Could she really be an impartial investigator?
Running Colton Construction was more than her father’s job. It was her family’s legacy. In a way, the company defined who Bridgette was or, at least, who she had been.
They were at Luke’s truck and he unlocked the passenger door before pulling it open. “I’m not sure I’m okay with anything right now,” Bridgette said, her tone more resolute than her heart. “But I do know that I have a job to do—and I intend to do it.”
* * *
Driving on fumes, Julia had left her house in the middle of the night and parked at the back of an abandoned warehouse more than a mile outside of town. From there, she began to walk, terror dogging each step.
Julia was terrified that she’d killed her own mother. Terrified that every passing minute brought her closer to being arrested by the police. Terrified that she’d spend the rest of her life locked up—either in jail or a hospital.
After more than an hour of walking, she realized that her feet had taken her someplace safe. Colton Construction.
Julia had a key to an annex building where the mail was sorted and office supplies were kept. There was a sofa in the room, a coffeemaker and, most important, heat. Despite her constant movement, her hands had turned white with cold and her face was numb.
It was on that same sofa and in that same room that Julia jerked awake. For a moment, she sat up, blinking. Morning sun streamed through the slats of metal blinds. A cup of coffee sat on the floor, a film of creamer floating atop the mud-brown liquid.
Casting a weary gaze around the room, Julia wondered what had woken her suddenly. She heard the low rumble of an engine. Someone had come. But who? Was it the police? Tiptoeing to the window, she pulled aside the blinds and peered into the parking lot.
Dazed, she stumbled back.
Bridgette and Luke, here?
How had they found her?
Sure, there were security cameras on the property. It’s just that Julia thought she had avoided them all.
Scanning the room, her heart hammered against her chest—a wild animal trying to break free. There was no way to fight, no way to escape, nothing for her to do beyond give up.
Yet, giving up was something that Julia refused to do.
* * *
Fitz Colton had been true to his habits. Aside from Luke’s truck, there was only one other vehicle in the parking lot of Colton Construction—the gleaming, white pickup belonging to her father.
“Looks like he’s here,” said Luke.
Dry-eyed, Bridgette stared out of the window and nodded. “There are two things I value the most,” she said. Looking over her shoulder, her gaze met Luke’s. “My family and my professionalism. I just never imagined having to choose one over the other.”
Luke put the gearshift into Park and turned off the ignition. “You could still have someone else speak to your father. Elise? Somebody from the Kansas Department of Health?”
“I can’t shirk my responsibilities,” she said. “Shutting down Colton Construction for testing will make my father mad.” She paused, knowing that her projection wasn’t quite right. She corrected herself, “He’ll be humiliated. It’s better if the news comes from me.”
Luke removed the key. “You know your dad. You may very well be right.”
“Besides, he’ll want to know what’s made everyone sick.”
Luke nodded. “You could be right about that, too.” Yet, his tone told Bridgette that he thought she was definitely wrong. After a beat, he added, “If you’d rather that I stay in the truck and wait, I can.”
“No,” she said, maybe a bit too quickly. “I’d like it if you came with me.”
Luke nodded. “Are you ready?”
“No,” she said. “But let’s go.”
Bridgette and Luke crossed the parking lot. The main entrance was closed and locked, but as Bridgette and Luke approached, her father opened the door. He was dressed in a dark blue golf shirt, with the Colton Construction logo embroidered on the chest and a pair of jeans.
“Morning,” he said, pausing on the threshold. “I saw you on the security camera as you drove up. It’s a pleasant surprise to have you drop by and see me.”
“Daddy,” said Bridgette, her voice small. She held the folder out to her father and continued. “We need to talk.”
Her father stepped forward. The door closed and the lock clicked. Taking the file, he drew his brows together and flipped through the pages. “Where’d you get these documents?” he asked, his tone hard.
“Mom had an old box with disks. She gave them to me.”
He held out the folder. “It’s sad that so many folks in town have gotten ill.”
“Daddy, it’s not just people in town. It’s people who worked for you. Colton Construction is the common thread between the men and their illness.” She drew in a shaking breath. “They all worked at the mall renovation, too.”
He held the file out farther, implying that if she took the folder all of this would simply go away. Bridgette forced her hands to stay at her sides.
With a shake of his head, her father sighed. “Like I said, it’s sad.”
Bridgette’s pulse raced until it echoed in her ears. “More testing has to be done,” she said. “For now, the mall will stay open. I’ve already talked to Elise.”
“Elise Willis?” her father spit. “You talked to her? Really? Why?”
“She’s the mayor, and it’s her job to protect the public’s safety.” Another breath. “Colton Construction has to be closed down for testing.”
“Closed down? To hell with that plan. Elise hates our family, you know. Your brother Neil, most of all. She’d do anything to get under his skin—including this.” He shook the file like an accusatory finger.
“It’s not Elise’s decision.” After folding her arms across her chest, Bridgette met her father’s glare. “It’s mine.”
Her father let out a bark of a laugh. “You had me going for a minute. All this paperwork looks legitimate.”
“It’s no joke, Daddy. There’s something that’s making people sick—really sick. It’s my job to find out what’s wrong and fix it. Until then, this property isn’t safe.”
“Your job?” Her father’s face grew red. A vein appeared on his forehead and began to throb. “What is your job when compared to your family?”
“You need to know what’s happening to your employees,” Bridgette began. “These folks are your responsibility.”
“Don’t tell me what I need, missy.” Rivulets of sweat ran down her father’s face. “I’m your father, dammit. I provided you with that fancy college degree so you could, what? Turn around and use it on me the first chance you get?”
“Mr. Colton,” said Luke. “I don’t think that Bridgette is being disloyal. What we all want is to find the truth.”
With a grimace, he said, “I just want every damn one of you to stop telling me what I want and if you try to close down my business, I’ll sue.”
“Daddy,” said Bridgette. “Be reasonable. We just need to run some tests.”
Whatever else she planned to say was forgotten. Her father gripped his shoulder and fell to his knees before toppling, face-first, onto the ground.
Chapter 18
“Daddy!” Bridgette dove for her father.
Luke was right behind her. “Can you hear me, Mr. Colton.”
The older man’s complexion was red. Sweat streamed down his face, dampening his shirt. “I’m fine,” he said, struggling to sit up. “I just got light-headed.”
Luke knelt at Fitz’s side and pushed his shoulder back down. “Don’t try to get up. I’m concerned you’re having a heart attack,” he said. “Do you take any medications for chest pain?”
With a shake of his head, Mr. Colton said, “No.”
To Bridgette, Luke said, “In the glove
box of my truck, there’s a first-aid kit with aspirin inside. Go and get it.”
She returned a moment later, first-aid kit in hand. Luke had already dialed 9-1-1. As she found the foil packet of aspirin, the ambulance was dispatched to their location.
“Here, Daddy,” Bridgette said, handing her father two white pills. “You’re supposed to chew and swallow these, okay.”
Fitz Colton popped the medication in his mouth and began to chew. “They taste like garbage.”
“Hopefully, they’ll protect your heart,” said Luke.
The color in the older man’s face had turned from bright red to chalky white. In the distance, the ambulance’s siren could be heard.
“Hear that, Daddy? Help’s on the way.”
Fitz Colton reached for his daughter’s hand. “Call your mother and tell her what happened. Can you do that for me?”
“Of course,” said Bridgette.
The ambulance sped into the parking lot and stopped next to the front doors. An EMT with a medical kit jumped from the passenger seat. The driver rushed from the front of the vehicle and pulled a stretcher from the ambulance’s rear.
“Excuse us,” said one of the EMTs, shouldering Bridgette aside.
As the paramedics began to work on Fitz, Bridgette moved to the edge of the sidewalk. Luke followed.
Rubbing her brow, Bridgette said, “I can’t believe that I gave my father a heart attack. How can I live with myself if anything happens to him?”
“Hey,” said Luke, resting his hands on her shoulders. “You didn’t cause anything to happen.”
“How can you say that?” She shrugged, trying to rid herself of his touch. Luke tightened his grip. She continued, “You saw how upset he got when I told him it was my decision to close down Colton Construction for testing.”
“If your father had had a heart attack, it was bound to happen. If we hadn’t been here, there’s no telling how things would have turned out.”
“I need to call my mother,” she said.
“You don’t believe me, do you.”
“I don’t know what to believe,” Bridgette said.
Luke let his hands slip down her arms. “Fair enough.”
He stepped aside, giving Bridgette a private moment to speak to her mother. As she ended the call, one of the EMTs approached. “We’re taking your father to the hospital for an evaluation.”
“We’ll be right behind you,” said Luke.
They jogged to the truck as the ambulance’s lights began to strobe. Bridgette slipped into the passenger seat. “Thank you for taking me to the hospital,” she said.
“You don’t need to thank me, you know that.”
“It seems that I’m turning out to be more trouble than I’m worth.”
Putting the gearshift into Drive, Luke maneuvered the truck out of the parking lot and followed the ambulance. “You aren’t any trouble at all,” he said, knowing that he was dangerously close to losing his heart to her—a woman from his past who didn’t want to be a part of his future.
* * *
Bridgette could not recall a worse day since her husband, Henry, had died in a car crash. In fact, it was all too familiar. The quiet corridors of the hospital. Worry, a hard kernel, took root in the pit of her stomach. The stench of antiseptic and stale coffee. The hum of fluorescent lights overhead that reflected off tile floors.
She sat in the waiting room, flanked by her mother and Yvette. Everyone had come to the hospital—all three of her brothers, Gwen Harrison, Jordana and Clint, Yvette, Shep. Through it all, Luke stayed. Hour stacked upon hour until she was positive that time would tumble to the ground.
By midafternoon, Dr. Jamapal, a woman not much older than Bridgette with coal-black hair and large, dark eyes, entered the waiting room.
“Mrs. Colton,” she said, addressing Lilly.
Bridgette’s mother stood. “What happened? How is Fitz.”
“Your husband had a blockage in an artery leading to his heart. This broke loose this morning, causing a myocardial infarction. In other words, your husband lost blood flow to his heart and had a heart attack.”
“How is he, Doc?” Ty asked.
“At the moment, he’s resting.”
“What’s his prognosis?” Jordana asked.
“He has other blockages that need to be surgically removed. Then, given time to rest and the right rehabilitation, your father can live many more years.” She continued, “He was lucky today. If he’d been alone or not have had aspirin administered so quickly, we would be having a very different conversation.”
“I’m glad that everything has turned out in the end,” said Brooks.
“This isn’t the end,” said Dr. Jamapal. “But it’s not a bad outcome for now. You all can visit your father. The room is small so you might want to take turns. Remember, it’s important that he remain calm.”
“Thanks, Doc,” said Ty. And then the doctor was gone. When the family was alone, Ty said, “There’s a lot we have to be thankful for—especially that Bridgette and Luke were with Dad when it happened.”
“Yeah, thanks,” said Neil. “How’d you even think to give him aspirin?”
“It wasn’t me,” she said, shaking her head. “It was Luke.”
“Because I own a small business,” said Luke, “I’m always vigilant about medical emergencies and how important those first few seconds can be.”
“It seems like we all owe you our thanks,” said Brooks. Then he asked, “Do you two want to go and see Dad first?”
Bridgette shook her head. Her throat was tight, making it hard to breathe and harder still to speak. “You guys go ahead with Mom,” she said.
Lilly placed her hand on Luke’s shoulder. “Thank you.” Then she was gone, leaving Luke, Bridgette and her sisters.
“Are you going to tell me what’s going on or not?” Yvette asked. “You haven’t said more than two words since we got here, Bridgette.”
Her eyes burned. She dropped her gaze to the floor and said, “I should probably go. Luke’s been carting me around all day, and he doesn’t have this time to waste.”
“That’s a lame excuse,” said Yvette. “And you know it. Spill.”
“Dad and I had an argument,” said Bridgette. “I’m the reason he had a heart attack.”
“You aren’t the reason,” said Jordana. “You heard what the doctor said. If Dad hadn’t gotten immediate care, things would have been worse. It’s basically a miracle that you were visiting him when you were.”
Bridgette was sick of secrets and always skirting unpleasant truths. “You don’t get it,” she snapped. “I wasn’t just visiting Dad. I was at his office for work.” She paused, drew in a breath and met her sister’s gaze. “There’s a strong link between Colton Construction and the cancer cluster that I’m investigating. The company needs to be closed—at least temporarily—while the state does some testing.”
Yvette went white and stumbled backward, as if struck. “And that’s when he had the heart attack?”
Bridgette echoed her sister’s words, “And that’s when he had the heart attack.” She dropped her gaze to the floor once more. “So, you can’t say that I’m not responsible because, obviously, I am. It was stupid of me to think that I could be the one to deliver such devastating news.”
“That’s one problem about being a Colton,” said Yvette. “Colton Construction is such a big part of life in town that we never really escape it. You know how they found two bodies in the wall of that old warehouse?”
“Of course,” said Luke. “It’s been all over the news.”
“There are people in the police force who don’t think I can be unbiased. They want me to recuse myself from the case.”
“You can’t be serious,” said Bridgette. Anger flowed through her veins. “I’d like to talk to anyone who suggests you aren’t comp
letely professional.”
“I appreciate your support,” said Yvette. “But what I’m saying is that in Braxville, you’re a Colton first.”
“I know,” said Bridgette. For a moment, it felt as if the walls of the small waiting room were moving closer, inch by inch. “I have to get out of here before Mom and the guys come back.”
“I understand,” said Jordana. “I’ll explain to Mom later. And you,” she said to Luke. “Take care of her.”
“I will.”
Bridgette was already gone and striding down the long corridor.
Jogging to catch up, Luke gripped Bridgette’s elbow. “Where are you going without me?” he asked.
“I just had to get away.”
“I know all of that was hard,” he said. “Especially since you are so determined to find out about the connection between the construction company and the cancer cases.”
Bridgette nodded as she walked even though she wasn’t sure if Luke was right. Bridgette had learned that some things were more important than discovering the truth.
It was her family.
* * *
Over the next week, Bridgette developed a routine. In the morning, she went to work. She and Luke spent an hour at lunch taking Pocco, the shelter dog, for a walk. She had dinner with Luke while they worked on the final plans for the Braxville Boo-fest. Since Julia was still at large, she stayed in Luke’s apartment.
Bridgette had become more than a guest. She and Luke now shared the master bedroom.
For her, the week had been perfect. There were only two minor—okay, make that major—issues. First, Bridgette had yet to speak to her father. He’d had surgery and was still hospitalized. She had not stopped by to see him, nor had he asked to speak to her. His silence was death by a thousand cuts.
And that brought about her second problem.
Megan Parker’s husband had been diagnosed with esophageal cancer. The news had made the rounds in Braxville. Chuck, Megan’s husband, was also an employee of Colton Construction.
Colton's Secret History Page 19