Safe Harbor

by Radclyffe

  "It doesnt have to be you, Reese," Tory argued, "not now, not when youre not even healed. Call Nelson. Tell him whats going on. He can have someone else patrol the dunes."

  "I cant, not for a few more days. Bri promised me she would tell Nelson about her and Caroline. I told her Id give her a week. Even if Nelson knows, without me and Smith, he doesnt have enough personnel to cover the town and step up patrol in the dunes. Since we dont even have an official complaint, theres no way hes going to pull someone off the streets now. Neither would I. Theres no one else to do it. Ill only be out a few hours." It was so clear to Reese what needed to be done. Surely Tory would see that.

  "Damn it, Reese," Tory cried, "youre not fit for duty. If youre out there, anything could happen!" She turned away abruptly, not wanting Reese to see the fear in her face. Wordlessly, she walked out onto the deck, leaving Reese staring after her.

  Catherine spoke quietly from the corner of the room. "My sister isnt used to talking about her fears. Shes gotten used to dealing with her terror and her pain alone. First she lost her Olympic career, and she nearly lost her leg. Then she lost the woman she had believed she would spend her life with. She cant take any more loss in her life, Reese. She was watching you through the night glasses the other night. She saw you get shot, she thought you had been killed. Shes terrified. Shes terrified of loving you, and shes terrified of losing you."

  "I dont want to hurt her - she doesnt just matter to me, she means more to me than I thought possible." Reese swallowed, forcing herself to say the next words. "Ill leave her alone if you think I should." Catherine could never know what anguish those words cost her.

  Catherine shook her head, laughing softly. "You dont know much about women, do you, Reese?

  "I dont know anything about any of this," Reese responded quite seriously. "I only know what I feel for her. And its everything that I have."

  "I can see how much you care. She needs you, Reese. Just go to her. Follow your instincts. Theyve been right so far."

  Reese smiled her thanks, turning toward the woman highlighted in moonlight on the deck. "Tory," she said, slipping her arms around the still figure from behind, cradling Torys body gently against her. "Im sorry I didnt talk to you first. I need a little practice at this. Forgive me?"

  Tory grasped the hands that circled her waist, stroking the tender flesh of Reeses palms. "This is so damn typical of you. I know you believe you have to do this. I keep trying to tell myself youre right -"

  "But?" Reese questioned, pressing her cheek to Torys hair, sliding a kiss against the soft skin at her temple.

  Tory shivered at the touch. "But my heart keeps saying it doesnt have to be you. Let someone else do it. Let someone elses lover be the one in danger. Let someone else get hurt." Her voice trailed off in a nearly inaudible sob.

  Reese tightened her hold until there was nothing between them but the night. "It has to be me because thats what I do - thats who I am," she whispered with absolute certainty.

  Tory nodded imperceptibly, not wanting to disturb their union. "I know that - its one of the reasons I -" She stopped before she gave voice to feelings whose consequences she wasnt ready to accept. "I dont think Im strong enough for this, Reese," she finished miserably, starting to move away. Reese tightened her hold.

  "I cant promise you I wont get hurt, Tory," Reese continued, unwilling to let Tory withdraw from her. "But I can promise you that I will never put myself in a situation Im not trained for, and I can promise you that every day of my life, Ill be here for you, if you let me."

  Tory turned in Reeses arms, reaching behind her to clasp her close. She pressed her forehead into Reeses hard chest, clamping down on the desire that flooded her as she felt Reese along the length of her.

  "God, I could get used to that idea," she admitted reluctantly.

  "Good," Reese said, lifting Torys face to kiss her.

  **********

  "Cant sleep?" Cath asked when she joined Tory on the deck. It was two in the morning.

  "Not while shes out there," Tory responded, tipping the glass to finish her drink.

  "Youll have to learn to, you know," Cath said, lighting a cigarette, offering the pack to Tory.

  Tory accepted wordlessly, smoking in silence as the stars revolved overhead. "I know Im overreacting," she said at length.

  "Probably," Cath agreed. "But its been a hellacious few days, and youve been through as much as she has, maybe more. Give yourself some time."

  "Im not used to being so emotional," Tory confided. "Im not proud of myself."

  "Oh, god, Tor!" Cath exclaimed. "If it were me, thered be more screaming than you can imagine. Sometimes I think I might scream for you! Ive never met anyone quite like her - shes so goddamned logical, and right , that its hard to argue with her. If I didnt know her I wouldnt believe it. But she loves you, Tor - I can see it when she looks at you."

  "God, I hope so," Tory whispered fervently. "Because shes inside of me now."

  Reese found them both dozing in deck chairs when she returned a little after three a.m. She bent to kiss Tory softly on the cheek, murmuring her name. Tory reached for her sleepily, circling her arms around Reeses neck.

  "Anything?" Tory asked.

  "No," Reese replied, lifting Tory up into an embrace. She kissed her again, more thoroughly, until she had her gasping, then held her wordlessly, simply enjoying the feel of her. Tory rested against her, relishing the slow swell of desire.

  "I think Ill just toddle off to bed," Cath remarked, casting a glance at the two figures outlined in the dim light of the stars. She brushed her hand fondly across her sisters back as she passed.

  "Shes a good woman," Reese remarked.

  "Yes," Tory agreed dreamily. "Are you ready to take me to bed?"

  Reese laughed. "More than ready, although I had something in mind other than sleep."

  "Thats what I was hoping."

  **********

  Reese led her upstairs, urging her gently toward the bed. With infinite care she removed each article of clothing, stopping to explore the enticing landscape of Torys body with her lips and hands, captivated by her delicate strength.

  Tory quivered as insistent fingers traced her skin from her breasts down her legs and back up. Reese's teasing lips pressed fleeting kisses everywhere, coaxing Tory's body to ever higher peaks of sensation. As her muscles clenched with the effort of containing her desire, she moaned Reeses name. She grasped Reeses shoulders, her legs tightening around Reeses thigh.

  "Im close," Tory whispered raggedly. "Touch me, Reese, please. I need to come so much."

  Reese groaned, inflamed by the wet heat of Torys need against her skin. She wanted her so much she didnt think. When she found Tory, swollen with urgency, open and ready, she was driven by some deeply primal instinct to claim her. As if she had been born knowing how, she pushed into her - hard. In a single motion Reese's fingers entered her fully, igniting a chain reaction. Immediately the velvet muscles spasmed around her hand. Reese's thumb rode against Tory's clit at the same time.

  "Oh, god!" Tory screamed, her body heaving, her mind melting with the instant orgasm.

  Reese pressed deeper as the cataclysmic spasms gave way to small internal contractions. Reese was so consumed by the wonder of it, she was barely breathing. Slowly she became aware of sobs.

  "Tory!" Reese gasped in panic, slipping from her, her withdrawal eliciting another sob. "Oh Jesus, did I hurt you?"

  "No," Tory whispered, her face pressed against Reeses shoulder, her body still shuddering.

  "Are you sure?" Reese persisted fearfully. "I didnt mean to be so rough - god, I dont know what happened! I just wanted you so much!"

  She tilted Torys chin, searching her face anxiously. Tory shook her head no, but her cheeks were streaked with tears. Something twisted in Reeses chest, catching at her heart.

  "Tory," she choked. "Tory - I swear to you I never meant to hurt you -"

  "You didn't hurt me, Reese," Tory managed, drawing a shaky breath
. She had never been possessed like that before. She felt like she had been devoured. But what frightened her was not Reeses passion, but how much she had wanted Reese to take her. If Reese hadnt claimed her when she did, Tory knew she would have begged her. What Reese was capable of stirring in her made her a stranger to herself. "You make me so damn helpless, I want you so bad. What you do to me - " What it will do to me now if you leave me -

  Reese held her as Tory gentled in her arms, hearing in the silence what Tory had not said. She remembered Catherine speaking of what Tory had lost, understanding the enormity of that pain as she contemplated a life without Tory.

  "Tory," she said, her voice soft but crystal clear.

  "Yes," Tory questioned as she lay listening to the strong, steady heartbeat beneath her cheek.

  "I love you."

  Tory was silent a long moment, hearing the words, wondering if she dared allow them inside her. Reese had never held another woman, never made love to another woman - how could she be sure now?

  Reese had not expected an answer. Instinctively she knew that it wouldnt be her words, but her constancy, that would eventually convince Tory of the truth of her love. She had spoken because she needed to, and as she said the words, something shifted inside of her. She felt peaceful in a way she never had before. She settled Tory even closer into the curves of her body, her hands gliding the length of Torys back to her buttocks.

  "Reese, youre not going to get any sleep tonight if you keep touching me like that," Tory murmured, wanting nothing more at that moment than their closeness.

  "Thats okay," Reese laughed contentedly, continuing her caresses. "I dont have to work tomorrow."

  Chapter Twenty

  Tory reconciled herself to Reeses nightly sojourns through the dunes. She even managed some restless sleep waiting for her to slip into bed beside her in the dark. Reese wasnt due to return to work for a few more days, so she had simply stayed on at Torys. Neither of them discussed exactly what that meant.

  Reese had only been back an hour one night when they were awakened by the phone. Tory reached for it with a sigh, thinking how much harder it was going to be to leave her bed with Reese asleep beside her. She didnt want to think about what it would be like when Reese returned to her own home. Reese had fast become a part of her life.

  "Dr. King," she answered.

  "Doctor," an unfamiliar male voice said apologetically, "this is Officer Jeff Lyons. Sorry to bother you, maam, but Im trying to locate Sheriff Conlon. Ive got a girl on the other line - shes hysterical, and she says she wont talk to anyone except Reese."

  "Of course," Tory replied with concern, "shes right here."

  "Conlon," Reese said tersely. As she listened to the call patched through to her, her body tensed. "Where are you now? .....Where were you supposed to meet?.....Go home. Ill call you as soon as I find her. I will - I promise you."

  Reese replaced the receiver as she climbed out of bed. It was two in the morning.

  "What is it?" Tory asked anxiously as Reese began to pull on her uniform, her face tight.

  "Briannas missing," Reese said as she checked her revolver. "She and Caroline had a date to meet in the dunes. Brianna didnt show. That was two hours ago. ...What are you doing?"

  As Reese spoke, Tory had started hastily dressing. "Im going with you. Well find her faster with two of us looking. And if shes hurt, youre going to need me."

  "Right," Reese replied, formulating plans. "Get your Jeep, your medical equipment, and your portable phone. Well keep in touch that way. If we havent found her in an hour, Im going to have to call Nelson. Im hoping it doesnt come to that."

  "Where should I look?"

  "Im going out to Herring Cove where they were supposed to meet. Why dont you drive down Commercial, then out 6A and circle back to the beach on 6. Look for her motorbike. Maybe she was just late, missed Caroline, and shes hanging out somewhere in town."

  Tory could tell by the set of her jaw that Reese did not believe that. "Reese, promise me if theres trouble that youll call for back-up. Your wound isnt healed yet. Your reaction time will be slowed. I cant worry about both of you."

  To Torys relief, Reese nodded agreement. "I will. Call me every five minutes with your location." Then, unexpectedly, Reese grasped her shoulders and kissed her with bruising intensity. "Be careful. I dont want you hurt."

  As Tory followed Reese downstairs, she knew from the rigid set of her lover's back and the tight expression on her face that Reese was more than a little worried. Reese's attention was already elsewhere as she focused completely on her mission. Tory knew with utter certainty that this single-minded determination was the essence of the woman she loved. To love Reese Conlon meant she must accept what that dedication demanded of Reese, emotionally and physically. Tory doubted she would ever grow accustomed to the danger, but she knew she would have to live with it - because she knew it was no longer possible to stop loving Reese.

  Tory drove the length of Commercial Street, slowly canvassing the narrow lanes and alleys intersecting it. Several times she stopped to glance into the few bars and late night hangouts still open. Bri was no where to be found. She circled around past the jetty to Long Point, remembering her own perilous journey out onto the rocks, and the way Reese had suddenly appeared at her side- offering assistance and security as only Reese could. She remembered how great her pain was that night, and the sight of Reese bending over her, administering to her bruised and swollen leg. That was the night she had fallen in love with Reese Conlon.

  She was nearing the Provincetown limits when her portable phone rang. "King," she responded tersely.

  "Its Reese. Take six west toward Herring Cove. Look for my cruiser on the side of the road. Im about a hundred yards in along the dune trail."

  "Have you got her?" Tory asked, thinking that Reeses voice seemed strangely hollow.

  "Yes - on the double, Tory."

  Reese was waiting at the roadside, hastily stringing yellow tape across the mouth of a narrow path in the sand. Briannas motorbike lay on its side in the scrub by the side of the road. The front was twisted and dented. Torys stomach clenched when she saw it, and what Reese was doing.

  "My god, Reese - is she alive?" Tory called as she approached.

  "Yes, for now," Reese replied grimly, as she helped Tory slide the portable stretcher from the back of her Jeep. "Follow me - keep to the trail. I dont want to contaminate the scene any more than we have to."

  Tory stared at her in astonishment. This is Bri for Gods sake! Doesnt she have any feelings!

  Reese saw the question in her eyes, and read the silent criticism. It hurt, but she didnt have the time or the inclination to explain. "You tend to her body, Doctor, thats your job. Mine is to catch the bastard that did this to her," Reese stated flatly, a dangerous fire in her eyes.

  Tory nodded, "Of course - lead the way."

  Brianna was lying unconscious in a shallow cleft between two brush covered dunes. When Tory lifted the blanket Reese had laid over her, she recoiled from the sight of the torn shirt and the jeans yanked down around Bri's ankles. For an agonizing moment, all she could imagine was Bri's terror. A soft touch on Tory's shoulder jerked her back to the present, and her responsibility.

  "Tory - we need to move her. Is her spine secure?" Reese asked evenly.

  Tory knelt, making a quick assessment of Bri's vital signs. Her airway was clear, and her pulse strong and steady. Her face was badly battered, both eyes discolored. There was a stream of blood from her left nostril, and a hematoma forming over the right side of her jaw. Even in the dim light from Reeses flashlight she could make out bruises on her throat. Blood crusted in patches over her neck and chest.

  "She fought hard," Tory murmured, barely aware of speaking aloud as she continued her assessment of the battered girl.

  "Yes. She would."

  Tory glanced up at Reese, who stood staring down at Briannas violated body, her eyes so cold that Tory shivered. Tory slipped a soft restraining collar behind Bri
's neck, immobilizing her cervical spine. She ran her hands over Bris extremities, noting no obvious deformities. The rest of the exam would have to wait until they moved her.

  "Shes okay to transport. Just get your forearms behind her neck and under her shoulders when we lift. Keep her head midline and dont flex it," Tory ordered, her mind already busy planning what else needed to be done.

  "Have you notified Nelson?" Tory asked as they maneuvered slowly through the sand.

  "Lyons is on his way here to secure the scene," Reese replied. "Ill radio the Chief on route to your place. I didnt want him to see her like this."

  Tory nodded, wondering how she could have questioned Reeses sensitivity, regretting her initial reaction. Reese was only doing what she was trained and sworn to do. "Reese, Im sorry about earlier. I didnt think about what you needed to do out there-"

  "Its okay - why should you," Reese responded evenly.

  "No, its not okay." Because I know you better than that, and because I love you

  Tory needed to tell her that, but now was not the time. Instead, she followed the flashing lights of Reeses patrol car as they led her through the dark.

  **********

  "What the hell is going on, Conlon?" Nelson Parker demanded as he shoved through the door of Torys clinic. "I heard on the scanner that you ordered Lyons and Jameson to block off a section of six. Youre not even on duty!" He got a good look at his Deputy Chiefs face and he stopped short, his stomach churning. There was something deadly in her eyes, and something so gentle in her hand on his arm that he was suddenly afraid. Hed seen that look in cops eyes before, when it was something bad. He steeled himself to hear it.

  "Tell me," he said softly.

  "Its Bri - shes alive, but shes seriously hurt. Tory is with her now."

  Nelson steadied himself with a hand against the wall. There seemed to be something wrong with his vision - he could hardly see her face. He heard his words, but didn't feel himself speak. "Did she crash her motorbike?"