Embattled Minds (Military Romance) (Lost And Found Series)

by J. M. Madden

  “Then you heard me quit too…” he told her quietly.

  She frowned, trying to make sense of his actions. Chad gave her a hard look.

  “You need to go to the hospital. If for no other reason than to have documentation when you take him to court.”

  Raising a bloody hand to her head, she shielded her eyes for several long moments, obviously weighing her options. When she eventually looked up at Chad, determination lined her face. “I’ll call a neighbor to come over and sit with her. You don’t need to. I’ll go to the hospital in a bit, after the neighbor gets here.”

  The gray haired paramedic immediately started shaking his head. “Ma’am, you need to go now. With the swelling on your face, you probably have a concussion under there, which can lead to swelling and bleeding and eventually death. You need to be checked out by the doctors as soon as possible.”

  She seemed to understand the medic’s warnings, because her shoulders slumped in defeat. “Okay, but not until she gets here.”

  Chad crossed behind the medic and picked up the cordless phone from the floor. One-handed, he pushed a button to silence the beeping and handed the receiver to her. “Call her now. I’ll wait until she gets here so you can go.”

  Chad knew that the ex-Mrs. Malone was normally a beautiful woman. He had seen the professional photos and candid family shots, but right now she was a mess. Her blond hair was bedraggled and dirty, blood was streaked all across her face, and her eye was so swollen it would be weeks before it was back to normal. But she had a bearing to her that was indomitable. Her T-shirt was ripped at the collar and hanging down over one breast, but she sat on the edge of the bed as if she were wearing an evening gown. It was impressive, her courage.

  Holding the cordless in front of her face awkwardly, she punched in several numbers. Whoever was on the other end of the phone answered quickly and asked very few questions, because she clicked the off button within less than a minute.

  “Elaine will be here in about twenty minutes.” Pointing a chipped-nailed finger at the nightstand, she motioned to a tablet and pen on one corner. “Would you write your name, cell phone number and who you work for on that paper, please. And your boss’s contact number so I can call to confirm who you are.”

  Chad bent over the nightstand and wrote the requested information down. Then he wrote Duncan’s cell phone number. What a cluster this night had turned out to be, and he still had to talk to his partner and explain what had gone down.

  Duncan apparently answered on the first ring, because the woman asked him questions like she was an attorney, one right after another. His partner seemed to answer everything to her satisfaction, because she handed the receiver to him. “Okay, you check out. He wants to talk to you.”

  Chad took the handset from her and motioned to the paramedic to get her on the gurney, because she looked ready to fall over on the bed.

  “Yeah, Dunc?”

  “What the fuck is going on over there. It was a simple surveillance op, gather info and that’s it. No contact. What the hell happened?”

  Stepping out of the room to give the medics room to carry her out, Chad leaned against a wall in the hallway. Lowering his voice so he wouldn’t be overheard, he filled his partner in on the details. Duncan was quiet until he finished.

  “Okay, Chad. I should have known you wouldn’t go off like that without a reason. Is she going to be all right?”

  “Yea, I think so. She’s pretty beat up. I’m glad I got here when I did though, because he was about to remind her of her conjugal rights.”

  “Shit,” Duncan said softly.

  “Yep.” Chad stepped to the living room to watch as they hoisted Lora Malone into the waiting ambulance. Her eyes were closed and her head was tipped back against the cushion, almost as if she were asleep. Chad would almost bet she would not allow herself to pass out. That was one strong woman.

  “What? Oh, yeah, I’m going to stay with the little girl until her friend gets here to watch her.”

  Leaning past the doorjamb, he peeked inside the girl’s room. She was a lump under the covers, sleeping deeply. Chad nodded into the phone, following his boss’s conversation even though he studied the child. “I will. I know. I know. Okay, see you tomorrow.”

  Twenty minutes later, a woman knocked softly on the front door before letting herself in. She explained she knew Lora from a support group and showed him her identification. It matched up with what Lora had said to expect, so he let himself out the door.

  Lora was in a haze of pain. There was nothing on her that didn’t hurt. And it seemed like the doctors were prodding every single injury just to grade her pain. ‘So looking at this pain scale, how would you rate your pain?’ she’d finally gone off on them. “It fucking hurts,” she screamed.

  The doctor had looked at her as if she were the one being unreasonable. After that, everything floated away on a cloud of pain medication. She didn’t feel her severely sprained wrist being wrapped, and she didn’t feel the needle in her scalp as they sewed in stitches. The light over the bed was a blinding source of aggravation, and it was a relief when they draped her face in the blue cloth in preparation of fixing her head. It shielded her eyes, and allowed her to rest for just a few minutes.

  One of the nurses came in with a clipboard, asking if she had been the victim of sexual assault. Then didn’t seem to believe her when she told her no. When she asked the same question for the third time, Lora finally just rolled over on her side and ignored the woman. She seemed to get the hint.

  Sometime later, a Denver Police Officer arrived to question her about the assault. Lora went through every detail she remembered, then told the woman about the voicemails she had been receiving on her phone. Mostly just hangups, but Derek had called yesterday to wish her happy anniversary, even though they had been divorced for two years. Lora had known then he would be coming after her.

  No, he hadn’t raped her. This time.

  The officer kept referring to the notes in her notepad, as if she already had a statement from somebody. Oh, yeah, the guy. Duh. He stayed until the squad had taken her away. He had apparently talked to the cops and told them what he had seen, too.

  She didn’t know what to think about him. Relief and appreciation that he had gotten Derek off her, but she was still royally pissed too. He’d been following her for weeks. Her paranoia had served her well when she spotted him at the park one day, and recognized him later on sitting down from the house when she went home. Had he actually thought she wouldn’t see him? He followed her everywhere.

  And that arm stuck out. It looked like he had been burned or something. The flesh was eaten away, and the bones looked kind of warped, like the healing skin was pulling them into unnatural shapes. It looked painful. The scars spread all the way up his neck to his hairline. There were a few scars on his face too, but they were just pale white lines, like they had happened several years ago.

  It wasn’t any business of hers though. She certainly had no reason to be worrying about his pain when she had plenty of her own.

  The doctor, too young to have very much experience, admitted her. Lora had expected that, and called the sitter to let her know. Truth be known, she dreaded letting her daughter see her this way. She remembered hearing loud voices during the divorce, but she’d carefully made up her face to cover any bruising she incurred. Between the shiner and the cut on her head, and the bulky wrap on her arm, she was going to have a lot of explaining to do to her little girl.

  They moved her to a quiet room on the fifth floor, and finally dimmed the lights and left her alone. Lora tried to sleep, but the scene from her house kept replaying in her head. When she did doze off, she would snap awake at the slightest noise from outside her door.

  When there finally was a knock at her door, it was almost a relief to have a reason to sit up and be aware. “Come in.”

  The private investigator stuck his head inside and gave her a slight smile. “Mind if I step in for a minute?”

&nb
sp; All the anger of the night came rushing back. “Why, do you need more pictures? Does he want proof of what he did?”

  The tall man shook his head and held out both hands as he stepped into the room. “No camera, I promise. And your ex didn’t send me here. I came on my own.”

  “Why?” she snapped.

  “I just wanted to check on you. I feel guilty for letting you get hurt.”

  Lora took a moment to scan his face, and all she could see was truth in his earnest blue eyes. At least she thought he was being truthful. She wasn’t a great judge of character recently. “I’m fine. It wasn’t your fault.”

  He scrubbed a long hand over his short hair. “It was though. I’d been there for hours, long past when I should have been off-duty, but something didn’t feel right. I could tell you were nervous by the way you were acting and I should have been more aware.”

  Lora was torn. He seemed like a nice guy, just hired to do a job, but she was royally pissed he’d been watching her like that. “Well, I’m fine. I appreciate your stepping in when you did. Don’t feel guilty about it. We’re done.”

  For several long seconds, he stared at her, before glancing at the floor. When he looked back up, there was a determined look on his face. “Don’t worry about our investigation. We are officially off the case. I talked to my partner, and if there’s anything you need us to do, please let us know.” He fished a business card out of his wallet, and stepped close enough to the bed to set it on the rolling table. “I called the jail, and Derek will be kept for the night, because they smelled alcohol on his breath, but he will bond out in the morning.”

  Lora’s insides tensed up when he stepped close, but she didn’t let him see that. She stared at him hard, and left the card where it lay. “I don’t believe I’ll need your services.”

  Frowning, he turned away and crossed to the door. “That’s fine, but if he bothers you, let us know.”

  Lora didn’t respond, and he walked out the door.

  Panic raced through her when he left, and she suddenly felt all vulnerable again. Her stomach was quaking with fear, and she felt very alone sitting on the big bed. Slipping down off the mattress, she tried to drag the big recliner over to the door. It took her a while, but she eventually got it wedged underneath the handle. The nurses wouldn’t appreciate it, but she would hear a person coming for several seconds.

  Crawling into bed, Lora finally allowed herself to relax. Unfortunately, that also allowed the tears to come. Five minutes, damn it, to cry. Then you’re done.

  Chad’s heart ached in his chest when he heard the woman crying softly in the room. It tugged at his emotions, getting him choked up. He wanted to go back in and pull her into his arms, and rock her until she stopped being fearful. The door was blockaded though. And she certainly wouldn’t want his attention anyway.

  He gritted his teeth in frustration as he leaned against the wall. Lora Malone seemed to be a woman with heart, willing to fight for her child. Over the weeks he’d been watching her, Chad had found himself admiring her for her vigilance with her safety. The girl wasn’t out of her sight at all, and the people that watched her seemed just as devoted. Lora worked at the high school as a secretary, never missing a day or breaking her routine. It was why she’d been so easy to follow. He knew where she was going at all times. The only aberration was on Wednesdays, when she went to the big white house in Arvada. She would stay a few hours, then head home. Saturday mornings she took the girl to one of the parks in the city, then went grocery shopping.

  The little girl was going to be worried when she wasn’t there to cook her breakfast in the morning.

  Walking down the hall, he talked to the nurse on duty. He was granted a little leeway with information when he flashed his investigator’s badge. Lora would be released the next day at 11 o’clock, as long as the doctor thought she was able. Chad promised to be back then, and headed out the door.

  At ten-thirty the next morning, Chad waited outside Lora’s room. Nurses had been bustling in and out, and he was sure one of them had told her he was there. He made it a point to smile congenially at everybody that went in, in spite of their leery looks. They knew what Lora had been admitted for, but they didn’t know what her ex looked like.

  Chad understood their hesitation. There was no way to prove he wasn’t her ex unless they asked Lora outright.

  So he cooled his heels, waiting till he thought she would be getting ready to go. At five till, he knocked on her door and stepped in.

  Lora’s injuries didn’t look any better in the light of day, even with make-up on, but her un-swollen eye narrowed in on him sharply. “Why are you here? I thought you understood I didn’t need your help.”

  Chad shrugged, trying not to be put off by her demeanor. Honestly, he couldn’t blame her for feeling bitchy. If he were in her position he would feel that way too. It wasn’t like she had oodles of help.

  “I do. I just thought I’d give you a ride home, so we could talk about a few things.”

  Pushing to her feet, she grabbed the railing of the bed to steady herself. “I really don’t think we have anything to talk about.”

  Chad hated to be the bearer of bad news. “Derek bonded out this morning.”

  A frantic look passed through her eyes before she straightened her spine. “Good for him. I need to get home.”

  He stepped forward one step. “I know you do. My car is right in front.”

  The hesitation was obvious on her face. She wanted to get home to be with her daughter, but she wasn’t sure if she could trust him or not.

  “Have you called for a ride yet?”

  She pursed her lips, but winced when the split puckered. “No. I thought the security guard could call me a cab.”

  Chad held out a plastic Wal-mart bag. “Thought you might want a set of sweats. I didn’t think the squad grabbed anything for you on the way out the door.”

  For a long moment, Lora just stood and stared at the swinging bag in his hand as if it were a snake. “Lora, you don’t want to have to walk into the house in the bloody gown you left in.”

  She frowned. “I think they may have thrown the thing away in the emergency room. There wasn’t much left to it. One of the nurses was going to find me a pair of scrubs or something.”

  He set the bag on the end of the bed, within her reach. “Now you don’t have to wear somebody else’s clothes.”

  She glanced at him from beneath her dark lashes. The purpling around her left eye was complete, and Chad fought to keep the anger off his face. She’d been through so much, and if he had only moved quicker, she wouldn’t be here.

  She reached out and took the bag. “I’ll pay you back when we get to the house.”

  Chad nodded once. If she wanted to pay her way, that was fine. “I’ll wait outside for you.”

  Within just a few minutes, a nurse arrived with her discharge paperwork. Then an orderly arrived and parked a wheelchair outside her room, knocking. Lora appeared in the pink sweats, and Chad was impressed with himself. They fit her perfectly. She’d also put on the flimsy little tennis shoes he’d gotten her, but he could tell by the way she shuffled that they didn’t fit her correctly.

  She eyed the wheelchair belligerently. “I can walk.”

  The orderly smiled tightly. He’d heard this argument before. “Ma’am, it’s hospital policy. I have to wheel you out.”

  Chad could feel the tension rise in the hallway as she shifted from foot to foot.

  “I don’t want to sit in the chair.”

  The orderly glowered, and Lora shifted subtly back toward the room.

  “Ma’am, I have to wheel you out. It’s policy.”

  Fear skittered across Lora’s face, and he suddenly realized it wasn’t the chair she was objecting to. It was having the big orderly behind her, where she couldn’t see him.

  Chad shuffled forward, wincing slightly. “Mind if I push the chair? My hip’s bothering me today. Must be some cold weather moving in.”

  T
he orderly looked him up and down, resting lightly on his left arm before meeting his eyes. “Iraq?”

  Chad smiled tightly.

  The man nodded once, and released the chair handles. Chad moved in behind the wheelchair and met Lora’s eyes. She didn’t look much more accepting of him pushing the chair, but she stepped forward and sat down anyway, placing her feet on the foot rests.

  That small glimmer of trust touched him greatly. The poor woman had been through hell, partially brought on by his actions. He wanted to reach out and rest a hand on her shoulder, but he knew for a fact she wouldn’t allow his touch.

  Shoving off, he made sure to favor one side to keep his story believable. The orderly walked ahead of them, pushing the elevator button and triggering the automatic doors for their passage. At the parking loop at the front of the hospital, he opened the door of his truck for Lora and stepped back. As quickly as she could manage, she slid into the seat and shut the door.

  Chad turned the chair over to the orderly and thanked the man, shaking his hand, then circled the hood to get in.

  Lora had already fastened her seat-belt, but she turned her head to look at him. “Thank you for doing that. I didn’t want him behind me.”

  Chad nodded once, and tried not to make a big deal of it. “I thought not. You’re welcome.”

  They didn’t say anything as he pulled out of the hospital and turned away from downtown, heading toward her little subdivision.

  He glanced at her as they got onto the freeway heading east. “Do you have a place you can stay for a while? Family or something?”

  She shook her head. “I don’t have family out here. But you probably already know that.”

  Chad chose not to respond to the bitterness in her voice. He had known, but he wanted her to confirm it. “You have a protection order against him, issued by the judge this morning, but I have a feeling Derek doesn’t really care about a piece of paper.”

  He could feel her sharp gaze swing to him. “How do I have a P.O. already? I haven’t gone in to file it yet.”