Searching For Jenna novel Chapter 11

Jenna could keep her right eye open long enough for him to look into it quickly. She raised her right hand and pointed to the strap by her left hand that the nurse had left undone.

"Why were you bound to the bed?" he asked, understanding her question.

Jenna nodded.

"You were unconscious when you were brought into the ER. When you came to, you freaked out and started swinging your arms and kicking. We had to sedate you so we could help you. You were the same way the next time you came to, so we decided it would be best to strap you down, so you didn't hurt yourself, or anyone else. Do you remember any of that?" The doctor nodded when Jenna shook her head. "I didn't think so. You've had a pretty severe head injury. It may be a long time before you remember anything about your attack. There are a couple of federal agents who have been here to keep an eye on you. They are hoping you remember something about your attacker. They are going to want to talk to you. Do you think you can answer questions?"

Jenna shrugged and patted her stomach that growled loudly.

"I'll get the nurse to bring you something. Of course, it will be liquid, but it will fill you up." He patted her hand. "I'll be back to check on you in a little while." He left the room.

The nurse returned shortly after he left with what looked like a milkshake. "I wasn't sure if you liked chocolate, so this time we're going to have a vanilla shake. This is made with soy milk, just in case you have an allergy to regular milk. I'm going to give it to you like we did the water earlier. You may have some use of the right side of your mouth, but I don't think you'll be able to suck on a straw yet."

After the nurse had finished feeding her, she gave Jenna another dose of pain medicine through her IV and instructed her to rest. She fell asleep shortly after the nurse left.

When she woke up, there was a woman sitting on the edge of her bed gently shaking her. The woman smiled when Jenna's eye slowly fluttered open. "Hi. I'm Special Agent Dana Tamaski. I know you can't talk right now, but I'd like to ask you some yes or no questions. Would that be okay?"

Jenna didn't get a chance to answer before the nurse showed up. "She's going to need some more water. Let me give her a little bit and help her sit up better before you start questioning her," the nurse said.

"Okay," the special agent said and moved out of the nurse's way.

Once the nurse felt that Jenna was ready, she left the room, and the agent sat back down on the edge of the bed.

The agent was a short brunette. Her hair lay splayed across the shoulders of the beige sports coat she was wearing over a cream-colored button-down shirt. She gently patted Jenna's hand. "I know you must be terrified."

Jenna nodded.

"Let's start with some simple questions. Do you know what your name is?" Dana asked.

Jenna nodded.

Dana showed Jenna a piece of paper with the question: "Is it Jenna Matthews?"

Jenna nodded again.

"Do you remember what happened to you?"

Jenna took a deep breath and nodded.

"Okay," Mary said. "If you get too upset, we're here to help you calm down. Are you ready?"

Jenna nodded again.

"Good," Dana said. "I need to know if this man attacked you." She turned the picture so that only Jenna could see it.

Jenna flinched when she saw her father's face. The memory of him beating her came back in a rush, and she tried to get away from his picture by pushing herself back with her feet. Each nurse took an arm and a leg. "Calm down, Jenna," Mary said. "It's okay. He can't hurt you now."

But Jenna couldn't stop the fear and then a pain shot through her head. She tried to cry out and reach for her head. Jenna pushed away from the nurses. She wanted to run away from the memories. The memory of the dead woman in her father's freezer, the memory of walking in on him putting the woman's body in the trunk of her mother's car, the memory of him hitting her over and over again. Just as quickly as the memories came, the darkness overtook her, and she was unconscious again.

Dana had stepped back and watched as the nurses subdued Jenna and gave her medicine in her IV that instantly knocked her out.

"Did you get the answers you needed," the nurse with the name tag that read "Janet" asked.

"Some of them," Dana said. "The next time I'm going to give her a pen and paper. Hopefully, we'll get more answers then."