“No, I’m just heading home from the vet with Kat and Tannya.” I told him.
“That’s right. I forgot about her appointment. Did they find anything?” he sweetly asked.
“Yeah, heartworm. She should be okay though, we caught it early. She’s on meds for a week and then she goes back for a re-check. Are you still at work?”
“I’m just leaving, I need to get some sleep. They gave me the rest of the weekend off to catch up. I was just … missing you. I was really worried last night. That was scary. I … I didn’t like not knowing where you were,” he said.
He sounded emotional. It put me right to tears. I wasn’t able to handle anything at that point. I just wanted sleep.
“Can you come over?” I asked through tears. “I don’t want to be alone.”
“Yes. I’m on my way, sweetness,” he said and disconnected.
Kat shot me a sympathetic look from the rear-view mirror. I wiped my tears away and looked out the window. Ten minutes later, we pulled up to the building and went into my apartment. Tannya jumped in the shower and got ready for shopping, and Kat and I sat and talked some more about last night. A little while later, Derek buzzed and I let him up. Tannya was dressed in black spandex pants stretched to the max and a bright pink oversized hoodie. At least it covered her butt. Tannya walked over to the door and slipped on some white-and-blue tennis shoes. Kat looked at me and rolled her eyes. I smiled and mouthed, “Good luck.” Tannya popped to her feet and announced she was ready. We agreed to call each other about 5:00 p.m. I bid them farewell and shut the door behind them.
“Hi,” I said exhausted, turning to Derek and hugging him. He took a long time to let go. “Are you hungry?”
“No, I just want to curl up on that couch with you and sleep,” he told me and kissed my forehead.
I noticed that he’d changed into Minnesota Gopher sweatpants and a maroon t-shirt. He must have run home first.
“Sounds perfect,” I told him.
I went into the bedroom and grabbed a bunch of pillows and some blankets from the hall closet and joined him on the couch. When I returned, I noticed he’d flipped on ESPN and was settled in. I curled right up next to him, covered up, and reached over and turned my phone off. Derek turned his to vibrate.
I wondered what was going on with Cory and Kyle. I was comforted knowing they were behind bars and would remain that way for a long time. But I didn’t want to talk about it. I just wanted to close my eyes. Faith came over, climbed onto the top of the back of the couch, spun in three circles, and lay down. Derek put his arm across my stomach and pulled me in nice and close.
He leaned in close to my ear and whispered, “Thank you.”
“For what?” I asked him.
“For helping me find the man that almost killed my sister … and for your bravery. I couldn’t have done it without you, Sara. So, thank you.”
I smiled gently and pressed my face into his chest and closed my eyes. He gently kissed my forehead, leaving his lips there for an extra second.
Then he whispered, “I love you.”
After I squeezed him softly, I snuggled in deeper and fell asleep.
I woke up a couple hours later. Derek was wriggling away. He got up and went to the bathroom then went back to sleep, on the floor this time, with the extra pillow and blanket we hadn’t used. I stretched out on the couch happy to have some space. My body was achy. I was pretty beat up, scratched up, and I was really beginning to feel it.
I fell asleep again until 4:30 p.m. After I woke up and lay there for a minute, I went to the kitchen and drank a glass of water and used the bathroom. I looked at myself in the mirror and was disturbed. The little makeup I’d had on was gone, and my hair was a disaster. I stood there trying to decide if I cared or not. I stuck my tongue out at my reflection and went back to the kitchen. I was starved.
I looked through the cupboards and fridge and freezer and was not surprised to find that there wasn’t any food. I hadn’t been here long enough to go grocery shopping in a while. So, instead I grabbed my laptop and put in an order to Domino’s Pizza. Derek was stirring a little on the floor. Tip-toeing quietly, I grabbed my phone and sent a text to Kat: Slept some, still tired, not going out tonight. Derek’s here, pizza ordered. How’s it goin’?
A few seconds later I got a response: Good. Two new outfits, ones that are in style, three new pairs of shoes, lunch, and hair did!!
Hair did?
Yup. Now all blonde, not blonde with black root. Plus a conditioning treatment. She’s never used conditioner!
Wow.
I’m gonna take her to dinner and then she and Greg are going to a movie and out for a drink. He’ll drop her at your place later. I’ll meet up with Wes and friends.
Okay. Have fun, Thanks!! I typed then set my phone down. Derek rolled over and grabbed my ankle.
“Hey, you,” he said to me with a sleep voice.
I looked down to him and asked, “Are you hungry?”
“Yes, starved. Now that you’re okay, and Cory’s locked up, I feel like I can stomach some food,” he told me.
“Agreed. I ordered pizza. And I have a bottle of wine in the freezer chilling. I also have some dessert pizza coming. This here is a five-star apartment,” I said with a nod.
He rolled his eyes and laughed. My phone buzzed, it was a text. I looked at the screen as Derek reached for the TV remote.
“Hey, Sara, just checking in. Rumor round these parts is that you and Tannya have gone missing. LOL. You two okay? Rex.”
I laughed quietly to myself and I responded.
“Ha, fine here. Well, at least now I am. Tannya’s visiting me here in the Cities at my apartment. We should both be back in a day or two. Thanks for checking. :)”
Good to hear. Coffee when you get back? My treat …
Sure, I’ll let you know when I’m back! I responded, then set down my phone.
I slid down to the floor and curled up in Derek’s warm blankets while he flipped through channels.
“I plan on doing this the rest of the night. You’re welcome to stay as long as you want,” I told him.
He looked me up and down twice.
“Okay, thanks. I’ll for sure stay through dessert pizza and wine,” he said with a wink.
The buzzer rang, and I let the pizza man up. When he knocked on the door I answered and traded the money for the pizza. I always felt like I was doing something wrong when I took a box from a bag, and handed a strange man cash and walked away. I live a dangerous life!
Derek and I ate pizza and drank pop and watched movies for a couple hours. We drank wine, ate dessert pizza, and watched another movie. When that movie ended, I stood up and picked up our carpet picnic. He stood and helped me. I was loading the last of the dishes into the dishwasher when he walked up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. Then he leaned in and kissed my neck. Heat rushed through my body. I turned around and faced him. He pressed me back against the counter with his body, and we kissed. His kisses were sweet … like dessert pizza frosting. Yummo!
When we parted, I took his hand and led him to my bedroom. He locked eyes with me and stepped into me again. He kissed me intensely as he slid my shirt over my head. The shirt hit the floor as we slowly lowered to the mattress. The rest of the night consisted of well … we didn’t talk much!
In the morning, I woke to pots and pans banging and the smell of bacon, which was strange since I knew I didn’t have any food in the house. It brought me back to the first night Derek stayed at the cabin with me. He had been there on business, and I didn’t know him very well. We didn’t share a room, but in the morning he’d made a delicious breakfast. I was pretty sure I’d fallen in love with him that morning.
I rolled over and looked around the room as I thought intently about the day before. It had been a crazy couple of days. I knew Derek loved me. And I loved him too, but I wasn’t sure how to go about saying it with meaning. I should have done it last night. Last night was amazing!
“Good morning,” I said with a yawn.
“Hey, glad you slept well,” Derek responded. “You didn’t even move when Tannya buzzed at 2:30 this morning. I got up and let her in.”
“Oh, my gosh, thank you. I know. I slept like a rock!”
He looked me up and down.
“I’d like to take some credit for that.”
He gave me a smug look and turned back to the stove, smiling. He was pleased with himself. I couldn’t really argue.
“Hungry? I’ve got bacon and cheese omelets, and strawberry French toast going. It’s almost done.”
I picked Faith up off the floor and gave her medicine, then put food in her bowl. She went over to the bowl and ate. I hadn’t noticed any puke piles, so I hoped she was getting better. I looked around. The table was set, juice was made, and breakfast was almost finished.
“You must have been up really early.”
“Yeah, I woke up at 2:30 and then again at 7:00. I couldn’t get back to sleep, so I ran to the grocery store and got a few things,” he said taking the French toast out of the oven and placing it on the table.
I grabbed the juice, mashed strawberries, and the Cool Whip from the counter and set them on the table then sat down. It was nice to be spoiled! Derek put an omelet on each of our plates, set the pan back on the stove and sat down next to me. He grabbed my hand, kissed it, then held it as he said a quick thanks to the Lord for everyone’s well-being and the food on the table. He released my hand and winked.
“Dig in!” he said.
“Thank you. This is so nice, Derek.”
We ate and talked a little about last night. He told me that Cory and Kyle were both wanted on multiple charges and that they would both be going away for quite a while. He said that I would probably have to go to court at some point to testify. Derek assured me that it would be an open and shut case, so I would be in and out. We finished eating and cleaned up the mess, leaving a plate in the fridge for Tannya. Derek grabbed the dish towel from my hand and set it down. He led me to the couch and guided me to sit next to him.
“I want to ask you something, just between you and me. I didn’t want to ask you Friday night, when the other officer was there getting statements but…” I knew what he was going to ask. “Did Cory or Kyle sexually assault you?”
He looked very serious and very concerned. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “Yes. Well, Kyle tried, but I got away,” I said nervously.
“What did he do?” he pushed.
I really didn’t want to go into it, but I understood his concern, and maybe his fear, after our being together last night.
“Cory got high on meth and passed out. Kyle grabbed me in the kitchen, threw himself on top of me, and started to touch me. I fought like crazy and was able to flip to my stomach. I tried to crawl away. He pulled me back, flipped me on my back and pulled his pants and underwear down. He was sitting on me, straddling me and was trying with both hands to pull my pants down, so I punched him as hard as I could in the nose. He got off me and went to lean over the sink because he was bleeding. I picked up a chair and hit him on the back with it. He fell down, and I ran away to the shed. The rest you know.”
Derek’s eyebrows were pushed together and I could feel his anger. He nodded and took a deep breath.
“You’re so brave, Sara. Good for you. You did everything right. You have to fight for your life or the bad guys will steal it from you,” he said, then sighed and kissed my hand.” I’m so glad you got away. I was so scared for you. We were doing everything we could, and I was going crazy not knowing where you were.”
I looked down at my arms. One of my scratches was itching.
“Look at you, you got really beaten up. You have a bite mark on your neck too.”
“That’s from Kyle right before he pushed me on the floor.”
“He’ll get everything he’s got coming to him. That jerk will make lots of friends in prison. The boys down there will take good care of him. When the guards know that a man has assaulted a woman, they tend to let stuff slide, so justice can be had, if ya know what I mean. I don’t condone it, but I don’t work there, and I don’t hear all the bragging about how they’ve harmed women.”
“Geez. Don’t ever work there,” I requested.
Derek stood and stretched, “Well, I’m going to go home and shower. It’s Sunday. Are you heading back to Nisswa today?”
“No. I’ll probably go back on Monday morning. I’ll see if Ginger or Maureen can take my shifts Monday and Tuesday, so I can have a little break. I have to stop by my parents and catch them up. Then I want to do some shopping … maybe get a massage.” I said and stood up.
“I can help you with that. I won’t even charge you.” Derek said eagerly.
“Aww, thanks. Aren’t you sweet?”
I shoved him towards the door. He pulled his tennis shoes on and stood close to me.
“Thanks for last night,” he said an inch from my lips.
“Thank you … I love you,” I finally told him.
Faith came over and rubbed on Derek’s leg. She loved him too.
Chapter Nineteen
Derek had a smile from his eyes to his lips. He gave me a quick, passionate kiss.
“See ya, sweetness,” he said, then disappeared out the door.
I took a deep breath and walked back into the living room and sat on the couch. I called my mom and dad and told them that I would be over at about 4:00 p.m. It was already noon now. I wanted to shower and hit the mall first. I grabbed my robe from my room and went into the bathroom.
When I got out, I dressed in dark, denim jeans and a long, fitted, dark-orange sweater with an oversized collar, and rider boots over my jeans. I went into the kitchen and saw Tannya grabbing some juice out of the fridge. She was still in the clothes from her second night out, which were a lot more tasteful than Friday night’s apparel. She was all wrinkled, but looked pretty good wearing a polyester/rayon shirt with a small triangle print on it that was blue, black, and white. Her oversized bottom was covered in dark, denim jeans that were a straight leg fit, and made her look a lot lighter than she was. She looked really good.
“Hey, girl!” she said with a big wave, as if I’d just walked through the doors of Morning Glory.
Her energy was insane.
“Hi, I’m so sorry I didn’t hear you come home last night. I apparently slept like a rock,” I told her. “Love the hair color by the way, it looks much healthier.”
“Thanks,” she said. “And no problem. Derek let me in,” she said with a smile and raised eyebrows. “I’m glad you’re feeling better.”
I went to the fridge and pulled out her plate.
“Compliments of Derek!” I said handing it to her.
“Oh, wow! He’s a keeper! Thank you.” She took the plastic off and put the plate in the microwave. “So what’s your plan for the day?”
“Well, I’m going to head to the mall now. I need to do some shopping. And then I told my parents I’d be there at four for a visit and probably supper. I think I’ll go back to Nisswa on Monday morning. If you want to come shopping with me you can. You’re welcome to stay as long as you’d like.”
“Oh, thanks, but I’ll probably head home after breakfast … or lunch,” she said with a laugh. “I need to finish that painting project and get my kitchen back in order. But thanks for the offer.”
I sat with her at the table and we talked while she ate. I told her about my night, and she told me about what happened after I disappeared. Tannya said I should call Blake. He was drunk and confused and worried about me when they dropped him off. She put her plate and cup in the dishwasher and went to the guest bedroom to get her things together. While she did that I called him.
“Hello?” Blake answered.
“Hey, Blake, it’s Sara. Just wanted to give you a call and let you know that I’m home and fine. Tannya said you were kinda worried.”
“Oh, thank God,” he said with a big breath. “Yes, I was worried! I just got off the phone with Kat. She promised to call me and finally did this morning, How are you holding up?”
“Oh, I’m fine. I’m glad she called you. I didn’t really think about it ’til now. The last two days are kind of a blur,” I explained. “But, I’m good, and I’ll pencil you in for our meeting next month. Same time and place?”
“Sure. Sounds great, Sara. Thanks again for calling. You take care.”
“Thanks, I will,” I told him and hung up.
That wasn’t as awkward as I thought it would be. At least he didn’t bring up the kiss again. Tannya came out of the room with her two bags in hand. She had changed in to bright Zubaz pants and a sweat shirt. I laughed, accidentally out loud, when she came walking out. She noticed and stopped in her tracks.
“What? You like my pants?”
“Oh, my gosh! How long have you had those? I remember those from middle school!”
“How long? How long? One day, girl! I got these yesterday at the Mall of America!” she proudly announced.
She very confidently put her tennis shoes on and tossed her bag over her shoulder.
“I can tell you where I got them if you want to get a pair,” she said.
I waved my hands at her.
“Oh, no, that’s okay.” I told her. “I’ve got lots of pants already.”
“Suit yourself. These here pants have personality, and probably need a certain type of person to wear them,” she told me.
I felt kinda insulted. What? She thinks my personality is not big enough for Zubaz. Huh!
“Right. They are a little much for me,” I agreed. I handed her some money. “Here’s for cat-sitting and delivering Faith to me. I really appreciate it,” I told her.
“Oh, thanks. It was no problem at all. I had more fun and excitement this weekend than most people should be allowed to have.”
She took the money, put it in her purse and then opened the door.
Found and Destroyed: The Second Sarah Martin Mystery Page 18
