by Laura Scott
“Dr. Katy?” She heard Deputy Kramer’s voice in the living room and realized he must have been a few steps behind Reese. How Reese and his dog had managed to get here first, she had no clue. “You should have waited for me, Webster,” the deputy said in a low furious tone. “Rushing in here like that, you’re lucky you weren’t killed.”
“Duke needed to go out, and I saw the intruder leaving a few seconds after you set off your sirens,” Reese said, raking his gaze over her as if to reassure himself she was okay. “I was more worried about what might have happened to Katy than about being shot.”
“I should arrest you for obstruction of justice,” Deputy Kramer muttered darkly. He glanced at her with obvious concern. “Dr. Katy, are you sure you’re all right?” When she nodded, he smiled. “Why don’t you come into the living room so you can tell us what might be missing?”
“Okay,” she said, taking a deep breath to calm her racing heart. But her feet remained rooted to the floor after Deputy Kramer left the room.
“Pathophysiology?” Reese asked with a raised eyebrow. “A little light reading for when you’re trapped in the closet by a prowler?”
“More like it was the heaviest thing I had in the closet to throw at him,” she corrected, tossing the book on her bed, refusing to feel embarrassed. She crossed her arms across her chest, belatedly realizing she was wearing only her nightgown. Feeling self-conscious, she turned back toward the closet to search for her robe.
While she pulled on the lightweight garment, she felt Reese come up to stand behind her. “Are you really all right?” he asked in a low tone. “I was worried sick about you.”
Tying the belt of the robe, she turned to face him, relieved to see that Duke was sitting calmly where he’d been standing before rather than following Reese. “I was scared, but I’m fine.”
For a moment, he just looked down at her, and then abruptly, he pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her in a fierce hug. She could hear the rapid beat of his heart beneath her ear and understood he’d been as scared as she was.
She leaned against him, savoring the strength of his arms surrounding her. The fact that Reese had actually seen the prowler made the whole incident that much more frightening.
Finally, she pushed herself away, at least far enough to look up into his eyes. “Thanks for coming to my rescue,” she said softly.
He nodded and then lowered his head toward hers, covering her mouth with his in a kiss that made her legs feel like jelly. She wrapped her arms around his waist, savoring his kiss.
But the brief moment of intimacy was over far too soon. When Reese lifted his head, she gasped for breath and would have pulled his head down again for a repeat performance if not for the fact that Deputy Kramer chose that moment to call her name.
“Dr. Katy? Are you ready to inventory what might be missing?”
With a sigh of regret, she pulled out of Reese’s arms, feeling the loss keenly before she turned to head into the living room. She gave Duke a wide berth, although he didn’t move from the spot where he was sitting, despite the way his gaze followed her. As she crossed the threshold, she abruptly stopped, unprepared for the mess that greeted her.
Drawers had been pulled open, the contents disturbed as if someone had been searching for something. Books and her personal papers were also strewn about.
“I don’t understand,” she said, trying to absorb what had transpired. “What on earth was that guy looking for?”
Deputy Kramer sighed and shook his head. “We were hoping you could tell us.”
Katy spread her hands helplessly. “I don’t know! My television is still here, and so is my laptop computer. I don’t keep anything of value, other than some of my grandmother’s jewelry, which is in the bedroom.”
“I guess it’s possible the sirens scared him off before he could search the bedroom,” Deputy Kramer said thoughtfully.
But Reese was shaking his head. “I think it’s the same blond dude. The one who trashed my truck and tried to run us off the road.”
“You mean the second poacher who no one has seen but you?” Deputy Kramer asked dryly.
Reese scowled and nodded. “Yeah, I know it sounds crazy, but I’m willing to bet that once Boyle regains consciousness, he’ll be more than happy to turn on the blond guy in exchange for a lighter sentence. And have you forgotten my smashed truck? I was in the hospital. There’s no reason for me to trash my own mode of transportation.”
“Last I heard, Boyle was still in the ICU connected to a ventilator,” Deputy Kramer said in a slow, deliberate tone. “And for all we know, he smashed your truck hours before you shot him.”
Reese gaped at him. “You can’t be serious.”
Deputy Kramer shrugged. “Awfully convenient that there isn’t anyone to challenge your story, isn’t it?”
Katy glanced between the two men, trying to understand what was going on. It was late, almost two thirty in the morning, and she wasn’t in the mood for games. “What are you talking about, Ian?” she asked. “Why wouldn’t you believe a respected game warden like Reese?”
Ian Kramer turned to look at her. “How do you know that this isn’t all some elaborate scheme to throw suspicion elsewhere? What if Webster is the one actually doing the poaching? I hear some people will pay a pretty penny for bear and cougar hides.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Why would Reese do something like that?” she asked in exasperation. She glanced at Reese, a little nervous at the grim expression on his face.
“Maybe because he has massive debts?” Deputy Kramer said in a snide tone. “From what I saw, he has plenty of motive.”
She blinked in shock and looked over at Reese, waiting for him to deny the allegation.
But he didn’t. Instead, he turned away. “Come, Duke,” he said. The dog hurried after him as he left.
And she didn’t think it was an accident that the door loudly banged shut behind him.
Reese’s gut churned with a mixture of anger and hopelessness as he walked back toward the motel. He shouldn’t have been surprised that the sheriff’s deputies had performed a background check on him. Why wouldn’t they? It was pretty much standard procedure.
But somehow, he hadn’t expected Kramer to drop the bomb like that, especially in front of Katy.
He told himself it didn’t matter, since there wasn’t anything more than friendship between them. But that argument would have gone further if they hadn’t just shared a bone-rattling kiss.
A kiss he’d desperately wanted to repeat.
His intent had been just to offer comfort, but suddenly he’d kissed her, and even more incredibly, she’d kissed him back. He’d wanted the kiss to go on forever, but he knew that it was probably one-sided. No doubt her response had been in reaction to surviving a horrible experience rather than any true feelings toward him.
Duke nudged his hand with his nose, as if sensing his inner turmoil, and he bent down to scratch the silky spot between the dog’s ears, grateful for his silent companion. After the way Deputy Kramer had reacted back there, he wished he’d sent Duke after the blond guy to prove he actually existed. But he’d been too worried about Katy to think clearly.
Not that he had regrets over his split-second decision. Katy’s life was more important than his reputation, any day.
He squared his shoulders and told himself he didn’t care what Deputy Kramer thought about him. He knew the blond dude existed, and given enough time, he’d find a way to prove it.
As he approached the motel, Duke growled low in his throat. Reese slowed his pace, peering through the darkness.
“What is it, boy?” he whispered. Duke was too well trained to growl for no reason, so he pulled out his weapon, the spare one he’d grabbed from his house when Katy had driven him there, and slid a bullet into the chamber.
The half-moon in the sky offered some light, and a quick glance at his watch verified dawn would be breaking soon. The area around the motel was deserted for once, and he wasn’t
sure if that was a good thing or not. He edged closer to the brick wall of the motel, trying to stay out of sight while looking for anything out of place.
When he approached the door to the motel room, Duke seemed to tense up, as if ready to spring. Glancing down, Reese could see the broken doorknob.
He considered calling Deputy Kramer but decided it would take too long for the guy to get here, and really, if the blond dude was inside, he wanted to be the one to take him down.
Lifting his foot, he kicked open the door at the same time he commanded the dog, “Attack.”
Duke didn’t waste a second, leaping over the threshold the way he’d been trained to do.
Reese peered around the edge of the door, his weapon ready, but there was no one inside. He knew for sure the place was empty by the way Duke sniffed along the floor, going into the bathroom and then coming back out again. The dog came right up to where he stood, looking up at him expectantly.
A stab of disappointment slashed deep. He went into the room, looking for anything out of place. Why would the blond guy come here after being at Katy’s? What had he been looking for?
Then he remembered the cardboard box that held all his notes and photos of boot prints that he’d taken while investigating the poaching activity.
With a sick feeling in his stomach, he disengaged his weapon and set it aside so he could begin to search the room, trying to remember where he’d left the box. The motel room wasn’t very large, and it didn’t take long for him to realize it was gone.
The blond dude had stolen it.
Reese sat down hard on the edge of the bed, scrubbing his hands over his face. Granted, the police had evidence, too, but this was his case, and that box had contained his evidence.
He let out a heavy sigh and pulled out his phone to dial the sheriff’s department. No matter what they thought, he needed to follow the book and file a police report.
But deep down, Reese knew that Deputy Kramer would only assume this was all part of his master plan. He imagined the deputy would even accuse him of breaking his own motel room door to make it look as if he’d been robbed.
He was the only one who knew the truth. What was that old saying? The truth shall set you free?
Yeah, not so much. Reese had a bad feeling the truth wasn’t going to be enough to keep him out of jail.
But what hurt the most would be the stark disappointment in Katy’s eyes when she believed what the deputy was saying.
Chapter Eight
Katy picked through the mess left in her living room, trying to figure out what, if anything, was salvageable, inwardly reeling from Deputy Kramer’s revelation.
Reese was in debt. So much so that the police didn’t believe his story about the poacher working with a blond guy.
She didn’t want to believe Reese was involved. But he hadn’t denied the allegations; in fact, he’d looked guilty. As if the deputy had revealed a secret. And really, why would Ian make something like that up?
Very simply, he wouldn’t.
The deputy was still in her kitchen, making notes about the crime scene. She replaced a drawer from one of her end tables, thinking she should probably offer to make a pot of coffee.
Why not? The caffeine wouldn’t be the only thing keeping her awake.
She headed into the kitchen in time to hear Ian speaking into his radio.
“He’s saying someone broke into his motel room?” Deputy Kramer asked incredulously. “Come on, you’ve got to be kidding me.”
Katy froze in the act of reaching for her canister of coffee. The deputy had to be talking about Reese.
“Yeah, fine. I’ll head over there, but I’m sure this is nothing more than a ruse to deflect his guilt.”
Katy stared blindly down at the counter. Was it possible she’d been wrong about Reese?
Thinking back, she remembered the grim expression in Reese’s eyes when they’d come upon his smashed truck. The stark fear he’d shown when they’d been nearly run off the road by the black vehicle barreling down on them.
The concern in his eyes when he’d told her that Boyle needed her medical expertise more than he did.
“I’m sorry, Dr. Katy, but I need to head over to the motel,” Deputy Kramer said with obvious regret. “Make sure you lock up the door behind me.”
She looked up and caught his gaze. “I’m coming with you.”
His eyes widened in dismay. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. Better for you to keep your distance from that guy. As far as I’m concerned, he’s nothing but trouble.”
“I’m coming,” she repeated, her mind made up. “You can’t stop me from going over to the motel.”
“No, but I can stop you from getting anywhere near the crime scene,” he said grimly. “Even better, I could have you arrested for interfering with a police investigation.”
His threat was nothing but a bluff, and she knew it. He’d never get away with arresting one of the ER doctors for something so ridiculous; he’d never live it down. For one thing, she’d helped a lot of people in this town, earning their respect. Not to mention that her absence would leave the hospital short staffed in the height of tourist season.
The news would spread through the community faster than the gossip that she and Reese had shared a meal at Rose’s Café.
Ian turned to leave, which was fine with her. She went into her bedroom to throw on a sweatshirt, jeans and sneakers. After pulling her long hair into a simple ponytail, she grabbed her purse and walked out to her car. Granted, the motel was close enough to walk, but it was the middle of the night, and being awoken from a sound sleep by an intruder made her feel a bit skittish.
Foolish of her to take the car, she soon realized, since the sheriff’s deputies had blocked the motel parking lot with their vehicles. She pulled into the parking lot of the Gas N’ Go station located right across the street. The night air was chilly despite being June, so she was glad she had on her sweatshirt as she walked over to the motel.
Despite his threat, Deputy Kramer ignored her when she walked up. “So you say the only thing missing is a shoe box full of photos and notes about the poachers,” Deputy Kramer said with a hint of sarcasm in his tone.
She tried to catch Reese’s gaze, but he seemed to be avoiding her. Duke stood patiently at his side, and she was struck by the knowledge that the dog really would risk his life to protect Reese.
“Yes, that’s correct,” Reese said in a low tone. The resigned expression on his face indicated that he knew Deputy Kramer didn’t believe him.
“But not your notebook computer,” the deputy pressed. “Why wouldn’t the poacher take that, too? Why just the box? Surely he’d assume you had notes on the computer, as well.”
“I don’t know,” Reese said mildly. “But I’ll be sure to ask him if I see him.”
Deputy Kramer scowled. “This isn’t a joke, Webster. Filing false police reports could land you in the slammer.”
“It’s not a false report,” Reese said. “I know you don’t believe me, but I needed to get this on record, in case anything happens to me later.”
Katy couldn’t help feeling sick to her stomach at the thought of anything happening to Reese. Even worse, it seemed Reese believed it was only a matter of time till the blond guy caught up to him.
“I suppose you believe the guy went to Dr. Katy’s house first, to look for the box, and then came here,” Deputy Kramer scoffed.
Reese lifted a brow. “Why not? The timing worked out perfectly.”
“Is there anyone who can vouch for the fact that this shoe box of evidence even existed?”
Reese glanced at her briefly but then looked away without saying anything.
She thought back to the night she’d taken him to his house deep in the woods after finding his smashed truck. He’d come out of the house carrying a computer case, his duffel bag and, she remembered now, a shoe box.
“I can,” she said. “I can vouch for the fact that Reese had a shoe box with him.”
Ian stared at her, his expression full of skeptic disbelief.
“You don’t have to do this,” Reese said in a low tone.
She smiled sadly. “Yes, I do.” She turned toward Deputy Kramer with firm resolve. “I gave Mr. Webster a ride out to his truck the night he was shot. We came around the curve, saw that his truck had been smashed to pieces, so I drove him to his house so he could pick up his dog and some things to take with him to the motel. When he came out of the house, he had a duffel bag, a computer case and a small, square box.”
Kramer didn’t write anything down in his notebook, tucking it away instead.
“Okay, I’ll file the report,” he said curtly. He turned away to join the other deputy, who was walking around the area, for what purpose, she had no idea.
“I’m sorry I dragged you into this,” Reese said, his expression grim. “But hopefully you’re safe now that the poacher has what he was looking for.”
She nodded, trying to think of something to say. “But he could still come after you,” she pointed out.
“Duke and I can handle it if he does, right boy?” Reese bent over to run his hand over Duke’s sleek fur. Well, it looked soft, but that was only a guess since she’d never touched the animal. “Hank promised to have the rental car here by noon, so I’ll be able to head home. Besides, you’ll be safer if you stay far away from me.”
The finality of his tone hit hard. She wanted to protest, to tell him that she was willing to take the risk, but she didn’t.
Because he was right. She sensed she would be safer with some distance between them. Although, honestly, that wasn’t the real problem. The issue was that they were complete opposites for anything more than friendship.
No matter how much she longed to be held in his arms. To share another kiss.
She swallowed hard. “Take care, Reese,” she murmured before turning away.
“Wait, I’ll walk you home.”