by AJ Quinn
Her sight clear of the fear that still jittered at the edges of her mind, she looked around, confused that she wasn’t in her bed. Or even in her own cabin. It took a moment longer for her to recognize she was on Dana’s sofa, wrapped in a blanket that held the clean, fresh, and tantalizing essence she thought of as uniquely Dana. And that Bogart’s cold wet nose was nuzzling her neck.
She reached and stroked him, puzzled for a moment by the bandages on her hand, then remembered the painful search for the missing boys. Seven of nine was better than they’d had any right to expect. Or hope. But she was sad for the families of the two who would never return. A fatigue, heavy and deep, settled to the depths of her soul.
Wrapping the blanket around her shoulders for warmth, she went to the door and opened it. Beyond the front steps, the snow-covered trees looked more blue than white, while stars filled the sky. It was peaceful. Beautiful. The remnants of her nightmare receded. And when she felt the press of a soft feminine body against her back, the perfect scene was complete.
“How come you’re up? Did you have another nightmare?”
Turning slowly, Kellen lifted the blanket until Dana was under it with her, sharing their combined warmth. “How is it you’ve known me for such a short time and yet you know me so well?”
“Does it bother you that I do?”
“I’ve no frame of reference for it, but…no. I don’t think so.”
“Good.”
Stepping back inside, Kellen shut the door. “When I awoke, I found myself on your sofa with no memory of how I ended up there.”
Dana laughed softly. “You and the girls brought dinner over. I don’t think you managed more than two spoonfuls of soup before you fell asleep.”
Kellen felt her face heat. “I’m sorry. I can’t believe I did that.”
“There’s nothing to apologize for. You were exhausted. You slept while the girls and I ate, cleaned up, and took Bogart out. When we came back, you were still dead to the world, so we covered you in a blanket, the girls went back to their cabin, and I went to bed.”
“I’m still—”
Dana pressed her fingers against Kellen’s lips. “Don’t, Kellen. You did nothing wrong. You were tired. You’re still tired unless my eyes are deceiving me. And so am I. So why don’t we just go back to bed. Anything that needs to be said can wait until morning. All right?”
Kellen nodded and slowly moved toward the sofa, only to be stopped by Dana. “What’s wrong?”
“I said bed, Kellen. Let’s go to bed.” Dana reached up and cupped her cheek. “You’re too tired and so am I. But I want you in my bed. And I believe you’ll find your dog’s already there. Nothing’s going to happen tonight, if that’s what worries you.”
“Sorry about Bogart.” Kellen laughed softly. “And for the record, it doesn’t worry me.”
Chapter Fourteen
Late into the night, Dana gazed at the hollows and angles of Kellen’s face. Long after she’d mumbled that she didn’t want to dream anymore, she’d fallen asleep beside her. Facedown in an exhausted, limp sprawl.
“No more dreams tonight,” Dana murmured. “Tell me what to do. Tell me what you need.”
Kellen hadn’t stirred. But at least her mind seemed quiet. For the moment, not troubled by whatever dreams and memories seemed to plague her. Dana took some satisfaction in that, as she closed the distance between them and drifted off to sleep.
But in the hazy light of morning, Dana awoke alone. The thought bothered her more than it should have as she breathed in Kellen’s lingering scent. The bedding was cool to the touch, telling her she’d been gone for some time. With the memory of Kellen’s scent still filling her mind, Dana got up, made the bed, and headed for the shower.
When she returned to the bedroom, however, it was to a different scent—freshly brewed coffee. She smiled as she spotted Kellen by her bed, having just poured some into a mug. And the steam rising smelled like heaven.
“Sorry. I guess I took too long feeding Bogart and taking him for a quick run. I’d hoped to find you still in bed, where you could enjoy coffee and this.” She sounded apologetic as she pointed to a fat copy of the New York Times on the bed. “I’m not scheduled to work until this afternoon, and it’s one of my favorite ways to spend a lazy morning.”
“That would have been nice.” Her stomach fluttered at the image Kellen’s comment evoked, but she ignored it. “Since the bed’s already made, why don’t we light a fire and enjoy the Times and coffee on the sofa? We can split sections then share the crossword. And I can toast some bagels if you’re hungry.”
It pleased Dana to see Kellen’s quick, amused agreement.
As they took opposite ends of the sofa with the paper spread out between them, she noticed Kellen’s hands were still bandaged, but she was using them more freely. “Your hands seem better this morning. Do you want me to take a look?”
Quickly taking inventory for herself, Kellen shook her head. “No need. They’ll be fine by tomorrow.”
“Kellen—”
“Seriously, Doc.” Kellen moved fingers and clenched her hands. “It all works. I’m using a salve that’s got to be the best first-aid remedy I know. I learned how to make it from a Lakota healer I met when I was still living on the street. I’ve been using it ever since and I swear by it. So do the girls.”
“You make it yourself?” Dana frowned. “What’s in it?”
“It’s a blend. A little this, a bit of that. Calendula, comfrey, plantain, and lavender.”
“And it works?”
“Absolutely. Wait and you’ll be able to see for yourself tomorrow.”
“If you’re trying to make me a believer in the medicinal benefits of roots and herbs, you won’t have to work too hard,” Dana said and started to laugh. “Of course, my father would be horrified.”
*
The lazy, relaxing morning eased into a productive afternoon as Kellen and Dana worked with Annie and Liz, evaluating the request they’d received from two local doctors who wanted to move their practice from town.
“I think all we’re missing is the dentist’s office,” Dana said with a laugh. “Should we just start advertising for one now?”
Everyone was laughing when Kellen’s radio squawked. “Ryan, pick up.”
The tone on the radio said it all. Instinctively, Kellen switched her two-way to cell mode and called Incident Command. “Who?” she asked as soon as her call was answered.
Any sign of banter was gone from her voice and she immediately felt three sets of eyes fix on her face, while she listened to news she didn’t want to hear. Her knees nearly buckled and the edges of her vision grayed. “Okay. Have Sam and a chopper standing by, Nick. I’m heading to the helipad immediately.”
“Where do you think you’re going?” Annie asked as soon as she ended the call.
“There was an incident with the team searching for that lost hiker.” She needed to be cold right now. Ice cold. “The bastard just shot one of my team.”
“Kellen, you need to sit down,” Dana said. “Think this through. If one of your people got shot, that means he’s out there. He wants you. Please. Don’t give him what he wants.”
Kellen took a deep breath when the room appeared to close in. The back of her throat burned, but she wouldn’t get sick. Couldn’t get sick. So she lashed out. “I’m sorry, but this can’t be helped. I’m going, and if you’re not comfortable coming with me, then step aside so that Liz can come.”
She could hear her voice, low and harsh, but she couldn’t stop herself. She’d apologize later. “Decide now, Dana. The clock’s ticking, I’ve a team member down, and Gabe’s on his own trying to stop the bleeding. Please.”
She saw Dana’s face, pale and strained. Watched her swallow, then reach for her jacket and medical bag without saying a word.
“Who is it?” Annie asked.
“Tim.” It hurt to even say it. And if she allowed it, everything would start to hurt. Her head, her stomach, her heart.
Everything. So she couldn’t let it happen. The pain—that would be for later when she was alone. Right now, she needed to work. Tim needed her focused and in control. She would give him no less than her best.
*
Dana watched Kellen, coiled like a spring through the short flight, jump from the helicopter before it had set down. Ducking her head, she slipped on the ice and snow, then caught herself long enough to reach the team on the ground.
They parted as she approached, letting her through until she was kneeling on the snow next to Tim’s bleeding head. Feeling for his pulse and reassuring herself he was still alive, she held his hand and talked to him even though he couldn’t reply.
Unable to do more than race to catch up, Dana followed and knelt down beside her, dropping her bag beside Tim.
“He’s going to be all right,” Kellen said.
“Yes, he will,” Dana assured her as she examined the wound more closely. “I know there’s a lot of blood, but head wounds tend to do that.”
She checked Tim’s pupils and that his airway was clear, checked the IV Gabe had started, then examined the wound. It wasn’t as bad as she feared. It was a deep crease along the right side of his head. And while there still were myriad possible complications, from a skull fracture to a brain injury to bleeding in his skull, she also knew a fraction of an inch difference, and Tim would be dead.
And if Kellen had been out with the team, she might be the one lying on the ice and snow. Seriously wounded. Possibly dead.
Dana didn’t want to think about that. But she couldn’t avoid it because it was likely what Kellen was thinking. Thinking if she hadn’t been grounded, she would be the one lying on the ground bleeding instead of Tim. Her friend and teammate.
She glanced at Kellen’s pale, expressionless face and knew it would simply be a matter of time before they would have to deal with the fallout.
As Kellen wiped a steak of blood from Tim’s face, he opened his eyes. He blinked once, twice, and looked dazed. Confused. “Hey, Kel. What are you doing here? I thought you were grounded.”
“I couldn’t let you guys have all the fun,” she teased and she lightly touched his face. “Tim, listen. I want you to focus on me. You got hurt, but you’re going to be fine.”
“Hurt?”
“That’s right, but you don’t need to worry about it. Dana and Gabe are getting you ready to move and then we’re going to send you to Denver just to be on the safe side. But we have to work with them at the hospital, so try not to chase too many nurses. Okay?”
“Okay.” He nodded weakly. “Kel? Is that why my head hurts?” His voice faded as his eyes closed.
Kellen raised her eyes to Dana, clearly trying to hold it together, pleading for reassurance.
“He regained consciousness.” Dana answered the unspoken question. “He knew who you were. Those are both good signs.”
The team lifted Tim onto a gurney, then transferred him to the helicopter. Life Flight had already been contacted and would meet them when they landed, then airlift Tim to Denver where a neurologist was on standby.
It all went beautifully. Like clockwork.
But Dana couldn’t shake the feeling that Tim’s shooting was just the tip of the iceberg.
*
As the day waned, Kellen was surviving by a thread, trying to hold it together, at least for as long as it took to debrief the team.
“We heard a loud cracking sound—at a guess, it sounded like a rifle. I mean, we hear them often enough during hunting season, and that’s what it sounded like. Tim dropped like a rock at almost the same moment,” Gabe said. “But we couldn’t tell what direction the shot came from. All we could do was try to deal with Tim’s bleeding while waiting to get picked up, and hope in the meantime we weren’t sitting there like ducks in a shooting gallery.”
“Annie said the sheriff’s office is already investigating and they’ve called the FBI. They’ll have a forensics team come out and try to determine the trajectory,” Jeff added. “But I’m not sure how that’s going to help figure out who’s responsible.”
“I don’t know either.” Kellen exhaled softly, feeling bone tired but trying not to let it show.
“The sheriff said they’re looking for something that might have a fingerprint or DNA they can use to identify whoever’s behind this,” Dana said. “Like an empty shell case or a cigarette butt.”
“Well, until they do, we’ll have to be extra vigilant and learn to put up with them being underfoot, because for us, it’s going to be business as usual.”
“What does that mean exactly?” Dana studied Kellen’s face a moment.
“It means as of now, I’m back leading team one,” Kellen said, annoyed that her pulse was a little quick, a little unsteady.
“Kellen? What are you talking about?” Dana’s eyes widened at the remark. “You know you can’t. Don’t you realize your team is afraid? Not of you but for you? They don’t want you getting killed because you give whoever’s out there a chance to get to you. They want you alive. Damn it, we all want you alive, and I for one wouldn’t mind if it was for a long time.”
Without thinking it through, Kellen responded with heat. “Actually, what I can’t do is sit back and watch this bastard pick off my team members one at a time while he waits for me to show up. I can’t remain safe, hiding in my cabin or in my office, and let everyone else take all the risks. More than that, I won’t do it. And if you don’t understand that, you don’t know me at all.”
“Kel—”
With her attention laser-focused on Dana, Kellen heard Annie call her name as if from a distance. By then, she’d heard Dana’s breath catch, had seen her features grow pale and pain flash in her usually vibrant eyes. She knew she’d gone over the line as her throat closed and it became difficult to swallow. “Damn. Damn. Damn. I’m sorry, Dana.”
“It’s all right.”
“No it’s not.” Kellen felt a wash of regret and frustration. “I had no right to take a shot at you, but it seems you’re a handy target right now.”
Nibbling on her bottom lip, Dana eyed her warily. “Does that mean it’s not part of the job description?”
Instantly grateful she hadn’t caused irreparable harm, Kellen felt a ghost of a smile touch her lips. “Maybe, maybe not. Time will tell. Please, try to understand. Tim’s not just a colleague, he’s a friend. And he’s lying in a hospital with a bullet wound to his head when we all know it should have been me. It’s eating at me. But that’s no reason for me to take it out on you.”
“If it helps—”
“Ah, Dana,” Kellen sighed. “Don’t make offers I just might accept.”
“Maybe, maybe not,” Dana repeated and smiled. “We’ll have to wait and see. For now, how about we take the team into town for some pizza and beer?”
Kellen studied her for a moment then looked away. “Sounds like a plan. Annie, why don’t you get Lesley to put the writing down for the evening and join us? Then you, Dana, and Liz can round up whoever’s not working.”
“Aren’t you coming with us?” Dana asked, a frown creasing her brow.
“Absolutely. I’ll meet you in town in a bit. I need to feed Bogart and take him for a run. But first, I need to tell Cody and Ren what happened so they don’t hear about it from someone else.”
“Good idea.” Dana looked at Annie then back to Kellen. “But you’ve got blood all over the bandages on your hands, so you might want to think about changing them before you see the girls.”
“Damn.” Kellen stared at her hands, covered in Tim’s blood. “You’re right, of course. Thanks for reminding me.”
Chapter Fifteen
The music at Up the Creek seemed louder, and the energy felt a bit more frenetic than usual. Vacationers and locals filled most tables and kept the waitstaff moving in high gear. But it was perfect for getting everybody to forget what had happened to Tim, if only for a little while.
Several tables in the back had mysteriously been held for them and Dana
had barely removed her jacket and tossed it on the back of her chair when pitchers of beer appeared at their table.
“Kellen called ahead,” the server said. “The wings and pizza will be up momentarily.”
“God, I love that girl,” Annie said, while two members of the team started pouring beer into glasses and passing them down the line.
“The server? Should I be worried?”
Dana recognized the woman who’d just spoken from the photos on the back covers of her books, pleased that she was finally getting the chance to meet Lesley Marlow.
“Hell, no.” Annie pulled Lesley down onto the love seat with her and gave her partner a quick kiss. “I’m talking about Kellen. She’s always thinking ahead, doing all the little things to make sure everyone’s taken care of.”
“If you want my unsolicited opinion, I think it’s a quid pro quo kind of thing,” Dana said before turning to Lesley and extending her hand. “Dana Kingston. I’m a fan of your work.”
Lesley’s smile widened as she shook Dana’s hand. “The new doctor I’ve heard so much about. A pleasure to meet you, and not just because you’re a fan. I’m sorry we’ve not had a chance to meet before now, but I’ve been going slightly crazy trying to finish a book tour as well as finish the edits to my next book. I’m sure Annie has told you.”
They continued chatting amiably as the food arrived and multiple hands immediately reached for their preference.
“You’d think they never eat,” Annie said dryly, watching the food rapidly disappear while licking some teriyaki sauce off her thumb. “If Kellen doesn’t get here soon, there’ll be nothing left.”
“Actually,” Liz commented, “I saw her come in a minute ago. She’s talking to the sexy redhead at the front.”
Annie and Dana both looked up. “That’s Michelle,” Annie said. “She owns this place. Interested in an introduction?”
