Author's note: Basically, all you have to know is that computers hate me and I haven't had much time to work on this in the past month. But I hope that this is okay. There should only be a handful of chapters left.

Enjoy!

Chapter 26

The next day and a half went pretty smoothly. Beth seemed a bit distant at times and would just lie quietly on the bed with her pets and read a book. Friday night, Carlton found her in the bedroom with her pets, gently playing her guitar. Sitting on the edge of the bed, he waited until she stopped before commenting, "It's nice to here you playing again."

Beth smiled as she laid the guitar across her lap. "Thanks. I wanted to practice some songs since I'll probably be preforming next week and it's been a while."

Carlton nodded and petted Frisco. "So, how's your memory? Any more progress?"

Beth shrugged, "I remember a few things here and there but nothing major. I now know the names of a few of the people at the daycare but I 'm not sure what they look like. It's frustrating but I guess I just have to wait it out."

"I'm glad that you have a better attitude about this whole situation."

"Yeah, well there's nothing much I can do about it, now can I?"

"No, not really. Ow!" Carlton rubbed his arm where Beth smacked him.

"Thanks a lot." She said sarcastically, smiling slightly to take the sting out of her words. "I really should stop counting on you to cheer me up."

"Sorry." Clearing his throat, he said. "Anyways, we just entered Denver but the next RV park is still a couple hours away. So Henry was planning on stopping somewhere soon for dinner. Is that okay?"

"Sure. As long as Frisco can come out with us. He hasn't been out since lunch and I think that he's getting a little cabin fever-ish."

Carlton laughed as he stood up. "Okay, I'll tell him."

"Thanks. I'll be right out."

They parked a few blocks away from a restaurant with an outdoor seating area and walked over. Henry and Carlton talked about fishing while Beth seemed to be in her own world, scribbling out some song lyrics on a napkin. When their food arrived, she ate halfheartedly and gave a good deal of her burger to Frisco.

Finally, she sighed and pushed her plate away. "I'm gonna head back to the RV."

"Do you want some company?" Carlton asked.

Beth laughed slightly. "No thanks. I could use some alone time. Enjoy the rest of your meal, order dessert if you want. Don't worry about me, I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself." She scratched Frisco's head before grabbing her crutches. "Be a good dog Frisco. I'll see ya later."

"Call me once you're inside," Carlton replied.

"Sure," Beth smiled as she turned to leave.

Once she was out of sight, Carlton commented, "With everything that has happened to her in the last few months, I really wish she didn't have amnesia. It's just complicating things."

"Yeah. I know that she's worried about not getting everything back, but honestly, I think it was a good thing." Henry said as he took a sip from his beer.

"You can't be serious."

"Why not? I know that it's frustrating not remembering stuff, especially when all the clues suggest that something very traumatic happened, but the knowledge hasn't been haunting her every hour of every day and night. I just hate to think what's going to happen when the memory does come back."

"Don't you mean if?"

"No. I've got a really bad feeling that it's going to come back soon and it's going to hit her hard."

Carlton nodded as the waitress dropped the check off. "I think I'm gonna check on her."

"Alright. I'll be along shortly with Frisco."

Carlton nodded again and hurried out of the restaurant. He was a block away when he saw Beth hobbling along. She stopped at the corner and started to cross the street. Feeling his uneasiness subside a little, he slowed down.

When Beth was about halfway across, Carlton heard a sound that made his heart stop. A car was barreling down the street, horn blaring and swerving all over the road. Looking over, he saw that Beth had stumbled in the middle of the road and was trying to get up with her crutches.

Without hesitation, Carlton sprinted down the sidewalk towards Beth. Grabbing her around the waist, he dragged her the rest of the way across the street, the car missing them by feet. Beth's one crutch got stuck on the curb and they both ended up sprawled on the sidewalk.

Carlton turned slightly to take most of the impact and landed on his hurt shoulder. Closing his eyes in pain, he let go of Beth and clutched his arm closer to his chest. He felt Beth shift next to him and was about to ask if she was aright when he heard footsteps hurry over.

"Oh my god! Are you guys okay? I saw that car almost hit you before it went off the road! My boyfriend is calling an ambulance right now."

Carlton looked up to see a young lady in her early 20's kneeling on the sidewalk next to him. "Yeah, I'm fine." He sat up slowly, allowing the young lady to help him. "What happened to the car?"

"I don't know. They were all over the road before hitting a tree. We saw a few people heading over there before we came to you guys. Miss? Miss are you okay?"

Turning towards Beth, Carlton noticed how she was clutching her knee to her chest and rocking back and forth. "She's having a panic attack, can you give us some room?" Carlton said as he reached a hand for her shoulder, "Beth? Are you okay?"

Beth jerked away from his touch and gasped, "L-leave me alone, Fred!" as her breathing started to increase.

"Dammit!" Carlton cursed quietly as he moved so he was directly in front of her. "Beth, listen to me. You're safe. Fred is not here, he can not hurt you."

She shook her head and looked at him. "You don't *gasp* don't know that."

"Yes I do. He's not here." He gently placed a hand on her cheek, ignoring her flinch. "You're remembering things, right?"

"I, I remember ev-everything."

"Do you remember me arresting him?"

"Y-yes, a couple of, of times." Beth stuttered as she continued to struggle with her breathing.

"Do you remember the trial?"

"I um, I didn't *gasp* have the guts to go in-inside the courtroom."

"No you didn't. But you were outside the day they sentenced him and I found you sitting on my car."

"Y-you said that he was *gasp* was found guilty and was going t-to jail."

"Exactly." Carlton moved his hand to the back of her neck and massaged gently. "So you have nothing to be afraid of. You just need to breathe, okay? In and out, in and out."

Beth nodded as she started taking deep breaths. Out of the corner of his eye, Carlton noticed a police officer talking to the couple as well as an ambulance arriving.

Carlton was about to reassure her again when he heard someone calling his name. Looking around, he saw Henry waking over quickly with Frisco. It was hard to tell who was leading whom.

"What happened?" Henry asked.

"Excuse me sir, I need you to stay back." One of the police officers tried to intercept Henry.

Carlton didn't know which was more intimidating, Henry's glare or Frisco's growl.

Henry said menacingly, "I am checking up on my friends, making sure that they are okay, if you don't mind."

The officer, looking at least half of Henry's age, shifted uncomfortably as he replied, "Sir, this is an accident scene and no bystanders are allowed passed..."

"Listen. I'm going over to my friends whether you like it or not. Now, are you going to move or am I going to have to move you?"

"I, I um..." The officer stuttered.

Light laughter met Carlton's ears and he turned to see Beth covering her mouth, trying to stifle it. When Carlton raised an eyebrow in question, Beth shook her head.

A second later, Henry finally joined them and Frisco was quick to sit next to Beth and nuzzle her.

"Are you guys okay?" Henry asked as he looked them over.

"That was going to be my question." A paramedic said as he joined them.

"We're fine. There's no reason to go to the hospital." Carlton replied.

"I believe its my job to determine that." The medic set down his bag and pulled out a clipboard. "Now, can you tell me what happened?"

"I, um." Beth coughed nervously before continuing. "I was crossing the street, heading back to our RV when I heard a car horn and I stumbled, dropping my crutches. I was trying to pick them up when I felt someone grab me around the waist and pull me across the street. It wasn't until after we fell onto the sidewalk that I realize it was Carlton, but by then I started having a panic attack."

"Are you prone to panic attacks?"

"Only in the last few months." She shifted nervously and petted Frisco.

"Do you concur with her statement, sir?" The medic asked as he turned to Carlton.

"Yeah. I was about a block behind her when I heard and then saw the car. I just reacted on instinct. We tripped on the curb and I landed mainly on my injured shoulder."

"And how does your shoulder feel now?"

"It's a little sore but nothing like it was last weekend when I originally hurt it." Carlton flinched when the medic gently prodded his arm.

"There doesn't seem to be any swelling but I would advise that you get it checked out as soon as possible if you experience any pain or swelling."

"Okay."

The medic picked up his clipboard and said, "It looks like you two got off pretty easy. I know that the driver of the car and their passenger are going to the hospital."

"Do you know what happened?" Beth asked

"Looks like the driver was having a seizure and his 13 year old daughter grabbed the wheel and tried to get them safely off the road. Luckily, she got the car to spin before it hit the tree so they weren't directly pinned against it. The daughter is awake and alert while the father is unconscious." The medic picked up his stuff and smiled. "I'm glad you guys are both alright."

"Thanks," Beth muttered.

"Yeah, thank you." Carlton added as he rubbed his injured arm.

"No problem. Have a good night." The medic smiled as he walked away.

"So what now?" Beth asked, crossing her arms.

"Well, we have to give our statements to the police and then hopefully we can leave."

"Okay. Where did my crutches end up?"

"One is next you but I think that the other one got ran over by the car." Henry said as he looked around.

Beth sighed as she looked towards the street and saw her bent crutch. "Great. Good thing I'm good at walking with one crutch."

"We can stop at a store and try to find you a new set. But in the meantime, I'm going to bring the RV closer. Come on Frisco." Henry said as he gently tugged on the leash.

"Oh, you don't have to! It's only a block away! I can totally limp that." Beth tried to reason.

"No, it's fine. Besides, you don't need Frisco or myself hanging around while you're giving your statements. I'll be back in 10 minutes." Henry waved as he walked off, leaving no room for arguing.

After a moment, Carlton asked, "Are you okay?" Beth just scoffed and shook her head. "Do you want to talk about it?"

She flicked her eyes to the approaching officer before saying, "Not right now. Maybe later."

"Okay."