Fugitive at Large

by Sandra Robbins

  Thank You, God, for bringing us through this experience safely, he prayed.

  He glanced down, and Jessica was smiling up at him. He hugged her tighter and repeated the prayer he’d just offered up.

  THIRTEEN

  Three hours later, Jessica watched from across the hospital room as Ellie sat by Jamie’s bed grasping his hand, and Ryan hovered over his brother on the other side. The look of relief that lined Ryan’s face brought a smile to Jessica’s lips. No longer was he worried about his brother and the fear Jamie’s rash actions had caused all of them to feel.

  A big bandage covered the wound on Jamie’s head, but he appeared to have recovered his strength after the loss of so much blood. In fact, Jamie was already fussing that he had to spend the night in the hospital.

  “Why can’t I go back to my apartment? I feel fine.”

  Ryan sighed and shook his head. “I’ve told you at least ten times. The doctor thinks they need to keep you overnight for observation. If all goes well, which he has assured me he thinks it will, you can go home in the morning.”

  Jamie pounded his fists into the mattress. “But I have a story to write. I need to be doing that now, while everything is still fresh in my memory.”

  Ellie arched an eyebrow and directed a stern look in Jamie’s direction. “I’ll help you do that in the morning. Now, do as the doctor and your brother say and take it easy. The sooner you cooperate, the sooner they’ll let you out of here.”

  Jamie growled and settled back against the pillows, then smiled in Ellie’s direction. “Yes, ma’am, if you say so. I never realized how bossy you can be.”

  She grasped his hand tighter and blinked at the tears filling her eyes. “Oh, Jamie, I was so worried about you. Don’t you ever scare me like that again.”

  Jamie’s eyes softened, and he brought her hand up to his mouth and kissed her knuckles. “Don’t worry. I won’t.”

  Ryan cleared his throat. “And that goes for me, too.”

  Jamie glanced at Ryan. “Okay, big brother. But I still have a lot of questions about what happened tonight. Have you talked to your friends at the precinct to see what’s going on?”

  Ryan nodded. “I have. Wendell Stark and Lee Tucker are both in surgery right now. It looks like they’ll both live to face the charges against them. Mac and I will meet with the DA in the morning to discuss the evidence against them and Chip Holder for the Harvey murders as well as those of Richard Parker and Kenny Macey. Then there’s the attempted murders of you and Jessica.”

  “And what about Senator Mitchum?” Jamie asked.

  “The police went to his house. When they couldn’t get anybody to the door, they went in and found him asleep. His wife was out of town, so he was home alone. An ambulance brought him here to the hospital, where it was determined he’d been drugged. He’s been admitted for observation, too.”

  Jamie’s eyes grew large, and he pushed up on his elbows. “When I overheard that conversation at Senator Mitchum’s campaign headquarters, I never dreamed it would lead to all this.” He was quiet for a moment, and then he looked up at Ryan. “What about Tommie Oakes? What’s going to happen to him now?”

  Ryan shook his head. “I don’t know. That will be up to the district attorney, but I think we have enough evidence for a judge to look at his case again. In the meantime, you need to concentrate on following doctor’s orders and settle down.”

  Jessica laughed, rose from where she was sitting and stepped up beside the bed. “You’d better listen to your brother, Jamie. He can be a formidable foe when you oppose him. I’ve had experience firsthand with that.”

  Ryan looked at her from the opposite side of the bed, and his gaze, which seemed remote and a bit cold, sent a sudden warning through her body. They had barely had time to talk since he’d rescued her and Jamie, and she wanted some time alone with him. But so far, Ryan had made no effort to talk with her except to ask if she was all right. All his attention seemed to have shifted to his brother. At first, that had seemed reasonable to her, but now she was beginning to wonder. It seemed he was keeping a distance between them.

  Ryan didn’t say anything or even smile at her feeble attempt at humor. He simply glanced away from her and back to Jamie. What was the matter with him? she thought. He was treating her like a stranger.

  After a moment, Jamie cleared his throat and reached over to push the button that lowered the head of the bed to a reclining position.

  “Look, you two,” he said. “I think you have things to talk about, and I don’t want to keep you. I’ll be fine. So, Ryan, go on and take Jessica home. I promise I’ll behave until you come back in the morning.”

  Indecision flickered across Ryan’s face, but he shook his head. “I don’t want to leave you.”

  “Don’t worry,” Ellie said. “I’ll stay with him. You go on and take Jessica home.”

  Jessica could sense that Ryan didn’t want to leave his brother. Or maybe he didn’t want to be alone with her. If that was the case, she could make it easy for him. “Don’t worry about getting me home, Ryan. All my family is waiting at my apartment for me to get there. I’ll just call Lucas to come get me. Or maybe Adam. He and Claire got home tonight.”

  “I didn’t know you’d called your family. When did you do that?” Ryan asked.

  “While you were talking with the doctor. Really, it’s no problem at all for one of them to run down here. That way I don’t have to inconvenience you.”

  She tried to control the shaking in her voice, but she could hear the trembling caused by this sudden change in Ryan’s attitude toward her. He had been aloof ever since they’d walked out of that room at the warehouse after the police arrived. As the minutes had passed, she had felt him distancing himself from her. Now, as she stared at him across Jamie’s bed, she felt a chasm so wide between them that she feared the closeness they’d shared at dinner earlier could never again be reached.

  “Taking you home won’t be an inconvenience, but...” Ryan began.

  Jamie stared first at her and then back at his brother. After a moment, he yawned. “Aw, take her on home, Ryan. And, Ellie, you need to go home, too. All I want is to get some sleep, and I can’t do it with all of you here.”

  Jessica waited for Ryan to speak. When he didn’t, she pulled out her cell phone. Her family had been worried sick about what she’d experienced tonight, and she needed to get home. There was no need to put off the happy reunion while she waited for Ryan Spencer to decide if he wanted to be alone with her or not.

  She pulled her gaze away from Ryan, clutched her cell phone tighter and punched in Lucas’s number. He answered on the first ring.

  “Jessica? Are you on your way home?” She could hear the tenseness in his voice.

  “Not yet. I need a ride. Can you come get me?”

  He hesitated for a moment. “I thought you said Spencer was going to bring you home.”

  “No. Plans have changed.”

  “Of course I can come. Where will you be?”

  “Come to the front entrance of the hospital. I’ll be watching for you.”

  “Okay. I’m on my way.”

  She disconnected the call and slipped her cell phone in her pocket before she smiled back down at Jamie. “I’m glad you came through all this okay. But from now on, don’t go off to chase a story without letting someone know where you are. Your brother has been crazy with worry over you.”

  Jamie cocked an eyebrow and glanced at his brother. “Yeah, I guess ‘crazy’ describes him sometimes.” He grasped Jessica’s hand. “Thanks for saving my life two times now. I’ll never forget you.”

  She felt tears beginning to well in her eyes, and she blinked. “I won’t forget you, either. Now, take care of yourself.”

  Ellie stood up and grabbed her coat. “If Ryan is determined to stay, I might as we
ll go on home. I have a test in the morning, and I still need to study.” She leaned over Jamie and planted a swift kiss on his lips. “I’ll come back in the morning after my class and drive you home.”

  Jamie stared up at her and squeezed her hand. “I’d like that.”

  She walked over to Jessica as she turned to leave, and they had just reached the door when Ryan called out, “Jessica, wait.”

  He came around the end of Jamie’s bed and stopped beside her. “I want to thank you, too. It’s been great being back with you these past few days. Like I said, you always were the best partner I ever had.”

  He looked away, as if the words had taken a toll on him. Then he said, “Since Lee Tucker survived the gunshot wound, you have your fugitive in custody. I guess...” He paused and licked his lips. “I guess everything turned out all right for you after all.”

  She waited for him to say something else. To tell her being with her had made him realize how important she was to him. That he loved her. But he didn’t speak. And she couldn’t voice the words she wanted to say.

  How could she tell him that those years of telling herself she hated him were only because she felt betrayed by the man she’d come to love? And how could she tell him now that her love for him had never died but had been reborn with new hopes and dreams that this time the ending for them would be different than it had been before?

  Evidently, he didn’t feel the same, or he would say so. To him she was just a partner he’d once worked with. One who had saved his brother’s life in a convenience-store holdup and then worked alongside him to bring down one of the country’s most decorated war veterans.

  As he stood staring at her, not moving or saying the things she wanted to hear, she realized she and Ryan were about to reach the end of the road. Everything that had once been between them was coming to a close. And he seemed ready to let it go. In one swift move, she bent down, slid her jeans leg up over her boot and pulled the GPS tracker out.

  She held it up, and he opened his hand for her to drop it in his palm. It hit with a slight thump, and she took a deep breath.

  “Like you said, I have my fugitive in custody and your brother is back safely. I guess this really ends our partnership,” she said and whirled to leave the room.

  The tears were streaming down her face by the time she reached the elevator, but she didn’t look back. She didn’t know how she would do it, but she was never going to look back again.

  * * *

  Ryan’s fingers curled around the GPS tracker, and he watched as Jessica and Ellie stepped onto the elevator. The doors slid shut, and he had to prop his hand against the door frame of the hospital room to keep from sinking to his knees. He felt as if his heart had just shattered into a million pieces. He needed to be alone.

  He glanced back over his shoulder at his brother. “I think I’ll go get a cup of coffee. Can I bring you anything?”

  “No, thanks.”

  Ryan nodded and hurried down the hall to the room where he’d seen some vending machines earlier. He purchased a cup of coffee and sank down on a battered vinyl sofa. He didn’t know how long he sat there staring into his cup, but quite a bit of time must have passed. When he finally took a sip, the coffee had grown cold. He tossed the cup into a trash can and headed back to his brother’s room.

  When he reentered the hospital room, Jamie was sitting propped up in the bed, pillows behind his back and his arms crossed over his chest. “Feel better?”

  “Yeah,” Ryan muttered.

  Jamie arched an eyebrow. “You never were a good liar, and you haven’t changed. I guess tonight you’ve finally proved that you’re as crazy as I always thought you were.”

  Ryan frowned and jerked his head up to stare at his brother. “What are you talking about?”

  “Jessica, that’s what. Anybody can see that you’re in love with her. Why did you let her walk out of here like that without telling her?”

  Ryan slipped the GPS into his pocket and then raked his hand through his hair. “I don’t think it would ever work out between us. It’s better that we end it now rather than later, when it will hurt even more. I need to get out of her life so she can be happy.”

  Jamie’s mouth gaped open. “What are you talking about? Can’t you see how much she loves you? It’s written all over her face.”

  Ryan shook his head. “You don’t know how I hurt her years ago. She says she’s forgiven me, but I doubt if her family could ever put it behind them and accept me. I can’t say that I blame them. I treated her really badly, and her twin brother hates me. Lucas looks at me like he wants to tear me limb from limb every time I see him.”

  “What does Jessica say about that?”

  Ryan shrugged. “She says he likes me, that he’s just very protective of her.”

  “Like you are of me?” Jamie asked.

  Ryan couldn’t help but smile. “Yeah, I guess so.”

  Jamie was quiet for a moment. “And have you asked Jessica to forgive you for how you treated her before?”

  “I have, and she says she has. But how can I be sure? She’s a stubborn woman, and I’m afraid the first time I disappoint her, she’ll hate me again.”

  Jamie rolled his eyes and exhaled a deep breath. “Oh, brother. You are a piece of work. I thought you told me the reason you started going to that Bible study and became a believer was because of what you saw in her life.”

  “I did.”

  Jamie sat up in the bed. “So if she believes what the Bible says and lives her life that way, what makes you think she’d take back the forgiveness she gave you?”

  “Well, I just thought—”

  “No, you weren’t thinking. You’re scared. Maybe not so much of Jessica as you are of her family.”

  “Jamie, I think...”

  “No,” Jamie interrupted him. “You’re not thinking. You remember how it was with Mom and Dad, and you’re afraid that if Jessica’s family doesn’t like you, they’ll cut her out of their lives like Mom’s parents did her.”

  Ryan raked his hand through his hair. “And we both know how miserable she was. Every Christmas she hoped they’d at least call, but they never did. She gave up her whole family because she loved Dad, but I won’t do that. I won’t make Jessica choose between them and me.”

  Jamie leaned back against the pillows and shook his head in amazement. “I can’t believe this. My big brother stormed into a warehouse by himself tonight and took on four bad guys to save me and the woman he loves. After meeting Jessica, I can’t imagine her family would be anything like those men. Which leads me to ask this question. Have you asked them if they would have any objection to you?”

  Ryan’s face warmed, and he swallowed hard. “Well, no. But it just stands to reason...”

  Jamie held up his hand. “Stop making excuses. Just because our mother’s family has rejected us all our lives doesn’t mean that Jessica’s family is like them. Go talk with them. Tell them how you feel, and hear what they have to say.”

  Ryan shook his head in disbelief. “When did you get to be so smart?”

  Jamie smiled. “Ever since I moved in with my big brother and knew I wanted to grow up to be like him. Now go see Jessica’s family.”

  Ryan let all Jamie had said drift through his mind as he weighed the arguments he’d been presented with. Then he smiled and punched his brother on the shoulder. “You’re going to make a great investigative reporter. You know how to ask the right questions and get to the bottom of a problem.”

  Jamie grinned. “Thanks. Now, what are you going to do?”

  He headed to the door. “I’m going to Jessica’s apartment right now. Her family is there, and I’m going to talk to them. Then I’m going to throw myself on my knees and beg her to forgive me for being a stubborn fool. Then I’m going to ask her to marry me.”

&nbs
p; “Good luck,” Jamie called as Ryan went out the door.

  Ryan got to the elevator just as the doors opened. He swallowed and took a step back as he found himself staring into the angry face of Lucas Knight. He backed away another step as Jessica’s brother came toward him, his fists clenched at his sides and a snarl pulling at his mouth.

  Before Lucas could open his mouth, Ryan spoke up. “Lucas, I was just coming to see you. In fact, I want to talk to your whole family.”

  Lucas squinted and tilted his head. “That’s funny. Because I came back here to talk to you, too.”

  “What about?” Ryan asked.

  “My sister,” Lucas hissed. “You broke her heart once, and I thought she’d finally gotten over you. Then you come back into her life, and she falls for you again. But just like last time, you toss her aside and break her heart.”

  Ryan held up his hands in front of him and shook his head. “No, it isn’t like that. I love her. In fact, I want to marry her, but I didn’t think your family approved of me. I didn’t want to do anything to harm the relationship she has with all of you.”

  Lucas’s eyes widened in a stunned expression. “What makes you think you could harm her relationship with us?”

  “I know I hurt Jessica, and I don’t blame your family for disliking me. But I want all of you to know that I love her with all my heart, and I hope you’ll forgive me for hurting her. If she’ll let me, I’d like to spend the rest of my life making it up to her for how I acted four years ago. I realize, though, that it may not be that easy for all of you to get past your feelings about me.”

  Lucas stared at Ryan for a few moments before he said anything. Then he exhaled. “We know you hurt her, but we want her to be happy. Which means that we will support any decision she makes about who she loves.”

  Ryan shook his head in disbelief. “You mean, I’ve been worried about nothing?”

  Lucas laughed and slapped him on the shoulder. “It looks like it. Why didn’t you tell me this when you brought Jessica to my house?”