Third Love (Heaven Sent Book 3)

by Mary Abshire

  A touch of guilt weighed on her conscious. “I’m sorry for asking.”

  “I would’ve done the same.”

  There was a brief minute of silence. She felt better for bringing up the subject. He seemed resolute with his feelings toward her. After they’d had a big argument in New York, Andrew had proved he could change and be a better man. Maybe his days of multiple lovers had finally ended. She found it difficult to believe, but unlike Troy, she favored giving people chances to do the right thing.

  “So you found a safe place to kill her?” Emily asked.

  “Yes, safe enough anyway.”

  She took her eyes off the road for a few seconds. “What does that mean?”

  “Well, there were a couple of men working in the garbage room. I don’t know how many people work there at a given time, so there is a possibility that someone will see me. But it’s a maze in the subbasement and there are so many rooms. I really think the chances of me getting caught are low.”

  Regardless of the percentage, Emily worried. “I don’t need to tell you that it concerns me. Right?”

  “I know it worries you. And it proves you love me. You may not say it, but you show it plenty.”

  Love was a strong word that too many people used loosely. Her parents had said they’d loved her as she was growing up, but the meaning of it was not shown. Anyone could say they loved someone, but backing the word took effort and dedication. Did she believe Andrew loved her? Probably. Did she believe she could love him? The verdict was still undecided.

  “I did some research on the last list you gave me,” she said. “I found three possibilities, but the results are not fast.”

  “I need something that is quick. There has to be at least one drug somewhere in that room.”

  He sounded irritated. For a brief moment, she considered telling him about the poison Troy was sending, but she feared it might anger him. He wanted to stick to his plan and avoid getting help from Troy. While she applauded his efforts, she also didn’t want to see a good opportunity go to waste. She’d give Andrew a little more time to find a drug to use, but if he didn’t, then she’d let him know about the poison.

  “I’ll look again on my next shift and bring another list to you. We’re getting closer, Em. I can feel it,” he said.

  “I’m sure you will find something,” she said encouragingly.

  “I already have and she is absolutely amazing. I’m going to take my time making love to her when we get home.”

  She steered into the lane leading to the neighborhood. The woman he referred to was very lucky. Oh wait, that woman was her. Hearth thumping faster, she looked forward to his plan.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Andrew sat in the cafeteria of the hospital, nursing a second cup of coffee. The sun had risen outside and illuminated the large room better the florescent lights in the ceiling. He sat at a two-seater table near the farthest wall, away from the windows, trying to calm his frustration while on his last break for the evening. A couple of doctors sat a nearby table discussing a patient. He had an hour to go before his shift ended at seven and he should’ve been happy since he would see Emily soon. Instead, defeat continued to eat him up inside, and the only way to stop it was to return to medicine room and find a drug to kill Susan with. But that would be impossible in the short amount of time he had left, which meant the demon would live to see another day.

  Filled with anger, Andrew bobbled his knee under the table. He took another sip of java. It didn’t taste nearly as strong as the coffee Emily fixed, but the drink was helping him get through the morning.

  Andrew shifted his gaze to the world outside. He couldn’t see much from sitting in the back of the cafeteria on the seventh floor except for the clouds rolling in the sky. The view mesmerized him. If he had to guess, it was because he’d spent close to three hours in a large room with shelves stacked with medical supplies and medicines. He’d gone early in his shift for almost forty-five minutes, searching and typing names in his phone. Then he’d used up his entire dinner hour. Work had slowed in the NICU, so he’d ventured in the medicine room for another thirty minutes. Debbie had questioned where he’d been and he’d told her he’d helped in the maternity ward, the next department down the hall. Nobody else had questioned him, but the fact someone had asked made him more cautious. He couldn’t disappear for an extended amount of time again and risk someone noticing.

  One of the doctors sitting behind him raised his deep voice, jarring Andrew from his thoughts. The doctor asked a question. The man who answered him spoke about a narcotic he’d used to lessen the pain and sedate the patient. Andrew knew enough about narcotics from his earlier days as a nurse. He’d searched for one in the medicine room, but he had yet to find any. He suspected there might not be any given the department he worked in.

  Andrew stretched out his leg and dug into his pocket. He withdrew his cell and tapped the screen until he reached the list he’d created. Even after twenty-seven years in heaven, away from nursing and working in a hospital, he still had a decent memory regarding the names of drugs. As he scrolled down the list he tried to recall if any looked similar to ones he knew of. He questioned a few, but the majority looked unfamiliar. With a heavy sigh, he set the phone on the table. He needed a fast-acting drug that would kill. While he had access to a large room full of medicines in the NICU, he was starting to believe none of them would give him what he was looking for. And that was a major problem for him.

  He downed more coffee and continued listening to the conversation behind him. The doctor who’d asked the earlier question mentioned putting his patient in an induced coma for a while. He asked if a small dosage would work for a day or two to help his patient’s situation. The man who’d answered before provided his experience from similar situations. He preferred using narcotics instead of inducing comas. The dialogue between the two led Andrew to think about drugs used to put people out. He knew of two good ones, and they had to be administered in very small amounts to avoid death. Of course, he wouldn’t find them in the NICU, but he might be able to find one of them in the maternity ward.

  The vibration of his cell on the table startled Andrew. He picked up the phone and saw Emily’s number on the screen. Worry shot through him. She never called him while he was at work. If she wanted to chat, she sent messages. He tapped the screen to answer the call.

  “Is everything okay?” He left his chair and strode toward the exit.

  “Yeah, yeah. I’m fine.”

  She sounded okay, so he slowed his pace. But the concern within him remained.

  “What’s going on?” he asked.

  “I’m sure you know she isn’t at work.”

  “I’ve been here nine hours. Of course I know.” He didn’t mean to sound rude, but he wanted her to get to the point of her call.

  “I’ve been watching them. When I couldn’t see them anymore, I decided to go for a jog.”

  He walked out of the cafeteria and into the hall. After a quick scan, he found nobody within close hearing range of him. “Honey, I love you, but tell me what’s going on.”

  “I was jogging and saw Mark packing up the kids in the van. All three of them. When the van left the neighborhood, Mark was driving. She wasn’t in the vehicle. I came back to the house, and I’m looking at her now. She’s alone watching TV.”

  Andrew stilled and looked around him. Two nurses in maroon scrubs were walking behind him. Ahead, a couple of nurses in different colored scrubs were heading toward him. A few feet away he spotted an exit sign above a door. He strode toward it.

  “She’s alone, Andrew,” Emily repeated.

  He pushed open the door and descended the stairs. “I heard you.”

  “I don’t know for how long, but this would be a good time to kill her. You could take a cab here. It’s a twenty-minute drive, maybe five more minutes in a taxi, but you could make it.”

  He detected the urgency in her tone. As much as he’d love to destroy the demon, he had no mean
s to do so without leaving some kind of evidence. She typically worried about such things, so he wondered why she’d make such a suggestion.

  “I don’t have anything to use. Besides, someone would see me,” he said.

  “The neighbors on both sides of us and them are gone. I checked when I was jogging. The closest one here is four houses down.”

  He paused on the landing, then looked up and down the stairwell. “Okay, but I don’t have a drug yet.”

  “I can solve that problem.”

  “What do you mean?”

  There was a short pause. “I have poison. Troy sent me some.”

  He gripped the railing. “What do you mean Troy sent some to you?”

  “A couple of days ago I asked him if he could get his hands on more. I thought it might be a good idea to have some on hand as a back-up option in case you couldn’t get your hands on anything.”

  He clenched his jaw. He wasn’t sure what bothered him more, the fact she’d asked Troy for assistance or she’d hid the information from him. “I thought you didn’t want to go to him for help.”

  “I didn’t. I don’t, but he called me. While we were talking about your plan I asked if he could get more poison.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Because I knew you wanted to handle things on your own—”

  “And you thought I couldn’t so you wanted to be prepared?” he asked harshly.

  “No, no, it’s not like that. Damn it, Andrew, she is alone and we are wasting time. Do you want to do this or shall I?”

  “Don’t you dare. You are not to kill her. You promised me,” he said in a severe and unforgiving tone.

  She sighed. “It would save her kids.” Her soft voice sounded as if she were pleading.

  “You cannot kill her. How can you ask me when you promised me you wouldn’t? I have to be there to destroy the demon. You know this.” Fury prompted him to jog down the steps.

  “I know. I know, but the kids…”

  “Em, walk away from the window or get out of that house and do something. If you do anything to her, the consequences will not be good.”

  “I’m not going to heaven anyway.”

  He stopped at the next landing. His heart thudded in his chest as he realized she’d actually considered killing the woman on her own. The demon would get away if she did and he couldn’t let that happen. If the demon didn’t go to hell, it could find another human. The guard in heaven hadn’t told him the results of not touching the demon, but logic told him if he didn’t then it would get away. Aside from that, he had another huge worry plaguing him if Emily killed Susan.

  “Em, I love you. I don’t want to lose you. If you do what you’re thinking, then my chances of getting you into heaven will crumble.”

  “But I’m saving the lives of children,” she pleaded.

  “No, you’re not. You’re freeing a demon who will do the same thing in another body.”

  “Are you sure?”

  He ran his shaky hand through his short locks. “It can only go to hell if I touch it. Where will it go if I don’t destroy it?”

  There was a long pause. “Fuck!” she yelled.

  “Get out of the house and go for a drive.”

  “This fucking sucks.”

  He couldn’t agree more with her. “I know. Just leave and pick me up in an hour.”

  “Andrew, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about the poison.”

  While her apology sounded sincere, he couldn’t let go of the ire burning in his veins. Her decision to ask Troy for help had irritated him, but her willingness to give up her future enraged him the most. She believed she would save the lives of children by killing Susan. In reality, Emily would be sending more kids to their graves. He understood the temptation to do good, but when a demon was involved, she had to let him handle the human. He couldn’t afford to let a demon go free, and he couldn’t risk losing the only woman he loved.

  “We’ll talk more later,” he said. “Just don’t go near that demon. If you love me at all, stay away from her and let me handle things.”

  “I’ll see you in an hour,” she said in a grim tone.

  He lowered the cell. His heart continued to beat strong. Although she hadn’t said she wouldn’t kill Susan, he suspected she wouldn’t, based on her choice of words and her tone. The small details offered him some comfort, but he still had to deal with her risking her future in heaven. Killing a human wasn’t an end to a means for anyone. There were always consequences. Andrew couldn’t lose her. He wouldn’t. So, he’d have to find a way to convince her not to kill the humans he had to track down. The job of killing was his alone and granted by the powers that be in the kingdom above.

  He stuffed the phone into his pocket and descended the remaining steps to the next floor. The displeasure would continue to gnaw at him, but at least he only had an hour left. Would he have liked to take a taxi to rush home and kill Susan? Sure, but too many people would question why he’d left. He wasn’t about to make a mistake when he was so close to destroying the demon.

  Andrew opened the door to the hall. The next sixty minutes were probably going to be hell as he pondered what to say to Emily later. On the bright side, if she let Susan live, then he would know Emily loved him more. He believed she loved him and that brightened his mood, but he still had a lot of work to do to convince Emily she belonged with him in heaven.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Emily chewed on her lip while she waited for Andrew to get off from work. She sat in the Jeep, facing the entrance to the hospital. She stopped in one of the aisles since too many cars were passing through the main street in front of the building. Parked cars were on both sides of her. She figured most people were going in, not coming out, so she was safe idling behind them. As soon as Andrew would walk out, she could zoom in front of the entrance and pick him up.

  The last hour had been horrible. She’d been so tempted to go over to the demon’s house and force her to drink the poison. She was glad she’d called Andrew and he’d talked her out of it. Her emotions for the kids were strong. She didn’t want to see any child suffer. Her choice to act had been based on feelings instead of logic. She had to be careful not to let that happen again.

  She sighed heavily and rubbed her brow. Worry plagued her. She’d fucked up with Andrew by hiding the fact she’d asked Troy for the poison. On some level she’d known Andrew would get upset, but she’d thought she could handle it. But she knew it wasn’t the toxin that angered him. She’d gone to Troy and hid it. That made it seem as if she didn’t think he was competent enough to destroy the demon on his own. She hadn’t thought about it like that until Andrew mentioned it. What was she going to say to make things right?

  Shaking her head, she looked away from the building. Why did she care so much? So she’d made a mistake. He’d made some too. They weren’t perfect. Nobody was. She’d had every intention of telling him eventually. So why did it matter that he was mad? She didn’t need him. She could leave at any time. He could find and kill the demons on his own now that he knew how to get money. So what, he had to stay another year because they’d had sex. Tough breaks. She could move on and live the rest of her life without him. Piece of cake.

  Who was she kidding? She was a fool to think she could walk away and not have any regrets. And while heaven didn’t sound like her dream home, she had to think it would be better than purgatory and definitely better than the inferno down south.

  “You sent a fucking angel to me. Why? Am I that bad of a person?” she asked even though nobody could hear her. Clearly she had some issues to resolve and she had yet to figure out how.

  Andrew strode from the building and looked straight ahead. He couldn’t miss her since she faced the entrance. She promptly shifted the gear and then moved the car forward. After checking each direction and finding no cars, she steered the car alongside the curb.

  Andrew gave her a closed-lip glance before he settled into his seat. Without so much as a hello
or a kiss, she accelerated down the street. When he didn’t say anything by the time she’d reached the main road, she knew he was still mad at her.

  Emily took glimpses at him while she drove. He kept his head turned to his side window, but she could still see the stern look on his face.

  “I know you’re upset and you have every right to be,” she said.

  The silence continued through several stoplights.

  “Is she still alive?” he asked.

  “Yes.”

  He faced her this time, but his foul expression hadn’t changed.

  She gripped the wheel tighter. “You were right, okay? My emotions were influencing me. I saw a perfect opportunity and I wanted to take it.”

  He still said nothing, but he stared at her and it made her feel like a small ant next to a big giant. Her cheeks warmed.

  “I’m sorry. I fucked up. I never claimed to be perfect.” She kept her gaze on the road. She didn’t know what else to say anyway.

  Traffic had delayed her return home. A touch of relief flowed through her when she was able to turn into the neighborhood. The silence in the car had been excruciating. At least in the house she could hide in the bedroom and bury her head under a pillow.

  She parked in the garage so her vehicle wouldn’t sit in the heat all day. Andrew exited the car while she collected her purse. He disappeared inside before she slid from her seat. After she hit the button for the garage door, it lowered and the sunlight slowly disappeared.

  Andrew waited for her by the sofa. He leaned his backside against it and had his arms crossed. She avoided looking at him. As strange as it seemed, every time she gazed at him, her body warmed with need. She shouldn’t feel so turned on when the man was angry with her, but she was.

  “Emily,” he said, stopping her before she entered the bedroom.

  “What?”

  “We need to talk.”

  She inhaled a deep breath. “I’ll put my purse up.”

  She entered the bedroom and stopped at the dresser. Her pulse sped with worry and fear, which seemed ridiculous. He wasn’t going to kick her out of the house or dump her. And so what if he did? She could live without him. A little lonely and sex starved, but she’d survive. She had for years. So why did she feel so worried about? Her stupid conscious reminded her she let him down and had gone behind his back to get help from Troy.