No Greater Love
Page 6
He sat on the edge of the bed, and carefully lifted the blanket, then opened the boy’s shirt. Like the others, his femoral artery had been opened, so he’d bled little after being stabbed. The killer was merciful, even if they were crazy. The poor kid probably never woke up.
His gaze wandered over the bed—and landed on a small hair comb, almost hidden by the edge of the blanket. He picked it up. “Does this look familiar?”
A gasp turned him around, and he met Victoria’s wide eyes. “Yes,” she whispered, her face pale. “It belongs to Katherine.”
VICTORIA REFUSED TO believe that Katherine had anything to do with this.
She led Nick and Major Philips to the second med hut, where Katherine was on duty, and had been since before dawn.
Katherine adored the soldiers, so much that she nearly broke down every time one of them passed because of their wounds, or the infections they still fought every day.
“Sister Belham. I did not expect to see you until...” Her voice faded as Victoria stepped aside, revealing Nick and the Major. “What is going on?”
“Please come with me, Sister Sykes.” Major Philips gestured to the door. “I have a few questions.”
Her eyes darted from him to Victoria. “What is—”
“It will be all right, Katherine. I am coming with you.” She looked at Major Philips, her gaze daring him to refuse her. She would not allow Katherine to face these ridiculous accusations alone. “One of the men was killed this morning.”
Katherine covered her mouth with one hand, tears filling her brown eyes. “Like the others?”
“Yes.” Victoria eased her hand down, twined their fingers together. “Major Philips has a few simple questions for you. All you need to do is answer them, and we can go back to our hut and have a nice lie down.”
“All right.” Katherine squeezed her hand, so tightly Victoria’s constantly aching fingers throbbed.
Major Philips nodded, and strode out of the hut. Every other nurse stared at them, keeping their distance from Victoria and Katherine, as if they had some contagion. Victoria glared at them until they turned away and went back to their duties. It would not stop the rumors from flying, but she planned to put a stop to them before they became rampant.
Right now, she had to support her nurse, and end this foolish interrogation as quickly as possible.
Nick joined her as they followed Major Philips to the administration hut. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t think he’d jump all over you like a criminal.”
“This is hardly your fault, Nick. You simply found the comb.”
Katherine’s hand fluttered to her mouth. “My comb?” Her voice was faint. “I thought I had lost it...”
“No more talking,” Major Philips said. “I will ask her questions. The two of you will remain silent. Are we understood?”
Victoria nodded, saw Nick do the same. As long as she was allowed to stay with Katherine, she was willing to agree to his terms.
They entered the foyer of the hut, and around the makeshift wall to Major Philip’s office. He ordered the closest soldier to usher everyone else out of the hut, then gestured to the chair. Victoria squeezed Katherine’s hand, nodding in encouragement before she let go. Katherine moved to the chair and sank into it, her fingers twisting into the apron that covered her gown.
Major Philips leaned against the front of the small desk and crossed his arms.
“I need to know where you were early this morning, Sister Sykes, and if anyone can verify your whereabouts.”
“I—” She swallowed. “I was in the med tent, making rounds. I do this at the start of every shift, to check the men, see if they need anything.”
“And they can vouch for you.”
“Most of them were sleeping,” she whispered. “It was before dawn, and I do not wake them if it is not necessary. They need what rest they can find.”
“Of course.” Major Philips pushed off the desk and stood over her. “What about staff? Did any of the other nurses see you? Speak with you?”
“I was the first on duty. Sister Wood came in just after sunrise, but I do not know if she saw me. I left to check the second med tent, and you...” She fought a sob, and lowered her head. “I would never hurt them, sir. I came here to protect them, keep them from dying—”
She started crying.
“Enough, Major.” Victoria crouched beside Katherine and embraced her. “All you have is a comb that most likely fell out of her hair when she leaned over to check him. I will not allow you to grill her like this without more reason.”
“Sister Belham—”
“I am in charge of not only their schedules, but their welfare.” She stood and moved between Katherine and the angry Major. “From this point on, you will go through me, and not attack my girls. Do we have an understanding?”
His jaw worked, and Victoria had a feeling he was silently cursing her. Finally, he unclenched his jaw enough to answer her.
“We do, Sister. I expect to have access to them, once I have spoken to you.”
“Of course.” She helped Katherine to her feet and guided her out of the hut, heading across the camp. “I want you to rest for the remainder of the day, dear heart.”
“Yes, Sister.”
Katherine refused to say anything else, so Victoria left her in their tent and closed the flap. She turned around—and bit back a scream when she ran straight into a broad chest.
“Sorry, beautiful. I was too busy admiring the view to warn you I was in front of your door.”
Nick smiled down at her, his right arm cradled against his chest. She looked closer, and behind the humor she saw the pain he tried to hide from her.
“I want to take another look at your shoulder,” she said.
“No need. I slept on it wrong. Not the first time, and it won’t be the last. The cold isn’t helping.” He caught her wrist as she reached for his shoulder. “I’m fine, Victoria. All I need at this point is time.”
She knew he was right. He also took away her excuse to touch him again.
“If you are hurting, I do have medicine I can give you.”
“I’d prefer a more personal approach.” He winked at her, and she could not stop a laugh from breaking free. “What do you say, Mrs. Belham? Will you go on a date with me?”
“A date?” What he was asking sank in, and he found herself blushing. “Are you attempting to court me, Captain?”
“Badly, from your reaction.”
“No—I was simply surprised. I have not been courted since I was a girl.” She smiled. “I quite like it, so far.”
He took her hand and led her around to the back of her hut, then wrapped his arm around her and hauled her forward, their lips an inch apart. “Wait until the actual date, beautiful.” His lips brushed hers, and she had to clutch the lapel of his coat as her knees went weak. “Can you do two things for me?”
“What?” Her voice was barely more than a whisper.
“Wear your hair loose, and come smelling like roses.” He pressed a kiss to her throat, and she let out a moan. “You drive me to distraction, Victoria.”
She swallowed, already wanting to backpedal. This man overwhelmed her, and had her dreaming of a life beyond this camp, this war.
“Nick—”
“No backing out. As far as I’m concerned, you said yes, and I’m making you stick to it.” He looked at her, his green eyes sober. “My life depends on you keeping your word.”
“What is it?” She cradled his cheek, startled by the intensity he showed her at odd times. “Please, Nick, tell me.”
“I wish I could, beautiful. But you have to be the one to step forward. That’s all I can say.”
He startled her by kissing her, in front of any sort of witnesses who may walk across the field behind her hut, pulling her in until her body was molded to his. Every time he held her like this, kissed her like this, she felt herself falling deeper.
Perhaps it was time to let go, let herself fall completely.
Who knew what tomorrow would bring? Every day she survived this war was a victory. Why should she spend those days alone?
Because he will break your heart.
The voice in her mind shocked a gasp from her.
Nick eased back, cradling her cheek. “What is it? Victoria—you’re white as a sheet. Tell me what’s wrong.”
“Nothing,” she said. She took a deep breath, and eased out of his embrace. “It has been a difficult few days, and I expect it is catching me up. When is this date you have promised me?”
He studied her for endless moments, then let it go. “Tonight, if that’s convenient for you.”
Disappointment nearly crushed her. “I am doing a much-needed inventory of the pharmacy tonight. We are down to almost nothing on some of our supplies, after being inundated with soldiers the past weeks. I am sorry, Nick.”
“No problem. They come first.” He swallowed, and almost managed to hide the flash of fear in his eyes. “Tomorrow night?”
Relief spread through her, and she was finally thankful for the haphazard schedule she had been trying to sort since she was given charge of the nurses. Just the last few days, they had finally been able to breathe—and she had been able to give the nurses more than an hour at a time to rest. “I believe that may be possible, now that things have settled a bit. You know where I live, Captain.”
“I do indeed.”
“But please, do me the favor of being discreet. Relationships are frowned upon, and I will not be sent home because I have a difficult time saying no to you.”
“Got it. Stealthy and discreet.” He kissed her one more time, leaving her breathless and hot with desire.
She braced her hand against the wall for a moment, to catch her breath. When she was certain of herself, she moved around to the front, and watched him stride across the camp, maneuvering the narrow duck board as if he walked it every day. The man was an enigma, more mystery than certainty.
One finger touched her sensitized lips, and tried to forget the invading voice.
If Nick Saunders was going to break her heart, she would find all the joy she could before it happened.
She was tired of living her life alone.
Eight
NICK HAD HIGH hopes for tonight. His time was running down fast, and a sense of panic started to ride him.
He shrugged it off again, like he’d done all day. Victoria cared about him—he knew that much from her response every time he touched her. No woman kissed a man like she did unless her heart was involved. But he was at the end of day three, and not as sure of her as he wanted to be.
After a final check in the small, dingy mirror, he ran one hand through his hair. He’d found a dark green shirt and matching tweed trousers in the late doctor’s wardrobe. The man had an extensive selection, and Nick was grateful that they’d been a similar size—especially in the inseam.
He pulled the black wool coat on, then eased the door to his hut open, checking the boardwalk in front. His roommate, Major Reed, was off terrorizing nurses, which made it easier to sneak out. Nick felt like a teenager; the only part missing was crawling out the window and climbing down the tree.
One last thing, and he would head over to her.
He’d seen the wildflowers in the field behind her hut, and wanted to bring her something to show how serious he was about courting her. It felt strange, going after a woman. He’d spent his life picking and choosing from the women who went after him.
“That was your problem, Saunders,” he muttered. “Too damn cocky for your own good.”
Adriana’s curse had yanked that right out of him.
Now, he treasured his feelings for Victoria, in a way he never thought he could.
He stepped out of the hut and made his way to the field, keeping to the shadows. It was dark beyond the camp, the moon covered by dark clouds, but light filtered from every hut and tent. He did not want to have to explain why he was taking a late night walk, dressed in dark clothes.
The wildflowers waved at him in the breeze, and he reached down to pick a few of them.
A wild scream spun him toward the camp.
One of the nurses burst out of what Victoria called a special tent, where they kept the seriously ill patients. Nick reached her first, catching her arm when she threatened to tumble off the boardwalk.
“Dead,” she gasped. “The poor private is dead.”
“Stay here.” He ducked inside, and halted two steps in. There was no need to get closer. This time, the killer had left the knife in the victim’s chest. “Shit.”
If only he could find a way to pull fingerprints off the knife hilt. But finding a match would be close to impossible without a suspect, in a camp of hundreds.
Tom Philips appeared next to him, swearing under his breath. “This must stop.” He glanced over at Nick, then did a double take. “Out on an evening walk?”
“Something like that. I’d just left the hut when I heard her scream.”
Philips scrubbed at his face. “How am I supposed to trap a killer in a camp filled with possible suspects?”
Nick looked over his shoulder before he answered, to make sure they were alone.
“I might be able to narrow it down. I think your angel is a woman.”
PHILIPS TOOK NICK to the relative privacy of his hut, and stationed two soldiers outside to keep it that way. He lowered himself to the edge of the bed, and gestured to the small desk chair.
“Tell me.”
Nick shrugged out of the heavy coat and sat in the chair. “I was an—investigator of sorts, before the war.” He’d done a stint as MP, but he didn’t know the British equivalent, or if there had been one in this time. “The nurses have the knowledge, and the access to a weapon sharp enough to open the femoral artery.”
Philips rubbed the bridge of his nose. “A scalpel.”
“Right. They don’t want to cause any more pain, and until tonight, they left their victim dressed, the blanket pulled up.”
“A man would be messier.”
“And less concerned about the last seconds of life.” Nick pushed his overlong bangs off his forehead. “A man wouldn’t think of planting a hair comb to draw suspicion away from him.”
Philips smiled. “True. I find a woman’s hair implements one of their many deep, unfathomable mysteries.” His smile faded, and he leaned forward. “Sister Sykes is far too skittish to have even thought of stabbing a man to death. I am honestly surprised she has lasted here. That leaves only every other nurse in the camp.” He sighed, staring at the floor. “Who the bloody hell would kill in the midst of war? There is already so much death.”
Nick shook his head. “An angel of death thinks they’re offering mercy, an end to suffering.”
Philips looked at him. “You said you have seen this before. Where?”
At a base hospital in Germany, but he wasn’t about to tell the truth.
“In the States.” Not a complete lie. It had been an American base. “When she was caught, she said she was sending them to a better place.”
“Good God.”
“Yeah.” Nick flexed his right shoulder, trying to relieve some of the stiff, throbbing ache. It didn’t help. He was sure he was headed for a long, sleepless night—and not the type of sleepless night he had planned when he walked out earlier. “Whoever’s doing this absolutely believes they’re doing what’s best for their victim. You won’t know by looking at them. Unfortunately, crazy doesn’t usually show on the surface until after they’re caught.”
“I know you are a patient here, Nick, but I am going to ask for your assistance.”
“I’ll be glad to help, for as long as I’m here.”
He walked out of the hut, and saw Victoria in one of the groups that had gathered, comforting the nurse who had found the latest victim. She met his gaze, her blonde hair brushing the collar of the long coat she wore over a yellow dress she’d obviously put on for their date.
Nick strode over to her, ignoring her panicked glance. She
was composed by the time he reached her. “How is she?”
“Traumatized. Thank you for stopping to help her.”
“I was in the neighborhood.”
A blush spread over her cheeks. She lowered her head to murmur to the nurse, and stray curls fell forward to cover her embarrassment.
Watching her with the sobbing nurse, so strong, so kind, Nick felt himself fall. Even if he was trapped by the curse again, he knew he would leave loving her.
“I need to ask you a few questions, Sister Belham.” She looked startled at his formal tone.
“Of course. Let me escort Sister Abbott back to her tent. Shall I meet you in front of the officer’s mess?”
A public place. Too public to hold her hand, or cradle her cheek, or steal a kiss. “Fine.”
She led Sister Abbott toward the small, bell-shaped tents. Nick watched her, his need for her a constant ache now. He wanted to make love to her, but the ache went deeper than that. Victoria Belham had found her way into his heart.
AFTER SETTLING GRACE, who had clung to her like a child, crying until she exhausted herself, Victoria made her way to the officer’s mess.
She found Nick easily; he was at least a head taller than most of the men here, his hair longer than regulation allowed, his face arresting, even in a sea of men. It took all her focus to keep her expression neutral as she waved to him from the doorway.
They should have been in each other’s arms by now, perhaps even—
Heat spread over her cheeks at the thought of him making love to her. She had never been remotely interested before Nick tumbled into her life. Now, hardly a minute went by without her thinking of him.
“Hopeless, Victoria,” she muttered. “You are hopeless.”
Nick stood, and made his way to her, flinching when one of the orderlies stood, brushing his right shoulder. She knew his injuries bothered him, and made a mental note to check it later; doing so would give her an excuse to spend time with him.
“How’s your nurse?”