Debra Burroughs - Paradise Valley 04.5 - The Color of Lies

by Debra Burroughs

  “Me either,” said the female employee.

  “You?” Colin asked frantically, grabbing the male guest’s arm. The man shook his head.

  “Code red, all officers, code red. Miranda and the subject have disappeared. Spencer, have the entire hotel searched.”

  “Got it, Andrews.”

  “Get an ambulance down here to stand by,” Colin ordered.

  “Roger that.”

  He turned and looked over the lobby, his gaze darting around, as a bellman came out of a dimly lit hallway by the elevators.

  “Colin,” a man said.

  Colin whirled around. It was the plain-clothes cop that had been stationed in the foyer.

  “Where did they go?” Colin shouted at the cop.

  “I was sitting there,” he pointed to a chair against the wall, “and I saw them come out and walk toward the elevator. Then this lady walked over and sat near me with her little Chihuahua and I sneezed a few times—I’m highly allergic to dogs, you see.”

  “You let them get away!” Colin yelled. “Why didn’t you say something?”

  “I assumed they got on the elevator.”

  “They didn’t,” Colin growled.

  The cop was trying to explain something to Colin about it being impossible to sneeze with your eyes open, that he was sorry, but Colin spied the bellman walking by. He put his hand out and stopped him. “Down that hall, did you see a man and woman, attractive brunette with a short black dress? She was with a man in a white shirt and dark pants.”

  “No, sorry,” he said, pushing his glasses up on his nose, and he kept walking.

  Colin surveyed the lobby, he took in every nook and cranny that was visible.

  Where could they have gone?

  Maybe they weren’t somewhere visible, at least from the lobby.

  The stairs!

  “Hey!” Colin sprinted after the bellman and grabbed his arm again. “Where are the stairs?”

  He pointed back to a row of potted ficus trees, about twenty feet away. “Past the ficus trees, around the corner, halfway down the hallway.”

  Colin raced to the trees and flew around the corner, sprinting down the hallway. Gun drawn, he pushed through the door, climbing the stairs two at a time.

  “Stairway from first to second floor—clear!” he shouted into his mic, but kept going.

  As he was nearing the landing before the third floor, a woman’s legs were visible through the open steps and his heart tumbled into his stomach.

  “Miranda!” he screamed, racing the last few stairs to her.

  She was sprawled awkwardly on the landing, her head hanging forward, her back pressed against the concrete wall. Her throat had been cut, blood dripping down her neck and onto her chest.

  He turned away from her, bent over and retched. All the crime scenes, all the bloody bodies—none of it prepared him for finding his fiancée like this.

  He staggered over to her, he could see the stream of blood was pulsing out in a weak rhythm—her heart was still beating. “Oh, Miranda,” he groaned, tears blurring his vision. He wanted to take her in his arms, hold her close one last time, but he knew better than to move her. The only thing that had kept her from completely bleeding out already was the way her head dropped forward, slowing the flow of blood.

  “I found her!” Colin screeched into the mic. “Get that ambulance ready and send the paramedics—STAT! I’m in the stairwell just below the third floor. And someone catch that guy!”

  Colin crouched beside her, not wanting to see her like this, but unable to look away. Tears spilled out and he began to sob.

  He felt so powerless. He wanted to stop the bleeding, but moving her to get to the wound would only hasten the bleeding, so he stayed by her on the landing and held her hand, trembling, as tears dripped onto his shirt.

  “I’m here, Babe,” he choked out. “Don’t leave me, Miranda. Just hang in there. You have to be around to take care of all the kids I was going to convince you to have.” He rocked back and forth on his heels as he spoke. “I was gonna do it, too. Convinced you to date a cop, didn’t I?”

  His legs gave out and he flopped back onto the floor, sitting now. Sitting and crying. Waiting.

  Where were the paramedics? They had to get there in time to save her—her and the kids he knew they never would have.

  He could hear Charlie in his ear directing different officers in their search for the suspect, concentrating on the third-floor hotel rooms, but it was only background noise now. His attention was focused on Miranda.

  His mind flew back to the bellman who had come out of the hallway as Colin searched the lobby. Could he have been the murderer? Dark hair, right height and build. He shook his head. Was he grasping at straws?

  “Charlie,” Colin said into his mic, “find the bellman that was in the lobby. He fits the description.” He could hear Charlie giving the orders to locate the man.

  The paramedics finally arrived at the third-floor stairway, but by that time, Miranda was gone.

  Colin clung to her hand as the EMTs loaded her body onto a stretcher. Her hand was still warm and he wanted to convince himself she was going to be all right, but he knew she was dead. Clutching it tightly, an agonizing heaviness pressed in on his chest as he realized this would be the last time he would ever touch her.

  ~*~

  Sitting, again, on the chair beside Emily’s bed, Colin’s eyes welled up as he thought of his last moments with Miranda. Still holding Emily’s hand tightly, he rested his head on the edge of the hospital bed.

  “Ahhh!” Emily groaned and her eyes drifted open.

  “Emily?” Colin sat up, his heart pounding hard in his chest. “You’re awake.” A huge smile formed as he wiped his hands across his face. He had been so afraid she’d never wake up.

  “Let go of my hand!” she moaned. “You’re squeezing it so tight.”

  Colin yanked his hand back and grimaced. He hadn’t realized that he’d had a death grip on Emily’s hand while he was telling Ernie about how he had held Miranda’s hand as she’d died.

  “Hallelujah!” Ernie shot out of his chair and ran to get the nurse.

  “Emily, Babe, I love you.” Colin’s arms flew around her in a desperate embrace.

  “My arm! My arm!” she hollered.

  He jumped back, raising his hands. “Sorry. I couldn’t help myself, I’m so happy you finally woke up.”

  “I can see that.” A smile spread on her lips.

  “Let’s get married tomorrow—no, right now.” He wanted to touch her once more, take her hand, or gather her up in his arms, but he held back for fear he might hurt her again. “Don’t they have a chaplain in this place?”

  “Colin, sweetie, you’re not making any sense.” Emily put her good hand out to him. “What’s the matter? Talk to me.”

  He took her hand and kissed it. “I just love you so much. I couldn’t survive losing you.”

  “Losing me?” A look of confusion drifted across her face. “I’m right here.”

  He knew how quickly that could change. He leaned down and kissed her on her bandaged head. “What would you say if we got out of the detective business? Opened a coffee shop or something? Maybe even in another town.”

  “What? A coffee shop? What are you talking about? I don’t want to move away.”

  “No, listen. We could find a quiet place—”

  “Colin, that’s crazy talk.”

  He drew a deep breath and expelled it. “You’re right, you’re right. Crazy.” He nodded. “I was so scared, so afraid you’d never wake up.”

  “Afraid I’d never wake up?” With a quizzical frown, she glanced around the room. “Tell me again why I’m in the hospital.”

  Chapter 7

  “What happened?” Emily asked.

  “You don’t remember?”

  She shook her head. “Ow,” she said, bringing her left hand to her head. Then she glanced down at her broken right arm. “How did I break my arm?”

  “We w
ere in a car accident. You really don’t remember?”

  “The last thing I remember was leaving the theater after watching some gawd-awful movie with Will Ferrell in it.”

  The door to Emily’s room opened, and a petite brunette nurse in a bright floral uniform breezed in with Ernie following close behind.

  “I see you’re back with the living,” the nurse quipped with a grin. “Let’s check your vitals.” She glanced from Colin to Ernie. “Some privacy, boys?”

  They caught the hint and went out into the hallway.

  “I’d better call Isabel and the others,” Colin said, digging his phone out of his jeans pocket.

  Ernie stuck his hand out to stop him. “It’s three o’clock in the morning.”

  Colin looked down at his watch. “Oh, man, you’re right. I hadn’t realized. Maybe I should text them. They’ll be upset I didn’t let them know Emily woke up.”

  “Especially Isabel. You’d better not get on that one’s bad side.”

  Colin had to agree. “Yeah, I’d rather not tick off the FBI.”

  Ernie chuckled. “One thing I don’t understand, Colin, about what you said in there.” He tilted his head toward Emily’s room and his eyes briefly flashed in that direction. “You always said that Miranda had been gunned down in the line of duty, but the story you just told me, well…what gives?”

  Colin shrugged. “It was just easier to explain it that way.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “What difference would it make to anyone here? They didn’t know her. It was too painful to have to explain over and over how she was undercover as a hooker and had her throat slit—died, dressed like a whore.”

  “You could have told me.”

  “I didn’t want to tell anybody, relive all the gory details again. Besides, saying she was shot in the line of duty, I don’t know,” he shrugged, “it sounded more honorable. I wanted to protect her memory. Telling that little white lie seemed like the easiest way to do it.”

  “Sometimes those white lies come in handy, don’t they? But no matter what color it was, it was still a lie.”

  “Maybe I was lying to myself too. I didn’t want to remember her that way.” Colin glanced down and kicked at the floor. “Sorry I wasn’t honest with you from the beginning, Ernie. You’re law enforcement. You would’ve understood. I just couldn’t—”

  The nurse popped her head out in the hall. “Detective, you boys might as well go on home. This girl needs her rest.”

  “What about the doctor?” Colin asked.

  “She’ll be here soon. We’ll call you if there’s any change. Right now, the best thing you can do is let Emily sleep.”

  Colin didn’t want to leave her. What if something happened to her before he returned in the morning? A blood clot, a stroke—or worse. Brain injuries were not to be taken lightly.

  “Can’t I just—”

  “No,” the nurse interrupted. “You’re no good to her exhausted. Go get some sleep and come back in the morning. Both of you.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Ernie said with a salute. “You heard the lady, son. Let’s go.”

  ~*~

  At first light, Colin was back at the hospital. He stopped in the gift shop and picked up a bouquet of red tulips before riding the elevator to the third floor. When he stepped off, he was glad to see none of Emily’s friends had made it yet and he could have her all to himself, at least for a little while.

  He poked his head into her room and found her alone and asleep. He stepped to the foot of her bed and set the vase of flowers down on the raised table.

  She looked peaceful. The swelling in her face had gone down and the redness on her cheeks had begun to fade. The heart monitor beeped steadily in the background—music to his ears.

  Colin walked over to the window and stared blankly at the cloudless sky, thinking about how quickly things really could change. He had come so close to losing Emily. After what he’d gone through with Miranda—the months of solitude at a cabin in the mountains after the funeral, trying to work through his grief. And then the job offer to leave his hometown, San Francisco, and start over in the small town of Paradise Valley—he didn’t know if he could go through all of that again.

  He never imagined he could love anyone as much as he had loved Miranda. Then he met Emily. She had broken down the walls he had built up around himself. She had invaded his life and had taken his heart captive.

  “Oh, Emily,” he sighed, turning away from the window.

  “Colin?” Her eyes fluttered open.

  He dashed to her bedside. “I’m here, Babe.” He bent down and smiled at her before kissing her softly on the lips. “How are you feeling?”

  “Like I’ve been hit by a truck.” She gave him a little smile.

  “Well, you’re a sight for sore eyes.”

  Her hand flew up to her battered face and it floated over the cuts and swelling. “Are you saying that looking at me makes your eyes hurt?”

  Colin laughed. “There’s that sense of humor I love.”

  He sat in the chair beside her bed, relieved she was awake and talking. He pulled her hand away from her face and curled his fingers around it, running his thumb over her engagement ring. “I love you, Emily Parker. It’ll take more than you getting hit by a truck to stop our getting married.”

  “Don’t worry, no one’s calling off the wedding. The doctor said she believes I’ll make a full recovery.”

  “When was she here?”

  “Oh, it was early, early—still dark outside.”

  Colin lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her fingers. “I can’t wait to marry you, Babe.”

  “Well, you’ll have to wait.” She grinned. “I’m not wearing this cast with my wedding gown.”

  He stroked her cheek. “You know, there’s something we’ve never talked about.”

  “What’s that?”

  He thought about how the conversation had gone with Miranda, and he hoped it would go better with Emily. He took a deep breath. “What do you think of having kids someday?”

  “I think I’d love it—a couple of little stinkers running around, looking just like you.”

  “Or you,” he said. “You’d have to give up being a private investigator, or at least put it on hold for a while, don’t you think? ‘Cause I can’t see you chasing bad guys when we have little ones at home. Are you okay with that?”

  “I’m more than okay with that. I love working as a private eye—you know I do—and I don’t think I’ll ever totally get away from it, but being a mother, raising our children, that would be the most exciting adventure of all.”

  Colin rose and leaned over her, looking into her adoring blue-green eyes. “There is no one else I would rather spend the rest of my life with, Emily.” He bent down and gently kissed her.

  Her lips hinted at a smile. “Till death do us part.”

  THE END

  Afterword

  I hope you were as excited and entertained reading The Color of Lies as I was when writing it. If you did enjoy the romance and suspense of The Color of Lies, I would like to ask you a favor to go back to Amazon and leave a review. We indie authors live and die by our reviews.

  Want more romance/suspense? Just check out the next section!

  ~*~

  Other Works by Debra Burroughs

  The Scent of Lies, A Paradise Valley Mystery: Book One

  An engaging, fast-paced mystery with a sensual, but sweet romance. Think “Sex and the City” meets “Nancy Drew.”

  Praise for The Scent of Lies…

  “The Scent of Lies caught my attention on the first page and kept me engaged until the last. Main character, Emily Parker, is a likable, vulnerable, sassy, hotheaded, smart woman surrounded by loving friends. This cleverly crafted story takes the reader on an engaging romp through hidden clues, romance, crime and murder.”

  ~ Janis McNutt

  Amazon Reviewer

  “Debra Burroughs has once again had me addicted to my kindle. I love the characters in
this book. They are so real and so likable you want them for your own. Each time I thought I knew who the killer was, there would be some kind of twist to make me question myself. I was rooting for Emily from the beginning. Can she solve this murder and really become the private investigator that she truly wants to be? She proves herself to all of those who doubt her.”

  ~ Yvonne Havens

  Amazon Reviewer

  To purchase or sample The Scent of Lies, simply click here.

  ~*~

  The Heart of Lies, A Paradise Valley Mystery: Book Two

  Online dating can be murder. The Heart of Lies is a captivating and suspenseful mystery with a healthy dose of real romance.

  What people are saying about The Heart of Lies…

  “I enjoyed every page of this book, The mystery draws you in but the relationship between Emily and Colin keeps you wanting more…I can’t wait to continue reading about these characters, and digging deeper into the mystery in Paradise Valley!!”

  ~ J Douglas

  Amazon Reviewer

  “This book has proven to be a five star sequel to The Scent of Lies. Don’t let the author’s clean writing fool you, the passion and sexual tension between Private Investigator Emily and Detective Colin is delicious.”

  ~ jne2003

  Amazon Reviewer

  “I loved the characters and the intense story line. I am currently reading book 3. So far I love this author and will be reading more of her books. I can’t wait to find out the outcome of the mystery of Evan.”

  ~ Natalie Hardie

  Amazon Reviewer

  To purchase or sample The Heart of Lies, simply click here.

  ~*~

  The Chain of Lies, A Paradise Valley Mystery: Book Three

  A sensual and gripping story with murder, romance, mystery, and intrigue—think Sex and the City meets Women’s Murder Club.

  Praise for The Chain of Lies…

  “The book was great! I loved this book the best out of all three!! I sure hope you write another one so we can find out what happens to Collin and Emily and the others. You can’t leave us hanging. I love the characters in this book. You did such a wonderful job when you wrote these books, I felt like I was in the books. Thanks for being such a great writer. I couldn’t put the books down - some of them I read in one day!!”