In The Arms of a Stranger

by Kristen Robinette

  He turned to Dana, pulling her to him for a quick kiss and planting another on top of Daniel’s head. He wanted to stay. He wanted to will away what was happening outside and start his new life with Dana and Daniel. But he couldn’t. No amount of wishing was going to change what was happening out there on that county road, or the fact that his father was in danger. It was time they all faced the past.

  “I’ve got to go,” he whispered.

  Dana nodded, her eyes wide. “Luke—” she grabbed his arm “—be careful.”

  “I will.” He wanted a little more time, just a few more seconds to tell her all the plans he had for the three of them. But it would have to wait. “Stay here behind the building, no matter what.” He squeezed her hand and then dropped it, backing away. “Take care of Daniel for me, okay?”

  Dana nodded.

  Luke took a deep breath and sprinted out from behind the building and toward the pine scrub that lined the gas station’s parking lot. Though he expected a rain of bullets, no shots were fired. It was a mixed blessing. The pine scrub offered little cover, and Luke was grateful that Camille hadn’t seen him. But the fact that she hadn’t noticed meant that she was focused in on his father or the sirens. Or both.

  The sirens… As the adrenaline in his body receded, the wail of the sirens became deafening. Luke crouched beneath the underbrush, maneuvering himself until he had a clear shot. He raised his gun, and squinted through the sight.

  “Dammit,” he cursed. She wasn’t there. She’d changed her last position.

  Then the shot rang out. Its crack split the air like a final insult, a violent summary of all the pain Camille had caused.

  His father crumpled to the ground.

  The sun chose that moment to break through the cloud cover and Luke spotted Camille at the top of the water tank. She was leaning against the guardrail, the scope of her rifle glistening in the sun.

  She was preparing for a second shot.

  Luke quickly glanced at his father, lying helplessly on the ground. Was he dead? Luke had no way of knowing. His men were on the scene now, but there wasn’t time to brief them. There was no reasoning with Camille at this point. And no time. She’d murdered before. Luke had no doubt that she was about to pull the trigger again. She was about to shoot his father, his father who lay as helpless as a baby on the ground.

  Luke took aim and fired.

  The rifle dropped first, then Camille’s body tumbled from the stairs, falling with a sickening thud to the rocks that lay below. Luke closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he saw Ben Allen and another officer running in Camille’s direction. But from the broken position of her body, he knew she was already dead.

  He felt no remorse. The only thing left to regret was the way Camille Williams Sutherlin had lived her life.

  Luke stood, his gun held loosely in his hand. Chaos boiled around him. He could hear other officers radioing in the situation. Reality slowly crept back in.

  His father…

  He jogged a few paces, leaving the cover of the pine scrub, and stopped at the sight of his father. Lucas Sutherlin, Sr., was sitting upright, a bloodstain spreading slowly on the arm of his white dress shirt. Relief poured through Luke. The rifle Camille used had been powerful. If the bullet had hit his father’s chest, he probably wouldn’t have survived. Luke thought he recognized the rifle as one of his father’s deer rifles. He felt numb with disbelief. She hadn’t fired it to frighten, she’d aimed to kill.

  A paramedic unit ran to his father’s side and began stripping away the thin cotton of his shirtsleeve. Luke watched through a haze of emotion as they began wrapping his father’s arm and checking him for other injuries. Vivian Metcalf appeared, limping through the chaos with calm authority. She knelt by his father’s side and took his hand. Luke smiled. Not only was she okay, she was offering his father comfort.

  Vivian had probably regained consciousness and witnessed the whole incident from the vehicle, reemerging when it was over. Luke was relieved to see an EMT take Vivian’s arm and escort her to a waiting ambulance. He doubted there would be any question regarding what happened, but the tough-as-nails deputy director of the DCFS would make one hell of a witness.

  “Chief?” Luke looked up to see Ben Allen jogging in his direction. The young lieutenant stopped before him, his face suddenly older than his years. “She’s dead.”

  Luke nodded.

  “Are you okay?” Ben asked.

  “Yeah.” He extended the handle of the gun to Ben. “Bag it, will you?”

  “You got it.” Lieutenant Allen accepted the weapon and headed back toward the row of squad cars.

  Luke shoved his trembling hands in his pockets, glad to be relieved of the gun. He’d never taken someone’s life before. He’d shot to defend, shot to wound, even. But never to kill. And never in a million years would he have thought Camille would die at his hands.

  He felt tainted by her sins, by what he’d been forced to do. Guilt clung to him like smoke, a lingering association with death and evil that he feared might never leave him.

  A soft hand slid against the skin of his neck. “Luke?” Dana’s voice called to him like a beacon of sanity in a damaged world.

  Luke closed his eyes and turned into her waiting arms. He bowed his head against her shoulder, unashamed as tears of relief fell against Dana’s tender skin. They were safe. Dana and Daniel were out of harm’s way. Dana held tightly to Daniel, and Luke stroked the baby’s back, the width of his hand covering the tiny expanse of his shoulders. No one would ever threaten them again. Not Camille, not Gonzalez or any other unseen enemy. Because from now on he would be here watching, protecting.

  Luke’s lips moved against Dana’s neck, tasting the salt of his own tears. He threaded his fingers into her hair and trailed soft kisses up her neck until their mouths met. He kissed her long and hard, loving and memorizing the taste of her, asking for and receiving a healing. She was like magic, vanquishing the air of evil and replacing it with everything that was good and right in the world.

  “Chief?”

  Luke pulled his mouth from Dana’s and turned to find Lieutenant Allen behind him.

  “I’m sorry to interrupt. Really, I am. But your father is asking for you.”

  Luke frowned. “He is okay, isn’t he.”

  “He’s going to be.”

  “Thanks, Ben.” He put his hand on the lieutenant’s shoulder. “Get an EMT over here. Have them check every hair on Miss Langston’s and the baby’s heads. Got that?”

  “Sure thing, Chief.”

  He watched as Ben flagged down an EMT unit and directed them toward Dana. There was so much he needed to say to her, but he wanted it said in private.

  Luke turned toward his father and felt a surge of fear, the kind of apprehension a child gets when they’re uncertain what their parent is about to do or say.

  Parent.

  He smiled, despite the gravity of the situation. He hadn’t thought of his father as a parent in a long, long time. But that was about to change. He’d gotten a second chance with someone he’d once loved but now, tragically, barely knew.

  Luke walked to his father and knelt beside him.

  “Son, is that you?” His father struggled to see him around the cluster of paramedics.

  “Yes, Dad.” The word felt good on his lips.

  The EMT who had just finished bandaging his father’s arm stepped gracefully aside, nudging the others to follow. “You don’t have long, sir. We’ll need to transport him right away.”

  “I understand,” Luke answered. He turned toward his father’s ashen face, suddenly recalling his words to Camille.

  Sweetheart, it’s me.

  Luke went cold with dread. He’d always thought their marriage was loveless, a convenient merging of business assets. Now he wondered. Had his father truly loved Camille? If so, could he forgive him for taking her life?

  His father grasped Luke’s arm, tugging him nearer. Tears were in the old man’s eyes. “Are you okay
?” His voice was frantic with worry. “Did she hurt you?”

  “No,” Luke whispered. “No. But I—” he choked on the confession “—Camille is dead.”

  “I know.” Grief lined his father’s eyes, even as he smiled and patted Luke’s arm. “She was a good woman once, really.” He shook his head. “She just let Lawrence’s betrayal poison her soul.”

  Luke could only nod.

  “I loved her once. I suppose I was lonely after your mother died.” His father coughed, waving away the paramedics when they started toward him. “I hated the way Lawrence treated Camille. I thought I could make it up to her, that one day she’d love me as much as she had him.”

  Luke swallowed hard. “Did you know? Did you know she started the factory fire?”

  “No. At least I didn’t put it all together until today.” He shook his head. “She’d been having these spells for a few years now, talking out of her head, accusing me of adultery and calling me Lawrence. Then the spells got worse and she started talking about blackmail, about Shelly and Janet Alexander.”

  “Was Shelly—” Luke hesitated “—was Shelly your mistress?”

  His father almost laughed. “Son, the last time I saw Shelly-Anne, she was six years old.”

  Another of Camille’s lies. Another lie he’d bought at his father’s expense.

  His father’s eyes grew distant. “Camille started getting phone calls at all hours of the night and would refuse to say who’d called. I knew something was wrong…”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” The words slipped out before Luke could control the accusation in his voice.

  “Would you have believed me?” His father looked up, his eyes imploring. “It just didn’t seem…it just didn’t seem possible, son. I thought she was hallucinating, remembering, maybe. I guess I just didn’t want to see what was right in front of me.”

  Luke wiped the tear from his father’s face, marveling at how long it had been since he’d touched him. “It’s okay, Dad.”

  His father shook his head, his eyes haunted by memories of the past. “Betrayal runs deep in a woman’s soul, maybe deeper than love.”

  The paramedic stepped forward, concern etched on his face. “I’m sorry, Chief, but we need to get your father to the hospital.”

  Luke nodded and gripped his father’s hand. “I’ll see you in a little while.”

  He stepped out of the way as they readied his father on the gurney. When the doors of the ambulance slammed shut, his father’s words echoed in his brain.

  Betrayal runs deep in a woman’s soul, maybe deeper than love.

  Fear shot through Luke.

  He’d betrayed Dana. What he’d suspected was an innocent act had been bravery instead. She’d forced her way through knee-deep snow, carrying Daniel beneath her jacket and toting a gun she loathed, just to return Luke to safety after he’d hit his head. She’d thought Gonzalez was stalking her yet she’d taken the risk anyway.

  Luke had thanked her by accusing her of murder.

  And then there was Daniel…. She’d been willing to die for a child she didn’t even know. Luke recalled the accident scene with horror. He had no doubt that, had Shelly still been alive, Dana wouldn’t have given up until she’d been out of the car, as well. The car could have easily pitched the rest of the way over the cliff, taking Dana and his son with it.

  He’d thanked her by offering her the ultimate gift, Daniel, and then snatched him away by calling DCFS.

  An angry wind slapped at Luke, reminding him that the storm still lingered.

  He watched his father’s ambulance disappear from sight, the prophetic words still ringing in his ears. Everything he’d taken for granted, his future with Dana and Daniel, flashed before his eyes.

  Luke looked over his shoulder to where the paramedics were tending to Dana and Daniel. Vivian Metcalf now stood by her side, and he was relieved to see that the older woman was okay. They had draped a heavy blanket over Dana’s shoulders and had taken Daniel from her arms to examine him. Her face was drawn with fatigue when she looked up and met Luke’s gaze.

  He saw an emptiness in her eyes that chilled him to the bone.

  Chapter 19

  Vivian stood beside the ambulance, leaning against the back entrance with one foot raised. “They want to X-ray my ankle.” She frowned at an EMT as he walked by. “I told them it was okay, but they insist.”

  “Hey, I’m the one with the cape, Superwoman.” Dana tugged the blanket a little tighter around her shoulders. Her eyes burned in an effort not to cry, and the joke sounded pathetic, even to her own ears.

  “Are you okay, Dana?”

  “I am. I will be.” She touched Vivian’s hand. “I’m sorry for everything. Would you like me to go to the hospital with you?”

  Vivian’s eyes darted to the road where Luke stood. “No, no need. Honestly, I’m fine. It should only take a couple of hours to get the X-ray results.”

  “If you’re sure…”

  “I’m sure. I’ll have one of Chief Sutherlin’s men take me back to his place. I still have lots of questions and even more phone calls to make before I can even begin to think about leaving the baby in his custody.”

  Dana winced, despite her resolve to be tough. She’d filled Vivian in on the details, explained that Daniel would be remaining with Luke. No case was open-and-shut when it came to child custody, including this one, but with Luke’s testimony and the tape recording, there was little doubt about Daniel’s parentage.

  One thing was certain. Daniel wouldn’t be going home to Atlanta with Dana.

  The realization shot through her like a knife. She tried to rationalize the pain away, console herself with the fact that she’d been important in Daniel’s life, if only for a short time. But the truth was, she was weary of living life in snatches of wonderful, in flashes of magic. She wanted wonderful to come and stay, to wake up to magic every day.

  She wanted to wake up to Luke and Daniel.

  “I’m sorry, sweetie. Sometimes I just say what I’m thinking and—”

  “I’m okay.” Dana waved away the apology and tried to look nonchalant. “I should have access to my car soon. We can ride back to Atlanta together if you’d like.”

  “Are you sure you’re not staying?” Vivian’s brown eyes were filled with kindness and stubborn hope.

  Dana shook her head. “I’ll probably be at the Sweetwater Police Station when you’re finished at—” She bit her bottom lip and forced down tears. “Check at the station when you’re finished with the paperwork. If I’m not there, they’ll know where to find me.”

  “Okay. Good luck, then,” she whispered as an EMT arrived and escorted her toward the waiting ambulance.

  As Dana looked up, she saw Luke heading toward her. If she thought her legs would support her, she would have bolted from the spot. But, as always, her adrenaline was a fickle friend. It had sustained her through the emergency but evaporated in the aftermath. She doubted that she could walk right now, much less run.

  Besides, the paramedics hadn’t finished examining the baby…

  She realized immediately the futility of the thought. Her role in his life had been temporary at best, fantasy if she admitted the truth. When the examination was complete, it would not be her that the paramedics returned him to.

  “Sir?” One of the paramedics called to Luke, interrupting his stride. “May I have a word with you?”

  Dana felt a tremor of alarm as Luke nodded and quickly walked toward the waiting ambulance. Her eyes followed their every move as she waited for some sign that Daniel was okay.

  “We’re almost ready to release the baby,” the EMT finally said. “Are you his father?”

  She held her breath as she watched the play of emotion on Luke’s face. He nodded. “Yes, I am.”

  A sob caught in her throat, and Dana felt the depths of despair open beneath her feet, offering its embrace and its snare. God help her, she wanted to jump.

  “If you would hold him for a minute while
I complete some paperwork…”

  Dana wanted to look away but couldn’t. She watched as the EMT placed Daniel in Luke’s arms, saw the expression of recognition and delight in Daniel’s eyes. He touched Luke’s face, his cherub’s cheeks puckering in a smile as he examined the stubble of his father’s beard.

  Her chest tightened as her heart swelled with love and then shattered into a million pieces.

  The paramedic eventually set his clipboard aside and took the baby from Luke. “As soon as we get his body temperature regulated, you can take him home.”

  Luke leaned over and kissed Daniel’s forehead. “Did you hear that? We can go home soon.”

  The comment cut the heart out of her, and the pit of despair yawned beneath her feet, beckoning for her to let go and fall. She closed her eyes, grasping for balance even as she heard the sound of Luke’s footsteps growing nearer.

  “Dana?”

  She opened her eyes. Luke’s shoulders cast a wide shadow over her but his voice was soft and deep, her name whispered as if she were fragile. She looked up, steeling herself for what would come next. For goodbye.

  Luke’s eyes were narrowed, intensifying the blue of their color, and his jaw was darkened with the beginnings of a beard. Had she not known the tender man that lay beneath the rough exterior, she would have found another reason to run.

  “Are you okay?” he asked.

  Dana’s heart warmed at his words but she held her breath until the longing stopped. Why, she wondered, would her heart long for more cruel fantasy when real life was tough enough?

  “Yes—no. I need you to do me a favor, Luke.” She swallowed back tears and looked away. “Take Daniel and go. Don’t make small talk, don’t say goodbye. Just go.” Before I snatch him from you and run, before I begin to imagine what could have been. “It will be easier that way.”

  “Go?” Surprise laced his voice. “Is that what you want?”

  Didn’t he see? She was waist deep in broken dreams, mired in what she wanted and what she’d been denied. “Since when does what I want have anything to do with what actually happens in my life?” The words slipped out, angry and fueled by a lifetime of denial.