Five

Six Months Earlier…

The phone buzzed with a text message.

Let's hang out tonight ------ Angie

Sorry honey. I can't. I have a shift at the hospital. ----- Kevin

It's always the hospital for you, Kevin! I'm your wife! ----- Angie

What do you want me to say? The sick and the injured need my help. ----- Kevin

Fine! ----- Angie

Angie grabbed her keys and headed out. Without a particular destination, she didn't know where to, but she needed time to cool off after her fight with Kevin over texts.

She drove all over the city, lights passing her left and right until she stumbled on a bar just on the outskirts of town. She parked her car and took a look at the place – a dimly lit room with splinter-laden wooden tables and benches. People were drinking from tankards full of ale. Drinks were brought to the tables, along with rustic food. The barman acting as the bouncer stood facing a brewery out the back and a cellar for storage.

"How may I help you, ma'am?" The bartender asked.

"Whiskey on the rocks," Angie sniffled.

"Having a hard time lately?"

"I don't think this concerns you." She stared at him. "Where's my whiskey?"

"There you go, ma'am." He placed a short glass filled with scotch and three ice cubes.

****

The night went on without Angie noticing. Five drinks later, she looked at her watch. "Oh shit… Already past midnight," she mumbled.

"It's way too early for you to be going anywhere, miss." A rugged voice whispered in her ears. It brought chills to her bones. She turned around to find a tall man standing behind her. He wore a sleeveless shirt and a pair of jeans.

"It's my queue to leave."

She pushed the man aside and walked to the door. The man got furious and grabbed his baseball bat, but before he could take his first swing, the bartender jumped in.

"This is not the place for this, James," the bartender said, grabbing the bat from the man's hand.

"Since when do you tell me what to do, kid?" James scoffed, pushing the bartender away. James headed to the door to find Angie had already started her car and was about to leave. Not so fast. He thought. James got in his truck and went after his prey.

Speeding along the highway, Angie noticed a black SUV following her, so it was natural for her to step on the gas pedal. However, James wasn't the kind of man to give up on his desires and wants. He revved his engine to overdrive and started getting closer to Angie's car.

"Fresh meat!" He said laughing out loud.

"Leave me alone!" Angie screamed, grabbing her phone to message Kevin. The task wasn't that easy, especially after the amount of alcohol she had in her system. She kept fumbling with the phone until she reached an intersection. She saw the intersection as a way to get ahead.

The light was red, but that didn't stop her. She wanted to get away. She wanted to save herself from that mad man on her tail, so she ran the red light. James wasn't that insane to run a light – that wouldn't have been his first traffic offense. A red-light violation was worth it considering it saved her life. Angie looked behind her to make sure no one was following her.

BAM…

Time slowed down after Angie heard that dreaded sound. Her life flashed before her eyes. She recalled all her memories with her husband, the good and the bad. A tear escaped her eyes. The car rolled into the ditch.

One roll. Everything in the car was flying in the air in slow motion. The CD case, mobile phone, and purse.

Two rolls. There was dust everywhere in the car, and her head started to hurt.

Three rolls. And then, it stopped sideways. It was pure silence, then a scream was heard for miles. A passerby saw it all happen, and he called the police and ambulance over.

Medics scrambled to the scene to investigate the damage. No one knew who the driver was, but they made sure to get the body to the nearest hospital. Sirens wailed throughout the empty streets of the city until the driver reached the emergency room. ER personnel rushed the body on the stretcher to the operating room.

"What do we have?" The doctor asked.

"One female, late 20's, car accident," a nurse replied.

"She appears to have….," the doctor stuttered. He couldn't speak another letter. His eyes began to tear up.

"Are you okay, Kevin?" The nurse asked.

"It's her…" Kevin slumped on the floor in tears. "It's my fault. It's my fault!"

"It's who?" the nurse tried to calm him down.

"Angie… It's Angie. Look at her left hand. That ring… I gave her that ring on her birthday last month."

"If anyone can help her, it's you." Kevin nodded as he stood up and regained composure.

Before anyone could start operating on Angie's body, a single long beep echoed through the room.