Snow Angel (The Hope Falls Chronicles)

by Shawn, Melanie

  As he stood, he saw Rizzo lying on the snow-covered ground with what appeared to be a gunshot wound to the head and Shadow standing on his chest, growling. Officer Simms came through the bedroom door just as Wilson and Myers came around the back of the house on opposite sides.

  Eric kneeled down next to Lily, feeling for a pulse. After finding a faint pulse in her neck, he leaned down closer so he could feel her breath on his face. Pulling her into his arms, he cradled her as he slumped back against the wall, her head resting on his shoulder.

  “The ambulance is on its way, sir,” Simms said.

  Eric held Lily in his arms as his chest rose and fell. He felt numb.

  “What the hell happened?” Simms asked, looking around the room and then out the window.

  Eric couldn’t speak. He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t think. He could only hold Lily against him, feeling her breath against his neck.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Lily tried to swallow but it felt as if her mouth were full of cotton. Her eyes burned as she tried to open her heavy lids, but they wouldn’t budge. Her head felt like it was in a vice and someone was twisting the handle, squeezing her pounding head tighter and tighter.

  Something was definitely wrong.

  Once again, she willed her eyes to open, this time achieving a small slit of vision. Everything was blurry. She couldn’t really tell where she was. The walls were painted blue and a television was mounted in the corner. Looking down, she saw that she was in a bed. A hospital bed.

  Summoning much more energy than it should take, she rolled her head to the side. She saw a blurry patch of brown hair slumped over on the bed beside her. Eric. It was Eric beside her.

  “Eric,” she tried to say, but she couldn’t seem to make a sound.

  Trying to lift her hand to get his attention, she realized that she couldn’t do that either. She spread out her fingers and realized that Eric was holding her hand. So instead of trying to lift it, she just squeezed.

  When nothing happened, she squeezed harder.

  His head jerked up, and for a moment, he just stared at her. She wanted to ask him what was going on.

  What had happened? Why she was lying in a hospital bed?

  The questions were clear as day in her mind but she just couldn’t seem to get them to come out of her mouth. Before she had a chance to work that issue out, Eric’s hands framed her face as he began kissing her forehead, her cheeks, her nose, her whole face.

  He kept repeating, “You’re awake. Oh, thank God, you’re awake.”

  She felt moisture on her face and she wondered if she was crying. She didn’t think she was but it was hard to definitively say.

  Then, as Eric pulled away slightly, just staring down at her, she realized that it was his eyes that were watering. Not hers. She tried to reach up and wipe his face. He looked tortured, and it broke her heart seeing him like that.

  He grabbed her hand as soon as it came off the bed and pressed it to his mouth, closing his eyes.

  She tried to speak, to comfort him, but her voice was not cooperating.

  He opened his eyes as she struggled to talk and immediately grabbed a plastic cup that was sitting beside them on a tray. He held the white straw that was sticking out of the top in his fingers, bringing it to her mouth.

  Placing her lips around the plastic tube, she sucked and the water trailed down her throat. It stung like bee stings as it went. She flinched but continued trying to drink. After several sips, the pain in her throat subsided.

  She turned her head, indicating that she was done. He returned the cup to its place on the stand and sat beside her on the chair, running his fingers through her hair as he asked, “How are you feeling?”

  “Horrible,” she answered honestly, but she tried to bring her lips into a small smile so he wouldn't worry.

  “The doctors need to see you, and Agent Stone is waiting to talk to you.”

  Agent Stone?

  Memories rushed back to her like lightning bolts flashing in her head. The phone call. Trying to leave town. Going back to her house. Being grabbed.

  Her eyes darted from side to side, trying to search her memory for what happened after that. She didn’t know. She tried to remember who’d grabbed her. She had no idea. She felt her heart begin to race as her breathing sped up. She struggled to move.

  “It’s okay, I’m here,” Eric soothed her, scooting closer to her bedside. “Everything’s okay.”

  No! It’s not!

  She needed to get out of here. What if he came back? She couldn’t put Eric in danger. She tried to sit up. To get out of bed. Horror and confusion were sweeping through her body.

  “Lily.” Eric’s commanding voice cut through her hysteria. “Lie still.”

  “I don’t… I have to… What hap…” She could not seem to get out what she needed to say. But she had to make him understand.

  “Do you remember what happened?” he asked in a calm, authoritative tone, his eyes fixed on hers.

  His crystal blue stare calmed her nerves, and her heartbeat began slowing down. What was the last thing she remembered? “I went home and then someone grabbed me. I don’t know…”

  She didn’t know what to say—or how much Eric knew. She was sure he would have a lot of questions for her. He’d said Agent Stone was here. She wasn’t even sure if she should speak to him. What if he had something to do with them finding her?

  Not knowing any of those answers, with fear and uncertainty overwhelming her, she was amazed that just Eric’s touch, gaze, and voice could calm her down as much as they were.

  “The man who was in your house was Giovanni Rizzo, Rico Giordano’s son.”

  Her eyes widened. Okay, so Eric knew a lot!

  “How do you…know…or…find out…” she stammered.

  He let out a breath of air. “Judge Pattinson ordered a background check on you when the one Lauren ran only went back two years. When my department came back with basically the same information, I called a buddy of mine in the FBI and he got back to me yesterday with a full report. Your birth name, childhood, AKAs, the trial, WITSEC. All of it.

  “I was looking over the file, saw Giordano’s arrest photo, and realized I had pulled over someone who could have been him at twenty. I pulled up the information from the license and then used that to get his birth certificate on file with the DMV. It listed Giordano as Rizzo's birth father.

  “That’s when I went to look for you at the Community Center but you’d left. So I checked your house. Your Jeep was outside. By the time I got to you, you were unconscious and Rizzo was trying to drag you out of the window. They found his car parked in the woods behind the house. It was clear from what they found inside that he planned on kidnapping you.”

  “You saved me?” Lily whispered with tears in her eyes.

  Eric’s mouth turned up into a half-smile. “I would love to take all the credit but Shadow definitely came through with an assist.”

  Then Lily remembered hearing Shadow’s barks as she’d pulled up into her driveway. But he’d been in the backyard. How had he gotten out?

  As if reading her mind, Eric answered. “He hopped the fence. Somehow he managed to hop a ten-foot fence. And it’s a good thing he did. He got there just in time and bit Rizzo’s hand, causing him to lose his grasp on you just as the gun fired.”

  “Oh, my handsome boy!” Lily felt tears falling down her cheeks.

  “Are you talking about me or him?” Eric teased, easing closer to her as he wiped the tears from her face.

  “Both of you,” she smiled. Then her chest constricted as a horrible thought occurred to her. “Shadow? Is he… Did he?”

  “Shadow’s fine!” Eric quickly assured her. “He’s been at my parents' house, giving their corgis, Laverne and Shirley, a run for their money.”

  “And what about…”

  “Rizzo’s dead. When his gun discharged, the bullet ricocheted off of a steel beam in the wall and hit him in the head.”

  Li
ly didn’t know how to feel about that. On one hand, she was glad he was no longer a threat, but on the other hand, she hated to take pleasure in the death of anyone, no matter how evil they had been.

  Eric, once again seeming to read Lily’s mind, said, “Don’t. Don’t feel bad. He fired that gun at you.” He breathed in through his nose as his jaw tensed. “It could have been you.”

  “I’m so sorry.” Lily hated seeing Eric upset. Especially when it was her fault. She shouldn’t have come here and brought her past to Hope Falls.

  “You don’t have anything to apologize for, Lily.” He leaned over, his thumb tracing her jawline. “I’m the one who’s sorry. I should have been there. I should have protected you.”

  She leaned her face into his large, warm hand. “You were. You did.”

  He shook his head, his face still filled with guilt and tension.

  “Well, you at least helped Shadow save me,” she grinned, hoping that it would lighten his mood.

  His lips turned up, and she hoped he wouldn’t feel responsible for any of this. But from what she’d seen, Eric always felt responsible for the people he loved. Not that he loved her. She didn’t know why she’d thought that.

  “I'd better let Agent Stone come in. I had to call in a few favors just so I could be the one waiting with you. Alone.”

  “Favors?”

  “You’d be amazed at who Judge Pattinson knows.”

  Eric stood to leave but Lily stopped him. Something was still bothering her. “How did Rizzo find me?”

  “Oh.” Eric shook his head in irritation before he reached beside his chair and pulled out several magazines, all of which had her picture right on the front page.

  “Oh my gosh!” Lily exclaimed.

  “Yep, looks like you’re famous,” Eric said dryly.

  The pictures were all from the day she and Karina had left rehearsal and been bombarded by paparazzi. They were walking arm and arm, and the headlines read, “The Woman Coming Between Karina and Ryan,” “Mystery Woman Karina Black Spends Her Days With,” “Can Karina And Ryan Survive Gay Affair?” and “Karina Black Cozying Up To A Latin Beauty In Hometown.”

  Lily had been part of a scandal before, but never like this.

  Eric looked at the magazines. “Rizzo saw the picture and recognized you.”

  The door opened and Agent Stone walked in, his eyes steel cold as always. “Glad to see you’re up and about.” Then, icy even for him, he turned to Eric. “I need to speak to Karla alone.”

  Eric looked like he really wanted to say something back to him. Something along the lines of he wasn’t leaving until he was damn good and ready. But maybe not quite that polite. Lily smiled.

  “I was just heading out.” Eric’s tone sent a little shiver down her spine. She watched as Eric stared down Agent Stone until the Marshal nodded and looked back at Lily.

  Wow. Eric had just had a pissing contest with a badass US Marshal and won. That was hot. Everything he did was hot.

  Leaning down, Eric kissed her on her forehead. “I’ll be right outside if you need me.”

  As much as she appreciated it, she didn’t want him to feel obligated. “I’ll be fine. You can—”

  “I’ll be right outside.” His tone left no room for argument. She just nodded as he walked to the hospital room door.

  Watching him go, she realized that, even though she was lying in a hospital bed after having been attacked, even though her identity was now known by everyone in the world, and even though she had absolutely no idea what her future looked like, she’d never felt more safe and protected in her life.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Eric’s boots squeaked as he walked down the sterile halls of the hospital. Brushing his hands through his still wet hair, he walked quickly. Last night, after Agent Stone and Doctor Tillman had seen Lily, she’d fallen fast asleep.

  Eric had stayed with her again, just as he had the night before. She hadn’t woken or really even stirred the entire night. The nurses woke her up this morning as they were taking her for an MRI and several other tests that they needed to run. They told Eric she wouldn’t be back in her room for at least an hour. So he’d gone home to quickly shower and change.

  Opening the door quietly, not wanting to disturb Lily in case she was sleeping, he stepped carefully into the room, finding a very awake Lily. She was sitting up in bed, eating red Jell-O, and looking like she’d gotten some of her color back.

  She smiled, and his heart broke wide open. He’d known for a while now that he loved Lily, but at this moment, he knew that she was it. He’d never love another woman again. There was just Lily.

  “Good morning,” she said, looking bright-eyed and gorgeous.

  “How are you feeling?” he asked in hopes that it wasn’t just him imagining that she was doing better. He needed to know that she was doing better.

  “Good. Really good.” Her smile was genuine, and for the first time ever, he felt like he was seeing her completely relaxed. “The doctors said that they will probably keep me one more night to be on the safe side, but if my MRI comes back clean, I can head home tomorrow. And they’ve only restricted my activity level for one week so I will still be able to go on the tour.”

  “I love you,” he blurted out. He didn’t know why he’d said it like that. He’d planned on getting her home and telling her over a nice dinner. But he just couldn’t go one more minute without her knowing that he loved her.

  Shocked. That was what she looked like—like she was completely shocked. He didn’t need to be a body language expert to figure that one out.

  Moving beside the bed, he sat in the chair and pulled her hand up to his mouth, pressing his lips to the soft skin on the back of her hand before placing it against his cheek, the same one he’d felt her breath against as he’d held her unconscious body while he waited for the ambulance.

  Her face softened from shock into a slow smile, and he saw tears filling her eyes. “Eric, I—”

  The door flung open. “Knock knock! You have some deliveries.” Sally, one of the nurses that had taken her for her tests, held open the door while several delivery people with their arms filled came in with flowers, balloons, gift baskets, and even a few stuffed animals.

  He looked back at Lily, who was staring wide-eyed. “Those are for me?” she asked in disbelief.

  Sally smiled brightly. “Sure are.”

  Lily’s brow furrowed and she shook her head. “From who?”

  “Well, I only peeked at a couple of the cards, but I think I can safely say pretty much the whole town. Once word got out about your situation, everyone wanted you to know that they were thinking about you.”

  After unloading all of the goods, the delivery people left the room, with Sally following them out, talking about a softball game she would be playing in later that week.

  When he looked back at Lily, she was staring at all of her gifts, but she didn't look delighted anymore. In fact, she looked downright pale. “The whole town knows about my situation?” She sounded almost sick to her stomach.

  “That’s my fault,” Eric sighed. “When I went to go find you, I asked my receptionist to call the US Marshal’s office and forwarded her your file so she would have any information they might need. Well, she found your case fascinating and proceeded to talk to everyone in town about it.”

  Lily’s head dropped back on the pillow and she closed her eyes.

  “She’s been fired.”

  Immediately, she sat back up. “No, Eric, don’t fire her over that. I’m just embarrassed. And it's...you know... It's going to be hard to get used to it being safe for people to know who I am. I've spent so long with the idea ingrained in me that telling the truth equaled danger, you know? But that's not her fault. It's fine.”

  “She is fired. It’s not fine. And you don’t have anything to be embarrassed about. Or scared. Ever again.”

  As she bit the inside of her lip, Eric could tell that she really wanted to say something. He waited. He would
wait forever to hear whatever she wanted to say.

  Taking a deep breath, she said, “I didn’t have the best childhood.”

  “I know.” Eric looked deep in her almond-colored eyes, wanting her to see herself the way he saw her. “And you not only survived it, you thrived, Lily. You didn’t let that break you. You kept going. Other people who haven’t been through half of what you have would have given up. Crawled into a hole to hide. But not you. Without anyone. You did it by yourself. You are the strongest, bravest person I know.”

  She shook her head, looking down at her hands lying on her lap, dismissing what he’d said.

  He lifted his hand, cradling her jaw. Her eyes rose up to meet his and he continued., “You are brave. And you are strong. But now you’re not alone. You never have to be alone again. I love you and—”

  “Knock knock,” Sally said as she once again came through the door. “You have some very special visitors here to see you.”

  Seriously?!

  “Hi, sweetie,” Eric’s mom whispered as she tiptoed into the room.

  “She’s not asleep, Mom,” Eric said.

  “I know.” Irritation rang in her voice as it returned to normal volume. “I was just trying to be considerate.”

  “Hi, Mrs. Maguire,” Lily sweetly greeted his mom.

  Moving over to the side of the bed, his mom reached out and grabbed Lily’s hand, patting it as she asked with great concern, “How are you feeling, sweetie? Do you need anything?”

  “I’m actually feeling much better. Thank you.” Lily looked genuinely touched by his mom’s concern.

  “Good. You had us all so worried. This one most of all.” His mom gestured across the bed to where Eric was seated. “He wouldn’t leave your side. They couldn’t get you out of his arms so he rode in the back of the ambulance, holding you the entire way to the hospital.”

  Lily turned her head to him. “You did?”

  He nodded.

  At his admission, tears once again filled her eyes.

  “Oh now, shh shh shh. Don’t cry, sweetie,” his mom shushed her.

  “Are you ‘bout ready in there then?” His dad’s loud voice rang out from the hall.