by E. R. FALLON
Blood continued to pour from her throat and formed a small pool by her mouth. Mack and I knelt by her and covered her neck with our hands to try and cease some of the blood coming out of her until the other police arrived. She blinked in and out of consciousness.
“I’m helping her because she’s my sister,” I told Mack. “Why are you helping her?”
“It’s my job.”
I’d never thought of it that way before; Mack nabbed killers, but it was also his duty to save them if the need came about.
He rang again for an ambulance while I continued to press my hand around the brutal rip in Rachel’s throat.
“Be careful with her neck,” Mack said in between talking on the phone.
I’d seen enough of death to conclude that Rachel’s life would end soon regardless of help arriving. What could I have said to a dying murderer? A sister I had never known? Cold sweat dampened my back.
“You’re going to be okay,” I whispered.
And maybe she would, finally, be at peace.
Rachel opened her eyes briefly, long enough to see me there with her. She closed her eyes and smiled and shook her head. She knew my words were only to comfort her.
Many police arrived and blocked off the alley from the street where a line of onlookers had formed. Rachel had stopped breathing. One of the officers checked her pulse, made eye contact with Mack, and shook his head. He politely asked me to move out of the way and Mack helped me stand up. We watched as the officer gave Rachel CPR but he couldn’t get her to breathe.
One cop asked another if she should put handcuffs on Rachel.
“You really think that’s necessary?” Mack snapped at the woman. “She’s not going anywhere.”
The paramedics arrived in an ambulance shortly after and took over for the officer trying to save Rachel’s life. They stopped the bleeding and tried to get her heart to start up again. After what seemed like an hour, one of them, a young red-haired man, stood up from working on Rachel and approached me. Mack put his arm around me.
“I’m sorry,” the man said. He patted my arm and retreated.
The police officers stood around as the paramedics reversed the ambulance, which bleated a backup signal, and proceeded to load Rachel’s sheet-covered body onto a gurney, and roll her into the back of the ambulance.
“You don’t have to watch this. Come with me,” Mack said. “I’m parked nearby. I’ll drive you to the hospital so you can get that checked out.” He pointed at my neck.
“I’m okay, really.” I took a tissue out of my pocket and wiped the cut. The blood had stopped coming out, and there was only a few spots of red on the tissue.
“You still might want a doctor to look at it in case the blade was dirty.”
“I’ll worry about that later. Right now, I want to return to the lodge to see Sammie. I can’t explain it but I have to see her now.” It wasn’t enough to text her to confirm her safety, I had to see her in person. I pulled out my phone and turned it on to let her know I was on my way there.
“She’s fine. I spoke to her recently,” Mack said.
“You did?” I waited for him to elaborate but he didn’t. “I’m parked close by as well,” I said.
“Where, exactly?”
I told him.
He signaled to the officers and strode with me out to the sidewalk, moving past the crowd that had accumulated, to cross the street. We washed our hands in a public restroom.
“I’ll drive you back to your hotel. We can get someone to pick up your car later and take it to Freedom,” Mack said, outside again.
“No, I’ll drive myself. Thanks anyway.”
“You’re sure?” He raised an eyebrow.
“Mack, I’m not a kid anymore.”
He smiled. “You really aren’t. I’ll walk with you to your car. That’s the least you could let me do. And I’m sorry about your sister.”
“It’s not your fault.” I’d never get to discover if Rachel had any good in her but I had no more tears left for someone I hadn’t known.
“It’s not yours, either,” he said.
I couldn’t appreciate his words then but knew that someday they would be valuable to me.
“The police here are going to need you to come back at some point before you return to Seven Sisters. They’ll want to take your statement on what happened today.”
I nodded. “Sammie and I will take a detour and stop here on our way home. You don’t think it’ll take more than a few hours, do you? It won’t take days, right?”
“I wouldn’t think so,” Mack said.
I told him about the cottage where Rachel had lived with her caretaker. “What will happen to Rachel’s body when they’re finished with her?” I asked.
“Either someone will claim her or she’ll linger.”
“My mother’s family will take care of the arrangements.” I was certain they would. “How’d you know where I’d be today?”
“As I said, your girlfriend called me. She wanted to drive to Lamont herself and look for you but I advised her against it. She told me she was worried about you coming here. She said something about a Lamont connection to the murders in Seven Sisters. I promised her I would help. After she called, I went to speak with your mother at the prison.” My concern must have showed on my face because Mack said, “Don’t worry, I didn’t disclose your relation to her. I conveyed to her that I received a call that the journalist she spoke with could be in danger, and I asked her what she’d told you. That’s how I found out about Rachel. She was surprisingly cordial to me—I believe you’ve had a good effect on her—but it took a lot of effort on my part to pull the information out of her. She was very reluctant. You know how stubborn she can be.”
“That’s a damn understatement,” I murmured.
“When I went to the facility where Rachel was staying—there’s only one place like that in Lamont—she’d already left for work. The orderly I spoke with mentioned Rachel’s brother had been there looking for her. Figuring you might have gone to the store where she worked, that’s where I went, but you weren’t there. One of Rachel’s co-workers told me she liked to smoke in the alley before her shift.”
I listened on and off as he spoke, and before long he’d walked with me to where I’d parked. We stood on the sidewalk alongside the car.
“Were you aware my mother has cancer?” I asked.
Mack looked at his hands and then at me. “Yes. I withheld her condition from you because I didn’t want to worry you. I didn’t want you to have to hear it from me. I wanted her to tell you.”
“She did, but she doesn’t know she’s my mother.”
“Yeah, I guessed that much.”
“Thanks, Mack,” I said. “I know you saved my life. I thought about giving you a hug, but a pat on the back will do.”
He grinned and opened his arms. “Come here and give me a hug, buddy.”
“One more thing. How’d Sammie get your number? I never gave it to her.”
“She called the station and asked to speak to me. I promised her I wouldn’t let anything happen to you. About your mother—we got it wrong. I’m sorry.”
“She confessed. You couldn’t have known.” I embraced the big guy right there on the street.
Chapter 16
The night after Sammie and I returned to Seven Sisters, we sat on the couch in our apartment, wineglasses in our hands and Paige nestled between us.
We’d driven home from Freedom together and had left Sammie’s car behind for the rental company to pick up from the hotel parking lot. I hadn’t spoken to Tawny when we checked out of the lodge and I doubted I’d ever see her again. Some places and people were best left in the past.
My neck was healing fast but my heart needed some more time.
The Seven Sisters police were working with Sammie’s organization to notify the families of Rachel’s unclaimed victims.
“It’s good to be back to normal,” Sammie said to me. “But I know that nothing will be normal
again after what you’ve endured.”
“It’s a new normal,” I said. And I wanted the new normal to be Sammie and me forever.
We’d had the TV on earlier but turned it off after a few minutes. Both of us had to return to work tomorrow. I’d received a call from Chief Gilani upon arriving at home, letting me know that, unofficially, my suspension would be revoked and my absence at the hearing could be overlooked. He hadn’t said that the change of heart had stemmed from my help solving the recent killings, but I liked to think of it that way. The chief would also get to keep his job.
Before we parted ways, Mack had assured me Alice’s conviction would be reopened and reconsidered in an expedited manner because of her illness. “I’ll be talking to the DA tonight,” Mack had told me. He’d said the DA would arrange for Alice to have time served for covering Rachel’s crimes by taking her place.
The police wanted to interview Rachel’s companion and a warrant had been issued for him.
I’d promised Alice I might reunite her with her child, and perhaps I would try. With the limited amount of time Alice had left, I’d have to try soon. And maybe I’d bring along a jar of molasses for her.
I found out through the chief that Em had admitted to selling the story to Crime Man and that she’d resigned from the clean-up team. When I’d asked Josh if he heard from her, he welcomed me back home and texted that Em hadn’t contacted him since her resignation. I never heard from her again, but I liked to believe that she and her son were faring well.
Paige moved down to our feet and I cradled Sammie’s head in my lap. “It does feel good to be here,” I said, reaching over her to set my wineglass on the coffee table. “Let’s get married.”
I took Sammie’s wineglass from her and put it next to mine on the table. The ordeal of the past few days and her support throughout everything made me realize how much she meant to me.
I beamed at the stunned look on her face. She moved off my lap and sat up. I got down on my knees in front of her, and Paige wagged.
Sammie hid her face in her hands and laughed. “You’re proposing? Now? After everything that’s happened? That’s one of the things I’ve always loved about you, Evan, your spontaneity.” She took her hands from her face and smiled at me.
“Will you marry me?” I asked.
“Where’s the ring?”
“I don’t have one yet. We’ll go shopping tomorrow night after work.”
Sammie laughed. “Oh, you’re something else. But I love you. And I’ll marry you.”
“You will?”
“Yes.” She touched my hands.
“Maybe my luck is beginning to turn around.” We stood up and kissed, with Paige barking behind us like she was in a celebratory mood.
A text came through. It was for me.
“Aren’t you going to read that?” Sammie asked.
“No, I’ll look later. Let’s celebrate tonight. Just us.”
“All right, but what if it’s for work?”
“It can wait.”
“I better check for you.” Sammie grabbed the phone from me before I could stop her. I waited as she read. “You should see this.” She handed the phone to me.
There’d been a stabbing at a bar earlier in the day. “What about celebrating?” I said. “I don’t have to go. My job doesn’t mean more to me than you do.”
“I know. But go.” Sammie put her hand on my chest. “We’re getting our rings tomorrow. That’s good enough. I know how important your work is to you.”
“Okay, but I love you more than work.”
“I know you do.” Sammie’s eyes shone when she smiled.
I texted Josh to let him know I’d be getting the van from the garage and picking him up at his house. Our job was, sadly, never done.
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Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
