Dusty glanced up and down the hallway before stepping into the room, pulling the visitor’s chair closer to her bed.“You’re supposed to be resting.Doctor’s orders.”
“I’ve been resting for two days.I’ve slept more in the last two days than I have in the past two months.Any more rest and I’m going to lose my mind.”She studied his face, looking for any tells.Dusty had always been hard to read, but she’d figured out a few of his tells over the years.Which made him an excellent person to play poker with, because she always won.“You know, don’t you?You know who did this to me.”
His expression didn’t change, but she caught the slight tightening around his eyes.Bingo.
“Nic—”
“Don’t ‘Nic’ me, Dusty Warner.We’ve been friends since you moved here.You’ve had dinner at my table more times than I can count.And now you’re sitting there, lying to my face.”
Dusty sighed, running a hand through his sandy hair.“I’m not lying.I’m just…not talking.”
“Same difference.”The anger she’d been tamping down for days finally broke free.“I have a right to know who shot me, tried to have me killed.I have a right to know why my husband is running around playing vigilante with his FBI buddy instead of being here with me.”
“Gabe’s trying to keep you safe.”
“Gabe’s trying to keep me in the dark!”The words came out louder than she’d intended, and she pressed a hand to her chest as the outburst sent a spike of pain through her healing lung.“I’m not some fragile flower, Dusty.I grew up with eleven older brothers who made sure I could handle anything thrown at me.I can handle whatever this is too.”
Dusty leaned forward, his expression softening.“I know you can.You’re tougher than half the deputies I work with.But this guy…” He shook his head.“This guy’s different, Nic.He’s smart, he’s got resources, and he’s got a serious grudge against your husband.Gabe’s just trying to end this before anyone else gets hurt.”
“A grudge?”She could hear the desperation creeping into her voice, but she didn’t care.“This has something to do with Melissa Carpenter.Somebody blames Gabe for what happened to her, even after all these years.Even though he’s dead, Dr.Richardson’s shadow, his hatred of Gabe, is causing him pain.”She tapped her chin, trying to remember all the people involved in Melissa’s life.The files, the medical records, she’d gone through all of it with a fine-tooth comb.“It’s not her family.It must be the fiancé.I’m right, aren’t I, Dusty?”
For a moment, she thought Dusty might tell her.His jaw worked like he was chewing on the words, trying to decide whether to spit them out or swallow them down.The decision was taken away from him when his phone rang.
When he glanced at the caller ID, his entire demeanor shifted.The easy-going friend disappeared, replaced by the cop.“I need to take this.”
“Warner,” he answered, his voice sharp and professional.
Nica watched his face as he listened, saw the color drain from his cheeks.His jaw tightened, and he stood, listening to whoever was on the other end.His free hand moved instinctively to the grip of his service weapon.
“Copy that.I’ll lock it down here.”
He ended the call and slipped the phone on his belt, his face closed down and she couldn’t read anything, which told her more than words that something had happened.
“What’s wrong?”Nica’s heart was already racing, some primal instinct telling her whatever news he’d just received was very, very bad.
“Nothing you need to worry about.”But Dusty was already moving toward the door, his hand on his radio.“I need you to stay calm and stay in that bed.”
“Dusty, you’re scaring me.”
He paused at the threshold, turning back to face her.For just a moment, the mask slipped, and she saw genuine fear in his eyes.
“The man who had you shot—his name is Julian Banner.You’re right, he was Melissa Carpenter’s fiancé.Gabe and Mike found out he was in Houston and set a trap.He was supposed to take the bait, and they’d grab him.But he didn’t fall for their plan.Banner’s hotel room in Houston is empty, and his car is gone.”Dusty’s voice was steady, but she could hear the tension underneath.“There’s a good chance he’s here, Nic.In Shiloh Springs.”
The words hit her like a physical blow.“Here?As in here, here?At the hospital?”
“We don’t know yet.But I’m not taking any chances.”He keyed his radio.“This is Warner, requesting immediate backup at Shiloh Springs Hospital, room314.Code Red situation.Possible hostile in the area.”
The response crackled back immediately.“Copy, Warner.Units en route.ETA three minutes.”
Nica’s mouth had gone dry.“Dusty—”
“Listen to me.”He moved back to her bedside, his voice urgent but calm.Picking up the call button, he handed it to her, wrapping her fingers around the device.“I need you to lie flat and stay down.If anything happens—and I mean anything—you hit that call button, and you don’t stop screaming until someone comes running.Gabe, Rafe and Mike are on their way.Do you understand, Nica?If anything happens before they get here, you scream your bloody head off until help comes.Got it?”
She nodded, not trusting her voice.
“Good.”He checked his weapon, then moved to the window, peering through the blinds at the parking lot below.“I’m going to be right outside that door.Nobody—and I mean nobody—is going to get past me.That’s a promise.”
As Dusty took his position in the hallway, Nica sank back against her pillows, her heart hammering against her ribs.Julian Banner.The name meant nothing to her, but apparently it meant everything.He was the fiancé, the man who’d loved Melissa and lost her because of the whole fiasco in California.This stranger had turned their lives upside down, had stalked her through the streets of her own hometown, had a bullet put into her chest.
