by Laura Scott
Caleb nodded, not bothering to argue that she could die of a shoulder injury if her lung was hit. He could barely tear his gaze from Noelle, even as he leaned on her shoulder wound to help stop the bleeding. She was an innocent bystander in all of this. A mess he’d dragged her into without giving her a choice.
He couldn’t bear to lose her.
Not when he hadn’t gotten a chance to tell her how much he loved her.
The wail of sirens filled the air, telling him that help was on the way.
“Please, Lord, keep Noelle safe in Your care. Please heal her wounds and spare her life,” he whispered.
“Amen,” Kaitlin responded in a tearful voice.
He was humbled by his daughter’s ability to pray. Thanks to Noelle’s teaching, his daughter knew more about faith and God than he did.
He was so thankful, not only for this second chance at having a future with his daughter, but for discovering faith and God. He owed Noelle so much more than he could ever repay.
When the ambulance pulled up and the paramedics jumped out, hurrying over with their medical gear, he reluctantly eased back so they could begin working on Noelle. In the glow of the ambulance headlights, they quickly placed two IV’s in her arms to give her the badly needed lifesaving fluids. One of them even pulled out what looked like a unit of blood.
Caleb picked up his daughter and held her close, kissing her on the cheek, trying to reassure her that everything would be all right. Kaitlin clung to him the way she once clung to Noelle.
His heart filled with love. He and his daughter were truly reunited at last, and he was deeply grateful. But he was also greedy enough to want more.
He wanted Noelle to be with them, too.
Maybe God had already answered his quota of prayers for the night, but that didn’t stop him from praying some more.
SIXTEEN
Engulfed in a shroud of pain, Noelle gradually became aware of her surroundings. The sharp scent of antiseptic along with the beeping sounds of a monitor confirmed she was in the hospital and her heart squeezed with fear. Her entire body hurt from the beatings. She tried to open her eyes to make sure her foster father wasn’t anywhere around. What if he came to finish what he’d started? What if he made good on his threat to silence her forever?
“No,” she forced the word through her parched throat, blinking her eyes to get rid of the blurred vision.
“Just relax, Noelle.” The deep male voice came from somewhere near her left shoulder.
She jerked away, turning as far as she could over onto her right side, cowering against the side rail while she desperately searched for the call light. Where were the nurses? Didn’t they understand Frank was the one who put her here in the first place? Why had they left her alone with this monster?
“Noelle, what’s wrong? Are you in pain? Should I call the nurse?”
She felt a heavy hand on her shoulder and she flinched, trying to get even farther away from the threat. No! Help me! Please, Lord, help me!
“You must be in pain, I’m getting the nurse. Try not to move around so much, you might pull out your stitches.”
She’d already found her call light and had pushed the button frantically, hiding her hands amid the folds of the blanket covering her. When the heavy hand moved from her shoulder, she forced herself to turn her head to face the threat. Her vision swam, then sharpened, and she frowned when she realized that the man standing beside her wasn’t Frank Petrol, her foster father.
It took another minute for her to recognize the stranger as Caleb O’Malley. She blinked again and tried to gather her scattered thoughts. “What happened?” she whispered in confusion. “Are we safe?”
Caleb’s dark eyes were full of concern. “Yes, we’re safe. But unfortunately you took a bullet in your left shoulder. Can you feel the padded dressing there? You just came out of surgery a few hours ago. The doctor said you’ll be fine, even though you’ll need to have a lot of physical therapy to get your full range of motion back.”
Now that he mentioned it, the pain in her shoulder became almost unbearable, radiating down her arm and ricocheting through her back. Obviously rolling over in bed hadn’t been the smartest move. She slowly eased onto her back and tried to take some slow, deep breaths to calm her racing heart.
She’d never had a flashback like this before, probably because she hadn’t been a patient in a hospital since the initial incident ten years ago. But the memory had been horrifyingly real. In that moment she thought for sure she was the sixteen year old who’d been beaten with a cane, her foster father’s favorite tool for doling out punishment. The coppery taste of fear still tasted bitter on her tongue and she shied away from the painful memories.
“The nurse should be here shortly,” Caleb murmured. He stood a good foot from the side of her bed with his hands tucked into the front pockets of his jeans and it dawned on her that he thought she’d been afraid of him. And she had, but only when she’d thought he was Frank.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered again through a throat that felt like it was on fire. “Water?”
“Good morning,” a perky blond-haired nurse greeted them as she entered the room. “My name is Jennifer and I’ll be your nurse for today. How are you feeling?”
“Hurts,” Noelle admitted.
“I’ve brought you some pain medication, but first I need you to rate your pain on a scale from zero to ten, with ten being the worst pain you’ve ever felt in your entire life and zero being pain free.” As she spoke Jennifer pulled up a laptop computer on wheels and logged in.
“Ten,” Noelle said, wondering just how many patients actually gave a zero after having surgery. Was this some sort of torture test to make the patients wait for their pain medication?
“Can she have a sip of water, too?” Caleb asked.
“Sure, let me give her pain meds first.” Jennifer used some sort of gadget to bar-code her wristband and then the medication, hitting more keys on the computer before she actually got to the point of inserting the syringe of pain medication into her IV port.
Noelle avoided Caleb’s gaze as Jennifer helped her sit forward enough to take a sip of water. She was deeply appalled at how she’d responded when she first woke up. She couldn’t imagine what Caleb had thought of her reaction. Even now, she could feel his curious gaze penetrating deep, as if he were willing her to tell him what happened.
Something she’d rather avoid if possible.
She’d thought she’d gotten over her past. But apparently she’d only buried it. Now she knew exactly what Kaitlin’s night terrors were like for the little girl.
The coolness of the ice water slipping down her sore throat felt wonderful. She eased back against the pillows and glanced around. “Where’s Kaitlin?”
“Sleeping right here behind me.” Caleb took a step sideways so she could see the little girl curled in the seat of the recliner, Caleb’s sweatshirt covering her like a blanket. “She’s been out for several hours now. Not surprising, after all the excitement from last night.”
“She’s okay?” she asked, desperate for reassurance. “She wasn’t hurt?”
“She’s fine, mostly worried about you,” Caleb admitted, his brown eyes intense. “She prayed for you, too. You’ve taught her well, Noelle.”
Tears pricked Noelle’s eyes at the thought of the precious little girl praying for her safety. The pain Noelle felt in her shoulder was well worth the outcome.
“I’m glad she’s safe,” Noelle murmured. “I was so scared for her.”
“Do you need anything else?” Jennifer asked, in her annoyingly perky tone.
“No, I’m fine.” Thankfully the pain medication had already taken the edge off, making the pain tolerable. Gingerly, she shifted in her bed, trying to get comfortable.
A strained silence hung suspended be
tween them the moment the nurse left. She wished Caleb would leave and take Kaitlin home so the child could sleep in her own bed. There was nothing more he could do here.
“Brickner’s dead?” she asked, breaking the silence.
“Yeah and Royce is under arrest. Declan and Isaac saved the day. And just before Brickner died, he claimed Royce was the one who killed Heather.”
She swallowed hard and nodded. She vaguely remembered the sound of gunfire just before the burning pain that had sent her to her knees. Before she lost consciousness she heard Royce giving himself up.
“Will the police finally believe you?” she asked.
“I think so, especially now that I have Deck and Isaac to back me up.”
“Good.” She was sincerely happy for him. All Caleb wanted was to clear his name and find out who really killed his wife.
“Noelle, are you sure you’re okay?” he asked in a low voice. “You looked scared to death when you woke up.”
She closed her eyes for a moment, wishing she could avoid this conversation. But it was too late to hide her reaction, and maybe Caleb deserved to know the truth.
The sooner he knew, the sooner he’d leave her alone. Their time together was over. He was finally free to live his own life and she would go back to being a preschool teacher. Their nightmare was over.
So why did she want to cry?
“Noelle? Please, talk to me. I’m worried about you.”
She couldn’t ignore his plea, no matter how much she wanted to. Baring her soul would be difficult but if that was what he needed before he left once and for all, then she’d tell him.
“I...was in the hospital once before, about ten years ago,” she admitted. “When I woke up, I thought I was sixteen again.”
“What happened back then?” he pressed, gently. “Why were you so afraid?”
Caleb reached over to take her hand, but Noelle couldn’t bear to look him in the eye. “When I heard your voice, I thought you were my foster father, Frank. He used to...hurt me.”
“What? He sexually assaulted you?” Caleb asked hoarsely, his hand tightening on hers.
“No, he only beat me with a cane.”
“That’s bad enough, Noelle. I hope they arrested him and tossed him in jail.”
She bit her bottom lip and shook her head. “I didn’t hang around long enough to find out. I ran away, and lived on the street for a few weeks.”
“Oh, Noelle,” he murmured, brushing a strand of hair away from her cheek. Thankfully she didn’t flinch again at his touch and she hoped the flashback was safely in the past where it belonged.
She shrugged her good shoulder. “Don’t feel sorry for me. I was lucky to end up in a homeless shelter, where I found a wonderful woman by the name of Abby Carrington. Abby took me under her wing, taught me about faith and God, helped me get a job as a waitress and finish my GED. I even managed to get a small scholarship into college. So you see? I was one of the lucky ones.”
“I admire you so much, Noelle,” Caleb murmured. “After everything you’ve been through, you still found a way to believe in me, believe in my innocence. And then you did whatever was necessary to protect my daughter. I owe you so much. I don’t know how I’ll ever be able to repay you.”
“Just take good care of Kaitlin,” she said, trying to fight off the sedative effects of the narcotic. Her mind was getting foggier by the minute. “That’s all I ask. Goodbye, Caleb.”
She thought she heard Caleb say her name before she succumbed to sleep.
* * *
Goodbye? Caleb stared down at Noelle’s peaceful features, resisting the urge to shake her awake. What did she mean goodbye? Was this it? Was this her way of saying she didn’t want to see him anymore?
He sank down onto one of the uncomfortable plastic chairs in the corner of Noelle’s hospital room and scrubbed his hands over his face. He tried to push back the wave of panic. Surely Noelle hadn’t really meant to tell him goodbye. That must have been the narcotics talking.
He couldn’t bear the thought of not having Noelle in his life. Yet he couldn’t deny that she may not feel the same way. She hadn’t pushed him away when he’d kissed her, but maybe now she was having second thoughts.
He rubbed his palms into his eye sockets trying to erase the image of Noelle flinching from his touch, cowering in her bed. The thought of someone beating her with a cane filled him with a helpless fury. What kind of foster parent would do that? Why hadn’t anyone stood up for her? She’d been a child, and children were meant to be protected. Not abused.
He was lucky that Kaitlin had ended up with Noelle as a foster mother. The idea of his daughter being subjected to the same abuse that Noelle had suffered made him sick to his stomach. His thoughts drifted back to the first time they’d met, when Noelle had hugged Kaitlin and Kaitlin had shied away from him. Noelle’s past had likely made her more determined to protect Kaitlin, even from him.
And he didn’t blame Noelle one bit for being leery of him. In fact, knowing what he did now, he was amazed Noelle had managed to trust him at all.
“Caleb?”
He lifted his head to find Deck hovering in the doorway. “Yeah?”
“It’s time for you to give your statement.”
He grimaced and nodded. “Who’s leading the investigation? Sheriff Cramer?”
“Internal Affairs has taken over the investigation,” Declan confided. “Sheriff Cramer is on the hot seat at the moment. IAB is all over him. He has some explaining to do since Royce reported directly to him and, of course, Brickner was dirty, as well. I doubt Cramer will make it through unscathed, even if he didn’t know about Brickner’s and Royce’s involvement with Eileen’s Elite Escort Services. Cramer will never get reelected after this.”
Caleb hadn’t been overly fond of Sheriff Cramer, but that didn’t mean he wanted to see the guy lose his job. Back when he’d been locked up in jail, he’d have been happy to get revenge, but now, he was simply glad to be alive and reunited with his daughter.
And even more grateful to have found Noelle and God.
“Lieutenant Erickson is waiting for you in a small conference room down the hall,” Declan advised.
“Can you stay here with Kaitlin for a while?” Caleb asked, rising to his feet. “I don’t want to wake her up just yet.”
“No problem.” Deck crossed over and took the chair Caleb had just vacated.
Caleb glanced over his shoulder at Noelle one last time before he slipped from the room.
He found the conference room without any trouble and when he saw Lieutenant Erickson sitting there in his full dress uniform, Caleb paused and took a deep breath, hoping and praying he wasn’t about to be arrested again.
Surely Deck would have warned him if there was any possibility of that. Wouldn’t he?
“Come in, O’Malley,” Lieutenant Erickson said, rising to his feet.
Caleb forced himself to step forward, taking Erickson’s outstretched hand. “Lieutenant.”
“Have a seat.” Erickson waved him toward the empty chair located perpendicular to his. Erickson glanced down at his fat file folder for a moment before meeting Caleb’s gaze. “I’m here to listen to your side of the story and I need for you to start at the beginning.”
Caleb stared at the senior officer for a moment. “You mean the night of my wife’s murder? Or just since I’ve been released from jail?”
“We have your statement from the night your wife was murdered,” Erickson said, tapping the folder with his pen. Caleb understood he wasn’t about to get an apology for what had transpired. “And from what your former teammates said, it appears you really were innocent of that crime. But I want to know exactly what transpired since the moment you left the jail with your lawyer, Jack Owens.”
Caleb took it as a good sign that the lie
utenant at least appeared willing to listen. He began his story, telling how Jack had taken him to run a few errands, including stopping at the bank and picking up a new cell phone, before dropping him off at home. Caleb described how he’d narrowly missed getting shot when he’d gone to pick up his daughter and how he’d convinced Noelle to go with him to escape the gunman.
“Why didn’t you call the police?” the lieutenant demanded.
“With all due respect, sir, I didn’t trust anyone, but I especially didn’t trust the police.”
Erickson grunted as if he couldn’t think of a good argument to refute his statement. “Okay, so then what?”
Caleb described how they’d found a motel with a pool and that he’d exchanged license plates and then had talked to Owens late at night. He explained that they’d stayed longer the next day, to allow Kaitlin time to swim, which is how they managed to avoid being killed when the vehicle exploded.
Lieutenant Erickson was taking notes fast and furious while Caleb talked. “You escaped on foot?” he asked incredulously.
“Yes, sir.” Caleb described their journey back to Madison on the chartered bus. He described how he’d searched on the internet to find the SWAT member Noelle had seen the night of Heather’s murder, and how she’d recognized Marc Brickner.
“We’ll get to Brickner and Royce in a moment,” Erickson said. “What happened after Madison?”
“We took a bus to Milwaukee and headed over to meet with Jack Owens. But he was dead inside his condo.”
“And yet you still didn’t call the police?” Erickson asked with a deep scowl.
“No, sir. By then we already knew that the body of Kenneth James had been found in Lake Michigan and that I was a suspect for his murder. I knew that Jack’s death would be pinned on me, as well. And I was right. After I contacted my buddy Declan Shaw, I discovered there was a warrant out for my arrest.” It wasn’t easy to keep the accusation from his tone. The more he talked about everything that happened, the more his resentment grew. Why hadn’t anyone realized that he was being set up? Why hadn’t anyone given him the benefit of the doubt?