Critical Diagnosis (Love Inspired Suspense)

by Alison Stone

  Of course—the key.

  Feeling a little foolish, she inserted the key into the lock and yanked open the door. She slipped in behind the wheel and slouched in the seat, relieved as the raindrops danced on the hood of her car. Jamming the key into the ignition, she heard her cell phone going off in her purse.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey there.” James’s voice was like a soothing embrace. “Glad I caught you. Are you still in the lab?”

  “No, I just got in my car.”

  He huffed, sounding frustrated. “Okay, I was hoping to catch you at the lab. Escort you home.”

  “I’ve made it home fine by myself the past two nights.” Her pulse kicked up a notch. “I’ve been careful. I’m fine.”

  “Sorry,” he said, his tone sounding contrite. “I got stuck with a patient at the clinic. Trying to keep up there and at Medlink has been tough.”

  “I can imagine.” She watched big, wet drops splatter on the windshield.

  A tension-filled pause stretched over the line. “Any chance we could meet to talk tonight?”

  Lily massaged her temple with her free hand. “It’s late.” As much as she wanted to see him, she knew it was in her best interest to keep her distance.

  “It’s important. I tried reaching you earlier.”

  “I was in the lab.” She felt as though they were talking in circles. When she was in the lab, she often turned off her cell phone to minimize outside distractions. She squinted against the streetlamp, her headache thumping dully behind her eyes.

  “Please. It’s important.”

  Blinking slowly, she realized James was hard to refuse. “Where do you want to meet?”

  “I’d suggest the coffee shop, but I think they’re closed now.”

  She squinted at the rain, now sluicing down her windshield. “Would you mind coming by my house?” She didn’t want to go in and out in this rain.

  “Not at all.”

  Lily turned the key in the ignition and nothing happened. Her heart sank. Her eyes darted outside to the empty parking lot. “Wait a minute.” She touched the tip of her tongue to her upper lip. She turned the key again. Nothing. Not even a click-click signaling a dead battery. “Oh, great.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “My car’s dead.” She gritted her teeth and wrapped her hand around the door handle.

  “Are you in Medlink’s back parking lot?”

  “Yes.”

  “Hold on. I’m on my way. I’m not far.”

  “Thanks.” She pressed End, then tossed her phone on the seat, annoyed with the delay. Leaning back against the headrest, she traced the automaker’s insignia on the center of the steering wheel over and over again until she felt the imprint in the tips of her fingers. She wasn’t used to sitting around doing nothing. She scooped up her phone, tapped a few apps, but quickly got bored. How did people waste so much time on these stupid things?

  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a shadow, a hint of something moving in the rainy night. Her head snapped up, wondering if James had gotten there already. Blinking, she tried to clear her eyes. She spun around, checking her surroundings. No sign of headlights from another car. Her hand slid over the armrest of her door and she flicked the lock control. Nothing happened. Panic sliced through her.

  Right—no power.

  She reached across and slammed down her lock and double-checked the other three locks, like a crazy woman in a horror movie. The steady beat of the rain plus the shaky sound of her breathing spooked her even more.

  You’re imagining things.

  She wrapped her fingers around the cell phone, her connection to help. She could have Medlink security out here in five seconds. With that thought, she slumped back in her seat and tried to relax. A second later, a loud crash sounded from behind her. She bolted upright and shifted in her seat. Her rear window was shattered. Instinctively, her hand went to the door handle. Her escape. She froze. No.

  Someone was out there.

  With trembling fingers she scrolled through her contact list, searching for Medlink security. Blinding headlights swept across her face. Tenting her hand over her eyes, she squinted. Her hammering heartbeat drowned out the sound of the driving rain. A blurry image moved outside her window. Someone was getting out of the vehicle. Lily stuffed her hand in her purse and found the leather case for her Mace. During her college days, she used to walk with it in her hand for safety on campus. She had thrown it in her bag after this weekend. Wrapping her fingers tightly around the cool leather, she realized now was not the time to wonder if it still had any efficacy.

  The figure pounded on her door. She swallowed a yelp. James’s face poked out from under the hood of a rain slicker. A relieved breath came out in a whoosh. She fumbled for the lock, then found the handle and pushed open the door.

  “Do you have an umbrella?” he yelled over a rumble of thunder.

  She stepped out of the car and into the soaking rain. “Did you see anyone out there? Someone just broke my back window.” Her words tumbled out. She squinted toward the line of trees but couldn’t see anything beyond the artificial light cast by the lamppost some fifty feet away.

  “You’re getting soaked.” He nudged her by the elbow toward her open car door. “Get back in the car. Let me check it out.”

  “No.” She shook her head for emphasis. “I’m coming with you.” Rain dripped from her nose.

  “You’re staying here, where I know you’re safe.” A gust of wind pushed back his hood. He didn’t seem to notice.

  “Fine.” Her fear had morphed into anger. She climbed back into the car, not bothering to shut the door. Getting wet was the least of her problems.

  A few moments later James returned to the door with his cell phone pressed to his ear. “No, I think they’re gone.” He listened intently and nodded. “Okay.” He ended the call and turned to her. The rain had slowed to a drizzle.

  She sat sideways on the driver’s seat with her legs propped on the frame of the door, scanning the empty parking lot.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Yes, but I’m about done with this nonsense.” She reached behind her and unlocked the back door. She stood up and yanked it open. A brick lay on the backseat. She muttered under her breath. She scooped up the umbrella sitting on the floor of her car, shook off the broken glass and popped it open. She held it over both of their heads.

  Huddled together under the protection of the umbrella, she jerked her head toward the back of the car. “How much do you want to bet that’s my friend?” Now she was mad, almost apoplectic. “Why does he keep coming after me?”

  “I don’t like this at all.” A drop of water fell from his hair and landed on his nose. “He doesn’t want you to do the composite. Until he’s caught, you can’t take any more risks.”

  The backs of Lily’s ears were on fire despite her soaking-wet hair. “Risks? I’d hardly call getting into my car after work a risk.” She said it with an air of confidence she didn’t feel. “I am going to meet with a sketch artist. Then they’ll catch this guy. Then life will go back to normal.”

  “And until then...” He raised an eyebrow at her. The sky opened up again and the rain poured down on the umbrella, leaving the impression they were in a world all their own. She tried to ignore his close proximity.

  She shook her head in anticipation of what he was about to suggest. “I can’t go into hiding. I have my work. Too many people are counting on me.” She lowered her voice. “I am not going to hide. I’m not.”

  James gestured for her to get behind the wheel of her car. “Pop the hood.”

  Lily did as she was told. Wrapping her arms around her middle, a chill racked her thin body. She felt like a drowned rat. The initial surge of adrenaline had drained out of her. Through the droplets of rain on the windshield,
she tracked James’s blurred movements around her car. He checked a few things and then slammed the hood shut.

  He jogged around to her side of the vehicle. Holding the umbrella over the space separating them, he said, “Come on. I’m driving you home.”

  Once they were both in his car, he scrubbed a hand across his short hair. Water glistened on his angular face. “Your battery’s gone.”

  Lily plucked her wet shirt away from her skin. “Someone ripped out my car battery?”

  “Yes.” James ran his hand under his nose. “I’m going to call Security. Maybe they have something on surveillance cameras.”

  Lily glanced toward her vehicle and a chill penetrated deep into her bones. Suddenly, going someplace far, far away—where this thug couldn’t stalk her—didn’t seem so ridiculous.

  SIX

  Grateful to be out of the rain, James shook off his raincoat and hung it on the coatrack inside the mudroom of Lily’s cottage.

  “Brrr...” Lily kicked off her shoes and wrapped her arms around her midsection. She bounced on the balls of her feet. “I’m freezing. Excuse me a minute while I go dry off.”

  The familiar knot twisted his insides. He had spent his adult life helping people, but intentionally not growing close to any one person for fear of getting hurt. For fear of losing them. Like he had lost his parents. Like his grandparents had shipped him off to a boarding school after his parents’ deaths.

  Yet something about Lily was pulling him in.

  He grabbed paper towels from the kitchen counter and dried the rain from his face. How was he going to tell Lily the news he had received from the police today?

  “Go change. I’ll make you something hot to drink,” he said, buying time. He toed off both his shoes and placed them next to Lily’s.

  Lily shivered. “There are tea bags in the little thingy on the counter.”

  “The little thingy, huh?”

  “Yeah.” She tiptoed across the hardwood floor, leaving wet prints, and pointed at a white ceramic thingy. She was right. “I bought it from my niece’s school fundraiser.” The hair around Lily’s face had sprung free from her smooth ponytail. The dampness had created fine curls that framed the delicate features of her face.

  He grabbed two mugs from the cabinet. “Now go. Get dry clothes on.”

  By the time he had two steaming mugs of tea on the small kitchen table, Lily had returned dressed in navy sweatpants and a university sweatshirt. Her damp hair flowed freely down around her shoulders. “The hot shower felt awesome.” She slipped into the chair, wrapped her hands around the mug and breathed in deeply. “Thanks.”

  “Feel better?” He studied her closely. Her face was scrubbed free of makeup. She was beautiful. A longing constricted his chest.

  “Much better. Thanks.” Lifting the mug to her lips, she took a long sip.

  “How much could you see when you were in the car tonight?”

  “Not much. It was raining so hard. I saw a shadow.” She set her mug down and locked her gaze on him. “It was the same guy, wasn’t it?” A wary expression settled in her brown eyes. “Who am I kidding? It had to be. He’s not going to stop until he’s caught.”

  “That’s what worries me.” James ran a hand over his mouth. “The chief called me today. An officer in Buffalo recognized the symbol you described. The one drawn underneath the bill of the thug’s baseball cap. It’s a symbol of a known violent gang in Buffalo.”

  All the color drained from Lily’s face. “Not what I wanted to hear.” She pulled the tea bag out of the water and twisted the string tightly around her finger, then unwound it. She dropped the tea bag and a brown liquid slowly spread across the white napkin. Wrapping her hands around her mug, she slowly lifted her eyes to meet his. “I’m in real danger, aren’t I?”

  “I’m afraid so.” He reached across the table and cupped her hand holding the mug. “I know you don’t want to, but I think you should take a long vacation. Go someplace away from here. Someplace safe.”

  Lily’s eyes flared wide, but she didn’t say anything.

  “Your life is at risk here.” He brushed his thumb across the back of her smooth hand.

  Lily slumped in her chair, letting her arms go limp at her side. “I’ve come so far with my research. I can’t run away now. There’s so much to do.” She shook her head as if deep in thought. “I still have research to do. There’re too many people counting on me.” Her lips trembled. “My niece is counting on me.”

  He resisted the urge to reach out and shake some sense into her. “You need to think about your own safety. You’ll be good to no one if you’re—” He couldn’t say the word. He hated to even think it.

  She closed her eyes briefly. “I can’t believe this is happening.” Leaning forward, she rested her elbows on the table. She traced the top of her mug with her finger. “Have you talked to your grandfather or Stephanie? Medlink stands to gain financially from my research, too. What would they think about me going away?”

  “I haven’t mentioned it to my grandfather. I’m worried about his health.” Couldn’t she see her safety was more important than anything else? “Stephanie agrees you need to get away. Perhaps your sister and niece can go with you. I can’t be responsible for something happening to you.”

  Lily pushed back from the table. “Since when am I your responsibility? I don’t recall having to answer to you.” Bright red splotches appeared on her porcelain skin.

  “I care about your personal well-being. And if that’s not enough for you, Medlink cares about your professional well-being.” There, he’d said it. “Stephanie and I fear the implications for investors if something should happen to you.” He’d do whatever it took to convince Lily to go someplace safe.

  “Isn’t that sweet?” Her tone sounded droll. She paced the small space, pulling the sleeves of her sweatshirt down over her hands.

  “Take some time away until the police find this guy.”

  Lily stopped pacing and gave him a look of defiance. “I’m not going anywhere.”

  * * *

  Standing by the sink in her kitchen, Lily turned her back to James and closed her eyes. Neither of them spoke. Nausea welled in the pit of her stomach. She drew in a deep breath through her nose, then released it slowly through her mouth. Pressing a hand to her chest, she opened the cabinet door and got out a glass. She filled it with water from the tap and took a long drink. Her nerves were shot. She had to pray for understanding. This was a cruel joke—to have the rug pulled out from under her. To have her world turned upside down. She stared out the window, not bothering to look at him.

  “I’m really tired.” She needed to be alone.

  The legs of his chair scraping across the hardwood floor made her flinch. “This is only temporary. You’ll be back in the lab soon. I promise.” She sensed James approaching.

  Tamping back the panic welling inside her, she spun around. “I’m afraid this might delay bringing Regen to market. I can’t risk that. I won’t risk that.”

  “I can’t risk your safety.”

  Lily leaned back against the counter and wrapped her fingers around the edge of it. “What if someone told you that you had to close the clinic because it wasn’t safe?”

  James jerked back his head. She had hit him square between the eyes. That was exactly what he feared. His grandmother was particularly skittish after losing her only son in a plane crash. If she felt her grandson was in jeopardy, she’d pressure her husband to cut funding for the clinic. Fear made people react irrationally. Was that what she was doing? Was it irrational for her not to want to run and hide? Was it irrational for James to want her to?

  James stepped closer and cupped her elbow. “I know you’re scared. Please do this for me.”

  She grew lightheaded. She wasn’t used to having someone take care of her. Ever since her mother
’s death, she had been the caretaker. The problem solver. Her strong faith had been her only constant companion, helping her achieve, to move forward, when a weaker person would have folded.

  Lily bowed her head, resting her forehead on his broad shoulder. He reached around her and pulled her close, rubbing her back in a soothing gesture. She’d forgotten how good it felt to have someone to lean on. But that was all she was doing: getting moral support so she could plow forward. Nothing more. There could never be anything more.

  A small chirping sounded from across the room. She slipped away from his embrace. Shaking her head in frustration, she grabbed her purse from the back of the chair and dug for her cell phone. She furrowed her brow at the caller ID. Bethany. Her sister. Alarm bells clamored in her head. Bethany never called this late.

  “Hello?”

  “I’m so glad you answered. I don’t know what to do.” Bethany’s words came out in a breathless rush.

  Lily pressed the phone firmly to her ear and strained to listen. “What’s wrong? Is Emily okay?”

  “She’s been running a fever all day. I didn’t think it was anything. I just kept alternating between fever reducers.” The panicky sound in her sister’s voice sent fear rushing in, pushing out any sense of well-being she might have felt moments ago in James’s arms. “I gave her the last dose two hours ago and she’s still burning up.”

  “Listen to me. You need to call her doctor and tell the answering service what’s going on.” The thought of little Emily in pain made her stomach hurt.

  Bethany sobbed. “That’s the problem. She doesn’t have a doctor.”

  “What? Who’s been monitoring her symptoms?”

  “I couldn’t afford health insurance after I lost my job.”

  “You told me you were covered until the end of this year. Then I was going to pick up the insurance for her.” The pounding in Lily’s head ratcheted up a notch.