Trove (The Katie Walsh Mysteries)

by KJ Montgomery

“Katie? Katie?” a male voice called out, echoing off the rocks.

  She held her breath. There was something familiar about the voice, but she couldn’t quite place it as it ricocheted off the stone pillars surrounding her.

  “Answer me, Katie. Now. KitKat, so help me… just talk to me.”

  Her heart leapt. It was Alec. He was the one smacking Josh around. He was searching for her. After the way she’d treated him, he still came after her.

  “Here. I’m here, Alec,” she yelled as she raised her arm and waved it above her head.

  “My God,” he yelled, “that was you I saw falling?”

  “I’m okay. A few scrapes—”

  “A few scrapes, my ass. You’ve got a gash on the side of your head.”

  She brushed her hand over the back of her head and felt something sticky. She brought her hand in front of her face and saw the blood, smelled the blood.

  “Are you bleeding anywhere else?”

  “I didn’t know I was bleeding.”

  “Don’t pull the tough guy act with me, Katie.”

  “I’m not. I really don’t know if I’m bleeding.” She started to pull herself upright and began climbing again.

  “Stay there. We’re coming to get you.”

  “That’s ridiculous. You just beat the crap out of him. And now you expect me to trust you and Josh to get me up there.”

  “I think that cut has affected your brain. Willie and I are coming to get you. Hang tight.”

  “Willie? Willie Jones? What… how…”

  “Just relax, Katie. We’ll have ya topside in no time.” Willie beamed from above.

  “Willie,” she sighed, “my hero.”

  “Hey! What about me?” Alec glared down, his hands planted on his hips.

  “If it wasn’t for ya, Mac, she wouldn’t be in this mess,” Willie snarled.

  Katie didn’t like the feeling she was getting from those two. The tension was palpable. She quickly added, “I so wanted it to be you who rescued me, Alec. Thanks.”

  He dropped his hands to his side. “Okay, let’s get you up here on solid ground and then down to the SUV.”

  She saw him turn his head away and murmur something.

  “Seems like we’ve got a few extra hands to help,” he called down.

  “Katie,” Laura squealed. “Are you all right?”

  Katie smiled, happy to be surrounded by her friends, her family. “Who exactly is up there?”

  “Me, Willie, Robert, Alec, and some guy who appears to be unconscious.”

  “That would be Josh,” Katie replied. “Hey, watch where you’re sending those rocks,” she yelled up as Alec and Willie started down towards her. She stood up and began climbing towards them again.

  “Stay right there. We’re coming to get ya,” Willie ordered. “Ya don’t need any more injuries.”

  She leaned against a boulder, glad she didn’t have to climb anymore, knowing she’d soon feel Alec’s arms around her. She felt a bit lightheaded and leaned forward.

  “Katie,” Alec called his voice rising in timbre with each word, “what’s wrong? Your face is so pale.”

  She started to fall forward.

  “Hang on, baby, we’re almost there,” he yelled.

  Willie barked at her. “Katie, lean back into the boulder RIGHT NOW.”

  Her body responded to his urgent tone as if on autopilot. She felt the stone against her back just before she slid down to settle at the base of the boulder, and then everything went black.

  R

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  The doctor lifted her eyelid and flashed a light back and forth, checking her pupil dilation response. “Dr. Walsh? Dr. Walsh? Can you open your eyes for me?” He repeated the process with her other eye.

  “Is she going to be all right?” Alec asked as he stood at the foot of the hospital bed. “She’s been unconscious for two days now.”

  “Actually it’s been thirty-seven hours,” the doctor corrected. “Her vitals are good and she survived the flight back to Boston beautifully. I think she’ll be coming round soon.”

  Alec thumped his thumb on the top of the footboard in a staccato rhythm. “Why do you think that? She hasn’t made any motion or any attempt to even open her eyes.”

  “Dr. MacGowan, she was severely dehydrated and it appears she hadn’t eaten much over the last few days before her accident. In addition, from what we can ascertain, she doesn’t seem to have had much sleep. Her body wasn’t prepared for the abuse she subjected it to and is now just shut down to heal. Her electrolytes are almost back to normal, and thanks to numerous IVs, her body fluids are also nearing normal levels. And the cut on her head is healing as I expected.” He wrote something on her chart and clicked his pen before replacing it in his jacket pocket. “Anyone ever tell you, Dr. MacGowan, that you’re rather impatient?”

  “Frequently. What’s your point?”

  “Relax, go for a walk, go to work, do something besides pumping the air with tension. You may not believe it but evidence supports the concept that patients in various states of unconsciousness are well aware of what’s going on around them.”

  “Are you telling me to leave her?”

  “What I’m saying is give her some space, get yourself some fresh air. You’ve been at her side since she was admitted. My guess is you’ve been hovering over her longer than that.”

  “Helicoptering.”

  “What?”

  “She calls it helicoptering when people hover over her.” Alec shrugged. “She hates it.”

  The doctor smiled. “All the more reason to give her some space,” he said as he left the room.

  ****

  Katie felt something soft and silky under her palm. She tried to recall if she had a cat, but she couldn’t picture one. She lifted her fingers and stroked whatever it was. It was calming, comforting and, she twitched her nose, it smelled like Alec. She blinked her eyes several times trying to open them. They felt like they’d been glued together by the sandman. She scrunched her eyes tight and then released them, breaking the seal.

  As her eyes began to adjust to the light, she panicked. She couldn’t bring anything into sharp focus. Everything was fuzzy, distorted. Where am I, she thought as she wrinkled her nose then relaxed. She wasn’t wearing her glasses. She gazed down at her right hand. There was a dark mass of silk under her fingers. She ruffled them through the almost black hair of the man stretched across her thigh. “Alec… Alec,” she called softly.

  “Hmmm,” he replied as he slowly lifted his head, her fingers slipping out of the softness. He looked at her and smiled. “You’re awake. Thank God.” He stood, stretching before he leaned over and kissed her on the forehead. “You had me worried, Sleeping Beauty. Thought I’d never see those hazel-green eyes again. How are you feeling?” he asked as he gently cupped the back of her head with his hand, his thumb resting on her cheek.

  She smiled. “Pretty good… considering.” She squinted, trying to bring his face into focus. “Do you know where my glasses are?”

  He reached over and pulled them out of the bedside table. He unfolded them and put them on her, leaning in close as he adjusted the frames.

  She inhaled deeply. “I knew it was you… on the bed. I could smell you.”

  He widened his eyes and grinned. “Are you saying I smell?”

  She chuckled. “Not in a bad way.”

  He tucked his fingers under her chin and lifted her head slightly then bent down and kissed her. She kissed him back, loving the feel of him, happy that he still wanted her after what she’d put him through by running away and not taking her own advice about being direct.

  He broke away and sat on the bed facing her.

  She reached out and laced her fingers through his. “I want to thank you for rescuing me. And I want to say I’m sorry for running away from you. If I’d only listened to you about the danger, I wouldn’t have ended up here and I wouldn’t have put anyone else in harm’s way.” When he didn’t say anything,
she asked, “Is everyone okay? What happened to Josh?”

  Alec freed his fingers from hers. “Everyone’s safe and sound. As for Josh, he’s here, back in Boston. Robert offered to help him clear the legal issues in Scotland. The authorities didn’t take to kindly to the fact that he faked his death. Seems they spent valuable resources they really didn’t have. Robert was kind enough to make a generous donation. He’s letting Josh stay at the penthouse with him.” He stepped back. “Do you want to press charges?”

  She shook her head. “No. I think he’s got enough trouble to deal with. Besides,” she shifted slightly, “he showed me the runes, though apparently I walked right by them. Do you think he’s safe from his partner?”

  “Not sure. If he’s as powerful as he seems to be, I’m sure he’s aware that Josh is once again among the living.”

  She bit her lip, not sure what to say.

  “What is it, Katie? I can see you want to say something.”

  “I don’t think he would have hurt me. He did get rough once, but I guess I probably provoked him.”

  Alec smiled weakly. “Yeah, you do have that effect on people, but that’s no excuse. I’m glad I belted him across the jaw.”

  “What I mean to say is he just wanted to uncover the mystery of the runes. He was desperate. I think I understand why he did what he did. I don’t necessarily like it but…”

  He narrowed his eyes and frowned at her. “Katie, you do realize he’s the man responsible for your parents’ deaths?”

  She sighed. “What if I told you that he said he wasn’t responsible? That he had proof that he was set up?”

  “If he had evidence, why didn’t he use it ten years ago to exonerate himself?” He shook his head. “I’d have to see it and then have it validated. I don’t know this Josh. He’s a stranger to me, Katie.”

  “Can you find out what he was talking about? I need to know.” She looked towards the hallway. “I need to end this and move on.” She laid her right arm across her chest. “I’ve let it consume my life for far too long.” She sighed. “To my own detriment.”

  The silence, the unspoken words hung over them, growing more uncomfortable by the minute. She looked at him. “There’s something you’re not saying, Alec. What is it?”

  He rose and stood at the foot of the bed. “I didn’t want to lie to you. It was that night, on the cliffs, when you told me about your parents’ deaths, that I realized the connection between you and Josh.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “I swear I didn’t know before then.”

  Katie pushed herself straighter in the bed. She shrugged. “I know. I figured that out… after I ran from you.”

  “Katie… I don’t think I can be with you.”

  She looked at him, her brows furrowed, her heart shattering into tiny pieces as his words bit deep into her soul. She tried to prepare herself for the hurt she sensed was coming. She would not break apart in front of him. She tried to click her armor into place, shielding her essence from the pain, but she couldn’t do it. He’d broken it. “Exactly what do you mean ‘be with me?’ Are you speaking professionally, personally? I need a clue.”

  “Personally.”

  “Oh,” she said as she tucked her hair behind her ear, her breathing shallow. “Any particular reason? Do I have cooties, bad breath…”

  He raked his hands through his hair. “Dammit, Katie, this isn’t easy for me.”

  “And it’s easy for me? Oh, that’s right. I’m the Ice Princess, frozen to the core. I don’t feel anything… ever.” She took a deep breath, trying to stop the trembling in her voice. “There has to be a reason or reasons. Don’t you think I deserve to know what offense I’ve committed?”

  “I’m tired of everything turning into a tug of war with us. It’s always a struggle for control between you and me. It’s too… too hard and it shouldn’t be.” He exhaled. “I love KitKat, her openness, her need to please, her need of me. I think I fell in love with her five years ago.”

  “Alec, our relationship has never, ever been remotely normal. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. It just is.” She raised the upper part of the bed so that she was sitting up. “We’ve been through trials that most people don’t face in a lifetime. Yet through it all we’ve relied on each other and, in our own way, trusted each other. I know I have to change, but I can’t do it overnight.”

  “Katie, how can you look at me like that?”

  “Like what?”

  “With kindness, understanding. I came roaring into your life and turned it on its head. I took your promotion—”

  “No,” she said, shaking her head, “you didn’t. On my first day working for you I had a meeting with Dr. Austin. I don’t think I was ever going to get that position.” She smoothed the sheet across her stomach. “It seems that I ‘don’t play well with others’ and that is a big portion of the job.”

  Alec sat back down on the edge of the bed. “I’m sorry.”

  “I’m not,” she replied softly. “I would’ve failed miserably in that job, and the whole Institute would never let me forget it. It’s better this way. I still get to do my research without all the politics.”

  He nodded. “Yeah, it would be a shame to box you into doing something other than what your talents dictate. It must’ve hurt to admit that there’s something you might not be good at.”

  She inhaled. “Yes, it did, but in the end, it was the right decision regardless of how it was arrived at.” She stared at him for a moment. “Alec, I want there to be an ‘us’, both on a professional and personal basis.”

  She raised her hand to silence him when it looked like he was going to speak. “Please let me finish, hear me out.” He nodded. “We both made mistakes. I wasn’t open, direct with you and I ran instead of talking it out. I think a big part of my reaction was fear. I was afraid to open myself completely to you. I’ve never really done that before. People have disappointed me in the past and I survived because I never let them get too close. But with you, I didn’t want to deal with your rejection of me. I don’t think I would’ve survived that, so I made it a moot point by running away.”

  “Katie, you ran because I lied—”

  “Lie is too strong, Alec. You misled me, but your quest for justice was right. You really didn’t have much choice.”

  He nudged her legs aside then sat on the bed. He wrapped her hand in his. “I do love you, Katie. You know that.” She nodded. “But I’m not sure we can make this work.”

  “Neither am I, but I’m willing to try. I love you too, Alec. I don’t want to look back on this and regret not trying. I think we’re a good match. And I’d rather have you in my life than out of it. Besides,” she said, smiling, “I remember someone telling me, not too long ago, that I’d make a great team with a certain archaeologist. I think you said we had ‘synergy.’”

  “I still think that.”

  “Good because I think we should go to Dr. Austin and convince him to get us back to Skye and start researching the crystal cavern.”

  Alec grinned. “Do my ears deceive me or are you actually volunteering for field work?”

  She smiled and nodded. “I kind of like the adrenaline rush.”

  He leaned over and kissed her. She quickly pushed him away and laughed. “I haven’t brushed my teeth in several days.”

  He sat back on the bed. “What about the blackmailer? How do we deal with him?”

  She loved how he said “we.” He wasn’t going to let her face this creep alone. “I’m going to tell Dr. Austin everything, how we weren’t aware we were being taped, how this bastard is threatening the Institute as well as us, and how he’s connected to it in some way. I’ll let him decide how he wants to deal with it. If he wants me to resign, I’ll ask him to stipulate that I will receive my royalties when they’re due.”

  “Do you think he’d pay you?”

  “I may need Robert’s help, but he’s not unreasonable and he’s like a grandfather to me.” Katie yawned.

 
“You’re tired. I should let you get some rest,” Alec said.

  She placed her hand on his thigh. “Are we going to try?”

  He nodded. “Yes, but I think we should take things slow. How about we go out to dinner when you’re released?”

  “Like a real date?” she asked.

  “Yeah, like a real date.”

  She laughed. “I’d love to.”

  He kissed her forehead and left.

  R

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Katie pushed her food around the plate, swirling the chicken pieces into the mashed potatoes and then burying them underneath like hidden treasures. Occasionally she’d pop a bundle in her mouth. She pushed the broccoli off the plate and onto the tray, hoping it hadn’t touched her food. Just the sight of it reminded her of how much she despised the overpowering taste.

  “Knock, knock,” someone called from the doorway.

  Katie looked up and smiled. “Dr. Austin, please, come in. I’m so glad you stopped by.”

  He walked over to the visitor chair, pulled it up next to bed and sat down. “Are they treating you well here at my medical clinic?”

  She nodded. “Very well.”

  “So why the sad face? You look as if you’ve just lost your best friend.” He reached out and lifted her chin. “And why the tears, Little One?”

  She shrugged.

  “You’re not a convincing liar, Katie. What’s wrong? Would it have anything to do with Dr. MacGowan?”

  She pushed the tray away and faced Dr. Austin. “I have something to tell you and I don’t think you’re going to like it.”

  Dr. Austin rose and walked to the door, shutting it before he returned to her side.

  She rubbed her hand back and forth over her forehead and took a deep breath. “What I’m about to tell you is very difficult for me. I-I ask that you don’t interrupt me. And I ask that you repeat it to no one… ever. Would you promise me?”

  He nodded. “I promise.”

  She stared at the clock on the wall, focusing on the number seven as she told him about the blackmailer, his demands, his threat to ruin the Institute and finally about the video. She asked that he not fight her request to receive her royalties when they come due. In return she’d quietly resign and leave the Institute. When she finished she turned to look at him.