Noah nodded as they approached. “It’s over.”
Tom stepped onto the pontoon. Carrying a first-aid kit, he eyed the blood that soaked the entire upper portion of Noah’s shirtsleeve. “You need to sit down before you fall down, Noah. Let’s get you under that awning.”
He helped Noah to the sunshade-protected captain’s chair. Mercer followed.
“Hold this for me, Mercer.” Tom handed her a flashlight. She took it and shone the light so that he could use the medical scissors he had taken from the kit to rip open Noah’s shirtsleeve all the way up to his shoulder. Noah cursed softly with the action. Shoving her sodden hair back from her face, Mercer released a tense breath upon seeing the small round hole in his left biceps that oozed blood.
Remy remained on the dock. “How bad does it look, Tom?”
“Appears to be a flesh wound. It’s bad enough, though.” Tom continued to examine the wound. “Through and through to the biceps.”
Mercer adjusted the light as he inspected the back of Noah’s upper arm. Her stomach clenched as she looked at it, too. The bleeding was worse there.
“Entrance is clean but the exit left a bit of a mess. It doesn’t appear to have hit an artery but it’s too close to the brachial for my liking.” Reaching for an item in the first-aid kit, Tom peered sternly at Noah over the bifocals he had put on under his rain hat. “You’re bleeding pretty good. I’ll patch you up here as best I can but we need to get you somewhere ASAP.”
“There’re two cars here,” Mercer said.
Water dripped from the brim of Remy’s hat. “The airboat will be quicker. The boat will let us take the most direct path, as the crow flies, back to the Southside Marina where we’re parked. As soon as we’re back in cell coverage, we’ll call for an ambulance to meet us there.”
He stared at what was left of the burning cabin. “Draper and his men do that?”
“Three are dead and two got away, but one might still be here.” Noah frowned at Tom’s ministrations. “I locked him in a shed out back, unconscious. He’s unarmed but I don’t know if he’s still out cold or even still in there.”
“On it.” Removing his gun from its holster, Remy went down the dock, sidestepping the splintered holes Draper’s bullets had made.
“Watch for the pit when you step onto land,” Noah warned.
“You mean the one with a giant, dead guy in it?” Remy called over his shoulder. “Hard to miss.”
“Don’t go outside of the clearing!” Noah yelled to him.
Tom removed a roll of sterile gauze from the kit.
“Mercer, tear me off some strips of medical tape,” he directed. She struggled with it in her wet hands, but managed the task.
“Ty’s alive, then. He told you where to find us?” Noah winced as Tom pressed a large wad of gauze into the exit wound to occlude it. Mercer blanched inwardly but refused to look away, her concern for Noah too strong.
Tom wound more of the gauze around Noah’s biceps. “Your partner is in serious but stable condition back in Charleston. He was helicoptered there for surgery. As soon as he regained consciousness and was able to clear his head enough to call, he tracked down Remy and told him where you were. He also warned us that you’d have this place booby-trapped.”
Tom took a strip of tape that Mercer handed him and used it to secure the gauze in place. Blood was already seeping through it.
“We got the coordinates for the property, drove up here, borrowed that airboat from a pal, and headed out.” Tom’s expression was wry. “We figured you could use help. Although based on the body count around here, I’m not so sure.”
“You okay?” Noah asked Mercer as Tom went back to the airboat, taking the first-aid kit with him.
“I should be asking you that,” she replied softly. Her insides churned, however. Tiredly, she squeezed her eyes closed, opening them only when Tom returned with two blankets—the kind with waterproof backing to help keep someone dry. He slipped one around Noah’s shoulders and the other around hers. Mercer hadn’t realized how hard she had been shivering. Noah was, too. Outside the pontoon’s sunshade-protected area, rain still fell in sheets. The fact that so far, no emergency personnel had arrived even with the blazing fire indicated just how far out they were.
“Bastard’s still out, but he’s breathing,” Remy announced upon returning. “I’ve got him trussed up like a Thanksgiving turkey. That ought to hold him until we can get the authorities out here. Can’t take him with us since the airboat only holds four. We could take the pontoon, but the airboat’s faster and I’m more worried about you, Noah, than his sorry ass.” Remy’s rugged features appeared serious for once as he looked at Noah and Mercer. “Let’s get you two out of here.”
He assisted Noah in getting to his feet. “You okay to walk? You’re not feeling lightheaded?”
“I’ll make it.”
Remy’s voice roughened. “You know you’re like a son to me, Noah.”
“Me, too,” Tom added. Mercer’s heart pinched at their spoken affection.
“Semper Fi,” Noah said somberly to both men.
“Semper Fi,” they repeated.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Wearing a hospital gown over his still-damp jeans, Noah lay in a curtained cubicle on a gurney inside the emergency room, his wound cleaned and dressed. He had received two units of blood to replace what he had lost and an IV line was currently delivering a strong round of antibiotics. His left arm had been placed in a sling to immobilize it, although he had declined pain medication other than a localized anesthetic. Tom was right; the shot had been clean, bypassing arteries and bone. The attending ER physician had marveled at just how lucky Noah was.
Remy stuck his head inside the cubicle. “The cafeteria’s not serving breakfast for another half-hour, but they have coffee. Think they’ll let you have a cup in here?”
“I’m good, but thanks. Where’s Mercer?” It was early morning, based on the wall clock.
“She’s with the sheriff’s deputies.”
Noah had spoken with them while he had been worked on, until the physician had strongly suggested they wait until she was done. They had left him and gone to speak with Mercer, apparently, although Noah figured they would return soon. He would also be debriefed by his own department. In fact, he would have to be cleared by an internal affairs board, standard procedure when there was an officer-involved shooting.
“It looks like the two men who left the lake property are dead,” Remy said as he took a step inside the cubicle. “One of the deputies told me an accident was called in just a few miles from there. The car matches the description of the Mustang you gave them. Looks like the driver lost control at a high rate of speed, went off the road and crashed head-on into a tree. From what the deputy heard from the first responders, the driver had a pretty gruesome injury to his calf that probably wasn’t a result of the crash. You said that one of your traps injured him. You think he might’ve passed out behind the wheel from blood loss?”
“Maybe,” Noah said. “Are the local authorities at the cabin now?”
“More like what’s left of it. They’ve also got the guy we left in the toolshed in custody. Two of the deputies are bringing him here for treatment. The fire marshal and coroner’s office are up there, too, although they’re going to have to bring in divers to recover the bodies from the lake. I figure some of your men are headed up there, as well.”
“Mind if I borrow your phone for a while?”
Digging into his jeans pocket, Remy handed it over. “You should also know that Mercer called her family a little while ago. Her brothers are on their way up.” He chuckled as he headed out. “Carter St. Clair showing up here ought to get this place buzzing.”
Thinking of Mercer, Noah swallowed and stared at the inside of his arm where the IV needle had been inserted and taped into place. She had taken a life last night. He suspected how badly it was affecting her. She had appeared nervous and drawn when he had last seen her inside the ER b
efore they had been separated. The hospital was small—only sixty beds—and wasn’t equipped to handle major injuries, which was no doubt why Tyson had been helicoptered back to Charleston.
Noah punched Tyson’s number into the phone. But it was Lanny who answered it, her voice low.
“Lanny, it’s Noah.”
“Noah, I didn’t recognize the number. I’m so glad you’re okay—I just heard.”
He wondered if Lanny knew yet that the cabin had been destroyed. “How’s Ty?”
“Sleeping. Do you want me to wake him?”
“No, but I’d appreciate it if he would call me at this number when he wakes up, if he’s up to it. If not, I’ll be by to see him, hopefully soon. How’s he doing?”
Lanny’s soft sigh held worry. “The doctors think he’s mostly out of the woods now, but it’s going to be a slow recovery. I spent the night here last night. I’m getting ready to go get the girls—a friend’s staying with them—and take them to school. I’m trying to keep up as normal a front as possible.”
“I’m here to help in any way that I can, you know that. Lanny…has Ty spoken to anyone from the department since the diner shooting?” Noah was still trying to figure out how Draper and his men had discovered their whereabouts. “I’m wondering if he told anyone on the force where we were.”
“Well, he didn’t tell anyone in front of me. He didn’t even tell me, as a matter of fact. Police have been congregated here, as you’d expect, but the doctors wouldn’t let anyone in to see Ty until yesterday afternoon. Even then, he was pretty out of it.”
“Do you know who saw him?”
She recounted a number of detectives and higher-ups who had come by in her presence.
“Did anyone see him alone?”
“I don’t think so. They were coming by in pairs or small groups, at least while I was here. But I went home to be with the girls after school. I came back around eight last night, so I don’t know who might’ve been here while I was out.”
They talked for a few more minutes, then Noah gave his best wishes for Tyson’s recovery and disconnected. He had a few more calls to make. After he completed them, he leaned his head back against the gurney and closed his burning eyes. When he opened them again a short time later, Mercer was there. She stood quietly watching him.
“Sorry. I think I drifted off for a few minutes,” Noah said.
“It’s understandable. It’s finally stopped raining, by the way.” She came closer to him, her concerned gaze on his wrapped arm inside the sling. “How badly are you hurting?”
“I’m not looking forward to the anesthetic wearing off,” he admitted.
“Didn’t they give you something for pain?”
“I didn’t want it. I have things I need to do.”
“Noah, you need to rest,” Mercer admonished. “I heard the doctor say that she wants to keep you overnight. They’re moving you to a room as soon as one opens up.”
Even under the harsh fluorescent lighting, her hair hanging limply around her shoulders and Tom’s oversized raincoat over her wrinkled, damp clothing, Mercer still managed to somehow look appealing. But she also appeared fragile.
“Mercer…what happened out there, what you had to do, has to be weighing on you,” Noah observed gently as she bit down on her lower lip. “Taking a life is never easy, even if—”
“I did it to protect you.”
Still, he saw the shadows in her eyes. Noah felt an ache in his throat. “Did a doctor see you?”
“While you were being treated. They gave me a couple of injections. Antibiotics and a tetanus booster, I think. It was precautionary since I’d been in the water with some cuts.”
Noah noticed that she now wore hospital-issued slippers on her feet, just as he did. They had both arrived at the hospital barefoot.
“I called Mark,” Mercer said. “He and Carter are on their way here.”
“Remy told me.”
“I’m sorry if I broke some kind of protocol, but I needed to let them know as soon as I could that I was okay. I didn’t want to wait for someone from the police to contact them.” She paused, her expression troubled. “My…mother was hospitalized in Charleston yesterday.”
“I’m sorry. Is she all right?”
“They think she will be. Her sodium and magnesium levels were really low, which can be dangerous, but the tests ruled out any heart issues.” Mercer absently smoothed the gurney’s sheets, her voice fraying. “I think she just let herself get overwrought because of me. She’d been worried enough about my situation, but the last few days were just too much for her.”
Noah’s hand briefly covered hers on the gurney. He saw her swallow.
“You should know that the two men who drove off from the cabin are dead,” he told her.
Mercer blanched slightly. “What happened?”
“They lost control of the car they were in. It left the road and hit a tree.”
“And the man we left behind in the toolshed?”
“He’s in custody. Deputies are bringing him here for treatment. The local authorities are up at the lake property now, processing the scene.”
She seemed to take the information in. “So, what happens now?” she asked quietly.
“With Draper dead, there won’t be a trial, of course. No one has any reason to come after you now. And even if they did, Draper’s faction within The Brotherhood are all either dead or on their way to prison. The Charleston Police will want to formally interview you about what happened out there, but I’m certain you’ll be cleared of any wrongdoing so you don’t need to worry. You’re free to leave with your family when they get here, if you want. It looks like you’ll make that oyster roast at the St. Clair, after all—”
“What about us, Noah?” Mercer interjected in a hushed voice.
Just then, a uniformed deputy stepped inside the curtained-off area. He was among the ones that the ER physician had chased off earlier.
“Excuse me, Detective Ford. The doc says that she’s finished with you for now. While you’re waiting to be admitted, we’d like to go ahead and finish our conversation. I’m supposed to take you back there.” He indicated a corridor through the open curtains. “We’re in a conference room.”
The deputy’s timing left a lot to be desired. Unable to answer Mercer with the man standing there, Noah’s eyes held hers for several heartbeats. Then, repressing a sigh, he sat up and dropped his legs over the gurney’s side, but the deputy held up a hand to halt him.
“Whoa. They’re bringing in a wheelchair.”
“I don’t need it,” Noah argued.
“It’s policy,” a nurse in brightly colored scrubs announced as she arrived with the wheelchair. “Saddle up, Detective. I’ll roll your IV stand along with us and make sure your line doesn’t get tangled. You’ve still got a half-bag to go.”
Noah carefully slid off the gurney and sat in the wheelchair. He flinched inwardly as the movement sent a flash of pain through his stiff biceps. As the deputy began to roll him out, Noah looked again at Mercer. There were things he wanted to say to her, but not with others around them and law enforcement officers waiting to debrief him down the hall.
“I’m glad your family is on the way,” he rasped as he was rolled past.
Mercer sat tensely on a vinyl-upholstered bench in the ER’s waiting area, a foam cup of now-cold coffee on the low table in front of her that also held a collection of spiraled-out magazines. The antiseptic smell of hospitals had always unsettled her, but it was doubly so now. Her body felt wired, as if she were stuck in fight or flight mode. She could still feel the hard kick of the gun she had fired, could still see Lex Draper’s body as it sank beneath the water’s surface.
Staring blindly at an artificial ficus tree in the elevator bay, Mercer touched the space on her chest where her wedding rings typically lay. Regret mingled with her disquiet. In the rush to escape the cabin, she had left her rings behind. Could platinum melt? Had the inferno left anything intact? Unable to
fill her lungs completely, she bowed her head and passed a hand over her eyes.
“Mercer!”
She looked up to see Carter entering through the hospital’s automatic sliding doors. He was moving briskly toward her, past the medical staff and others who were staring at him. The strap of a leather tote bag hung over his shoulder. It no doubt held the clothes and shoes she had requested that he and Mark bring with them. Mercer stood as Carter reached her and she went into his arms.
“Mercer, thank God! Are you all right?”
She nodded. “Where’s Mark?”
“He’s parking the car.” Carter’s concerned gaze roamed over her. “Have the doctors checked you out?”
“They did. I’m fine.”
He handed her the tote bag. “Quinn went to the bungalow. I hope what she picked out is okay.”
Mercer pushed up the sleeves of the oversized raincoat she wore over her still slightly damp clothing. The ER had been chilly, and Tom had offered her the coat. “Considering my current state of dress, I’m sure whatever’s in here is perfect.”
“I thought I’d never see you again.” At the emotion in his voice, Mercer touched Carter’s arm. He frowned as he glanced around. “Are you all alone? Why isn’t someone here with you?”
“It’s over. Draper’s dead. I’m no longer in danger. And I haven’t been alone. Two of Detective Ford’s friends were here with me until just a little while ago. They’re the ones who helped us get here tonight. The authorities are likely to have more questions for me at some point, but for now I’m free to go.”
“Where’s Detective Ford?”
“He’s being interviewed by local law enforcement.” Remy and Tom had wanted to take Mercer to the cafeteria with them for breakfast, but she had politely declined, preferring to instead stay here to wait for Mark and Carter. Admittedly, she had also hoped to see Noah again before leaving the hospital.
She wondered what he would have said to her if they hadn’t been interrupted.
What about us, Noah?
In Dark Water (Rarity Cove Book 3) Page 20