"My name is --- ah, my name is ---," Lizzie Jane stopped for a moment, seemed to go into deep thought and then exclaimed, "I don't know! I don't know who I am!"

"I don't know that, either," said Lizzie Jane. "I know it has not been recently.".
 

YOUNG LOVE, CHAPTER 3

Lizzie Jane losing consciousness again was worrying Doc Brown. At first, it seemed that she had just fainted. That was probably the case, but she had also hit her head on the concrete floor. She had awaken enough to sense everything and, in transit to her uncle's house, she had spoken to Jake, accepting his proposal of marriage, but had closed her eyes again and could not be awaken.

Aunt Maudie and Doc put her to bed and a cold, wet cloth was put on her head. Doc Brown diagnosed it as a serious concussion with the understanding that it could be something more serious, such as a fractured skull or bleeding inside Lizzie Jane's head.

Without an ex-ray or other equipment nearby, all Doc Brown could suggest was to watch her carefully, hoping she would snap out of it soon.

Lizzie Jane did wake, later that night while Uncle Jed was sitting with her. When he saw her eyes open, he ran out of the room to tell Maudie, Jake, and Doc Brown that she was awake.

Lizzie Jane looked around for a minute in confusion and her eyes fell on the door as the group rushed in. Surprised, she asked, "Who are you? Where am I?"

Suddenly, the group was speechless. They were ready to rush in and bestow their very best wishes and love to Lizzie Jane, but were greeted with shocking questions.

Aunt Maudie spoke first. "Honey, we are your family -- Uncle Jed and I. Jake here is your boy friend."

Not speaking aloud, Lizzie Jane turned the answer over in her mind. Who are these strangers who claim to be family -- and who is this boy they call Jake? Had she not just spoken with her mother, who assured her that everything was going to be all right. How could this be her family when she had a mother?

Lizzie Jane lay on the bed, unable to determine the difference in reality and seeing her mother in a dream. To her, mother was the reality.

Had these people kidnapped her? Was her mother wealthy and they wanted money? Was she in some kind of hospital and these people were out of their minds? Or maybe she was some kind of prisoner?

Lizzie Jane finally spoke. "I don't know who you are and why I am here. I do know one thing -- get out of here and leave me alone!!"

She said it with such force that Aunt Maudie trembled and suggested that they leave for the present. Outside the room, Doc Brown stated, "This happens sometimes. Lizzie Jane has amnesia. It may just be temporary or it may last awhile. I don't know the seriousness of her head injury. I need to transport her to a hospital again for evaluation. With your permission, I will get started on that."

Aunt Maudie nodded her approval. Uncle Jed, Aunt Maudie and Jake went downstairs for some coffee while Doc Brown stepped out a few minutes to make some phone calls.

Looking at Jake, Aunt Maudie said, "I know this is rough on you."

"Yes, it is," replied Jake. "I love that girl so much and she had just told me that she would marry me before she slipped off into sleep." For the first time since he had been a small child, Jake's lips began to quiver as tears began to fill his eyes.

Uncle Jed put his arm around Jake and encouraged him, "Everything is going to be all right. Just wait and see."

Meanwhile, Lizzie Jane was thinking that she had to get away. She eased out of bed, a dull ache in her head, and walked to the window of Uncle Jed's two story house. She saw a narrow ledge just outside the window. From there, she could probably find a way to the roof and look for a way to the ground.

With the window raised, she stepped out on the ledge. It was so narrow that she had to turn her feet to the side, but she was not going to give up. Her hands grabbed whatever they could find. She had been put to bed wearing a skirt and her aunt had not taken time to change her clothing since she had passed out, so she could feel the cold wind against her legs which was not bad, but invigorating.

She could not find a way to the roof, but she did see a tree with a limb sticking out a few feet from the house. Without giving it much thought, she leaped as far as she could toward the limb. She did not realize that she needed more than a narrow ledge to spring from, so she only caught the edge of the limb, which bent quickly from her weight and she saw the ground rushing to meet her.

The limb did not break immediately, so it slowed her fall enough so that there wasn't any serious injuries, but it did cause a few bruises and a little pain. The only thought in her mind was that she had successfully completed the first stage of her escape from those crazy people.

With legs sore from the fall, she ran across the pasture to the woods where she would work her way to freedom as far away from this place as possible. One thing she had not considered was that it was late in the afternoon and would soon be dark. She also realized that the temperature that night would be cold, probably below freezing.

Something clicked in her mind and she remembered starting fires with a rock -- a flint rock. She searched for such a rock, but darkness began to fall and she found nothing with which to start a fire. She was weak and soon became exhausted and fell to the ground. The thought of dying crossed her mind, but she would rather die in the woods that go back to the loony house (as she now considered it).

She closed her eyes, not expecting to wake up. She awoke the next morning and felt something warm next to her body. She jumped up, startled, to see what had kept her from freezing. Surprised, she saw a big deer that evidently sensed her distress and had done what he could to keep her warm. But, why would a deer do that? She began to remember something else -- a little deer she had helped about four years earlier and had become her pet. It must be --- yes, it was -- it was that deer, all grown up. The deer's family was standing by and Lizzie Jane smiled. She was also pleased that she remembed that event.

Other things began to come to mind -- how she had previously spend a night in the woods before meeting the deer and how nothing had bothered her while she slept. She also thought about her mother and how she would visit Lizzie Jane whenever things did not seem to be going right. It was at this time that Lizzie Jane came to realize that her mother always appeared in a dream.

It was pleasing for memories to return, but she could still not remember anything about the people in the house from which she had escaped. Should she go back? She sat there awhile and thought about the matter and decided that, if she did know them, surely she would remember it, so the best thing was to follow through with her escape.

She was getting weak from hunger, not having eaten anything for -- well, she did not know how long. The last time she was lost in these woods, it was late summer and she found berries and natural foods, but now, in winter, such foods could not be found. She stumbled along and finally came to a highway.

Unable to go any further, she sat down on the shoulder of the road. She looked down the highway and saw a trailer truck coming, but she didn't care. She was too exhausted to run anymore. She just sat there as the truck stopped.

A big man climbed down from the rig. "Are you all right, young lady?" asked the man.

"I--I am tired and hungry. That is all," replied Lizzie Jane.

"Little lady, please don't think anything about this, but there is a truck stop down the road apiece and I could get you something to eat there. Will it be okay for you to ride with me that far?" asked the man.

"Oh, I am so tired and hungry, I don't care. No, I mean -- I am not scared of you. You seem to be nice," answered Lizzie Jane. Actually her first statement was true. She was too tired to care.

"Can you walk?"

"A little. I am so tired. Your truck is so high off the ground. I don't think I can make it," replied Lizzie Jane.

"If you will let me, I believe I can pick you up enough to make it."

"Okay, I guess -- if you are strong enough."

The man reached down, put his hands under her legs and said, "Okay, put your arms around my neck."

As near as she could remember, Lizzie Jane had never been picked up by such a strong man. He was able to raise her high enough to barely reach the passenger seat. "Now let's find something to eat," he stated. "Oh, by the way, my name is Joe."

"My name is --- ah, my name is ---," Lizzie Jane stopped for a moment, seemed to go into deep thought and then exclaimed, "I don't know! I don't know who I am!"

"We are not far from the truck stop. Maybe some food will help. Remember, I will be buying. Oh, by the way, when was the last time you ate?" asked Joe.

"I don't know that, either," said Lizzie Jane. "I know it has not been recently."

In just a few minutes, Joe was parking the big truck in the parking lot. Joe helped Lizzie Jane down from the truck. The couple found a booth in a quiet corner.

Joe asked, "Now, what would you like to eat?"

"I don't know. A horse? I am so hungry, I could eat a horse." smiled Lizzie Jane.

"Okay, you need some real food. We will order some soup and while you are eating it, they can fix you a steak and some potatoes -- something to stick to your ribs," replied Joe. "How do you like your steak?"

"I don't know that, either," said Lizzie Jane.

"Well, the women I know like their's well done, so we will order that for you."

Lizzie Jane smile, "That will do just fine. Thank you."

While Lizzie Jane was eating, Joe went over and talked to the waitress, explaining how he had found Lizzie Jane and that she had lost her memory. The waitress called the manager and, after a little discussion, the manager agreed to let her stay there for awhile and they would try to find out more about the young lady.

Joe walked back over to the table where Lizzie Jane was sitting. "I have to go and have a long way to travel. The folks here are going to help you."

"Okay," smiled Lizzie Jane. "Thank you again -- and please be careful."

Lizzie Jane seemed to be sincere in her statement -- that she cared about others. Joe smiled back.

The first place the manager called was the sheriff and was informed that they did not have anyone searching for a girl fitting Lizzie Jane's description. Lizzie Jane had crossed the county line and the sheriff in her home county had not put out a statewide alert, thinking that she would be found in his county. A few other calls produced the same result.

"How old would you say she is?" asked the manager.

The waitress looked at her and said, "It is hard to tell -- maybe sixteen."

The manager walked over to Lizzie Jane to ask her.

"Hello, my name is Sam", said the manager. "Can you tell me how old you are?"

Sam? That rung a bell. Somehow, in her mind, the name Sam and a restaurant went together, but she could not connect the name 'Sam' with the teen hangout in Carter's Bend.

"I am sorry, but I don't know. Is it important?" asked Lizzie Jane.

"No, it is not important -- particularly if you are at least 16," answered Sam.

"Well, since I don't know, let's just say I am 16. That is a nice age to be," answered Lizzie Jane. "Some girls are married by the time they are 16." Lizzie Jane paused and thought, now where had she heard that?

Sam continued, "We have a little room in the back with a bed, so you can lie down for the night. Don't worry. We are open 24 hours a day, so you will not be alone. Tomorrow we will do some more checking and, if we cannot find anything about you, you can help around here a little. We can always use another waitress when the place gets crowded. A young lady like you can get a lot of tips -- make a lot of money."

Lizzie Jane smiled again and welcomed the offer of a room. She was so tired.
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--To be continued
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Copyright 2007 by Starla Anne Lowry
under the pen name of Billie Sue Pilgrim
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