“We’ve got her, thanks,” a woman said.
Chloe tried to open her eyes, but they were too heavy. Who had her? She’d started the journey to Heaven. Now she was back where she didn’t belong. She wanted to cry.
“Can you hear me?” the woman said.
Chloe tried opening her eyes, squinting in the sun. The first person she saw wasn’t a medic. It was a man standing nearby. He was tall, with dark hair and eyes, and he was looking at her as though he’d seen a ghost.
“Can you tell us your name?” another medic said, drawing her attention away from the man. “What day is it?”
It took her a minute, but she remembered everything. She wanted to replay those earlier moments, back in the vortex, but the medic kept interrupting her thoughts. Had it even been real?
As they strapped her onto a gurney, the medic asked, “Who’s Teddy?”
“What?”
“You asked where Teddy was when you came back. Is he your son? Is he here somewhere?”
She looked at the crowd of people gawking as though she were part of some macabre show. “I said that?”
“Yeah. We figured it must have meant something.”
Her eyes met the man’s again. “It did. I just don’t know what.”
Dylan watched the medics slide Chloe Samms into the ambulance. He’d heard her faint voice recite her name and birth date, just thirty years old. More importantly, he’d heard her say his son’s name.
This had to be a nightmare, despite the glaring sun and crowd. Everything was revolving around him like a carnival ride. The scenes flashed through around and around his mind. The last several minutes were a haze.
“Excuse me, sir, we need to clear the area,” a policeman said, ushering him to the sidewalk.
The ambulance holding Chloe came to life, sirens whooping as it inched forward through the crowd. He hurried back to Wanda in time to see the medics loading a sheet-covered gurney into another ambulance.
“That’s my wife,” he said.
“I’m sorry, sir. She broke her neck. There was nothing we could do for her.”
Dylan watched the ambulance drive away without benefit of sirens. He’d known deep inside that she was dead the moment he’d seen her, but he still couldn’t believe it. No matter how distant they’d become to each other, she was still his wife and the mother of his child. She was still a person, and now she was gone. The pain welled up in his throat and stole his breath away.
Then he saw the light green sneaker lying on the sidewalk. Chloe’s sneaker. His insides caved in, and he had to choke back a sound of anguish.
Both women had died; but one had come back.
And that woman had come back with his son’s name on her lips. It was a coincidence surely. Teddy was probably her husband or lover. Maybe even her own son. Still, it was eerie.
“Mr. McKain!” one of the police officers called out. “We need to talk with you. We understand you were following your wife, and she hit the young lady who was crossing the street.”
Dylan winced. It was his fault. No matter that it was Wanda’s car that hit Chloe Samms, Dylan had caused her flight. “I can’t talk right now. I have to find my son.”
Thank you for reading this sneak peek of A Trick of the Light. Find links to it and all of Tina’s novels at www.WrittenMusings.com/TinaWainscott and www.TinaWainscott.com.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
I hope you enjoyed Heavenly Stranger! If you did, I’m happy to tell you that I have many other novels available for your pleasure in different subgenres of romance. I’m the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than thirty novels published with St. Martin’s Press, Harper Collins, Random House, Harlequin, and Written Musings.
I have always loved the combination of suspenseful chills and romantic thrills, especially with a bit of paranormal thrown in, so I decided to release my favorites in the Love & Light Collection. Although many of the stories have connections to other books in the series, all the novels are stand-alone stories—no cliffhangers!
Find the entire collection at www.WrittenMusings.com/TinaWainscott
and www.TinaWainscott.com.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
My sincerest appreciation to Pattie Steele-Perkins for her help with all matters sailing. And thank you for many years of friendship and guidance. May your journey always be smooth sailing.
Jackie Bielowicz who has given me much medical input over these past few years and who has been an invaluable help.
My appreciation to the following people who took time out of their busy lives to help someone they didn’t even know: Vincent Checa for sharing Shakila, his wonderful sense of humor, and all his funny sailing stories. Mary Anne Frounfelker for her help on childhood illnesses, and the folks on the NINC Link for all their input. Joe, a good cop who didn’t arrest me for playing loose and fast with the law (fictionally speaking, of course). His information on police matters was greatly helpful. Johnie Greenwell for Coast Guard protocol. (However, I claim responsibility for any errors found herein.)
I also want to thank my readers, whose letters I cherish and enthusiasm I treasure.
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