The Right Woman

by Linda Warren

  Saturday was her cleaning day. It was the only time she had to do housework and she couldn’t afford a cleaning lady. The house was so big and Sarah was finding it difficult to maintain the house on her salary and with her busy schedule. This had been Gran’s home since she’d married Henry Farrell and Sarah wanted her to stay here as long as she could. Sarah wanted to be here, too. It’s where she should have been raised as a child with Serena. Staying here wasn’t going to bring her childhood back, though. Serena wanted her to sell the house, but how would she tell Gran? Over the past five years they’d formed a good relationship and Sarah couldn’t see changing any part of their lives.

  At times, she felt as if she’d stepped into Serena’s place—worrying about Gran, taking care of her. When she and her sister had met, Serena had been at her wit’s end trying to pay the note and bills on the house. Before his death, her grandfather had borrowed a lot of money he couldn’t pay back and, unfortunately, Gran was used to a certain lifestyle. She was a compulsive shopper and spender. The situation had come to a head with the bank threatening to foreclose on their home.

  Then Sarah found out that Greg had left half his life insurance to her. At first she hadn’t wanted to accept it, then she and Serena had a long talk. Greg wanted her to have the money, to have a better life, and Serena’d thought Sarah should spend the windfall on herself. Sarah had other plans. She took the money and paid off the note on the house and all the bills, with Serena protesting the whole time. It had felt good to be able to help Gran and Serena, but she was still struggling to stay afloat with the upkeep of such a large house. In the summer, it was worse with the pool and yard to maintain.

  “I’ll strip my bed and finish the laundry while you’re gone,” Gran said.

  Sarah placed a cup of tea in front of her. “Thanks, Gran. That would help a great deal.”

  “As you know, I’m not fond of housework, but I’ll help all I can.” Aurora stirred honey and lemon into her cup.

  Sarah knew that. Gran had lived a life of privilege and it was difficult for her to adjust to a different lifestyle. But these days she stuck to a budget that Sarah planned for them. It was the only way they could manage, so Sarah was grateful for Gran’s cooperation.

  “Just don’t tell any of my friends.”

  “I promise.” Sarah smiled. “You’re up early. Do you have plans?”

  “No.” Aurora took a sip. “The older I get, the less I sleep.” Gran wasn’t known to be an early riser. Sarah wasn’t, either, but she rarely got to sleep in. Her life demanded early hours and long days but she wouldn’t have it any other way.

  “Well, I’d better run,” Sarah said as she noticed it was almost five-thirty. “I’ll drink my coffee while I dress.”

  “Sarah?”

  “Yes?” She stopped in the doorway.

  “Have you heard from Serena?”

  “Not for a couple of days.”

  “It’s been three days since I’ve heard from her. I hope nothing’s wrong.”

  “I’m sure there isn’t,” Sarah assured her. “But I’ll call her tonight and we’ll have a long chat and find out all Jassy’s latest antics.” At Gran’s somber expression, she added, “That phoning thing—it works both ways.”

  “I know,” Gran replied. “I called last night and I even called this morning, trying to catch them, and there wasn’t an answer. I just can’t imagine where they’d be at this hour. Ethan’s father didn’t even answer.”

  So that’s why Gran was up early. She was worried about Serena. Now Sarah was, too. “I’ll call as soon as I get back,” Sarah promised and rushed back to kiss Aurora. “Stop thinking bad things. They’re fine.”

  Aurora hugged Sarah. “I’m so lucky to have you.”

  “We’re both lucky. Now I have to go.”

  THIRTY MINUTES LATER Sarah was on the way to the hospital. She didn’t worry too much about Serena because she didn’t have a sense that something was wrong. Even though they hadn’t been raised together, they still had that connection, that special bond that existed between twins. It was one of the perks that delighted Sarah about being a twin. It was almost surreal at times—like when Jassy was born.

  Sarah had woken up in the middle of the night and sensed that Serena needed her. The baby wasn’t due for two weeks, but Sarah had immediately called the airport and booked a flight for her and Gran to San Antonio. Serena had gone into labor at the same time that Sarah had woken up in Dallas. They’d arrived there in time to watch Jassy make her appearance into the world.

  They’d laughed about it afterward. Ethan had said he hadn’t needed to call because Sarah and Serena had a physic connection. And they did.

  So she wasn’t really worried now. She felt that Serena and Ethan had probably taken a weekend away together and left Jassy with Molly, Ethan’s sister. Molly had a little girl six months older than Jassy and they loved to play together. But Serena always called when they were going away and that was what was niggling at her. Still, she didn’t let herself get paranoid. She had to put her personal life aside and concentrate on Brooke.

  BROOKE WAS NOW IN A room upstairs and Sarah went to the nurses’ station to get her chart. Reading through the contents, she asked the nurse on duty, “What kind of night has she had?”

  “They brought her up about 4:00 a.m. and she never woke up, and I haven’t heard a peep out of her.”

  “Are her parents here?”

  “No, but Detective Garrett went in to see her a few minutes ago.”

  “What! The police are not allowed to question her without supervision.” She was trying to control her anger.

  The nurse held up a hand. “Hold on, Ms. Welch. I didn’t say anything about someone questioning her.”

  “Why else would he be here?”

  The nurse frowned. “You don’t know Daniel very well, do you?”

  “What?”

  “I’ve worked for over thirty years in this hospital and I know Daniel Garrett. He often comes by to check on a patient—overdoses, victims of shootings and the like. That’s the type of person he is. I can assure you he’s not questioning Brooke Wallace.”

  Sarah took the chart and walked toward Brooke’s room feeling duly chastised. The nurse was right—Daniel was always there for the victim. He’d been there for her during Boyd’s arrest, his trial and the appeal. Through it all Daniel had been unfailing in his support, as he was with everyone. She’d admitted as much to herself yesterday, so why had she felt a flash of anger when the nurse had mentioned his name?

  What was really bothering her? Did she want to be more than a woman in an endless line of victims to Daniel? Of course not. She just didn’t want him to see her as a helpless female—that’s all. She didn’t want anything else from a man ever again—including Daniel.

  She was lying.

  She groaned inwardly at the war going on inside her. Her emotions were like a tennis ball being constantly batted back and forth until she was exhausted from the struggle. She had to decide what she wanted from Daniel, what she expected from him. Because, like it or not, he was in her life. Their jobs threw them together and she had no right to tell him to stay away from her. She had to apologize. Of that she was very certain.

  Just as she reached the door, Daniel came out. He stopped short when he saw her then walked on without a word.

  She hurried after him. “Daniel.”

  He halted and slowly turned around. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think you’d be here this early. I only stopped by to see how Brooke was doing. She’s awake and I didn’t ask her any questions about the rape. I only reassured her that we’d catch this guy.”

  “You won’t, though.”

  He blinked. “What?”

  “You’re quitting the force. If you do that, you won’t catch him.”

  He was watching her closely. “Russ has a good team and they’ll find him.”

  “Russ is a macho idiot,” she blurted before she could stop herself.

  “He’s also a good c
op.”

  “No, he isn’t, but you are.” It came out almost as a whisper.

  His dark eyes narrowed. “What is this, Sarah? Last night you told me to stay away from you in a voice that could cut glass and this morning you’re saying I’m a good cop in a voice I don’t recognize. To say I’m confused is putting it mildly.”

  “Could we talk for a minute?”

  Daniel held up both hands. “I don’t think so. We said all we had to say last night. You’re right, I’ve worried about you too much and it’s time for me to back away. Time for me to do a lot of things and some of them have nothing to do with you.” He took a deep breath. “With Serena and Ethan being so far away, I wanted to be there if you needed someone. But you’ve made it plain on more than one occasion that you’re fine and don’t need anyone. You see—” he glanced down the hall “—I have this flaw—I want to help everyone. I’ve finally recognized that that’s not always possible.”

  “Daniel—”

  He cut her off. “If you have a problem with Russ, just call Lieutenant Bauer and he’ll take care of him.”

  “Daniel…”

  “Goodbye, Sarah. After today you won’t see me again. I’ll be flying to Paris on Monday and I’m not sure when I’ll be back.” He turned and strolled toward the elevators.

  She watched until he disappeared behind the closing doors. She let out a long breath, not even realizing that she hadn’t been breathing. For a moment she didn’t know what to do. All she could think was that she hadn’t had a chance to apologize. Daniel hadn’t wanted to hear anything she’d had to say. She deserved that. She had been cruel last night, hurting him when he’d been nothing but kind to her.

  At Boyd’s trial, Serena had sat on one side of her and Daniel on the other, encouraging her and letting her know she had the strength to face Boyd and to describe in open court what he’d done to Greg and to her. She wondered now if she could have done it without him.

  She moved toward Brooke’s room. He’d said he was going to Paris. Did he have family there? Or was he taking a special woman? She suddenly realized that she didn’t know anything about Daniel or his life. Did he have a family? He wasn’t married, she knew, because Serena had mentioned it. Who was Daniel Garrett?

  She shook her head as she entered the room. It really didn’t matter. She had just severed all ties to the man and she felt an emptiness in her stomach at her thoughtless actions.

  BROOKE WAS LYING on her side, staring at the wall. The IV was still in her arm.

  “Good morning,” Sarah said as she took a seat.

  “Morning, Ms. Welch,” Brooke responded.

  “How are you feeling?”

  “Sore, and my neck and throat hurts.”

  “That will heal with time.”

  “And the nightmare, the shame and horror—does it go away, too?”

  No. It will be with you the rest of your life.

  She should have been able to say yes with confidence, but she couldn’t. The truth of that hit her like a slap in the face, the sting creeping into tiny crevices in her mind that she had boarded up against the pain. She hadn’t dealt with what had happened to her. She could see that now. Daniel had seen it, but she hadn’t.

  She gathered her thoughts, her knowledge. “It will be hard.” She spoke the truth and more truths followed. “You have to make a concentrated effort to move on with your life. You have to talk to people, especially when you’re hurting, and don’t shut people out.” Like I did. “People want to help you.” Daniel did. “It will take a lot of love and support, but eventually you will be able to put it behind you.” Like I have to do now.

  “I don’t like talking about it.”

  “A good counselor or therapist will help you with that and you don’t have to talk until you’re ready.”

  “I like talking to you.”

  Sarah reached into her purse and pulled out a card. She wrote a number on the back. “This is my cell phone. You can reach me today or tomorrow, any time you want to talk. On Monday make an appointment at the office. Dr. Mason usually handles these cases for the hospital. She’s very good and you’ll like her.”

  “Can I talk to you?”

  “Sure.” Somehow Sarah was hoping she’d say that. For so long she’d refused to open those doors that were so painful, but by helping Brooke she could also help herself.

  “I remember you talking about your family last night,” Brooke said. “Are you close to your twin now?”

  “Yes, we are.”

  “I have two sisters younger than me and I don’t know what to say to them.”

  “I think you’ll find that you won’t have to say much. They’ll just want to comfort you.”

  “Yeah. People have been real nice. Detective Garrett was here earlier and he’s so nice and good-looking. I just thought that cops in the movies were that handsome.”

  Was Daniel handsome? Of course he was. He was tall, lean, with dark eyes and hair. At times his hair curled into his collar. His features were strong and chiseled, his nose straight and his lips… Oh, my. She touched her warm cheek. She’d noticed Daniel more than she’d ever thought. Denial—she’d been firmly in denial. But not anymore.

  She was going to take her own advice and make an effort to move on with her life. She couldn’t remember the last time she had actually laughed, felt silly or giddy. It was time for a change.

  Brooke’s parents entered and Sarah stood. Lois ran to her daughter and hugged her. Her father did the same.

  “The doctor said you can go home soon.” Bob Wallace wiped away an errant tear.

  “I don’t know.”

  Brooke seemed afraid and before Sarah could say anything Bob added, “Don’t worry. No one’s ever gonna hurt you again. Not as long as I’m around.”

  Brooke’s fears eased and Sarah knew she was going to be okay with the love and support of her family.

  “I’ll go,” she said. “If you need anything, just call.”

  “Thank you, Ms. Welch,” Brooke replied. “Will the police still be questioning me?”

  “Yes.” Sarah glanced at Bob. “Call if you need me, but I feel your father can handle them.”

  “Yeah.” Brooke nodded confidently and Sarah slipped out of the room.

  WHEN SARAH GOT IN her car, she grabbed her cell phone. She had to talk to Serena. Serena, please, please, be home. The phone rang and rang then the answering machine came on. She clicked off, wondering where Serena could be. This wasn’t like her. But Sarah still wasn’t worried.

  She drove toward Fort Worth and home, and realized it was almost noon. She had the house to clean and laundry to do yet. But the emotional tennis ball in her head kept bouncing back and forth with a ferocity she couldn’t ignore, couldn’t deny any longer. She had to sort through what she was feeling, about Daniel, about her life, and the only way to do that was to talk, as she’d told Brooke. She could talk to Karen—she had many times—but she didn’t open up to her colleague the way she did with Serena. She had to talk to her sister. Where are you, Serena?

  She drove into the garage and smiled. Ethan’s truck was parked to the side. Serena was home. Sarah jumped out and ran to the house. The door burst open and Jassy flew toward her, her red hair in a ponytail, bouncing.

  “Sari, Sari, Sari, it’s me,” she shouted.

  Sarah dropped her purse and caught Jassy, swinging her around and into her arms, then she just held her tight.

  “Look at me, look at me.” Jassy wriggled and leaned away from Sarah. “Look how big I get. Daddy says I grow like a weed. Daddy says he’s gonna put a rock on my head. Daddy says I getting too big for my britches.”

  Sarah kissed her cheek. “Daddy says a lot.”

  “Yeah. Daddy knows everything.”

  Jasmine Marie was the light in her father’s eyes and she worshiped him. Serena taught school and Ethan kept Jassy while Serena was at work. Ethan had retired from the FBI and he occasionally did P.I. work, but since Jassy’s birth he only took care of his daug
hter. He’d been married before and had lost a son, so he tended to be overprotective. That’s why Serena made him go away for the odd weekend. She wanted Jassy to be around other people.

  “Where’s Daddy Says?” She teased her little niece, using the name that Sarah called Ethan because every other word out of Jassy’s mouth was “Daddy says.”

  “In the house with Mommy and Gran. Mommy said I could watch for you and I saw you first.”

  The door opened again and Serena came toward them.

  “I gonna go tell Daddy you’re here.” She slipped from Sarah’s arms, ran around her mother and back into the house.

  The sisters embraced. Two identical young women—same red hair, same blue eyes, same height and body shape and weight, except Serena’s hair was now shorter and hung in a natural style past her shoulders. Sarah’s was still long and wound into a knot at her nape.

  Sarah clung to her sister, then she did something out of character. She burst into tears.

  Serena just held her.

  Finally, Sarah pulled away and brushed away tears. “I’m sorry. I guess I’m a little emotional or I’m just really glad to see you.”

  Serena looked into her eyes. “Sarah, what is it?”

  Sarah blinked and admitted something that she hadn’t been able to before. “I need to talk. I need help.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  SARAH QUICKLY GOT HERSELF under control. “I don’t want Jassy to see me crying. We’ll talk later.”

  “Are you sure?” Serena asked with a worried frown. “Ethan’s an expert at taking care of our daughter.”

  “Yes. Right now I just want to enjoy my family.”

  Arm-in-arm they walked into the house. Ethan immediately got up and hugged Sarah. Tall and lanky, with dark good looks, Ethan was one of a kind. He’d been shot in the hip while working for the FBI and now walked with a slight limp, but since he was in such good shape it was hardly noticeable. If she had to use a word to describe Ethan, it would be honorable.