I shook my head. “No. It’s yours. Not mine.”
She stared at me briefly then reached for the bag. I watched as she pulled out various pieces of clothing, the store tags all intact, a few toiletries and then pulled out an envelope and opened it up. Inside was a large pile of cash. She looked up at me, confused. “That’s it. Just some clothes and this money.”
“Does any of it look familiar?” I asked.
She held up a few of the clothes, studying them, and then set them down, looking discouraged. “No. Not at all.”
She looked at me with a sudden burst of hope. “What about the glove box? Maybe there’s a registration card? Or insurance papers?”
I shook my head. “I looked everywhere. This is all there was.”
“I don’t understand. Why don’t I have any ID? And why do I have all this money?”
“I don’t know, Rabbit.”
She looked down at the clothing and money again. “I don’t even know if this is mine.”
Abruptly, she dumped the money out of the envelope and slowly sorted it. I watched her silently as she counted it and then looked up at me. “Eighteen hundred and fifty dollars, Joshua. Why would I be traveling with a few pieces of clothing and eighteen hundred and fifty dollars in cash?”
“Maybe you were running from something, Rabbit.”
She looked at me. “You think that because of the bruises, don’t you?”
I glanced down to her bruised hands, which were now tightly clutching the edge of the blanket. The overriding need to comfort her hit me again and I leaned forward and loosened her hands and wrapped mine around them. I spoke gently. “Something happened to you. Something put you on that road in the middle of a storm.”
Her voice was unsteady. “Why don’t I remember?”
“You hit your head. Hard. There is a very good chance you’ll remember everything in a few days. You need to rest and let yourself heal.”
She sighed shakily and was quiet for a few minutes. I sat with my hands still wrapped around hers, gently rubbing them in comfort. Suddenly, she looked at me with fresh trepidation in her eyes. “What if …” her voice trailed off.
“What if what?” I prompted
Her voice was quiet. “What if I’m a bad person? What if I stole those clothes and that money? Maybe the car isn’t even mine. Maybe I’m running because of something I’ve done. Maybe …” she hesitated. “Maybe I … knocked up a store? Over a store? Knocked over a store?”
I snorted. “What, like a career criminal, Rabbit? You think you’re a thief?”
She looked at me. She was serious. The woman who had just made me soup and who my dog had taken instant ownership of, thought she had to be a bad person.
I shook my head. “Then you’re a bad criminal, Rabbit.” I gestured to the small pile on the ottoman. “If your haul is a few items of clothing, less than a couple grand, and a five-year-old Escort, I suggest you give it up,” I smiled at her and winked. “Plus, your inability to come up with the right lingo suggests that perhaps you aren’t so inclined.”
I saw the corners of her lips twitch. “Maybe I was having an off night.”
I threw back my head and laughed. I was pleased to hear a small giggle escape her lips.
I smiled over at her and squeezed her hands gently. “I highly doubt it, Rabbit. You don’t strike me as a hardened criminal. Or any kind of criminal. I’m sure there is another explanation. You could have lost your purse. Or left it behind, if you were in a hurry.”
A sudden searing cramp in my leg reminded me of the awkward position I was currently in. I groaned, releasing Rabbit’s hands and grabbing for the top of my right leg.
She moved, kneeling beside me. “What is it, Joshua? What’s wrong?”
I gritted my teeth against the pain. “Need to stand,” I managed to get out.
Rabbit wrapped one of my arms around her shoulder and helped me to stand. I didn’t fail to notice her grimace of pain from the effort of helping me.
“What can I do? Tell me, please.”
I took a deep breath in, the pain abating a little. “I need to go get in the hot tub; that will help ease it.”
“You’re limping worse than before. It’s because of doing all this for me, isn’t it? The extra snow blowing and the work of waiting on me? Oh God, you carried me yesterday as well. Tell me what to do, Joshua, please.”
I looked down at her earnest face, touched by her concern and even more so from her lack of prying questions. I smiled reassuringly at her. “I had to get to the barn anyway, Rabbit. And since you weigh about two pounds, carrying you was not an issue. This happens. Please don’t worry.”
“I’ll go run a tub for you,” she said as she tried to duck out from under my arm. I held her against me, shaking my head.
“I have a hot tub in the basement. I hate using the electricity right now, but I need it.”