Chapter 4

USC Medical Center Los Angeles, CA - 2022

It had been two days since she'd woken up, confused and terrified. She had been waiting for this, the boogeyman in human form. Two men, clad in dark unassuming suits stood at her bedside. Their faces were impassive, but the badges clipped to their belts spoke volumes. Authority. Government. Trouble.

"Ms. Blackwater?" The taller of the two held up a badge that caught the light, momentarily blinding her. His voice was crisp and professional, devoid of warmth.

Halona felt a tear trace its way down her cheek. She wiped it away quickly, trying to compose herself. "Yes," she managed, her voice barely above a whisper.

"I'm Special Agent Dunbar, this is Agent Jacoby. We need to ask you a few questions if you're up to it." Dunbar gestured to the empty chair beside her bed, his movements efficient and practiced.

Halona nodded, the small motion causing her head to throb. "That's fine," she said, though it was anything but.

Agent Jacoby spoke next, his tone gentler than his partner's. There was a flicker of something - concern, perhaps - in his eyes. "Can you tell us about where you've been?"

The question hung in the air, heavy and foreboding. Halona's throat tightened as she forced out the words: "I don't know."

The admission sent a chill through her. This feeling of dislocation, of lost time, it was hauntingly familiar. It reminded her of another time, another place - when the Kiowa had found her in Oklahoma, so many years ago...

The memory flashed through her mind, threatening to overwhelm her. Halona closed her eyes, trying to steady her breathing as the past and present blurred together in her mind.

She dismounted on wobbly legs, cold sweat trickling down her spine as she struggled to make sense of the bizarre scene splaying out before her eyes.

Hundreds of people in buckskin clothing milled about a sprawling encampment dotted with towering teepees. This sure as hell wasn't some movie backdrop or historical reenactment - the details were too intricate, too viscerally alive.

Was she dreaming? Had she drunk herself unconscious and stumbled into some sort of twisted fever dream? Halona pinched herself hard, hissing at the sting. Nope, she was most definitely awake.

"Hey, Dances with Wolves!" She whirled on her apparent captor, voice shaking with a mix of fear and bravado. "What the f-"

Halona squeezed her eyes shut, willing the past, willing the men in suits, to vanish. When she opened them again, the sterile reality of the hospital room remained.

"You've been missing for three years." Agent Jacoby said, his tone laced with a weary sympathy.

"Yeah, Sydney, told me that." Halona nodded, the enormity of the missing time crashing down on her like a tidal wave. She stared blankly at the empty Jello cup on the bedside table, the world around her tilting on its axis.

The conversation continued, the FBI agents circling her like wary predators. They were looking for a lead, their questions hinting at a dark possibility - abduction. But Halona was lost, adrift in a sea of confusion. They reminded her that she had been filming a movie in Texas when she vanished. A sliver of memory sparked - Texas, the scorching sun, the endless rows of cacti. But then, her mind hit a wall. Time seemed to fold in on itself.

Had she been kidnapped? The thought sent a jolt of terror through her. Drugged? Held captive? Was that all it was? A terrifying mixture of drugs and the resulting hallucinations? But then, a wave of grief washed over her.

She could almost hear their laughter, Isaac and Megan chasing each other through the orchard. Bucks, his hand warm in hers, the taste of his kiss still lingering on her lips. Surely it hadn't all been a figment of her imagination. A sob escaped her lips, a choked sound that shattered the sterile silence of the room. Reality, harsh and unforgiving, stared her back in the face.

"How are we feeling today?" A friendly voice, a welcome interruption, cut through the heavy atmosphere. A kind-faced doctor bustled in, his stethoscope dangling around his neck.

"Better," Halona managed, forcing a weak smile as he checked her vitals and adjusted her IV.

"Excuse me, doctor," Agent Jacoby interjected, his voice pitched low. "Were you able to get the test results back?"

"The toxicology tests came back negative," the doctor replied, his brow furrowed in concentration as he reviewed her chart. "However, we did find some anomalies in other areas." He flipped a page. "Ah yes, here it is. Increased levels of serotonin, very low numbers in sodium which would explain her being found unconscious."

Halona's mind wandered as the FBI agents and the doctor spoke of her condition. It was like she was there but invisible as they discussed her in clinical and forensic terms. A warmth of comfort spread through her when she heard the words "no sign of sexual assault"

They spoke for several minutes longer, and then one of the agents followed the doctor down the hallway.

"Your assistant, Sydney Taylor, said you went out driving the night you went missing." Agent Dunbar handed her the cup of water next to her tray.

"I remember that." She rubbed her head. "But then nothing makes sense. It's like a dream."

"It might not make sense to you, but it may give us clues as to who abducted you, or where you were held."

"Well I woke up, my car was gone."

"Close your eyes." He instructed gently. "Anything that can identify where you are?"

"I don't know," Halona admitted, her voice trembling slightly. "Just these bizarre dreams..."

"Can you describe anything specific? A street sign, a car, anything?" Agent Jacoby leaned forward, his eyes searching hers.

Halona squeezed her eyes shut, desperately trying to grasp at the elusive memories. "No, there weren't any cars. It felt...off. Like I knew it wasn't real, even in the dream." Her voice trailed off, frustration lacing her words.

"What do you mean?" Agent Dunbar prompted gently.

Halona shook her head, the movement small and defeated. "It's hard to explain. Just an uneasy feeling that something wasn't right."

The agents exchanged a brief glance, a silent conversation passing between them. Finally, Agent Dunbar closed his notebook with a decisive snap.

"Thank you for your cooperation, Ms Blackwater. This is an ongoing investigation, so hopefully as you recover, your memories will return. Even the smallest detail could be crucial. Please, if anything comes back to you, no matter how insignificant it seems, don't hesitate to call us."

Halona's heart pounded. "Should I be worried? Do you think I'm still in danger?" The unspoken question hung heavy in the air.

"At this point, it's too early to say," Agent Jacoby admitted. "We don't have any leads yet. We're currently examining the clothes you were found in, searching for any forensic evidence. We'll keep you updated on our findings."

A thin smile stretched across Halona's lips, more out of courtesy than genuine cheer. "Thank you," she managed, the weight of the unknown settling heavily on her shoulders as the agents took their leave.