopped by a patrolman.

  “Well, that should take care of him for now. Hope they can figure out who he is and why he’s been tailing us.”

  “I’m beginning to wond
er if this was a good idea,” Lucy said.

  “Of course it is,” Dirk said, patting her hand reassuringly. “Don’t worry, we’ll figure it all out soon.”

  “I hope so.”

  Dirk smiled and began talking about their get-together last Christmas and her brothers’ jobs as airline pilots. “They love to fly all over the world,” he told her. “And they get nice discounts on tickets for their families, too.”

  “That’s nice,” Lucy said.

  He kept an eye out for the blue sedan, but didn’t see it again. As they entered the city, Dirk asked, “Would you like to go see your apartment first? Maybe that will help you remember things.”

  Lucy looked back at Dave. “What do you think, Dave?”

  He shrugged. “It’s up to you, Lucy. I think you should do whatever you’re comfortable doing.”

  She chewed her lip. “But I don’t know what I want. I’m just so confused.”

  Dirk glanced at her. “How about we make a quick stop at your apartment, and then go on to your parents’ house?”

  Lucy lifted a shoulder. “Sure, whatever.”

  Dirk glanced at Dave in the rear view mirror. “Okay with you, Dave?”

  “Whatever she wants to do is okay with me.”

  “Okay, then, we’ll go to your apartment first. I promised your Dad I’d check on your car, anyway.”

  “I have a car?”

  “Yes. A lovely red Corvette.”

  “A sports car?” Lucy laughed derisively. “Now I know you’re making stuff up. I don’t even know how to drive. I’m sure I wouldn’t have a fancy sports car.”

  Dirk glanced at her. “Your parents gave it to you for a college graduation present.”

  “They’re rich enough to buy me a car?”

  “Yes. You have your purse, don’t you?”

  She frowned. “Yes.”

  “Did you look inside? Don’t you have a driver’s license for ID?”

  “Sure, but…”

  Dirk raised an eyebrow at her. “How would you get a driver’s license without learning to drive?”

  Her jaw dropped and she swallowed hard, then looked away. After a minute she turned back to Dirk, tears in her eyes. “What good is a license if I don’t remember how?”

  He reached over to pat her hand. “I hope it’ll all come back to you soon, honey.”

  She turned away and dug in her purse for tissues to wipe her eyes.

  A few minutes later, Dirk pulled into the driveway of a large apartment complex and parked. She stared at it. It was a new-looking white building, four stories high and sat at angles on a sloping green lawn. Manicured bushes, small trees and flowers all surrounded by colored rocks edged the building. They walked up the sidewalk. Inside, a hallway had mailboxes set into one wall.

  “We’d better get your mail,” Dirk said. “Do you have your keys?”

  “Keys?” Lucy asked.

  “Don’t you have a keyring in your purse? You always carried it.”

  “Oh.” Lucy dug it out and held up the ring of keys. “I suppose you mean these? I didn’t know what they were for.”

  “Yes,” Dirk said. He took them from her and used a small one to open box 416.

  “How do you know that’s mine?” she asked.

  “416 is your apartment number,” Dirk said patiently, taking out a wad of letters and flyers and handing them to her, then closing the box.

  “Oh. Of course,” Lucy said, blushing at her ignorance. “That makes sense.” She looked curiously at the envelopes, flipping through them.

  “Let’s go up,” Dirk said, leading the way to the elevator.

  They got off on the fourth floor and Lucy hesitated, looking around curiously. A brown tweed carpet lined the floor and the walls were painted a soft beige. Everything was clean and fresh smelling.

  “This way.” Dirk immediately turned right and walked down the hall to 416. He still had her keys and used another one to open her apartment door. He held it open, waiting for her to step inside first.

  Cautiously, Lucy stepped in, holding tight to Dave’s hand, pulling him with her. She stopped inside, looking around. The room was large and bright, holding bookcases full of books along one wall and a large sofa and matching chairs in a U-shape on the other side. A large desk and computer and printer sat in one corner, facing a window overlooking the lawns and the freeway. Awed, she moved to check out the desk, dropping the mail in her hand to one side of it. “Wow. There’s a lot of computer stuff here.”

  Dirk laughed. “Yes, Lucy. You were a computer nut. You always told me you wanted the very latest and best you could afford. Keeping up with all the changes in the computer world was your pride and joy.”

  Lucy stared at him, then looked at Dave in consternation. “How could I have forgotten all that? You even had to teach me to shut down the computer properly.”

  Dave sighed. “I have no idea, Lucy. It really boggles my mind.”

  She laughed. “Mine, too. If I really have a mind, that is.”

  “Of course you do. That accident just caused it to malfunction for a while. The doc said it should come back.”

  “Maybe,” she said. “But what if it doesn’t? What if I never get my memory back?”

  Dirk wrapped his arms around her and this time she allowed him to hug her. “Lucy, don’t give up so easily. That’s not like you. Give yourself time to heal, okay?”

  She nodded and pulled away. “Sure.” She wandered around the apartment, glancing into the closets and opening drawers. “I sure had lots of clothes and stuff.”

  Dave sank into the soft chair and watched her stroll around. She picked up a picture and stared at it, then put it back onto the bookcase. Pulling out a college textbook, she flipped through it, noting the highlighted sections on numerous pages.

  “I can’t believe I studied all this,” she said. “It’s all Greek to me, now.”

  “I’m sorry, sweetheart,” Dave said. He watched her, empathy for her pain ripping through him. Why would she want to come back to being a waitress if she had all this here? He was going to lose her to her old life.

  She turned to look at him. “I was happy at my job in Mankato. Now, I’m just confused and scared. What will happen to me now? I don’t remember any of this. I can’t fit in here anymore!”

  “You can do whatever you want,” Dave told her. “You don’t have to decide right this minute. Just go with the flow for now, okay?”

  “Yes, I suppose I can.” She sat at the computer and turned it on, then opened the email program. Sure enough, there was a message from her mother, Betty Denton asking her if everything was alright, saying she was getting worried, not hearing from her. All doubts that Dirk was lying to her faded. He couldn’t have faked emails to her along with everything else. She’d had those keys and purse since she woke up in the hospital, and they’d opened her mailbox downstairs with mail in her name in it. And opened this apartment door. He had to be telling her the truth.

  Yet, what was the truth? What was in her head or what people were telling her and what she could see around her? She didn’t know any more. A major headache throbbed at her temple. She glanced at Dave, who sat watching her, a worried look on his face. She loved him so. Was she about to lose him because of all this? He must think she was crazy to forget all this.

  “Does anything at all bring back memories?” Dirk asked hopefully.

  Lucy shook her head, shutting down the computer. “Nothing. It’s all very nice, but doesn’t feel like my home.”

  Dirk sighed. “Well, come on then. Let’s go to your folks’ house. Maybe that will look more familiar to you.”

  “Is it where I grew up?” Lucy asked as Dirk locked the door and they headed for the elevator.

  “No, but your folks bought this house about ten years ago when you were in high school, so you lived there for several years before you left for the U.”

  When they went outside, he turned toward a bank of garages. “Let’s just check on your car before we leave, o
kay?”

  “Sure.” Lucy followed him to the garage and again he used her key to open an overhead door. Sure enough, a shiny, red Corvette sat behind it. She gasped and gripped Dave’s hand tighter, sending him a disbelieving glance. “Oh, my God. Is that really mine?”

  Dirk laughed. “Yes, it is. Go sit in it and start it up. Here’s your key.”

  Pulling Dave with her, she moved to the driver’s door and opened it. She turned to Dave. “I don’t remember how to drive, Dave. You do it for me, okay?”

  Dave laughed. “I’d love to get behind the wheel of a Corvette. I’ve never had the privilege before now.”

  He took the keys from her hand and got behind the wheel. The engine roar to life and he gave her a wide grin. “It’s a beauty, Lucy. You’re so lucky to have a car like this.”

  “But I don’t drive,” she protested.

  “Then you’ll have to learn all over again,” he said. “You can do it, sweetheart.”

  “Of course you can,” Dirk agreed. “Do you want to take it with you? Dave could drive it over to your folks’ house. Just follow me.”

  “Could we, Lucy?” Dave gave her a hopeful look.

  She could see he was aching to take that fancy car for a spin. What could it hurt? Dirk had said it was hers, hadn’t he? She’d love to ride in it, herself. She shrugged. “I suppose.”

  “Then get in and let’s go.” Dave grinned at her.

  She obeyed and they followed Dirk’s car as he headed to her parents’ home.

  ***

  At a stop sign, Dave leaned over to give Lucy a kiss and then covered her hand with his. “How are you doing, sweetheart?”

  She gave him a rueful smile. “I don’t really know, Dave. It’s all pretty overwhelming. I don’t know what to believe. Can it really all be true? This house, my apartment, two brothers and my parents?”

  “I don’t think he could make it all up, do you? I mean, how could he? And why would he? That doesn’t make any sense.”

  She laughed. “No, but then, nothing has made sense in my life since that car hit me, Dave.”