Sanctuary Forever WITSEC Town Series Book 5

by Lisa Phillips

  Gemma had way too much energy for that right now, though. She had to punch a heavy bag for a while and try to figure out why Terrence had made her freeze. It wasn’t like she couldn’t defend herself, like she hadn’t gone to Sam at the gym and begged him to teach her. She’d used some of those moves on Terrence, but it hadn’t saved her.

  Gemma sighed and pushed open the door to the gym. The lights were on, but it was empty. “Sam?”

  Sometimes he worked in his office when no one was there and the diner across the street—which he also owned—was closed. A chair lay on its side.

  “Sam, are you here?”

  A low moan answered.

  Gemma circled the boxing ring in the center. That was when she saw him. Or his legs, at least. Sam was on the floor, half-in, half-out of his tiny office. She ran over and knelt by his side.

  “Sam?” Please tell me he’s not dead. She touched his back and felt his chest lift underneath her palm. He wasn’t dead. Thank You.

  “Sam?”

  “Gemma.” He moaned her name.

  “What happened?”

  “Couldn’t stop…” Sam’s eyes fluttered closed. “Couldn’t help…”

  “What, what happened?”

  Sam didn’t answer.

  Gemma hopped up and stepped over him. She ran to the phone and dialed the town’s emergency number. Please don’t let Mei be on duty. She’d ditched Gemma at her mom’s house and disappeared. Who knew where the woman was?

  “Sheriff Mason.”

  “John, its Gemma. Something happened to Sam, and he’s on the floor. He’s unconscious now. I think he was hurt.”

  “I’ll be there in a minute.” His voice came breathy, like he was already on the move. He said more, but she wasn’t focusing on his voice. Just Sam Tura on the floor.

  “Gemma, does he need a doctor?”

  Gemma leaned down to look at Sam’s face.

  John said, “Elliot is dealing with something, but I’ll call Shelby.”

  Gemma nodded, then realized he couldn’t see her so she said, “Good idea.”

  “I’m outside now. We’re coming in.”

  We? Gemma stepped out of the office and saw John, followed by Dan, enter the gym. “Let me see to him, okay?”

  She nodded and stepped aside. John crouched and touched Sam’s neck, followed by his face. His chest. He dialed a number on his phone. “Shelby, its John.”

  Dan touched her elbow. “Hey.”

  Gemma didn’t want to bother with awkward pleasantries. They’d kissed already, hadn’t they? She slid her arms around him and touched her cheek to his chest. Dan’s arms wrapped around her, and she smiled against his shirt. “Hey.”

  Neither of them let go until Shelby rushed in with a duffel bag. “What is—oh. Hey, Gem.”

  “Hi, Shelby.” She didn’t feel like talking much more than that.

  Dan rubbed her back, which she took as his signal they should let go. She looked up at him. “Are you okay?”

  “I was going to ask you that.”

  “Dan’s good,” John called over to her.

  Dan raised his eyebrows. “I guess I’m good.”

  Gemma didn’t look at the sheriff. Whatever had happened between them might be “good,” but she wanted Dan’s take on it before she accepted the sheriff’s declaration. Finally, they had a sheriff she respected, but that didn’t mean Gemma didn’t remember very clearly what happened when authority was misused.

  “I told John everything.”

  Gemma frowned. “Everything what?”

  “My mom. Everything.”

  “Oh.”

  “Mei found her remains.”

  Gemma touched her mouth. “She did?”

  “Among some other stuff. I’ll tell you later. But I am okay. I feel better, better than I’ve felt in a long time.”

  She smiled at him. “That’s—”

  Shelby said, “My goodness.”

  “—good.” Gemma turned back to Shelby. They’d turned Sam’s body over, his shirt open. The aging black man, once a boxing champion, was covered with bruises.

  “They’re from a boot. You can see the imprint of the heel,” John said. “His face, too. His throat. It’s a wonder he can breathe.”

  “Elliot will have to look at him. He could have massive internal bleeding with this much bruising.” Shelby’s voice wobbled. “I’m scared to move him, but we have to.”

  “We can put him in my car,” the sheriff said. “But it’ll take the four of us to move him.”

  John was right. By the time he shut the door and drove off, Gemma was breathing hard. “I hope he’ll be okay. I’d hate for him not to recover.” Sam was a huge part of town, and not just because he owned two businesses. She’d learned so much from him and not just how to fight. Sam had believed she could be more than what everyone said she was. He was the one who’d encouraged her to write.

  “He said he couldn’t stop. Couldn’t help. Then he passed out.” Gemma hadn’t been able to help him. “Who did this to him? Everyone likes Sam.”

  The man was practically harmless. So soft spoken.

  Dan set his hands on her shoulders. “Let’s walk to the medical center. They’ll tell us if he’s okay.”

  Gemma nodded. “I hope he isn’t seriously hurt. Who could…what if it was the same person who killed Antonia? Or the same people in the radio station.”

  Dan’s hand tagged hers and didn’t let go. “It could be. But they can’t have wanted him dead, or they’d have killed him. Just like they didn’t kill us.” He squeezed her hand. “I’m glad they were gone when you got here. But I don’t like thinking how long Sam laid there before you found him.”

  “I know.” Gemma wanted to pray Sam would be okay, but she didn’t know where to start.

  “We should talk.”

  She nodded. “I went to my mom’s. The mayor was there, and she told me all about your father and Hal and why they came here. They started Sanctuary because of your dad.”

  “They did?” Dan stopped. He shook his head. “That isn’t what I wanted to talk about.”

  “Your mom, then? You said you were okay, but you did see her.”

  “She was a skeleton and rags.”

  “That must have been hard to face.”

  “Yes, but that isn’t what I want to talk about, either.”

  “Okay, then. What—”

  Someone ran over, their shoes clacking on the sidewalk. “Gemma! Yoo-hoo! We’d like to talk to you! Gemma!” The woman’s long floral skirt tangled around her legs. Her husband struggled to keep up.

  The man’s big belly and bald head hadn’t changed. Neither of them had, not for years. If they had, then hearing them share their political and religious opinions over and over again might actually be interesting.

  “Uh. Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Evangeline.”

  It was Terrence’s parents.

  Chapter 16

  “It’s late, Sam has been hurt, and we’re on our way to see him.”

  Despite Gemma’s statement, Dan didn’t see either of Terrence’s parents even blink. “Was there something you needed?”

  Terrence’s parents ran the town’s art programs. They put on a dinner theater every year, and people treated it like they were forced to do what John called “jury duty.” Dan had no frame of reference for a court as they didn’t have one, but he got that it was apparently torturous. Kind of like being forced to watch a great work of Shakespeare twisted into a contemporary rendition performed by nice people—some of whom could not act in the slightest. At least the dessert had been good.

  Terrence’s mom nodded, and much of her features wobbled along with the motion. “We need to speak with you, Gemma.”

  Beside her, Terrence’s dad huffed and said, “We’d like to know why you’re spreading these lies about our son.”

  “Lies?” Gemma’s eyes widened.

  Of course they would insist Gemma lied about Terrence’s actions.

  “Yes, of course,” Terrence�
�s mom said. “What else would they be, but lies? You take the good name of our son and smear it with dirt, like some kind of…smear campaign. What is wrong with you?”

  “Lies.” Gemma said that one word carefully.

  “Lies!” Terrence’s dad’s face flushed. “Now you go to the sheriff, missy. And you take back what you said about our son.”

  “He burned me with a cigarette. It’s not a lie, and I’m sorry you don’t believe me—”

  “Hiding in that library. Probably gave you a wild imagination. People don’t go around doing things to other people like that.”

  “You think I’d spread something like this if it wasn’t true?” Gemma’s reply was soft, hurt. Not like this couple Dan had respected, yelling in her face. She said, “Terrence is responsible for his own actions. Where is he? Not here, defending himself.”

  “We took him to church every Sunday. He’s a good Christian boy!”

  They thought that was what it took? That being a “good person” was the point? Dan interjected, “Uh—”

  Terrence’s mom cut him off. “He applied for the deputy sheriff position and got passed over for that Chinese girl. Who knows what the sheriff saw in her? My Terrence is a lifer, and we’re proud to have raised him here in this town. He was perfect for that job. Honest as the day is long, he is. Instead we get a woman who’s only been here a few months. She doesn’t know a thing about how Sanctuary works, or the people who live here!”

  Gemma said, “If he’d have made such a good deputy why did he hit Bolton over the back with a chair?”

  Terrence’s dad closed her mouth. Swallowed. His mom said, “Because he was being noble! He thought he was helping Nadia get out of a bad situation.”

  “More like a jealous situation,” Gemma muttered. Then louder, she said, “Bolton was nearly paralyzed because of that.”

  “That injury is because of his sin. That’s what caused him to be in that wheelchair. Father Wilson always said—”

  “Father Wilson was a murderer,” Dan said. Then he realized what that meant. He wanted to lay down and cry, ask Papa why he insisted on having such flawed men lead His people in this town. Maybe they just weren’t supposed to have a pastor. Or a church. Maybe a couple of home Bible studies would do.

  Dan cleared his throat. “Terrence’s guilt or innocence is for an investigation to decide, and whether he’ll be convicted of something, we’ll find out with time. John is in charge of all that.”

  “Did you know,” Terrence’s dad said, “that out in the world, a sheriff is voted in?”

  Gemma shrugged. “This is a witness protection town. John is a US marshal.”

  “He’s not in charge of this whole town. He isn’t the mayor, but he thinks he is. I think we should be able to vote for a sheriff. We’re not run by the government. I’m going to petition the committee, have everyone sign it. We should be able to vote in our own sheriff.”

  Dan said, “Why choose someone else? John was the one who figured out who killed the mayor’s wife and made sure the school teacher and the previous deputy didn’t hurt anyone else. John was the one who saved Frannie from Father Wilson, and helped me make sure the whole town wasn’t poisoned. John was the one who got stabbed fighting off that rogue Navy SEAL. John has protected this town for years, and he deserves our respect for it. He’s a good man, a good husband and father. A good sheriff.”

  “I’d echo that, but apparently you guys think I’m a liar anyway.” Gemma looked down her nose. Dan could see how people might misconstrue that as her thinking she was above them, but he knew it was only a mechanism to protect herself from being hurt. No victim deserved to have their trauma questioned because someone didn’t believe they were telling the truth.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Evangeline, if you’ll let us go we need to see Sam Tura. Make sure he’s okay, or if he’s even woken up.” He started to walk away, guiding Gemma to walk with him. “Come on.”

  Terrence’s parents sputtered after them, murmured, and talked to each other. Dan needed to explain a few things to them about being a Christian vs. being a good person. Too bad he couldn’t use the pulpit for his own agenda, not even what—in his own mind—he believed God “laid on his heart.” Dan simply preached what the Bible said, and God spoke through His word, not Dan’s. He needed to pray for Terrence’s parents.

  Gemma’s steps were leaden. He didn’t think she wanted to stay back there with Terrence’s parents, but something weighed heavy on her.

  “I know you were telling the truth. I was there right after. I saw Terrence leave, and I saw Mei helping you bandage your arm.” Dan had seen that face before, and he’d forced her to tell him then as well. “You weren’t lying.”

  Gemma didn’t say anything.

  He squeezed her hand. “You can’t make everyone believe you.”

  “I know that. I don’t try anymore, but it still hurts.”

  And yet she stood. She faced it, and she was working on moving on. Gemma had so much will it blew his mind every time he saw it. He’d never met a woman like her, so different than his mom’s shaky hands and soft voice. Gemma had strength, even if she didn’t know it.

  Dan’s mom had cowered. And he understood why. Mentally, he could comprehend the fact she’d lived with a tyrant who probably hurt her in countless ways. That life would weigh anyone down, it could take the strongest person and reduce them to a shadow of who they were. But Dan hadn’t been in that position. He’d been reliant on his mom to protect him from his father, and she hadn’t. Or she had somewhat, and that was why he hadn’t been killed that day when she did stand up to him.

  God’s hand had been there, even in ways Dan didn’t see because he’d lived it from a child’s perspective. He’d only seen a woman he adored, a woman he wanted to be strong, drift away. Fail. Get scared. Lose her fight. Lose her hope. In the wrong situation it could happen to Gemma, but Dan only saw the friend she had been to him for years.

  Dan stopped right outside the medical center and turned to her, took her free hand so that he held both of them. “Gemma.”

  “This looks bad. Is it bad? Because I don’t think I can handle much more.”

  Dan pulled her in and hugged her. “It isn’t bad.”

  “It is serious, though.”

  “I think you need a vacation.”

  “Where am I going to go? We can’t leave this town, and it’s not like we can camp out in the woods now.”

  Sure, they’d done that as kids. Stayed up late reading—actually she’d read, and he’d listened to her words. The inflections of her voice added life to every story. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. The BFG.

  “I don’t know. Maybe we can work it out.” If they got married no one would object. They’d have no reason to object.

  “What are you talking about, Dan?” Her whole face had come alive. Mission accomplished. The idea had taken root since John mentioned it. The sheriff had only made the suggestion because he was happy. Married people did that all the time, wanting everyone to experience the bliss they had. Dan had seen the opposite as well, in his congregation. It was never perfect, but it was good. He and Gemma would be able to figure it out. They’d been friends forever, and he was pretty sure she felt the same way he did. At least, she did if that kiss was anything to go by.

  She said, “You’re so concerned about your reputation, we’ve never even had dinner at the diner, and now you want to disappear together into the woods? You’re crazy. How will everyone think that’s not the worst idea they’ve ever heard? The only way they’d accept it is if we were…” She stepped back. “No.”

  “Is it a horrible idea?”

  “Getting… I can’t even say it. Can you?”

  Dan swallowed. “Elliot and Shelby are married. John and Andra. Frannie and Matthias. Nadia and Bolton are getting there, but they have a teenage son to worry about so that’s complicated.” He clenched his stomach and shrugged. “Why not us?”

  “Why not us.” Gemma’s voice had a low tone. That wasn
’t good. “Can you at least try to act a little more like a romantic? I’m not expecting hearts and flowers and chocolate, but something more than ‘why not’ wouldn’t be an awful idea. Maybe you could think on that while we go inside and make sure Sam isn’t dead, since it took us so long to get here.”

  She turned and grabbed the door handle.

  Dan stalled her with a hand on her elbow. When she turned back, he said, “I love you. I always have, and I think you’ve known that for as long as me. Why don’t you think on that?”

  He moved around her and held the door. Gemma glanced aside at him, her face full like she had a million thoughts in her head.

  If she didn’t want to find some good together, he wasn’t going to push her, but he knew what they could be. He knew the peace and love they could find together. Yeah, he wanted to marry her. It wasn’t a complicated decision. She was his best friend, and the woman he loved. Yes, she was right that he wasn’t the most romantic person, but Dan was convinced if they opened themselves up to see what love could be between them, that he would find a way to show her how he felt. He’d make sure that she found everything she ever wanted with him.

  He was finding life now, instead of walking that valley of the shadow of death. It would probably take the rest of his life, but he was inching away from it slowly and gaining ground.

  With Gemma beside him.

  **

  The man was crazy. He loved her? Okay, so she knew that, but marriage? Gemma didn’t even know if she was a marriage kind of person. Nor could she think of one example of a good marriage that had lasted that she could mine for tips. She wasn’t going to ask Terrence’s parents what their secret was, and who else had been married that long? She didn’t want her and Dan to turn into crazy people.

  John stood by the front counter. He and Andra were happy, and he’d come through a bad marriage. She knew his first had ended in divorce. Maybe John knew how to do a good job at it.

  She glanced back at Dan. If she agreed, would they be setting themselves up to destroy the good that they’d found together? What if they tore each other apart because they didn’t know how to coexist? There was a chance it might be good. Great, even. But how did she know it would be for sure?