Free Remember Me by Priscilla Poole Rainwater

who was prone to abusiveness, rather than a loving husband. And he wouldn’t lead an abuser to his victim, no matter how much money was offered. Could I be letting my personal feelings blur my judgment? He thought.

“Well, are you going to answer me, or will that cost extra?”

Ignoring the remark, he replied, “Mr. Mortenson, as you saw for yourself, your wife endured an unusually viscous attack. Now, in my experience, for someone to do what they did to her, they are almost always fueled by extreme emotions. This wasn’t someone trying to rob her, they wanted her dead. It’s what’s called overkill. Whoever did that wanted to completely destroy her, and smashing her face was their way to destroy their own memory of her. Whoever did this was fueled by two emotions, hate, and jealousy. Are you a jealous man, Mr. Mortenson?” His eyes never leaving Granger’s, he studied the man’s facial expressions carefully. Receiving no answer or reaction, he continued. “Her injuries were indeed extensive. Her jaw had to be wired, then her teeth in the front had to be worked on. She suffered broken ribs, and a plastic surgeon had to reconstruct her nose. The head trauma she suffered was so bad I’m surprised she lived, and even more surprised she’s not some drooling vegetable.”

The force of the words finally hitting him like a ton of bricks, the color drained from Granger’s face, and a heavy feeling settled in the pit of his stomach.

“From the doctor’s report, and other sources, she doesn’t remember her past, Mr. Mortenson, she remembers nothing of her marriage to you. The lost memory could be the result of either her head injuries, or the attack was so traumatizing she’s subconsciously chosen to block it out. I’m betting it’s both.”

Up until this point Malcolm had stood by silently, watching the two alpha males sizing each other up. No fool, he knew Raidon was insinuating his boss had perpetrated the cowardly attack on his wife. He also knew the private investigator had a deep seeded hatred for all abusers of women. This was because when he was a child, his father, an abusive alcoholic, had murdered his mother, and then committed suicide. This took place while he was hidden in a safe spot in the house, a hiding place his mother had placed him in, in order to protect him from his drunken father. He had heard the sounds of his mother being murdered, then the suicidal gunshot. Even at the age of eight he had felt responsible for not helping protect his mother, it didn’t matter he was only a terrified little boy. But luckily, he had found some stability with an adoptive African American family, but he had never healed, and kept most people at a distance. All this Malcolm knew because he and Raidon had served together in the army, as Airborne Rangers. Their acquaintance was what had gotten Raidon the job to begin with.

Walking over to the table where the pictures were, he picked them up and shook his head. “Raidon, Mr. Mortenson wouldn’t. …couldn’t do something this awful. Do you think I would protect him if I thought he was capable of something such as this? She’s in no danger from him, tell us where she is. Please.”

Knowing Malcolm as a man of honor, he nodded, then said, “Alright, I’ll take you, but there is one condition. My sister is a clinical psychologist, and luckily she works at Lonesome Pine Hospital right here in town. I want her to come with us, just in case Mrs. Mortenson suffers any…negative reaction after seeing you, or after what it is we’ll be telling her. I’ve already informed my sister of her condition, and she’s prepared to help.” Seeing Granger was less than thrilled with his proposal, he added, “This is the only way I’ll take you to her.”

Granger wanted to refuse, he had always went out of his way to keep his private life from the prying eyes of the public, but he would do whatever needed to be done in order to see his wife again. With a cool