Brick reached for her or she would’ve collapsed.
“I don't know her.” She choked out the words. Guilt for being relieved that it wasn't her sister filled her.
“You have no idea why she would come to see you?”
“No. I've never seen her before.”
“Please take one more look. Maybe a name will come to mind,” Officer Mullins held the cell out to her again.
She didn't want to see the photo again, but the woman needed help. If had been her sister she’d want someone to identify Carrie. With a deep breath, she took a closer look. Something familiar caught her eye, a tattoo of a butterfly in a spider web on the woman's arm.
“Oh God! It’s Amanda.” Kelly groaned. “She's changed her hair again, but it's Amanda Owen.”
“You know her?”
“We go to the same school, University of Nevada in Reno. She was my roommate. The last time I saw her she had black hair with a blue strip. I didn’t recognize her until I saw her tattoo.”
“You said her last name is Owen?”
“Yes.”
The officer wrote it down in his note pad.
“Can you tell me how to reach her family?”
“I don't know, but the university would be able to tell you.”
“Of course.”
“I can't imagine why she was coming to see me. We’re not really friends, just roommates.”
“Many roommates become friends,” Mullins offered.
“That's true.” But not after all that had happened between the two of them. Still, there was no reason to say that to the officer.
“Thanks for the information.”
“I'm glad I could be of some help. Will she make it?”
“Too early to say.”
“I pray she'll be all right.”
The officer’s features softened, making him appear younger than he had when he first arrived at her door.
“Could I see her?”
“She was unconscious when I left the hospital.”
“Maybe someone could call me when she wakes up. I hate to think of her being alone in the hospital.”
“I'm going back to the medical center tonight. I’ll ask the staff. What's your phone number?”
She gave him the cabin's phone number and he wrote it down.
“I'll be off.” He shoved the note pad in his shirt pocket.
She stood on the porch and watched him drive away.
“Why would Amanda come here? What could she want?”
“Maybe she was short of funds and thought she could score some more easy money by selling you information. Looks like that’s how she made her living, selling information, a very dangerous way of life.”
She gazed up at Brick's severe expression. “I feel sorry for her.”
“You have a kind heart.” His expression softened, leaving him devastatingly handsome.
“I hope she lives long enough to learn from her mistakes,” he said. “A little freak heading down life's highway in the wrong direction, if I let myself I could feel sorry for her. But I'm not going to.”
“For a moment I thought it was Carrie. God help me, I was glad when I knew it was Amanda and not my sister. I'm so ashamed.”
In her mind, she saw the roommate’s purple and swollen face. “I'm going to be sick.” She ran into the cabin.
***
Brick stood at the front door watching Kelly race toward the bathroom. Too much wine.
He went back outside, watched the waning evening light and breathed in the crisp pine scented air. If Officer Mullins hadn't arrived when he did, he’d have made a terrible mistake. He'd lost his objectivity. Always been proud of his self-discipline, his control, being around Kelly caused him to struggle to curb his emotional impulses. It was near impossible to manage his physical response to her.
Her kisses were still fresh on his lips. With a deep breath he fought his own desire and pushed down the memory of touching her. His feelings were a complication he hadn’t expected, didn't like and didn't need. He couldn’t let his guard down again or he’d be unemployed, his ass kicked out of the Bureau. He made a promise not to touch her again. Now he just had to find the strength to keep it.
In the living room, he saw a shimmer of pink on the green carpet, Kelly’s bra. The satin fabric felt sensuous to his fingers, he allowed himself to savor the feel of it. A flash of fever roused him. For the last time, he let his hand run over the satin and recalled the sensation of touching her breasts.
Holding the bra gingerly in his left hand, he carried it to her bedroom. The door was open. He set the Bra on the dresser. The adjoining bathroom door was closed. “Need any help?” he shouted at though the door.
“Go away.”
“You're sure you can manage?”
“I'm fine. Just go.”
“Okay, goodnight then.”
“Go.”
He made his way to the upstairs bedroom and sat on the king sized bed. What had come over Kelly? Stress must be getting to her. There were a lot of ways to relieve tension, but if he could help it, making love to him wasn’t going to be one of them.
No denying she tempted him, his body's reaction to her was proof of that. Even now just remembering what happened tonight, his body hardened. He exhaled deeply.
He wasn't a schoolboy and could control his craving. She’d ignited his veins with flowing lava, but he wouldn't take her when she'd had and too much to drink. If he ever did make love to her, it’d be when this case was over and with both of them clear headed, knowing exactly what they were doing
What was he thinking? He grunted. She was off limits.
He called the Truckee Forest Hospital. There was no change. Amanda was still unconscious. The hospital would notify him when she woke up.
Had she been on her way to see Kelly just to score more cash? Or could she have told them something useful about this whole mess?
First Ted Simmons was murdered, and then Amanda was attacked, someone was playing hardball. It had the earmark of a clean sweep, clearing away anyone that could stop whatever was coming down the pike. Kelly would be next. If Amanda lived, maybe she could give them a sliver of information that would help keep Kelly alive.
He was about to turn off the bedside light and get some sleep when his phone rang.
“Yeah.”
“Haven't heard from you,” Don said.
Brick hackled at the implied criticism from his boss.
“Anything new?”
“Not yet, Don.” He considered telling him about Amanda, but didn’t, the fewer people who knew where to find her, the better to keep her safe. “How about you? Anything new on your end?”
“Nothing.”
Don was holding something back. He could hear it in his voice. “By now there must be something coming out of the woodwork.”
“No,” Don said irritation deepened his voice. “Brick, don’t cross-question me. Concentrate on doing your job. Kelly knows something. Men wouldn't be after her if she didn't. She's playing ‘Miss Innocent’ for you, but she's pulling your chain.”
He was quick to brand her a criminal. Would everyone feel that way?
“Something's going down. I've got chatter on the line and Jack Anson is dead. Brick, I want answers ASAP.”
It was the perfect time to mention Ted Simmons’ death to Don. Something he couldn’t define stopped him.
“I need answers,” Don continued. “No more Mr. Nice Guy. Push the girl and get me something. If you don't, I'm going to bring her in and question her. She won't like it. I want answers and I want them yesterday. Got it?”
“Understood.” He tried to keep the anger out of his voice. His boss' superiors must be pressuring him and Don was putting the screws to him.
“Brick get me something in the next twenty four hours or it's out of my hands. I’ll have to bring her in.”
“I hear you.” He bit back expletives and disconnected the phone. Pushing Kelly to deliver information she didn't have wasn't goin
g to help anyone. What the hell was wrong with Don?
He thought about how little information he’d discovered during his time with Kelly. They hadn't learned anything new in days. “Shit.”All he’d turned up were dead ends. Useless anger burned in his gut. If he couldn't get more information how was he going to protect Kelly?
***
The intruder parked the pickup truck in the same place he had parked the SUV last night.
His hands itched. He scratched them hard enough to leave deep red lines in his skin. Pain was better than itching. Restlessness stirred in his veins. Hunger for the kill grew in him. Starved, he couldn't wait much longer to feed.
If it was up to him he’d kill the guy, grab the girl and have done with it. But it wasn't his job to decide what to do. His job was to follow orders. That's why he was the best, he never overtly questioned orders. He just carried them out. When the time came to act, he would. But because this was his final job before retiring and returning to his homeland, he was finding it hard to wait.
***
Johnny Vega’s stomach growled. He sat in the dining room of the penthouse suite waiting for his room service breakfast order to arrive. Barefoot and still in his in his maroon silk pajamas he put his elbows on the glass table and cursed his chef for getting sick. He had enough trouble and now he couldn't even get a decent meal. His head throbbed, too much liquor last night. Damn Kelly.
When she took the flash drive, she put him in a hell of a spot. Mr. Yi was breathing down his neck waiting for delivery of the drive. If Johnny didn't get it back soon, his ass was going to be in a ringer. His men had better find her or he'd make sure their ass was in that ringer along with his.
He recalled the day he met her. A college student, she’d seemed so sweet, innocent but hot, damned hot. Not only that, he liked her. With women that didn’t happen. He used them and when he grew tired of them through them out. For the first time in his adult life he cared about a woman. He trusted her, even thought of marrying the bitch.
He groaned. Not since the death of his mother had he felt loss. Without Kelly there was a cold void of loneness in him and he didn't know how to fill it. He remembered how she looked, how she smiled, how she moved. He could almost feel the softness of her skin and smell her sweet vanilla scent. “Bitch.” His need for her grew.
He’d avoided relationships but she’d blindsided him, caught him off guard and he’d let her see a secret part of him no one except his dead mother had seen. He’d nurtured Kelly, cared for her and loved her. She rewarded him by stealing the guidance system.
If she’d been in the room even though he knew it would be like killing a part of himself, he’d have murdered her with his bare hands.
***
The morning light hurt Kelly’s eyes. She turned away from the bedroom window. Her head throbbed. It served her right for drinking so much wine last night.
When she thought of her behavior, the flush of embarrassment burned her cheeks. She moaned as much for her foolish actions as for her aching head. When was she going to get it through her dense brain that no matter how much she loved him and no matter how kind he was to her, Brick didn't want her?
Coming on to him, she must have seemed pathetic. If only she could do last evening over. All she’d wanted was a night to remember. Well, now she had one. Fool.
She returned from the bathroom carrying a glass of water, set the tumbler on the bedside table and reached for an aspirin bottle. The telephone rang. As she rushed to answer it the glass of water fell off the nightstand.
“Damn! Hello.”
“Ms. Shaw?”
“Yes.”
“This is Mrs. Page from Truckee Forest Hospital. Officer Mullins said you wanted to know when Miss Owen was awake.”
“Yes.”
“She woke early this morning.”
“Could I see her?”
“Well, you’d have to check at the nurse’s station, with the accident and all. But since the officer said it was okay with him if you wanted to visit her for a few minutes I guess it would be okay.”
“Could I come this afternoon?”
“Anytime before eight o’clock tonight.”
“I'll be there and Mrs. Page, thank you for calling.”
“You're welcome dear.”
With a bath towel, she soaked up the spilled water. Then she quickly dressed in blue jeans, powder blue T-shirt and her white running shoes.
Relieved to know Amanda was awake, she sighed. Visiting hours might be until eight tonight, she wanted to get to the hospital as soon as possible. Amanda could slide back into a coma before she had a chance to talk to her.
She took a deep breath to give her the courage to go and find Brick. Would he mention her stupid behavior from last night?
He stood in the great room looking out the window to the lake. “Hi,” he said, barely looking in her direction when she entered the room.
“Hi yourself,” she said. Completely conscious of his masculinity, she strained to control her desire to touch him. She steeled herself, waiting for him to make some remark about last night. She let out her breath when she realized she was holding it.
He didn't say anything else, didn’t even ask how she was feeling. Grateful, she stood next to him and gazed out the window. “Amanda's awake. I'd like to go see her as soon as I can.”
“No problem.” He faced her. “Get some breakfast and then we can go.”
His voice was controlled and distant, speaking to her as if she was a stranger.
Disappointment spiraled in her.
Chapter Twenty-one
Truckee Forest Hospital a seventy-five bed general hospital was housed in a modern nondescript two-story building.
She hadn’t been in a hospital since the death of her mother. The thought of entering the medical center caused her stomach to retch.
Though her father had died instantly in a train derailment, her mother had survived, lingering for days in the hospital. She’d stayed at her mother's bedside until her mom had succumbed to her injuries. The feelings of hopelessness she’d experienced on the day of her mother's death returned.
Her hands tingled. Slowly she pulled open the heavy glass door and walked into the hospital lobby. Amanda was the only one who had information that could help her get out of her situation. She had to talk to her before it was too late.
Brick followed her into the medical center.
The clean white lobby was devoid of the usual hospital odors and was about as welcoming as any medical building could manage. A gift shop stood near the front lobby. Even though she was in a hurry to see Amanda, she entered the shop.
With a bouquet of mixed flowers, a card and two fashion magazines she paid the clerk. She refused Brick’s offer to pay and insisted on using her credit card. She wasn't about to be more beholden to him than she was already.
The volunteer at the information desk told them Ms. Owen was on the second floor, east wing. They were to stop at the nursing station and ask for her room number.
On the second floor, the walls were painted mustard yellow and smells of various chemical and human substances wafted out of the patient rooms as they walked by the open doorways. Swallowing hard, she ignored it.
Brick wore a stoic expression as he moved quickly toward the nursing station. She watched him. Was this the first time he'd been in a hospital since his recovery from injuries he received almost five years ago?
About half way down the hall, a twenty something woman, dressed in an aqua uniform, sat alone at the nursing station desk.
“May I help you?” she asked.
“We’d like to see Amanda Owen,” Brick said.
When Amanda's name was mentioned, a shadowed look came over the young woman’s face.
“I don't know.” She consulted her papers.
“Sorry, no visitors allowed.”
“Oh. Thanks anyway.”
He pulled Kelly with him as he left the nurse’s station.
She opened her mouth
to protest, but he gave her a quick shake of his head. They walked silently toward the exit.
“I got her room number,” he whispered.
“How?”
“As the clerk ran her hand down the list of patient names, her finger stopped for half a second at a room number then continued down the page. Come on,” he said. “We’ll go see her.”
They waited until the young woman at the desk turned her back to them and then they walked quietly back down the hall toward Amanda’s room.
“Let's see if anyone’s standing guard,” he whispered. “I hope there’ll be an officer watching her room.”
The door was open and the sign next to the door said, “Owen, No visitors.” But there was no police guard, no nurse.
“So much for protection,” he said. “I know the California Highway Patrol, with the recent budget cuts, is short staffed, but I'd hoped the local police would’ve been brought in to help.”
He glanced around the quiet hallway. “You go in. I'll stay here at the door.”
“What do I say to her?”
“Just say hello and give her a chance to talk. She was coming to see you. She must have had a good reason.”
***
The white walls of Amanda’s room were cold and uninviting. A mini blind did it's best to decorate the window. A ceiling fixture gave out light, but did nothing to heat the room.
Kelly rubbed her arms for warmth.
The roommate lay in the bed next to the window. She didn’t move and for a second Kelly thought she was unconscious.
Visions of her mother lying lifeless in a hospital bed came unbidden to her. She swayed under the weight of the somber memories and steadied herself by holding on to the nearest wall.
She glanced at Amanda, but instead of seeing her, she saw a vision of her mother saying, “Be a good girl Kelly. Don't let me down.”
She swallowed and covered her mouth to stifle an anguish cry. She’d let her mom down, she’d let her sister down, she’d let herself down. Now she’d even let poor Amanda down.
“Is someone there?”
“It’s Kelly.”
“Hi Kell.”
Amanda's voice sounded surprisingly strong compared to the way she looked. Her usually pretty face was unrecognizable, swollen eyes were almost closed and the skin around them was a deep purple. With a bandage on her nose and a splint on her arm, she looked small and as pale as the white sheets of the hospital bed.
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