Elizabeth felt like she was under water. She heard sounds but they seemed far away. Her body felt heavy and when she tried to move nothing happened. There was a dull aching inside of her that kept pulling her back from total unconsciousness. It was almost as if her body was not her own. She tried to move again and suddenly felt a slight pressure to her hand. There was a voice but she couldn't understand it. Something warm rubbed against her cheek and she tried to lean her head toward it. It was a comforting touch. The sound of the voice hit her ears again and she tried hard to figure out what it was saying. Her hand was squeezed again and she did her best to respond but was uncertain if she had moved at all. Her mind was fuzzy and the dull ache was starting to turn into more of a fire. She was growing increasingly uncomfortable. The voice became clearer and she thought it wanted her to wake up. She was trying but everything felt too heavy. Finally, she was able to get her eyelids to respond to her wishes and she slowly opened them. Her vision was blurred and it made her feel a bit ill. A man stood over her and said something about how beautiful she was. The comment didn't sit right and she looked around trying to figure out where she was. Why didn't she remember how she got here? Where was here? A sense of panic began to grab her. She tried to sit up to have a better vantage point but her attempt at movement sent needles shooting throughout her body and she groaned in agony, stilling her body to avoid further pain. The man told her it was alright but she knew he was lying. He was stroking her hair and squeezing her hand. He told her to look at him. She wasn't sure it was a good idea. She didn't' like being told what to do, but she let her eyes meet his. She didn't know him, yet he looked all too pleased to see her. The way he was touching her was possessive. She moved her hand away and tried to ask what was going on. Her words felt slow and slurred on her tongue. The man told her she was in a hospital. She didn't understand and when the man cupped her cheek her instincts kicked in and she turned away telling him not to touch her. She felt helpless and weak and it made her panic increase. The jerk of her head had caused hot pain to spread down her body and she couldn't suppress a moan. She felt her chest tighten and squeezed her eyes shut. She didn't know where she was, what had happened, and who this man was that seemed to feel he had the right to touch her. He called her babe and told her to calm down. Finding her voice she panted, "I'm not…your babe." He needed to know he didn't control her. She needed answers. "Who are you? Why am I here?" Her inquiry was met with silence. She felt the air catch in her lungs and was helpless to stop the panic from over powering her. Her body was not responding to her desires and each movement sent new stabs of pain that only served to panic her more. Tears slipped from her eyes and she was sure she was drowning. Someone grabbed her hand again but she quickly moved away to protect herself. Suddenly there was a loud noise and lots of voices. Her head couldn't decipher them. After another minute of pain, she suddenly felt her body relaxing against her will. Noises started to be muffled to her ears and she felt her eyes grow heavy. A part of her brain told her to fight, that this was all wrong. But she also wanted to escape the pain and she was so tired. Air seemed to reach her lungs again and then darkness settled over her like a blanket. She didn't fight the comfort it brought with it.

The next time the darkness started to recede from Elizabeth's brain the first thing she felt was a warmth surrounding her legs. It was like laying on warm sand. Noises came next. There was a consistent and mild beeping but nothing else. She felt the scratchiness of a sheet under her finger tips. The warmth in her legs started to intensify and she tried to move as if to kick off the heavy blanket weighing her down. Pain spiked through her and she gasped, her eyes flying open. The room was dim and she frantically looked around. She was in a hospital room, which confused her. She took some slow breathes that caused her insides to ache. After a moment she registered that she was not alone and she sighed in relief, her voice soft and husky. "Henry." He was standing back, near the window but even with her blurry vision she knew him. She couldn't make out his face clearly, but his presence helped her steady her breathing. She was confused why he hadn't moved toward her and wondered if he had not heard her. She tried again. "Henry?" Her throat was dry and her words were still quiet. This time however, she saw him move slowly towards her as if not wanting to spook her. She tried to smile at him but wasn't sure if it worked. Her body felt funny. Apparently, her smile had looked more like a grimace because Henry asked gently, "Are you in pain?"

She was going to nod that she wasn't but she took a quick inventory of what she could feel and realized that she was increasingly uncomfortable. She nodded slightly, "Lil."

"It's alright. The doctor will be in soon and can give you something to help." Henry had stayed back not wanting to send her into a panic again. He had heard her say his name but was unsure if she was truly awake and if he could trust that she knew him again. When she had said his name a second time, he moved closer. He was still hesitant to touch her though, as she still seemed a bit out of it.

Elizabeth shut her eyes for a moment. Her head was pounding. She didn't understand was what going on and she had a thousand questions. Wearily she asked, "Wuh penned?" She swallowed hard knowing that what she had wanted to say had not come out quite right. She pressed her lips together and then licked them slightly.

Henry drew his eye brows together at her attempted question. Her actions suggested she was thirsty. He picked up the nearby cup of water and slowly pressed it to her lips. He watched her gratefully drank a few sips.

"Better?" He asked.

Elizabeth hummed in affirmation, not wanting to move her aching head. She tried again. "Wuh apen?" Elizabeth was frustrated that for some reason her mouth was not obeying her.

Henry was getting worried. He could see the confusion and frustration on his wife's face as she tried to form her words. He was grateful he understood her question, as asking her repeat it would have caused her more distress. He replied, "You got hurt in an…." He wasn't sure how to say it, "accident."

Elizabeth didn't understand. She said, "Car?"

"No, not a car accident. You don't remember?"

"Mmm…Sud I?" She was tired. Maybe that was why her words were so funny sounding.

Henry shook his head and gave her a small smile, "No. It's alright if you don't remember. The doctor said that can happen."

Elizabeth wanted answers. The look on Henry's face worried her and the pain she was feeling was growing. She was trying to decide what to ask next when a nurse came through the door.

"Good to see you awake, Elizabeth. You seem calm. That's good." The nurse took some vitals and then asked, "How's your pain on a scale of 1-10?"

"Sssven," Elizabeth responded. She didn't miss the slight change in the nurse's face at the sound of her response. But just as quickly her face was cheery again.

"Alright, I'm going to give you some more pain medicine in your IV and you should start to feel better soon."

Elizabeth gave her a weak smile of gratitude. The nurse then turned to Henry. "She knows you I take it?" Elizabeth watched Henry nod with a smile before he said, "Yes, though she says she doesn't remember what happened."

"That's quite normal." She turned to Elizabeth and said, "I'll have the doctor come in soon to look you over and give you more information."

"Thans," Elizabeth said quietly. The nurse nodded with a sad sort of smile and exited the room.

Henry could see Elizabeth withdrawing into her head and knew she was becoming overwhelmed and scared. He moved closer to her wanting to provide her comfort. "Can I hold your hand?"

Elizabeth looked at him for a moment and Henry knew exactly what she was thinking. He explained, "I just wanted to make sure it was alright with you. I know you must think that's crazy but…. when you woke up the first time you didn't know who I was. When I saw you starting to panic, I tried to comfort you but when I touched you it just made it worse."

Elizabeth could see the worry and hurt on Henry's face. "Don' member." She felt awful for having frightened him like that. How could she have not known her own husband? Why couldn't she remember what had happened? Why couldn't she speak correctly? She felt almost trapped in her body. She felt her heart quicken. She needed answers but she simply said, "Henry, ssssry." She felt her cheeks grow damp with tears.

Henry knew she was overwhelmed and he hated to see her cry over something that she had no control over. He quickly took her hand and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Breath babe. It's alright. It's not your fault. None of this is. You have no reason to be sorry." He pulled up the chair and sat next to her bed, still holding her hand. He gently rubbed her arm. "I am so glad you know me now. I was worried that…. But the doctor said it was probably a reaction from the anesthetic. I just didn't want to send you into a panic this time." Elizabeth gently squeezed his hand in return. He continued with a slight chuckle, "I should have known you'd be fine. You were still quite sassy with me." He saw her questioning look and explained, "I called you babe. You very firmly told me you were not my babe and pulled away." Henry saw her look a bit sad and he quickly nodded, "It's alright now. I mean I was shocked at the time but you clearly still had that spark in you." He smiled broadly and was rewarded when she smiled back.

After a moment Elizabeth's small voice broke the silence. "Henry?" She wanted to say more but it was too much effort to get her mouth to cooperate.

He saw fresh tears in her eyes and knew what she was thinking. "Hey, it's going to be alright babe. I promise. I know you have a thousand questions and you are confused and scared. The doctor will be here soon to give you some explanations. I'll try to help too. Just trust me for now, you're going to be fine. I'm here now."

Elizabeth was too tired to argue but she was confused why he seemed so…repentant, as if this was his fault. It couldn't be. She tried to push down her anxiety and just trust him. The pain was lessening and she felt her body relax.

"It's alright to sleep babe. I'll wake you when the doctor comes. You need rest," Henry assured her.

"Lu you."

Henry kissed her lightly on the lips. "I love you too." He watched her drift back to sleep. His heart was over joyed that she knew him again. But his worry for her condition had not been eased. She was clearly having trouble speaking. He wasn't sure if it was due to exhaustion or a side effect of the head trauma. He also was not sure how much she remembered or didn't remember? Did she remember any of the trade meeting? Did she remember him leaving? He had no idea, and wasn't sure what to do even if he did know. Rubbing his eyes, he decided to step out and call Stevie. The kids would be over joyed that she had woken up.

thanks for all the lovely reviews! I appreciate your ideas and your encouraging comments. Hopefully this chapter works for you. I confess I wrote it rather hurriedly. As always I await eagerly to hear your thoughts on it. I am taking this one chapter at a time so it's just coming together in the moment as it were. I'm starting to get a few ideas of future scenes but nothing is set. Thanks for reading!