Final Words
Page 30
“And how will justice be served by my death?”
Before he could answer, she swung one leg back, striking and buckling his knee. But when he fell, she went with him. The hard roof bruised her face and knees. Grit blinded her and she couldn’t breathe beneath his weight. But Emma wasn’t done yet. When he hauled her upright again, she came up slapping and punching, determined to escape, determined to live.
Despite her efforts, he pushed her closer to the low wall at the roof’s edge. “You’re only making it harder on yourself, Emma. Remember how you felt the night of your accident, in that emergency room. You were free of your body and your cares. You told me yourself that it was wonderful.”
“I’ve left notes.” She tried to twist in his arms but his grip strengthened. “The police will know it was you.”
“Notes can’t hurt me if there’s no proof. Once I take care of Edgar and the evidence under Layne’s fingernails, there will be no proof.”
She saw his eyes through the tangled mass of her hair. Madness burned within the pale depths. He believed he was some sort of divine dispenser of justice who could cover his tracks as he’d done in the past. But Emma decided that if she had to die, she would at least provide proof that he was her killer. She would make sure that Jason got the evidence he needed.
Throwing all her fear and anger into one move, she scratched his face as Layne must have done, peeling his skin away with her fingernails, feeling the heat of the blood she drew.
Howling in pain, he jerked his head back out of reach and grabbed her wrists. Crushing them in his hands, he dragged her toward the roof’s edge.
A siren blared in the distance. From a corner of her eye, Emma saw flashing red and blue lights. Paul’s blood-streaked face turned toward those lights.
“They’re coming for you,” Emma said. “You won’t have time to remove the evidence from my hands and get to Edgar and Layne before the police get here.”
Still holding her wrists, he looked down at her. Blood trickled around his ice blue eyes. “You’re right.”
Hope shuddered through her. “It’s time you faced justice.”
“We’ll face it together.” That cold smile returned. “I’m not afraid. You’ve told me what it’s like. Let’s go together and see what justice has in store for both of us.”
Before Emma could react, Paul raised a hand and struck her face. Pain slammed through her head and her knees buckled.
Scooping her up in his arms, Paul covered the last few steps to the edge. He swung one leg over the wall. Through a haze of pain, Emma saw stars spin overhead. Suddenly, she heard what sounded like a cry on the wind and something prickled across her scalp. Her forehead went numb. An opaque shadow crossed her face, blurring the stars and the silhouette of the man who held her. She heard him gasp as he pushed off. She felt his body fall, felt her own follow, felt the jerk as a pair of hands grabbed her shoulders and plucked her out of his grasp.
Jason’s face loomed between Emma and the stars. She felt his arms surround her, smelled his warmth and passed out.
* * * * *
“You should have told me what was going on.” Arms clasped behind him, Charlie paced near the open ambulance door.
Marta stood nearby, annoyance sparking in her eyes. “You should’ve warned me that you suspected Sanders was a killer.”
Emma winced as a paramedic cleaned the scrape on her cheek. He’d already bandaged the cuts on her knees and given her an ice pack for her bruised elbow.
Sitting beside her in the rear of the vehicle, Jason held her hand. His support and the breeze off Trinity Bay soothed her. It was over. Paul was dead. His body lay in a cooler room drawer, waiting for someone’s attention.
But not Emma’s attention. She’d pass this post mortem to someone else. She didn’t want Paul’s spirit to tell her what had happened in his last seconds—didn’t want to hear why he’d screamed in terror as he fell to his death—because she already knew. Layne’s spirit had attacked one last time.
“That’s it, Dr. St. Clair.” The paramedic stepped back. “Just keep that clean and dry. You still might want to go to the hospital and get checked out.”
“Thank you. I’ll be fine.” As the man shrugged and moved away, Emma leaned into Jason and sighed. He pressed a kiss against her hair.
A wide grin split Charlie’s face as he looked from Jason to Emma. “I knew the beautiful doctor would be the woman for you.”
Jason hugged her against his side. “Sorry, buddy, you get no credit for this.”
“I think I’ll take credit, just the same.” Charlie looked at Emma. “You did not trust him in the beginning, did you? You thought he had been with too many women.”
Emma nodded. “Yes, I did.”
Marta relaxed more slowly. “But now you do trust him.”
“Yes, I do,” she said, leaning into him.
“And you.” Charlie looked back at Jason. “You did not think you were ready to settle down.”
“You get no credit for this,” Jason repeated and Charlie just grinned.
“All of you have some explaining to do,” Edgar grumbled as two paramedics rolled his gurney to the rear of the ambulance. “In my office, first thing tomorrow.”
Emma looked at the bandages swathing Edgar’s head and nose. “We’ll explain later,” she said, although she had no intention of telling him the truth, either. “You’re spending a couple of days in the hospital.”
“I can’t. I have a meeting with the county administrator tomorrow.”
“You may have a concussion.” With Jason’s help, Emma stood. Her body ached from being hauled around by Paul and she told herself she should make an appointment for a checkup in the morning. “Doctor’s orders. You will rest for a few days.”
Edgar frowned. “We’ll discuss this tomorrow.”
“In your hospital room,” Emma said. “At ten o’clock.”
“I’ll be there too,” Jason said.
“And I,” Charlie added.
“Count me in,” Marta chirped. “I don’t want to miss this.”
Edgar winced as his frown tugged at the bandage covering a gash above his right eye. “Just be on time. All of you!”
Emma and Jason stood back with Charlie and Marta as the paramedics loaded Edgar into the ambulance and closed the doors. Moments later, the boxy vehicle headed out, siren wailing.
Charlie turned to Jason and Emma. “It isn’t easy to believe that Dr. Sanders killed so many people.”
Jason held Emma closer. “I saw him try to kill Emma tonight. He would have succeeded if I’d been a second later.”
“I still don’t understand why you insisted we come straight here,” Charlie said. “Instead of waiting for the crime scene guys to finish collecting evidence at Layne Simmon’s scene.”
Emma knew why. Jason had wanted to make sure that she was the medical examiner who worked on Layne’s body, because Layne’s spirit might provide information to help them prove Sanders had killed her.
“I just had a hunch, I guess,” Jason said, squeezing Emma’s waist.
Nodding slowly, Charlie turned toward Marta. “Ms. Zamora, may I escort you to your car? We can discuss how we’re going to deal with these two.”
“Certainly, Detective Garcia.” Marta gave Emma a curious look and then, eyes sparkling, she slipped her arm through Charlie’s. “How is Veronica?”
“As beautiful as ever. And my son, you would not believe how he has grown!”
As Charlie and Marta ambled away, Emma leaned her head against Jason’s shoulder. “Too bad we can’t tell them everything that happened,” she murmured.
“They wouldn’t believe us anyway.” Jason’s grip tightened. “When I drove up and saw you… If I’d been a second later—”
She cut him off with another kiss and then drew back with a smile. “You got there just in time. You’re my hero, Jason.”
“You’re the hero. If you couldn’t do what you do—”
“I didn’t volunteer fo
r the job, you know.” Looking up, she searched the glittering stars. “This was an assignment.”
Jason followed her gaze. For a moment, neither spoke as they watched the night sky. Emma felt a peaceful sense that she was exactly where she was meant to be and doing what she was meant to do.
“Promise me one thing,” he quietly said. “Don’t do this kind of thing alone again, okay? I love you, Emma. I don’t want to lose you.”
“Oh, Jason. I love you too.”
Leaning down, he pressed his lips to hers and she thought the world was just perfect.
Raising his head at last, Jason turned her toward his car. “Let’s go home.”
Emma leaned her head on his shoulder again. “I am home.”
“So am I, sweetheart.” Jason held her more tightly. “So am I.”
About the Author
Teri Thackston started making up stories in grade school, deciding she might have a future as a writer when she completed her first book at age eleven. That book, a blatant rip-off of the TV spy spoof “Get Smart”, never left the house…fortunately for all. But many of Teri’s short stories did leave home and found life in national magazines, and her books have won numerous awards.
Proud to be a native Texan, she lives in Houston with her own personal hero husband, her two amazing sons and two dogs who think she should take her fingers off the keyboard and pet them every time she sits down to write.
Teri welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email address on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.
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Also by Teri Thackston
Deadly Climb
Perilous Passions
The Abduction of Miss Jenny Chandler
To the Rescue
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