by Sharon Dunn
“Justice picked up a hint of a scent, nothing strong. Honestly, I think she came and got the gun and left. That’s where the scent was a for-sure thing.”
“With that patrol officer circling the facility, escape would be tricky. He would have seen her if she went out the door she broke in through. We know she was here at some point. I’m not convinced she was able to leave. I’m doing one more sweep,” Jackson said.
“Sarge hasn’t called us off yet. I’m going take Justice down that hall and up to those second-floor offices. Leave no stone unturned, right?”
“Lots of places a person could hide in here. Might as well check every nook and cranny.” Jackson headed back up the stairs to the observation deck that provided him with a bird’s-eye view of much of the facility. He stared out the window, taking in each segment of the area around the pool.
He caught a flash of movement out of the corner of his eye. For a moment, he thought it was an officer who had traveled outside an assigned area because the K-9 had picked up on a scent. Whoever it was had slipped out of view through an open door.
If something had been found, why wasn’t anyone on the radio?
“Davison, here. Has another officer slipped into my quadrant?”
Gavin answered back immediately. “Negative.”
Another door, ten feet from the open one where he had seen movement, popped open. Jackson barely had time to register that he was seeing a rifle barrel aimed at him before the shot reverberated through the whole facility.
Pain sliced into his shoulder, causing his entire body to shudder. He leaned over the railing with a view of the water below. He reached for his radio.
The intensity of having been shot was like nothing he’d ever experienced. His vision blurred as he fumbled to make his fingers work the radio. He felt like he couldn’t breathe, as though the air was being suctioned out of his lungs.
He clicked on his radio. His voice was whispy-weak. All he could manage to say was, “She’s here. I’m shot.”
Sarge’s voice came across the line. “On my way.”
Jackson looked up. Everything in front of him was wavy and out of focus. He thought he saw Chloe step out from behind the door and raise her rifle to take another shot at him. He doubled over in pain. He was a sitting duck up here.
The rest of the team had to be headed toward his quadrant. He was half hung over the railing, trying to move, to at least find the strength to lay flat on the floor and crawl backward. He could not will his body into motion.
His world started to go black. He had the sensation of whirling through space. Had he been hit again? Was he losing consciousness? His vision narrowed right before he felt his body falling. He hit the water. Then he was gasping for air and flaying his arms and legs.
Dark brown sticks moved through the water toward him. They weren’t sticks. It was his dog. Smokey had jumped in after him.
Jackson felt a tug on his back of his neck. Smokey was trying to pull him to the surface. It was a struggle to make his arm with the bullet wound work, but he kicked his legs. He felt himself being dragged. His head popped up above the surface. Gavin had jumped into the pool and was swimming toward him. He saw two other sets of legs—one K-9 and one human—at the edge of the pool.
He felt himself being half carried, half dragged and then being stretched out on the tile surrounding the pool.
Smokey licked his forehead.
“Did you get her?” he asked.
Gavin put his face very close to Jackson’s, water dripping off his hair onto Jackson’s face. “Tyler and Dusty are after her.”
“You have to get her.” Pain surged through Jackson’s body. He groaned.
Gavin’s expression changed and he spoke to Belle. “That ambulance is on its way, right?” He sounded upset.
“Yes, sir.”
Jackson could barely get the words out. “The bullet wound. How bad?”
Gavin stared at his shoulder for a second. “No major organs. Tore through quite a bit of flesh.”
Jackson put his head down on the cold tile. Everything seemed to be whirling around him. The only thing that was real was his dog lying beside him and licking his cheek.
“You have to catch Chloe. For Darcy’s sake.” Jackson wasn’t sure if he had spoken the words or just thought them.
The pain was unbearable.
* * *
Darcy was sitting up in bed when a nurse pushing a wheelchair and wearing a very serious expression came into the room. The police officer who had been standing outside Darcy’s door was right behind her.
“What’s going on?”
“A decision has been made to move you to a room with no windows,” the nurse said.
The officer stepped forward. “I’ll be escorting you.”
“What’s happened? What’s going on?” Her mind reeled. Jackson and the other officers must not have been able to catch Chloe. “Let me guess. Chloe is out there and she’s armed. They think she might try to shoot me through the window.”
The patrol officer looked at the nurse and then at Darcy. “It’s just a precaution.”
“They wouldn’t be moving me unless they thought I was in even more danger.”
The nurse pushed the wheelchair toward her. “You haven’t been out of that bed since you were brought in. If you feel at all dizzy, we can move you in the chair.”
“I’d like to try to walk.”
The nurse pushed the bedside rail down out of the way. “Take it slow. Swing your legs off the side of the bed first.”
As she sat with her legs dangling, Darcy still felt light-headed. The nurse held out a hand for support.
“Walking will be good for you at this point, but if you feel at all unstable, let me know.”
Dragging her IV with her, Darcy took a few hesitant steps. “I walk like an old lady.” They worked their way slowly out into the hall. Fear overtook her as she stared at all the people bustling around.
Chloe was still out there. Chloe wanted her dead. If she couldn’t shoot Darcy from a distance, she’d find another way. Darcy hadn’t been willing to admit it until now, but the attack in her apartment had traumatized her in a deep way, more so than the others. She had seen the intensity of Chloe’s rage up close.
The nurse held Darcy’s arm while the officer walked on the other side of her, pushing the wheelchair. She was in good hands, but that didn’t mean Chloe wouldn’t make an appearance.
The officer cleared his throat. “You should probably know that your friend who sat with you, Officer Davison, was brought in a few hours ago.”
Darcy stopped and stared up at the police officer. “What happened?”
“A gunshot wound,” the nurse said.
“Some of Chloe Cleaves’ handiwork, unfortunately,” the officer admitted. “He’s in surgery right now. The bullet didn’t hit any vital organs, but it tore his shoulder up.”
Maybe it was just panic over what might happen to Jackson, but the news gave her strength and energy. “I don’t want to go to my room. I want to sit with the K-9 officers. I’m sure some of them are standing by.”
“You’re still very weak.” The nurse looked up at the officer.
“I insist,” Darcy said. “I’m not going to lie in a bed alone when Jackson might be fighting for his life. He has been there for me through everything.”
The officer shrugged. “No safer place for her to be than surrounded by police officers. I’ll stay with her, no matter what.”
“I suppose it would be better for you to be sitting up and maybe moving around a little. I’ll have to clear it with the doctor. I’ll come to get you if he doesn’t give the okay.”
They led Darcy to the waiting room outside the surgery wing. Officers Belle Montera and Lani Jameson were there. Belle stood when Darcy came into the room. She walked over to Darcy and grasped her
hands. “Good to see you. Jackson has been in surgery for about an hour now. Gavin had to get back to headquarters, so Lani came over.” Belle nodded at the tall blonde.
“Chloe is still on the run. The whole K-9 Unit has been praying for a good outcome for Jackson and getting Chloe back into custody,” Lani told her.
Belle led her to a seat and Darcy lowered herself slowly into the chair. Feeling a sharp pain through her stomach where she’d been stabbed, a light patina of sweat appeared on her forehead from the effort of moving around. The news that Chloe had not been captured didn’t sit well with her.
Belle patted her hand. “I know it will mean so much to Jackson that you came here to support him. His family in Texas has been notified. He doesn’t have any family close by, except for Smokey, and they won’t allow him into the waiting room.”
“I think you guys are his family.”
“And you, too. He talks about you a lot,” Lani said.
“He and Smokey are a big part of my life, too,” Darcy said. I’m starting to wish he could be an even bigger part, she thought. “Is one of the other officers looking out for Smokey?”
“Yes, Tyler will watch him until Jackson is strong enough to care for him.”
Darcy felt herself growing weak as they waited for close to three quarters of an hour. Belle got her some hot coffee and a bag of chips from the vending machine. Moving around had taken a lot out of her. She probably should be lying down in her bed, but she didn’t want to miss any news about Jackson or lose out on an opportunity to see him once he was out of surgery. He had been strong for her, so she would be strong for him.
Darcy sipped her coffee and waited with Belle, Lani and her personal protection officer.
A man dressed in surgical scrubs emerged from a hallway and walked toward them. They all stood.
“He’s been out of surgery for about half an hour and he’s awake. I didn’t want to alert you until he was stabilized. He can have one visitor at a time. If he starts to fatigue, we need to leave him so he can fully recover.” The surgeon turned toward Darcy. “Are you Darcy?”
She nodded.
“He’s been asking for you,” he said.
“You should go see him first then,” Belle said as she cupped a hand on Darcy’s shoulder.
The surgeon left and the officer escorted Darcy down the hall to the recovery room. It made her feel good to know that with no family close by, she was the first person Jackson had wanted to see.
“I’ll just be right outside the door,” the officer said.
“Thanks.”
Darcy stepped into the room. The paleness of Jackson’s expression and the way his skin seemed to hang on his face sent a shockwave through her.
“Hey, don’t look so glum.” Jackson gave her his trademark wink.
“She got to you.” Darcy moved to the side of his bed and leaned in close to him. Even his eyes had lost their brightness.
Jackson grabbed her hand. “It’s going to be okay.”
Tears flowed as she squeezed his hand tighter. “I hate seeing you like this.”
“Just part of the job,” he said.
She wiped at her eyes. “I’m sorry. I think I have finally reached my breaking point.”
“Don’t worry about the tears. You’re a strong lady, Darcy. Anyone else would have fallen apart way sooner.”
She met his eyes, seeing deep affection in his gaze. “So what did the doctors say about your injury?”
“The bullet tore up a lot of tissue. The damaged shoulder is not connected to my shooting hand, but I will probably be out of commission for a while. If I can work at all, I’ll probably be on light duty or behind a desk.”
The news upset her. Jackson was in his element when he was working with Smokey and the other K-9 officers. “I’m sure that won’t be easy. We have both been forced to take a vacation neither of us wanted.”
His expression grew serious. “Did you hear from anyone? Did they get Chloe?”
Darcy hated giving him the news that his valiant effort had all been for nothing. She shook her head. “I’m so sorry,” she said.
The disappointment in his features was intense.
She took a seat in the bedside chair, and they visited a while longer until Jackson started to nod off. She felt quite fatigued herself. She pushed herself to her feet but held on to the back of the chair for support. “I’ll come by later in the day, after you’ve had a good sleep.”
Though she could tell he was struggling to keep his eyes open, he managed another wink. “Or maybe I’ll come by and see you since I’m in the neighborhood.”
“I’m sure we’ll work something out.”
She made her way out of his room. The officer was waiting for her in the hallway. All the movement had made her rather achy and she was now kind of wishing for the wheelchair...
She was escorted to her new windowless room and, with some help from the nurse, got into her bed. She winced, the pain from her stomach wound intensifying.
“Still feeling some pain?” the nurse asked.
She nodded. “I think I overdid it.”
“We can get you some more pain medication.”
Darcy nodded again, struggling to stay awake. “I’m glad I got up and moved around.”
The nurse left and returned with pain medication and a pill to help her sleep.
Darcy slept, barely waking when the nurses came in to check her vitals, after which she fell into an even deeper sleep.
The next time she stirred, the room was dark, as was the hallway. A different officer was probably on duty outside her door by now. Someone was moving around in her room. She recognized a nurse’s uniform, though she wasn’t sure what the nurse was doing on the other side of the room so close to the bathroom.
Her eyelids were heavy as the nurse fussed around her bedside and then switched out the IV bag. Darcy was having a hard time putting her thoughts together. The sleep medication hadn’t worn off yet. She had no idea how long she’d been sleeping, and she didn’t have the strength to turn to check the clock on her bedside table.
She closed her eyes as the fog of fatigue overtook her.
She heard the nurse’s shoes pad softly out the door. She listened to the drip of the IV, feeling a stinging sensation at the point where the fluid entered her body.
Darcy’s eyes shot open. She grabbed the IV tube and squeezed it so no more of the fluid could reach her body. It had taken her a second to process what had been off about the nurse who had been in her room. The IV bag she had discarded had still been full.
Maybe it was just her imagination, but Darcy thought she could feel the little bit of poison that had gotten into her burning her veins. A sweat broke out on her forehead. Her heart raced.
She couldn’t reach her call button without letting go of the IV.
She cried out. “Somebody, help me! Please!” Though she feared that it would be Chloe who would return to her room.
A female officer stuck her head inside the room. “Is everything okay?”
“Use my call button to get medical staff in here. I’m pretty sure there’s poison in this IV.” Darcy fought off the dizziness. “I think some of it got into me. Chloe Cleaves was in my room. You need to find her before she gets away.”
“My instructions are to stay with you at all times.”
“Make an exception and see if you can get a search for her started. I don’t know if there are other officers in the building or what.”
“I’ll go as soon as the medical staff gets here,” the policewoman told her.
That seemed like the wisest thing in case Chloe was waiting around to make sure her handiwork had been successful.
The officer said “Did you see her? Do you know for sure it was Chloe?”
Darcy had no idea what Chloe had put in the IV, but her heart was beating
erratically. Was that just panic or was the poison something that would make her heart explode? Talking cohesively took some effort. “I never saw her face. I was half asleep. But she was acting weird. She didn’t take my vitals. She was standing over by the bathroom. The IV bag she discarded was still full.”
“That does sound suspicious,” the policewoman agreed.
The officer waited until a nurse and then a doctor entered, which took less than a minute.
The doctor looked at Darcy. “What’s going on here?”
Darcy let out a breath but could not form the words. She felt like she was shutting down. Her fear escalated. How much poison had gotten into her?
The female officer answered for her. “She thinks she might have been poisoned through that IV.”
Darcy had a hard time focusing as the doctor leaned in and disconnected the IV.
“I don’t want to take any chances. Let’s flush her system,” the doctor said to the nurse. “Take a blood sample to find out what’s in that IV. See if we can figure out what is going on. Let’s get this done. Stat.”
Still feeling like her brain was in ether, Darcy turned her head to where the woman she was pretty sure was Chloe had been. A chair with a plastic bag containing Darcy’s personal items had been pushed close to the bathroom. Her thoughts became foggy as she wondered if Chloe had taken something out of her bag.
SEVENTEEN
Jackson sat up in the hospital bed. He was bored out of his mind. Through the window, he saw that it was dark outside. He had slept through most of the day and into the night. Sitting still didn’t agree with him, let alone just lying in bed. He wanted to be moving, to be doing something, and he missed Smokey. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and stepped onto the floor with care. The painkillers were still working. His shoulder felt stiff and sore, but it wasn’t screaming with pain.
He walked over to the bag containing his personal items and pulled out his phone.
The only people he knew who would be up at this hour would be on-duty K-9 officers and he didn’t want to distract them while they were on the job.
There was a text message from Darcy. Just the sight of her name and number made him smile.
