Down in Flames

by Cheryl Hollon

  Officer Williams groaned when she cleared the alley. The driver had run the last few seconds of the light and by the time she reached the intersection she screeched to a halt to avoid crashing into a group of pedestrians.

  Officer Williams tooted on her siren and the pedestrians stiffened up to look at her, then hurried out of the street. She was now only a few blocks away from Queen’s Head Pub. She turned off both her siren and lights and searched the street for the white car.

  * * *

  Amanda sent a server out to the patio and yelled back to Savannah in the kitchen. “Hey, guess what? Jacob is treating his mother to one of our burgers. Make sure it’s a good one.”

  “Jacob? Jacob never eats burgers. What has gotten into him?”

  “He’s changed since he recovered his voice.” Amanda shrugged her shoulders and returned to the line of customers wanting a table.

  Savannah nodded and noticed which server was taking their order. “Samuel. Let me know when you’ve got their order ready to deliver. I want to take it out myself.”

  “No problem, the next two are almost ready.” Samuel gently flipped over two perfectly charred patties. As soon as they were equally charred on the bottom, he plated the order and yelled over to Savannah. “Jacob’s order is ready.”

  Savannah took the platters and approached Jacob’s table. “These are indeed the best burgers in town.” She set them down. “Hi, Frances, wonderful that you could stop by.”

  Frances waved her hand at the packed crowd. “I’ve never seen this place so busy! How’s Edward doing in the competition?”

  “Right now he would be delighted to come in in the top five. He hopes to not embarrass himself, but he certainly doesn’t expect to win. But, just in case, make sure you vote.”

  She watched as Jacob stared at the burger intensely, then took his knife and cut it in half. He inhaled a deep breath and took a bite of the burger. He craned his head and widened his eyes. “This is excellent. Edward will win.”

  Savannah nodded. “I think so, but you’ll never get that from Edward.”

  Edward walked out to their table. “Who, me? Cheers, Jacob. Good to see you.” He heard the thumping of a tail underneath Jacob’s chair. “And Suzy as well. I hear from the kitchen that you’re treating your mom to one of my burgers. I see—”

  Suzy barked sharply and poked her head out from under the chair. An instant later they heard the roar of an engine.

  Then a siren shrieked to life in front of Queen’s Head Pub. The patrol car was inches behind a white car hurtling toward Jacob’s table.

  Frances screamed, “Jacob! Watch out!”

  Savannah screamed, “Move, Jacob!” Then she grabbed Jacob beneath his arms and hurled him away from the speeding car.

  In the next slow-motion moment, Savannah felt Edward give her a powerful shove that drove her and Jacob down onto the concrete patio floor. She heard Amanda screaming, “It’s Myla Kay! Grab her! Myla Kay is SNARK!”

  Then she blacked out.

  Chapter 37

  The wee hours of Sunday morning,

  hospital emergency room

  Savannah kept falling asleep, and then waking up because she couldn’t move. Each time, Edward’s voice would break into her fuzzy thoughts.

  “You have to stay awake, luv,” he said. “If you get through the next few hours without showing signs of concussion, we can go home.”

  Savannah wrinkled her brow in concentration. “I’m not home?” She opened her eyes to the bright lights and energetic bustling of doctors, nurses, orderlies, and emergency personnel in the cramped emergency room. “Why can’t I move?”

  “You’re wearing a neck brace. They don’t want you to move your head until the results of the CAT scan come back.”

  “I’ve been awake before?”

  “Yes, which is a good thing, because they won’t talk to me. They will only let me sit with you because you have no relatives. I could at least prove that we’re engaged and living together. Thanks for badgering me into getting the address changed on my driver’s license.”

  Savannah looked around as much as she could with her limited head movement. “This is the same place where Nicole was brought, isn’t it?”

  “Yes, luv, but you’re going to be fine. You need to stay awake for another couple of hours and they’ll let us go.”

  “Us?”

  Edward took her hand and cupped it between his. “You’re not in here alone. Never alone.”

  Savannah exhaled a long umm. “You always know exactly how to make me feel wonderful.”

  “That’s my job.”

  She scooched up a little higher in the bed. “What happened after—”

  A nurse pulled the privacy curtain aside with a lively flourish. “Hello, hello! It’s time for your vitals check. Let me check your wristband.” She examined the printed hospital band on Savannah’s left wrist. “Good. What’s your name?”

  Savannah frowned.” Savannah Webb.”

  “What day is it?”

  “Umm, by now, I think Sunday.”

  “Do you know where you are?”

  “Bayside Hospital emergency room.”

  “Where do you live?”

  “St. Petersburg, Florida.”

  The nurse let a tiny smile escape, then took Savannah’s temperature, blood pressure, and pulse. She turned, twitched the privacy curtain back in place, and left the room.

  Edward’s eyebrows shot up like twin darts. “That was abrupt.”

  “Has she been asking me questions since I got here?”

  “No, this is the first time I’ve seen her. Your original nurse must be busy elsewhere.”

  “How many times have they checked me out?”

  “This is the third time.”

  Savannah frowned. “I don’t remember the first two.”

  “Well, you did get quite a knock. They took you away for a CAT scan, but I don’t know the results.” He cupped her hand again. “I’m not a relative, so they won’t tell me what the scan showed.”

  Savannah tentatively explored the back of her head and found a tender spot.

  “Ouch.” She smiled up at Edward. “That’s going to be tender for a while. What happened to everyone?”

  “Well, that’s a good sign.” He smiled and kissed her hand. “Curiosity has always been your greatest strength. Sadly, also your greatest weakness.”

  “Come on. Stop stalling.” She gingerly lifted herself upright in bed. “Jacob! Is Jacob all right? I remember that I made a grab to pull him out of the path of the white car. Is he hurt? Is Suzy hurt?”

  “Calm down. Everyone else is fine. You’re the only one who made it here.”

  Savannah felt a wave of tension leave her shoulders.

  Edward continued. “Jacob was the first to recover and he snatched up Suzy, who was howling up a storm just like she did when Nicole was hit. I was the next to get up from the pile and I helped Officer Williams secure SNARK. When I turned back to you, Frances was trying to wake you up. That’s when Officer Williams called for the EMTs.”

  “I don’t remember any of that.”

  “You just wouldn’t fully wake up. You seemed to be mumbling in a dream. The EMTs put you in this neck brace and whisked you away to here. I followed them in your Mini.”

  “What happened to Myla Kay?”

  “Also known as SNARK?” Edward tilted his head. “That was a big surprise. It was a miracle that she wasn’t killed outright in her attempt to run down Jacob. It turns out she was full of drugs and couldn’t even tell Officer Williams who she was.”

  “Where’s Amanda? How is she holding up?”

  “She’s fine,” Edward answered tersely. “You need to stop asking questions and rest. If you keep agitating yourself, we’ll never get out of here.”

  “But what about the Best Burger in the Burg competition? You left the pub on the most popular voting night.”

  Edward opened his mouth to answer and was interrupted by the sound of the privacy curt
ain being drawn aside.

  A thin, dark young man in blue medical scrubs entered with an electronic device in his hand and a stethoscope draped around his neck. “Savannah Webb?”

  “Yes, that’s me,” said Savannah. “When can I go home?”

  The young man smiled and looked even younger. “That’s a healthy attitude.” He looked at Edward. “Is it okay to share the results?” He then looked at Savannah. “Would you like some privacy?”

  “No, Edward is my fiancé. I want him to know if there’s a problem.”

  “Perfect. The news is good. Your CAT scan is clean. There are no fractures in your neck or spine.”

  Savannah grinned so wide her cheeks nearly cramped. “So, you can take off the neck brace?” She started to reach around to the back of the brace.

  “Yes. Hang on.” He placed his device on the side table. “Let me help you get that off. Sit up.”

  Savannah sat forward while the doctor pulled on the Velcro straps and removed the brace. She rolled her neck from side to side. “Oh, wow. That feels wonderful. How much longer do I have to stay?”

  “Only two more hours. We need to make sure there’s no delayed bleed at the impact site. Stay quiet. Stay in bed. Two more interviews by one of the floor nurses and I’ll release you.”

  He picked up his device and turned to Edward. “Make sure you watch her closely for the next day or so. They’ll tell you what to look for when they release her.”

  Edward stood to shake the doctor’s hand and yelped when his left foot bore his full weight. He stumbled into the doctor’s midsection and they both tumbled onto the cold tile floor.

  The doctor recovered quickly and helped Edward hop back into the chair without using his left leg. “So, when were you going to let somebody know that you injured yourself?”

  “It didn’t seem to be so bad. Until now.”

  “Right. Let’s get you checked in and examine that foot. It may be broken.”

  Chapter 38

  The following Saturday,

  Savannah’s house

  The scent of flowers reached the guests before they even stepped on the porch. The Rosenberg twins had run amok at the florists and huge bouquets covered every flat surface inside and outside the bungalow.

  Beside the propped-open screen door was a small book stand with an album for guests to jot down a few words on how they knew Amanda’s mother. There was a line awaiting their turn to sign the guest book, but no one was the least bit impatient.

  When the guests moved into Savannah’s living room, they met Amanda dressed in all white with a flowing skirt topped with white tulle. Savannah hadn’t known that Amanda owned a skirt before today. The gauzy confection set the joyous mood. Amanda had bleached her hair white and had placed a stripe of mourning black across her forehead. The Rosenberg twins stood on each side of her in support and had chosen to wear soft lavender. There was a reunion of sorts, with people calling out to friends that they hadn’t seen in months or years.

  The atmosphere was joyous, with laughter and smiles along with the occasional emotional memory that produced a flurry of tissues. Savannah was grateful that Amanda had agreed to postpone the memorial for a week. Edward’s injured leg had turned all their plans upside down, but Samuel had saved the day by convincing two friends from his previous part-time jobs to fill in the gaps. With him stepping in to manage Queen’s Head Pub, everything had fallen back into a comfortable rhythm.

  As guests moved into the kitchen, they were greeted with an assortment of finger foods. There were sliders made with various meats, cubes of cheese, a huge assortment of crackers, flatbread mini pizzas, a giant bowl of fresh berries, and potato chips with dipping sauces. The dessert tray held bite-sized portions of pecan pie, eclairs, tarts, and custard pudding. Everyone was wandering around with plates of food accompanied by Bloody Mary, mimosa, and screwdriver cocktails, espresso, or sparkling, mineral, or plain water. There must have been over a hundred guests.

  Edward was resting comfortably in his recliner with his booted and braced leg propped on a bed pillow. Savannah had covered it with a childhood treasure—her purple Winnie the Pooh with Eeyore pillow slip. Edward had responded by asking Jacob to place purple Wolverine stickers all over his recovery boot. All perfectly aligned, of course.

  Elizabeth and Phillip both dropped in to pay their respects. “Nicole’s family have ended their feud with us,” said Elizabeth. “They have opened their hearts to nontraditional families. I’m very happy because I’m pregnant.” She rubbed her little baby bump.

  Phillip smiled broadly. “It’s going to be wonderful that I get to be an uncle.”

  “We had been trying to conceive for months, but my eggs weren’t good enough.” She rubbed her tummy again. “Nicole’s worked the very first time.”

  Officer Williams stopped by to express her condolences to Amanda. “I’m so sorry I didn’t get a chance to meet her. From knowing you, I can tell she was a magnificent woman. You really can’t have too many strong women in your life.” Joy looked over at Savannah and the Rosenberg twins. “Take advantage of them.”

  “Joy!” Savannah approached and gave her a big hug. “Thanks for coming. We’re a little overwhelmed. Let me get you a chair next to Edward and we’ll try to talk.”

  Savannah moved a chair beside Edward and motioned for Joy to take a seat. Savannah perched on the arm of Edward’s lounger so that he was bookended by them.

  He looked from one to the other. “Trapped, I see.”

  Savannah leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “Loving it, I see.”

  “How’s the leg?” asked Joy.

  “It’s going to be out of this boot by the end of next week. I still have to keep it elevated as much as I can, but the pain is better each day.”

  Savannah leaned forward. “What’s the status of SNARK’s case?”

  “Well, she’s in the county jail awaiting trial. She confessed outright to the hit-and-run. Apparently, she was under the influence of some powerful opioids and when she saw Nicole, she swerved into her. Nicole apparently was one of the few people who had discovered her true identity and it sent her into a fugue. She hadn’t been thinking clearly for quite some time and her attachment to reality was paper thin. I think it was a tragic combination of deep anger and then a sudden opportunity.”

  “What’s next? She tried to kill Jacob.”

  Officer Williams shrugged. “With only the single witness, it looks like she thought it could be contained. She’ll be charged with both attacks. But she seems to have turned a moral corner. She’s in a voluntary rehab program and apparently is expressing deep remorse.”

  “That doesn’t help Nicole’s family,” said Edward.

  “No, but while she’s awaiting trial, she’s started to teach a traditional drawing class for inmates who are also recovering from drug abuse. Her class is so popular that they’ve had to move it to the cafeteria to accommodate the number of students.”

  “I hope this isn’t an act to win sympathy from the authorities,” said Savannah.

  “I don’t really think it is,” Officer Williams responded. “I know I haven’t had that much experience with criminals and their prevarications, but she seems truly remorseful.”

  At sundown the memorial moved outside to the backyard, where the guests related their favorite memories of Mrs. Blake. The closing performance was Amanda reading her mother’s favorite passage from Tim Dorsey’s The Pope of Palm Beach. When she thanked everyone for helping her to celebrate her mother’s wonderful life, there wasn’t a dry eye in the place.

  Within the next half hour, the only remaining guests consisted of Savannah’s and Edward’s closest friends: Amanda, Jacob, Rachel, Faith, Frances, and Joy.

  Edward stood, with Savannah’s help, and pointed to a tray of filled champagne flutes. “Please take a glass for a toast. We have an announcement.”

  There was a murmur of excitement while Amanda took the tray and made sure that Jacob got the glass of sparkling water.
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br />   Edward wrapped his arm around Savannah’s waist. “We wanted you to be the first to know that we’ve decided how to celebrate our wedding with both our UK and US friends and family.” He beamed at Savannah.

  She beamed back. “We’re having a formal wedding at Edward’s ancestral church in the village of Saint Albans in England on Boxing Day, the day after Christmas. All of you are invited to the service, though of course we understand if you can’t make it across the Atlantic.”

  “Then we’re taking our honeymoon right here in downtown St. Petersburg at the historic Vinoy hotel,” said Edward. “It appears that they still adore the plate chargers that Savannah made them for their formal events. Huge discount!”

  Everyone oohed and aahed. Except Amanda. She flushed pink with concern. She bolted out of her seat. “What about a wedding dress? You can’t have one made before the wedding—it takes six months to have one made.”

  Savannah tilted her head toward Edward. “I had a look in the attic among my mother’s things.” She paused. “I’m going to wear my mother’s wedding dress. It’s almost a flawless fit and the preservation process has kept the dress in wonderful condition.”

  “It will be perfect.” Amanda beamed.

  Savannah continued. “Then after we return, we’re having a reception for friends, Webb’s Glass Shop students, and loyal patrons of Queen’s Head Pub. We’re going to have a celebration tent in the parking lot between the two businesses. The date for the reception is the second Saturday of the New Year.”

  Edward nodded toward Jacob.

  Jacob put Suzy down beside him, reached into his pocket and pulled out an index card. He cleared his throat and read.

  “When Edward asked me to give the wedding announcement speech, at first I refused.” He looked over the card directly at Edward. “But then I remembered—he has no friends! He’s always in the kitchen.”

  For a moment everyone held their breath. Then Jacob cracked a smile, and a wave of laughter sped through the crowd.

  Edward’s and Savannah’s eyes met. They shared a twinkling gaze—Jacob had successfully told his first joke.