Damn, she even sounded real. He struggled to stay conscious and as his eyes flitted closed again, he reached out an arm toward the sound of her voice, not wanting it to go away, but he was too weak.

“Don’t try to move...just rest,” he heard her say, but the sound seemed far away. He wanted to bring it closer, make it real, but he didn’t have the strength.

“I’ll be here when you wake up...” she said, the sound fading into a deep echo as he fell back into a deep sleep.

What felt like only seconds later—but must have been hours based on the darkness of the room—his eyes opened again.

His vision was better and his mind was sharper. He felt less pain and there was only one thought on his mind—Erika. Turning his head slowly, he saw her still sitting there, asleep in the chair and covered by her lab coat. It hadn’t been a dream...she was there.

Where was here? He’d assumed Wild River Community, but glancing around, he saw the Alaska General Hospital initials on the monitor above his head, still keeping track of his vitals. His breathing tube had been removed, but he still had the IV and he could feel the tightness of bandages wrapped around his midsection, his legs and one arm.

He’d had surgery. He vaguely remembered the nurse and the doctors wheeling him into recovery.

He must be in pretty bad shape, but all he felt right now was happiness that Erika was next to him. “Hey, pretty girl,” he whispered.

Erika stirred, and her eyes opened. Seeing him awake, she tossed the coat aside and stood, straightening her sweater as she came toward him. “Hi again... How do you feel?” She placed a hand against his forehead and her touch was the only thing he focused on. No more pain. No more heartache. She was there.

He reached for her hand when she went to move it. He gripped it as tight as he could in his weakened state. “Not sure... I’m in Anchorage?”

She nodded. “You were airlifted here almost ten hours ago.”

“What’s wrong with me?”

“A broken wrist, two broken ankles, fractured ribs on both sides and...you ruptured your spleen. My dad fixed it,” she said. The look of concern on her face made him want to reassure her he was fine. Unfortunately, she still knew more about his condition than he did.

“Shit—that sucks.” That would put him on his ass for a while. But the sight of her made it hard to think about the pain or his injury.

“You really gave us all a good scare,” she said. “I was terrified we were going to lose you.”