And she couldn’t blame him, because if she were honest with herself, she’d admit she was falling for Nick, too. Maybe he didn’t feel the same way, but she couldn’t imagine a life without him.
Please, Lord, let him live!
* * *
“What do you mean you can’t find Karl?” Rachel asked, her tone rising incredulously. With the smoke growing thicker in the woods despite the firefighters’ attempt to douse the raging flames, the police officer had stashed her and Joey in the squad car while they went searching for the scientist. “He was lying on the ground about twenty feet away from the car. You found the car, right?”
“Yes, ma’am, we found the vehicle. And we looked all over but didn’t find any sign of the research doctor or the weapon.” The tall, dark-haired police officer had introduced himself as Sean McCarthy.
Rachel shivered and hugged Joey. The thought of Karl Errol being out on the loose in the woods with his rifle wasn’t at all reassuring. She wished now that she had taken the gun with her. She glanced through the passenger-side window, hoping that Karl had taken the opportunity to escape rather than to seek revenge.
She could still barely comprehend that Gerry Ashton had decided to kill her and Joey as retaliation for her father giving her the company. And because he thought she was onto him. She felt sick to her stomach, thinking about how she’d been duped by the man she’d trusted.
Once again, her instincts had led her wrong.
“You say you believe Karl Errol was secretly working for Global Pharmaceuticals?” Officer McCarthy asked.
“That’s what he admitted to. I’m still having trouble understanding how two people hated me enough to try and kill me.”
“Can’t say that I have much experience with corporate espionage,” McCarthy admitted.
“Me, either,” she murmured. She didn’t want to think about greed and corruption anymore. Right now, she wanted to see Nick. To make sure he was all right.
“Officer McCarthy, will you please take us to Madison General Hospital?” she asked, willing to beg if necessary. It seemed as if hours had passed since the ambulance had driven away with Nick. She wanted nothing more than to get far away from this place where Nick had almost died and where she and Joey had feared for their lives, too. “We’ve given you our statements. It’s not like we can’t discuss this in more detail later, right?”
Officer McCarthy hesitated but then nodded. “All right. We’ll head over to the hospital. If Detective Butler is awake, I’ll get his statement, as well.”
Her shoulders slumped with relief. She didn’t bother telling the officer that the likelihood of Nick answering any questions was slim to none. She wouldn’t be at all surprised to find that Nick was already in surgery, having the injury to his arm repaired. If he survived long enough to get to surgery.
No, she refused to believe the worst. God was surely watching over Nick. He’d been a good Christian his entire life.
She didn’t even want to consider the alternative. That God would take Nick home to be with his wife and daughter.
The ride to the hospital didn’t take too long, although Joey was half asleep by the time they arrived. With Officer McCarthy as their escort, they made their way to the waiting area and were given a quick update about Nick’s condition.
“Detective Butler is still in surgery,” the woman behind the desk informed them. “But he should be out soon. Now tell me what relation are you to the patient?”
Rachel swallowed hard. “I— We’re good friends. He, uh, has sisters, but I don’t know how to get in touch with them.” She knew he had parents, although she wasn’t sure how to contact them, either. How was it that she was more familiar with the names of his dead wife and daughter than his living family members?
Maybe calling herself a friend was stretching the truth. She was just a woman who’d needed Nick’s protection and his expertise. Nothing more, nothing less.
The kiss they’d shared didn’t mean anything. And she’d be stupid to think it had.
She and Joey went to sit down, and soon Joey was snuggled against her, falling asleep. She tucked Officer McCarthy’s business card in her pocket and let her head drop back against the wall.
As soon as they found Karl Errol, this nightmare would really be over. She and Joey could go back home to their normal lives. Granted there would still be some red tape before the money was returned her, but she was convinced it would all work out.