Bound By Darkness

“Larem?” she whispered, trying not to jar her head.

He moved closer to the bed and enfolded her hand in his. As soon as their hands connected, the bongos faded to a more bearable level. She sighed in relief, briefly accepting the comfort of his touch.

But she couldn’t relax, not until she knew. “Where’s the doctor?”

“With another patient, but she said she’d stop back to check on you soon. The nurse was also called away, but I’m sure she’s not far.” His accent had grown stronger again; his emotions were running high.

“Who did this to me?”

“We don’t know, but the police are investigating. Witnesses were able to give them a pretty detailed description of the guy who pushed you.” His eyes closed, and he squeezed her hand tighter. “Sasha, I—”

“I’ll be okay.” Or would be once she could talk to the medical staff. “Can you ask the nurse to come back in? It’s important.”

He nodded and walked out. She heard the low rumble of his voice and then the sound of footsteps heading her way. She braced herself to ask some hard questions.

A woman wearing a lab coat walked in. “Ms. Willis, I’m Dr. Brand. I’m glad to see you’re perking up. Give me a minute to check a few things and then we’ll talk.”

She poked and prodded and took readings, her touch gentle but firm. When she was finished, she pulled up a chair and sat down.

“You’re one very lucky lady. According to the police, you took quite a hit. You have a few bruises and abrasions as well as an impressive bump on your head, but none of your injuries are life threatening.

“Your friend Mr. Jones told us about the pregnancy. We confirmed it with a blood test, but so far there are no signs of any problems in that quarter. Of course, you’ll want to follow up with your OB/GYN about the accident as soon as possible.”

Relief mixed with confusion. Thank God the baby was all right, but how in the world had Larem known? She certainly hadn’t told anyone about any of the home pregnancy tests she’d taken over the past couple of days, least of all him. The man had a lot to answer for, but this wasn’t the time or the place.

“When can I go home?”

Dr. Brand smiled. “I always figure it’s a good sign when my patients start asking that question. However, I’d like to admit you overnight to keep an eye on that head wound, since you don’t have any family in Seattle. Unless you have someone who can stay with you, concussions can be tricky. You don’t want to take any unnecessary chances, especially with a pregnancy involved.”

“I’ll stay with her.”

Larem had returned. No surprise there. She’d sensed that he’d remained close by, but then he did have a vested interest in the doctor’s report. The last thing she wanted to do was spend a night in the hospital surrounded by strangers, especially since the accident hadn’t been an accident at all.

“Thanks, Larem, that would be great.” Sort of.

She told herself that she’d accepted Larem’s offer simply because she didn’t have any other close friends here she could ask. The real truth was much simpler: she trusted him to keep her safe.

The doctor may have sensed some of the tension between them, because she glanced at Larem before giving Sasha a considering look. “If you’re sure . . .”

“I’m sure.”

“All right then, I’ll write your discharge orders, but I don’t want you to go home until after all the test results are back. Also, the police are going to want to take your statement before you leave.”

When the doctor disappeared, Larem ventured closer. “I’ve already spoken to the authorities. They were going to stop by soon to see if you were awake. Devlin and Laurel are on their way, as well.”

Sasha leaned back against her pillow and felt the burn of tears. The last thing she wanted was to be grilled by either the police or Devlin Bane, but she supposed there was no avoiding it.

Larem’s gentle touch melted the last of her self-control, unleashing a stream of tears. He immediately perched on the edge of her bed and slowly pulled her into the sanctuary of his arms.

“This really wasn’t an accident, was it? Someone shoved me out in front of that car,” she whispered, trusting Larem to give it to her straight.

He didn’t even hesitate. “No, it wasn’t an accident. Devlin has D.J. monitoring the police investigation, and they’re handling the case as an assault. There’s no indication the driver was involved, but they’re hunting for the guy who ran from the scene.”

He stroked her hair, making her want to purr. The man certainly had a calming touch. No wonder an abused dog like Chance had taken to him. Chance!

“Where’s Chance?”

Larem smiled at her concern. “Safe and sound back at the shelter. The two of us ran there and then the vet, my friend Dr. Isaac, drove me here to the hospital. I arrived shortly after the ambulance.”

He wiped her tears away with a tissue and then held it to her nose. “Blow.”

She did as ordered, as embarrassing as it was. “Will the vet hold on to Chance if I can’t take him yet?”

“I told Dr. Isaac that you’re hoping to adopt Chance. He’ll keep him at the shelter until you’re ready to bring him home. He said once a dog chose to adopt a human, there was no sense in arguing the point, especially when there was a beautiful woman involved.”

Okay, that was sweet. “Thank him for me.”

“I will.”

Someone hesitated right outside the curtain. “Excuse me, Miss Willis, I’m Detective Lake, the investigating officer on your case. Are you up to answering a few questions?”

No, but that really wasn’t an option. Larem immediately stood up and moved away from the bed. Sasha drew a deep breath and said, “Please come in.”

If the detective was surprised to see Larem there, it showed only in a slight widening of his eyes. “Mr. Jones, we meet again.”

Larem nodded and remained silent as the police officer settled into the one chair in the cubicle. “I’m glad to see you’re on the mend, Miss Willis. Judging by the witness statements at the scene, that was quite a hit you took.”

Which sent a chill straight through her. “It sure feels like it. I should warn you that I don’t actually remember much.”

The detective smiled. “That’s not surprising, but I’d still like to hear any details you can share. Why don’t you start with how you happened to be at the intersection and go from there?”

Thank goodness, as an employee of the Regents, she had a cover story ready for just this kind of situation. “I recently transferred here from St. Louis to replace the administrator who resigned from the consulting firm I work for. I went on a walk from the office to a coffee shop, and as I was going in, I ran into my friend Larem out walking his dog. The accident happened just after we’d gone our separate ways.”

Lake nodded, as if to say her explanation jibed with what he already knew. “Okay, slow down now and give me any details you can, even if they seem unimportant.”

“I was waiting at the corner for the light to change. I distinctly remember the crosswalk light was still red. There were others waiting to cross on that corner, too, enough that I was feeling pretty crowded. Someone jostled me, but I didn’t see who it was.”

She closed her eyes, replaying the sights and sounds in her head. “I was still watching the light when someone shoved me hard from behind. The last thing I remember was the squeal of tires and then a loud thump. I guess that would’ve been me hitting the car or the ground.”

The detective sat with his pencil hovering over his notepad. “Did you see the person who shoved you?”

She thought about it. “A vague impression of a guy, but I could be wrong. Maybe he ran into me by accident and then took off scared.”

“Maybe,” the detective conceded, but his tone clearly said otherwise.

He asked a few more questions until he was satisfied that he’d mined her scattered memories for any useful information. After tucking his notebook back into his pocket, he pulled out a couple of business cards.

“Here’s my number. Call if you remember anything else, or even if you just need to talk. You seem to be handling all this pretty well, but trust me, it can blind-side you even days later.”

Larem asked one last scary question. “What do you think the chances are of catching the guy before he tries again?”

“Without a better physical description, it will be hard but hopefully not impossible.” His easygoing façade faltered a bit. “But rest assured, I’m going to do my best. Even if the guy ran into you by accident, I understand the first urge might be to run. However, any decent human being would turn himself in after the adrenaline burns off.”

Sasha clutched his business card like a lifeline. “Thank you, Detective. I’ll call if I think of anything.”

“Sounds good. I hope you feel better soon.” He smiled again and started to leave.

At the last second he turned back toward Larem. “Mr. Jones, the doctor says you’ll be keeping an eye on Ms. Willis tonight. That true?”

“Yes, it is. I will make sure she is not left alone.”

The two men exchanged a long look before the detective finally nodded. “Like I said, call if you need me. Bye, folks.”

This time the detective finally left and with him, Sasha’s last bit of energy. She tugged her blankets up higher and tried to find a position where her head didn’t hurt quite so much.

Very aware of Larem still hovering nearby, she said, “Look, I’m going to sleep for a bit. I’m sure you’ve missed at least one meal. Why don’t you go grab a bite to eat? I’ll be fine.”

Once again, he rested his hand on hers. “I’ll stay here until Laurel arrives. You shouldn’t be alone right now.”

Stubborn man. “But I’m not alone. If I need anything, the nurses are right outside.”