* * *
The steps leading to the second-story apartment looked clean to Linc. What they’d find when Zoe opened her door was what worried him. Even if the evidence techs had gathered up all the throw rugs, there were likely to be signs left behind. How involved the cleanup would be depended on how much Zoe had tracked through the rooms while she’d waited for the authorities.
His jaw clenched as he turned the knob. The door was locked. “Do you have your key?”
“Yes.” She produced it from a small handbag tucked inside her briefcase. “Do I have to wait out here, or can I follow you in like before and see what’s what?”
“You can come. Just hang back and let me clear all the rooms before you get too curious.”
“Yes, Sergeant.”
“You may as well call me Linc,” he said, stepping over a tacky partial footprint on the hardwood floor. “Where do you keep your cleaning supplies?”
“You—you don’t have to mop this up.” She was speaking to his broad back as he walked away.
“Do you want Freddy to come home to it?” Linc called from the direction of the bedrooms.
“Of course not.”
Linc returned and said, “Then stop arguing and get me some rags, at least. Your room is actually the cleanest of all. I guess they took everything from in there as evidence. It’s the hallway and this floor out here that caught the worst of the footprints.”
“Do we need bleach, too?” Zoe asked.
“That would probably help lighten the red food coloring if it left stains, but the syrup should wipe up easily. I’m truly sorry this happened to you, Zoe.”
“Yeah. Me, too.”
Linc’s gut twisted as he recalled his first impression of her when he’d seen her in her doorway that morning. The sight had stolen his breath and left him temporarily stunned. That was another reason why he hadn’t immediately pursued Star. Concern that Zoe was injured had kept him with her. Wrong or right, it had happened, and Linc wondered if his commanding officers suspected the fault in judgment.
Someday he would have to admit what had been behind his mistake. Hopefully, nobody would ask him to explain further. If they did, he was going to have to admit that his personal feelings had got in the way of doing his job at a most critical moment.
That was bad. Really bad. If it happened again and was reported, he could lose a stripe. Or, worse, he could lose his coveted position as a handler.
Linc sighed. Star—his Star—would be given to someone else.
* * *
Zoe took the time to spruce up the bathroom where she had showered earlier, careful to leave no trace of red. By the time she donned jeans and a T-shirt and returned to the living room, there was nothing left to mar that scene, either. She smiled at Linc. “Good job. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Ready to roll?”
“I guess so. I’ll take my cell in case Maisy Lockwood calls from her preschool and day care. She’s a wonderful teacher, but Freddy sometimes begs to come home early and I have to reason with him on the phone.”
“You’d think he’d be adjusted by now. How long has he been going to that place?”
“Most of his life. It’s not that. It’s the rumors flying around. Even the littlest kids pick things up from parents or other caregivers. With Boyd, the talk of the base, I think Freddy’s overheard plenty and he’s afraid for me.”
“He’s not the only one,” Linc said. “We’ll go over your list of possible suspects again when we break for lunch.”
“Okay. Can I ask you a question?”
“Sure.”
“Are you going to get in trouble for taking me with you?”
“I don’t see a problem.” Linc eyed her up and down, bringing a new warmth to Zoe’s cheeks. “Dressed like that and with your hair down, nobody who doesn’t already know you is going to suspect you’re Boyd Sullivan’s sister.”
She smoothed the powder blue shirt over her jeans and turned in a circle. “You think? I figured since I wasn’t on duty, this would do.”
“Nicely.”
Zoe caught the hint of a blush on his face, too. They were acting more like lovesick teenagers than responsible adults, weren’t they? “I can change if you want. Maybe put on an ABU?”
“Nope. No camo. You’re fine like you are.” He led the way to the exit, and Zoe could have sworn she heard him mutter, “Very fine,” before he opened the door and stepped out into the hall.
After that, there was no way she could suppress a grin and the incongruity struck her as ironic. Here she was, the sister of an escaped serial killer, the object of some madman who was bent on trying to drive her crazy, relieved of duty and under the thumb of Security Forces, who had blamed her for crimes that had no connection to her normally placid life. So why was she feeling almost elated?
Because Linc had promised to keep her by his side. There was no other plausible answer. He could have requested a replacement, yet he had not. Therefore, he wanted her there, wanted to be with her.
Looking heavenward, Zoe silently asked God what was going on. She didn’t have to wait for an answer. It already lay in her heart. Like it or not, she was falling for Linc Colson. Hard and fast. And there wasn’t a thing she could do about it.
THIRTEEN
Linc had no trouble locating First Lieutenant Vanessa Gomez in the critical-care unit of the base hospital. The insignia on his beret and his telltale sidearm and other official gear allowed them to pass through locked doors without delay.
A nod and salute were his reintroduction when he spotted Vanessa. Seeing the petite dark-haired nurse in her element gave him a more favorable opinion of her inner strength.
Vanessa stripped off latex gloves, disposed of them and quickly joined him. “Good to see you again, Sergeant Colson. I hope you’ve come to tell me the danger is over.”
“Sorry, no,” Linc replied. He inclined his head to Zoe. “This is Staff Sergeant Sullivan. Zoe, Lieutenant Vanessa Gomez.”
The nurse froze. “Sullivan? You’re the sister I’ve been hearing about?”
“Unfortunately,” Zoe said with a huff. She offered her hand and Linc was relieved to see the nurse accept and shake it.
“Sorry.” Vanessa was frowning when she looked back at Linc. “Okay. If it’s not good news, then give me the bad.”
“Actually, in regard to Boyd, there’s really nothing new. I came to ask more about blood.”
“Blood?” The scowl deepened.
“Yes.” Zoe explained, “Somebody sneaked into my apartment this morning and poured fake blood on my floor.”
“Fake? That’s not a surprise. Getting your hands on the real thing can be harder than robbing Fort Knox.”
Linc asked her to go over the details for them.
“Sure. It’s a real pain. First, we have to log every drop that comes in and goes out, and there’s computer cross-checking. Even after the doctor orders a transfusion and a patient signs a consent form, it takes two of us to access supplies. Before blood is administered, everything is rescanned with the patient’s records to prevent errors and verified electronically.”
“That basically agrees with the info we got from hospital administration, only you provided more details. Thanks.” Linc scanned the quiet unit. The air smelled like antiseptic. Privacy curtains were pulled between each bed and patients were eerily quiet while machinery hummed and beeped. The scenario reminded him of the hospital where he and his injured comrades had been taken after the ambush. Lives were on the line here, too. It wasn’t fair. Dedicated men who gave their all for a just cause should never be buried under beeping, flashing machines, tubes, wires and white sheets.
He felt a light brush as Zoe slipped her fingers between his and clasped his hand. Hers was tiny compared to his and her grasp was gentle, yet it wasn’t just her skin he felt—it was her emotional suppor
t. Had his morose thoughts been that evident? Apparently. And as opposed to shunning him as so many other women had when he’d acted depressed, she had reached out. Lifted him with a mere touch. The simple gesture hit him so hard he wanted to weep.
Instead he gave her hand a squeeze and squared his shoulders, reminding himself that he was on duty and the nurse was a target of the Red Rose Killer. This was not the time to let his mind wander or allow painful memories to take over his thought processes. He had a job to do.
There had been a time, years ago, when Linc would have followed that internal affirmation with a short appeal to a higher power for the ability to triumph. He’d stopped doing that when so many prayers had gone unanswered. Like the time he’d prayed for the welfare of his buddies before and after the ambush.
I should have suspected, he insisted for the thousandth time. Should have had some inkling that it was a trap.
Ideas swirled in the back of his mind like a tornado of dust rising from the desert. Had he wondered? Doubted? It was not his practice to accept intel without checking its validity. But they’d been ordered to complete their mission ASAP, and there hadn’t been time for many precautions.
And since then? Linc asked himself. Since returning stateside and becoming a member of the Security Forces, he’d occasionally wished he had someone close who understood him, who could empathize without pity.
A shiver shot up his spine. His fingers tightened on Zoe’s and he realized she was returning the pressure. They should not even be touching let alone holding hands, so what was wrong with him? Nothing that letting go of her wouldn’t cure. The moment he loosened his grip, so did she.
While Linc was lost in thought, Zoe gave Vanessa a smile and filled the silence. “I’m truly sorry you’re involved, Lieutenant Gomez.”
“So am I. I hope they catch Boyd before anything bad happens to anyone else.”
Zoe nodded. “We all do. He’s the last person I want to see, but I promise, if he gets in touch with me, I’ll turn him over to the authorities in a heartbeat.”
Vanessa reached for Zoe and patted her forearm. “I understand what you’re going through. I have a brother who needs help, too. It’s tough.”
Linc could tell that the nurse’s compassion had deeply affected his companion, because she sniffled and fell silent. He saluted. “Thank you, Lieutenant. Stay safe, okay?”
“I’ll do my best. You, too, Sergeants. Both of you.”
Rather than draw out their leave-taking and put more pressure on Zoe, Linc turned, placed his hand at the small of her back and ushered her through the double doors and into the hallway.
“You okay?” he asked her.
All she did was nod.
“Come on. Let’s grab some lunch at the Winged Java and relax while we go over your list.”
“I think we should get it to go and stop back at the vet hospital to spend time with Star,” Zoe said as she swiped at her tearstained cheeks.
“Really? You want to do that? Thanks.”
Another nod. “Yes. And after I’m done eating, I may want a session of puppy therapy—unless the captain was joking.”
“I think I can arrange something,” Linc replied. His poignant words of thanks were for more than just her offer to spend time with Star. It was also for her moral support and understanding, for Zoe merely being herself.
In retrospect, Linc wondered if perhaps he didn’t also owe his heavenly Father thanks for arranging their meeting and forcing him to get to know her. The more that wild notion bounced around in his brain, the more he began to accept it as probable. It was certainly plausible.
* * *
Zoe carried a cardboard holder with their drinks while Linc handled their food and the door when they arrived at the training complex. This time they entered the facility from the rear and slipped through the connecting doors into the animal hospital.
When she saw Star notice Linc, rise and begin wagging her stub of a tail, Zoe grinned. “Whoa. She’s up. And she looks much better.”
“Sure does.” He set the bag of burgers and fries atop a storage bin and opened the door to his K-9’s kennel, bending to greet her with a tousle of her ears and a pat on the head. “How you doing, girl? Feeling good again?”
Wiggling from head to toe, the rottweiler circled Linc once, then returned to face him. Rapid panting made her look as if she was grinning as widely as the tech sergeant was. Star did everything except speak English to reassure him.
“I’d say she’s telling you she’s fine,” Zoe said, with laughter underlying the comment. “Where shall we go to eat? I have a feeling that sitting on the floor with her might make lunch a bit trying.”
“She’s not supposed to touch any food that’s not presented properly and accompanied by the right commands, but in view of the unusual circumstances today, you may be right.” He straightened and Star took her place at his left, sitting and waiting for orders. “Let’s go inside to the break room and eat there. Captain Roark won’t mind.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive. He might not look it, but he’s a pushover for a needy animal.”
“And hungry sergeants?”
Linc laughed as he grabbed the sack of burgers and fries. “Those, too. Come on.”
Following closely and bearing their drinks, Zoe couldn’t help smiling with satisfaction and gratitude. This was the first time in almost a month that she remembered feeling both happy and safe. It was difficult to even recall how comfortingly dull her former air force life had been since she’d been on her own. Even when Freddy had been born a few months after John’s untimely death, she hadn’t worried. Her son was the good part of her late husband, the one thing he had given her that she wouldn’t have traded for the world. God had taken those unexpected events and brought great joy and perfect companionship out of her loss and sorrow.
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose, she silently quoted from memory. Despite every obstacle that had risen against her, she had come through to the other side intact. More than intact if she counted Freddy, and she certainly did. Her son was the light of her life.
And, she realized, the stalwart man marching into the veterinary hospital ahead of her was running a close second. Being with Linc, particularly when she was off duty and out of uniform, felt so good, so perfect, she was astounded.
And grateful. Very, very grateful.
* * *
Star rested beneath the small out-of-the-way table Linc had chosen for their meal. Her muzzle lay atop his boots as if to make sure he would not move without her knowledge.
Napkin in hand, Linc started to reach toward Zoe’s cheek, then pulled back. Unfortunately, she looked up just in time to notice. “Something wrong?”
He knew he was blushing. That or the temperature in the room had suddenly risen dramatically. “Mustard. You’ve got a little dab right...”
She quickly wiped her face. “Did I get it?”
“Yes.” Averting his gaze, he focused on the pad of writing paper on the table between them. “How about students you washed out? Have you listed all those, too?”
“I think so. At least the ones who stayed in the air force. I’m more likely to remember them than the ones like Boyd who failed altogether and were discharged.”
“Okay.” Linc started to read the names. “I think we can eliminate most of the women, because the sightings we’ve had were men. Just out of curiosity though, what’s your connection to Lieutenant Heidi Jenks?”
“She interviewed me once for the newspaper. I thought she embellished important details, so I complained. She was not pleased to be criticized by a mere sergeant when she’s a first lieutenant.”
He read names from the list of former flight school trainees whom she’d had to fail. “What about Jones and Carpenter?”
“Okay.” His index finger moved down the column of names. “Michael Orleck?”
“Last I heard, he’d become an aircraft mechanic, and a good one, too. That was his niche.”
“Is he still at Canyon?”
“Far as I know. I think he works with Ahern.”
“The same Jim Ahern who visited your brother in prison?”
Linc watched Zoe’s hazel eyes narrow. “Hmm. Interesting.”
“I thought so. What do you say we put Star back to bed and drive over to the airfield?”
“Suits me. You know I love watching flying, from the ground or air. It makes me feel amazingly free.”
“Then you should try parachuting,” Linc teased. “It’s a real rush.” Waiting for her reaction, he was not disappointed when he saw her eyebrows arch dramatically.
“Tried it because I had to. Wasn’t thrilled, thank you.”
“Why not? You like freedom.”
“I also like survival. As far as I’m concerned, there are very few reasons to leave a perfectly good aircraft to go hurtling through space like a duck with a broken wing.”
“You should be the writer, not Heidi,” Linc said, laughing. “You have quite a way with words.”
Zoe, too, chuckled. “I suspect that may have more to do with not having to put on such a perfect front when I’m off duty. It’s nice to let my hair down once in a while.”
“I noticed. It’s pretty when it’s loose like that.”
“I meant figuratively.” She pulled an elastic band from her jeans pocket and gathered her long light brown tresses behind her head before securing them there. “The warm Texas weather makes it hard to leave it down. Nice when winter comes, though. It helps keep my neck and ears warm.”
Linc ran a hand over his shaved nape. “I wouldn’t know.”
“You never had long hair? Not even in your teenage rebel years?”
He shook his head as he gathered up their paper trash while Zoe grabbed the empty drink cups. “I had no time to be a rebel. With my dad AWOL, I felt like the man of the house and tried to act it. As soon as Mom would sign for me, I joined the air force.”
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