by K. L. Donn
Before the black hole of unconsciousness took her, she saw them.
“Nick, Ace,” her words were almost inaudible, but she knew she was safe.
Chapter Fourteen
So much blood. Ace had never seen so much other than in war-torn countries. He expected it there. Here, at home? Not so much.
Seeing the contrast between the crimson red seeping down the mountainside as he chased up after Nick and the crisp whiteness of the snow had put the fear of God in him. He was afraid it was coming from Pepper, so when they heard her whimpering amongst the agonizing screams and growling, he’d felt sweet relief. She was alive. She would be okay. He hadn’t hurt her.
Except he had. Mentally.
She would remember his screams and the gore of his demise well into her life. She would carry the weight of guilt for leading him to his death.
Ace only saw one problem with that…
It wasn’t her burden to bear. Alex Medina had chosen his own path by not only attacking her and leaving her for dead, but he’d then stalked her. No matter how many chances he had to let her go, he hadn’t. There were plenty of opportunities for the man to move on. It was his decisions, and his alone, that ended with his demise.
Pepper wouldn’t see it that way, though. Their girl had a heart of gold. That’s why he knew it was up to him and Nick to make her understand it all.
When they’d found her in that cave curled into a ball at the back, his heart had stopped, and for an earth-shattering moment, he feared the worst. As Nick’s hand touched her shoulder, she let loose the loudest scream he’d ever heard. The way her pupils had dilated and her eyeballs had rolled back in her head, he’d known she would lose consciousness. For a fraction of a second, though, she’d focused long enough to see them, and he was grateful because it meant she’d known they were there and that she would be safe.
Now they were sitting in the E.R. waiting room of Golden & District Hospital as they waited to hear back on not only her condition but his Uncle Jake’s as well.
He suspected Jake had a concussion and would need stitches, not that the man was making it easy on anyone. He’d been complaining since they took him away that he was fine. Didn’t need no damn hospital.
Pepper, however, hadn’t woken up yet, and that worried them.
James had spent the better part of two hours explaining to his sergeant what the hell he was even doing in an incident like this. While Nick was stuck with a stack of paperwork, Ace had brushed it off the minute the RCMP tried to hand it to him.
He was the only lucky one with no one to officially answer to. So, he waited and drank burnt coffee, and watched as doctors and nurses floated around. But no one came to give him any information on Pepper.
The sun had set hours ago, and he was getting antsy. Murphy’s Law swore that as soon as he left the stuffy room smelling of antiseptic and stale food, someone would come with information. And so, he waited.
He watched other families get news on their loved ones. Sometimes good, usually bad.
He really didn’t want the bad.
The snick of the door opening had his head looking up as a doctor came in the room. “Mr. Wallace?” he asked softly.
“He’s in a conference room. I’m Pepper’s fiancé,” he lied. At least for now.
The doctor eyed Ace up and down, determining his worth before finally answering, “Alright, Mr. …”
“Mitchell.” He reached out to shake the man’s hand. “Ace Mitchell.”
“Ahhh, yes, the not so official deputy.” The doctor nodded. “Okay, here’s the deal. There are no physical marks anywhere on Pepper aside from superficial bruising and a few blisters from her boots. I understand she had to hike quite a ways while being chased?” Ace nodded confirmation, not wanting to imagine how scared she must have been. “Well, this is all normal then.”
“What’s not normal?” He was quick to ask.
“When she was brought in, her body temperature was quite low. Which with all her stress, she wouldn’t have noticed for quite a few more hours, but we’ve controlled that.” Ace’s mind was running in circles. “Her heart rate, though, is still quite low. Much lower than expected for someone so healthy.”
“A few weeks ago, she was attacked and left for dead on the side of the mountain. Sheriff Kelly and I found her before the first big storm,” he explained.
“Did she see a doctor?”
“Yes and no. She woke up with amnesia, and Nick’s neighbor is a doctor, so he came out to see her a couple times. Never said anything more than bruised ribs and a slight concussion.” Fuck, he hoped they hadn’t missed something there.
“Hmm, well, I suppose something could have been missed. Without testing being done, I have nothing to compare to now. In all honesty, deputy, it feels more like she’s taking a rest to heal.”
“That makes sense,” he murmured, more to himself than the doctor. “She saw something pretty horrific up there.”
“The body is a funny thing. In my opinion, I believe Pepper is probably in a healing sleep. Her mind has shut down to block the trauma while her heart is giving her time to move forward. We’ll continue to run tests and monitor her vitals, but it’s a waiting game.”
“Thanks, doctor,” he said as the man left the room.
“Let me know if you need anything or have any questions.” With that, he was gone.
Ace slumped into the chair he’d sat in before. Relief swamped him. Knowing there was nothing seriously wrong was huge. Having her locked in her mind was worrisome.
Nick’s impatience was wearing thin. The constable briefing him and James was irritating the hell out of him. Kept babbling about protocol, and laws, and a bunch of other shit he knew about but had ignored.
It wasn’t important then, and it sure as hell wasn’t now. All he wanted was to see Pepper. She was the only thing important to him.
“Sheriff!” the man snapped.
“What?” he gave him right back, ready to bite the man’s head off if need be.
“You could be written up for your actions,” he threatened.
The problem was, Nick hadn’t exactly done anything wrong, and that’s what was pissing the man off. Neither had James. Since Nick was Sheriff and had given James permission to work the case with him, there was no wrong doing.
“Look, Constable, you have nothing to hang a nail on, or you’d have done it by now. It’s not as though I shot and killed some perp for kicks. This man attacked and left Pepper for dead, tossed her off a fucking mountainside. Then when he learnt she was alive, he came after her. No two which ways about it. She ran into a cave because she feared for her life.”
“It’s not like she can control wild animals,” James helpfully pointed out.
The constable’s face turned a funny shade of red before he exploded. “Get out! Don’t ever let me catch you in some debacle like this again, or you’ll both fry!”
Ignoring the man, they both walked out of the conference room the hospital had allowed them to use. They were silent, both lost in their own thoughts as they walked back to the waiting room in hopes that Ace had received some news on Pepper’s condition.
Nearing an E.R. cubicle, they heard, “I got my daughter to check on. Hurry the hell up, or I’m leaving!’
“Shit.”
“That’s your dad?” James asked, laughing.
“The one and only.”
James walked with Nick. As he pulled back the curtain his father’s voice had come from, he admonished, “Dad, let ‘em do their job.” Knowing full-well, it wasn’t going to work.
“They’re pissing around. They’ve had plenty of time to stitch me together,” he complained.
“Dad, I need you to let them do this. I can’t worry about you and Pepper both,” he said, his dad’s eyes softening at his words. “Please.”
“Boy,” Jake wagged a finger at him. “Fine. You come back in ten minutes to get me, though. Whether they’re done or not.”
“Fine, Dad. Just sit s
till.”
They continued on their way to the waiting room.
“He’s quite the character,” James commented.
“He’s set in his ways,” Nick corrected.
When they came upon their destination, he saw Ace sitting against the far wall, holding his head in his hands looking defeated.
Opening the door, Nick rushed to his cousin. “Ace?”
The man stood. Nick had always admired him for his strength and courage, the ability to work in any environment and come out on top. So to see tears in his eyes threatened his own control.
“What happened?” he asked hoarsely.
Ace pulled him in by the shoulders for a hug tighter than they’d ever shared. “She’ll be okay,” he croaked, his voice full of emotion.
Fear. Relief. Overwhelming love.
Nick couldn’t describe the elation he felt as he asked, “Is she awake? Can we see her?”
As Ace pulled away, he knew there was bad news. “Her heart rate is low.” James stepped forward then. “They can’t find anything physically wrong with her, so the prognosis is that it’s psychological. Her body is taking the proper time she needs to heal.” His eyes darted between them. “Mentally. She’s in a bad way, guys.”
“Do they think she’ll have amnesia again?” James’ voice cracked that time.
Nick couldn’t imagine what the man must be feeling. Knowing his sister barely remembered him once, only to possibly go through it again, wouldn’t be easy to accept for anyone.
“We have to wait,” was all Ace could say.
And they did.
For three weeks, they waited, they watched, and they worried.
For the first time Nick could remember, he prayed daily. For Pepper to wake up, for her to remember them. For her to move forward into the life she deserved.
He fucking prayed until he lost faith.
Until she didn’t wake up.
Until she was gone.
Chapter Fifteen
“This is bullshit!” Ace exploded into Nick’s office where he’d been hiding away since James had taken Pepper home to Vancouver where she could get the best of care. Better than what Golden’s small hospital could offer.
They fucking fought tooth and nail, but in the end, it didn’t matter. James was her family; he and Nick were reduced to her fucking lovers.
They would die for the woman, and all the authorities saw them as were men who warmed her bed at night. He had nearly gone off the deep end on Nick when he’d stood there, watching, as they got her ready to leave by life flight.
Nick had been hiding in the sheriff’s office with the excuse of wanting to be close to the vet in case Roxie’s recovery wasn’t going well. It was a load of shit. As far as he was concerned, she was fine. Her wound had healed nicely, and while she was still a bit stiff, there was no reason to believe there would be issues.
“I’m not doing this again, Ace,” Nick said evenly, not even looking up from the report he was reading.
They had another debriefing in a few days to go over everyone’s actions of that day again. To find out why they’d dismissed protocol when finding Pepper. As far as he was concerned, it was their way of trying to nail them to the wall.
“Do you even care that she’s gone?” Ace hissed.
Nick finally lifted his gaze, pure malice in his eyes. “Don’t fucking put that on me. James took her. Told us he’d call with updates. We’ve heard nothing. Did it occur to your thick skull that she’s awake and asked not to see us? That we’re reminders of everything she went through? Or maybe she has no fucking memory again!”
Ace heard him. The problem was, he knew Nick was speaking from a place of hurt, not logical. They were both dying inside. They were forced to stay there, ordered by the county to not leave town until further notice. They had no choice but to wait. Even when calling the hospital, they never told them anything other than she was stable.
They said nothing about nightmares, or if she woke up, if she remembered. Fuck did he hope she remembered. She needed to know that when they gazed into her beautiful green eyes, they saw the future. That when she came apart for them, they got more pleasure than any other moment in time. She needed to know they would give her anything she desired if only she would remember.
“Are you giving up, Nick?” Ace finally mustered up the nerve to ask. If he was giving up, Ace didn’t know how he would proceed.
For the first time since James took Pepper a little over a week ago, Nick showed some emotion. He saw the sleepless nights reflected back at him.
“No! I won’t fucking give up on her even if she gives up on us. I just…shit…” He looked out the window before answering again. “I want her to want to be here because she can’t live without us. I want her happy, and if that’s without us, then so be it. But first, we need to get the county off our fucking asses.”
“Finally!” Ace breathed a sigh of huge relief. “I was worried you were done,” he admitted.
“Not in this fucking lifetime. Besides, if we don’t go after her, I think Dad might actually go for it.” Shit. He hadn’t thought about that.
“So, what do we do? The hospital isn’t giving us shit, and James hasn’t answered my calls.”
“Once the hearing’s over on Thursday, we go after her. Simple as that.”
With so much going on in the days leading up to their disciplinary hearing, Nick had barely left the department while Ace had been stuck at home repairing the cabin. He hadn’t meant to cause his cousin doubt, but thinking about Pepper without being able to see her sweet smile or hear her tinkling laughter, he’d been a fucking mess.
After Pepper had been admitted to the hospital, everything happened at warp speed. They’d barely gotten Roxie to the vet in time to save her life. She had needed multiple blood transfusions and had to stay under observation for a week before she’d been released. When he had taken her home, all she’d done was look for her mistress. The whining was incessant. She became incredibly sad as if she’d lost her best friend.
Nick had finally convinced Pepper’s doctor to allow Roxie to have just ten minutes in her room. The excitement and pleasure that rolled off the animal had been enough to acknowledge that whatever fine he may get for breaking the rules, it would have been worth it.
Taking the dog home was still difficult. For both of them.
Without Pepper, the house felt empty, lifeless. He didn’t want to be there, even to help with the repairs. Going to his dad’s felt just as lonely. So, he’d stayed in town, using Roxie as an excuse whenever Ace would ask about it.
It fucking hurt not having Pepper around. She’d been there for such a short time, and yet, she was the life in their lives, the happiness in their home.
She was theirs.
It was now the morning of the hearing, and he wasn’t looking forward to having to explain their relationship with Pepper to people he either barely knew or didn’t know at all. He wasn’t up for answering questions that were none of their business. Nonetheless, because he and Ace wanted to protect not only Pepper but potentially other citizens from town if Medina had decided he lost interest in her, they were the ones on trial.
Mind you, Alex Medina was dead. He understood they wanted to place blame on someone breathing, but frankly, he thought they should just let it go and accept that they did what they could under the circumstances.
“Mr. Kelly, Mr. Mitchell, come this way please.” A court officer approached them.
Following the man, Ace whispered in his ear. “It’s like they’ve sealed our fates already.”
Nick wasn’t too impressed with the lack of title before his name. He’d served Golden well, to the best of his fucking ability, and they were treating him like a criminal.
As they entered the tribunal room, he was shocked to see so many people in the pews. Along the front wall was a panel of seating for the mayor, two councilmen, and the superintendent of Kootney-Columbia County Sheriff’s Department. One empty chair remained.
; They walked in, sat where their lawyer pointed, and waited for the questions to commence. Before they could ask who the empty chair was for, Judge Maddox entered the room. One of the coldest sons of bitches Nick had ever witnessed in court. He had no compassion for criminals, especially predators.
“Gentleman, I apologize for my tardiness. My granddaughter just had to show me one more pirouette before I left her this morning.” It took a moment for him to realize the judge was talking to him and Ace.
“We were just shown in ourselves, Your Honor. Besides, family first.” He and Nick had mostly seen eye to eye on things involving the law; however, he had to admit that having the man oversee their hearing intimidated him quite a bit.
“Let’s begin then, shall we.” As the judge took his seat, Nick heard the door they had just walked through open again but didn’t turn around as he watched the men up front speak quietly. The Mayor said, “We bring this hearing to a start in the case of professional misconduct on behalf of Sheriff Nick Kelly and Deputy-in-training Ace Mitchell of the Golden, British Columbia Sheriff’s Department. Gentlemen, you understand why your actions in regards to amnesia victim Pepper Nicole Wallace and her attacker are under question here today?”
“Yes, sir,” Nick answered. They’d both agreed that unless directly called upon, Ace would remain quiet because he didn’t have much tolerance for his actions being taken into question.
“Before we begin, Mayor, I took the liberty of doing some digging of my own. Spoke to a few people and made a couple of calls. I’ll be honest, this feels more like a witch hunt for persecution than a hearing for justice. This is to place blame instead of finding the truth.” Judge Maddox shocked him with those words.
“Your Honor, this is– “
“I don’t care what this is. Frankly, it’s bullshit. Now shut your trap and listen. I had the pleasure of speaking to a very smart young woman, a passionate woman. I think she deserves to have her say now.” Nick’s entire body froze. His eyes closed as he turned. “After all, this was her life on the line.”
