Laura Scott - Christmas Amnesia

“I don’t know, but right now I’m glad they weren’t.” Noah took them from her fingers. “That makes things easier for us, especially if your roommate isn’t home.”

She stared at the building, searching for something, anything that looked familiar. There were a few Christmas decorations in some of the windows, but overall, the place looked impersonal, as if it could contain anything from offices to apartments, no different than any other building they’d passed along the way. Of course, it wasn’t easy to see clearly in the darkness. She couldn’t imagine living there, yet Noah had no reason to lie to her, either. Was she crazy to trust him, just because he knew her and her brother?

Who else could she trust?

“Are you ready?” he asked.

She ignored the sense of dread. “Of course.”

“Give me a minute,” Noah said. She couldn’t help but be impressed when he came around to open her door. Why was she so impressed with Noah? Was it possible the men she dated didn’t have these kinds of manners? “Here, take my hand.”

“Thank you.” His hand was warm and strong around hers, and she was struck again by how handsome he was. It was inappropriate to focus on something like that, considering she didn’t remember her own name, but still, she couldn’t deny she was grateful for his strong, reassuring presence.

The inside of the building was very modern and nicely decorated, but didn’t look at all familiar. Noah pushed the button on the elevator, and the doors instantly slid open. There were six floors and apparently she lived right in the middle on the third level.

She followed Noah down the hall to room 304. There weren’t many doors, indicating the dwellings were spacious in size rather than piled one on top of the other.

“Stay here,” he said, using her key to access the condo. He pushed open the door and flipped on the lights, looking around before gesturing for her to come inside.

She crossed the threshold, hoping, praying that the holes in her memory would begin to fill in enough to create a picture she could latch on to. But while the inside of the condo was nice and neat, it still didn’t seem familiar. And worse, it didn’t instill a sense of home.

There was a tiny Christmas tree in the corner, but it wasn’t lit up. A detail that also seemed wrong, somehow.

“You’re sure this is where I live?”

“You and Gretchen,” Noah said. “Although I’m assuming that since the doors to both bedrooms are open, Gretchen must be traveling. If I remember correctly when I helped you guys move in, you have the room on the right, Gretchen’s is on the left.”

Swallowing a pang of disappointment, she walked around the living room, searching for what? She had no idea. There was a laptop case on the counter, so she crossed over and peeked inside. The computer didn’t look familiar, but then again, why would it? Nothing personal about a machine. There was a paper file folder inside labeled Pietro. Hmm, that was interesting. Something to review in more detail later.

She turned away, searching for something personal. She headed toward the bedroom off to the right, thinking that she probably had family photographs since Noah had mentioned a brother. She’d only taken two steps when the soft dinging sound of the elevator door reached her ears.

“Wait,” Noah said in a hushed tone, plastering himself up against the wall near the door, quickly twisting the dead bolt into place and shutting off the lights. “Get down.”

When she saw the gun in his hand, Madison ducked behind the kitchen counter, her heart thudding painfully in her chest. He doused the lights, and for several long minutes they waited, the silence thick and oppressing.

The door handle rattled as someone tried to gain entry. Maddy found herself holding her breath, wondering if this was her roommate returning home from a late flight. But then she quickly dismissed the idea, knowing a roommate would simply use her key, the same way she and Noah had.

Another rattle of the doorknob caused the tiny hairs on the back of her neck to rise. Someone was trying to access the apartment.

To get to her?

More jiggling noises—what could the person in the hallway be doing? Picking the lock? She wished she could see Noah’s face.

After what seemed like a lifetime, the noise stopped. She didn’t move, waiting for some sort of signal from Noah.

The minutes passed slowly. When her leg muscles began to cramp from crouching, Noah came over to stand beside her, resting his hand on her shoulder. “Are you all right?” he whispered.

No, she wasn’t all right. She couldn’t remember anything about her past, her job, her life—plus someone had tried to hurt her not just once, but twice. She swallowed hard and pushed past the wave of anxiety. “Yes.”

“We can’t stay here,” Noah continued in a hushed voice. “Whoever was out there might come back, or worse, hide someplace nearby to watch the place. I need to take you far away from here, someplace no one will know to look for you.”

Her condo wasn’t safe. The idea was terrifying, but then again, everything seemed surreal, as if this was happening to someone else, not her. Was that because she couldn’t remember her past?

“Okay,” she agreed, because really, what else could she say? She wasn’t in a position to argue. She had no idea where to go or who to turn to for help.

Only Noah Sinclair, her buoy in a rough sea.

“Is that your computer case?” Noah asked.

“I think so. There’s a file labeled Pietro inside. Although it’s odd that it would be here when I was supposedly working late. Wouldn’t I carry my computer with me?”

“I don’t know. You could have been doing prep work with a witness. Regardless, let’s take it with us,” Noah said, releasing her to snag the strap of the case off the counter. He swung it over his shoulder, then reached for her hand. The moonlight shining in through the windows provided enough illumination for her to see his dark frame now that her eyes had adjusted to the darkness. “Come on, we’ll need to take the back staircase down to the first floor.”

She wanted to ask how he knew about the back staircase, then realized he’d mentioned helping her move in. Ironic that he knew more about the place she lived in than she did. In fact, it was clear Noah knew everything about her, which once again made her wonder about their relationship. Were they friends? Something more? Had they dated at one point? Sneaking another glance at his handsome profile, she thought that if he’d asked her out, she’d have said yes.

Then again, maybe she already had a boyfriend. There were no rings on her fingers, which made her feel slightly better about being attracted to Noah.

Enough. Stay on track, she admonished herself. Her headache must be making her loopy. There were more serious issues facing her right now than wondering about her personal relationships or lack thereof. “Can I pack a suitcase?”

“No time. We need to get out of here right away.” His hand tightened around hers.

“Okay.” She closed her eyes for a moment, sending up a prayer for safety, before following Noah to the door. He cracked it open, peering in the hallway to make sure the coast was clear.

“Let’s go.” He slid through the opening, using his broad shoulders as a shield in front of her as they made their way to the exit sign at the end of the hallway.

The stairwell was brightly lit, causing her to screen her eyes with her hand, wincing at the pain ricocheting through her skull. She followed Noah down the stairs, trying to mimic his soft, stealthy movements.

The way he paused at each floor, opening the doorway and looking down the hallway as if searching for anything out of place, caused her muscles to knot with tension. What if the door-handle rattler came back and found them?