Nate cuddled Lucy close, breathing in the calming scent of baby shampoo. He silently thanked God for giving him the strength he’d needed to save them.
The idea of losing Lucy or Willow was too much to bear.
He looked at his SUV parked at the end of the alley, knowing full well he shouldn’t leave the scene of an officer-involved shooting. Yet he desperately wanted to take Willow and Lucy home. He told himself he was working the case, following a new lead, but he felt certain Sarge wouldn’t see it that way.
Before he could so much as take a step toward his SUV, though, Vivienne and her border collie partner caught up to him. She scowled, glancing between him and Willow. “Slater, where are you going?”
“I need to take Willow and Lucy home.” Even as he said the words, Vivienne’s eyes widened and she quickly shook her head.
“You can’t do that. You know the protocol.” Vivienne glanced at Willow, who had taken Lucy from Nate’s arms. Her expression softened. “I know you’ve been through a lot, Willow, and I know you’re scared. But if you care about Nate at all, you won’t let him risk his job for you.”
“Now hold on,” Nate began, but Vivienne cut him off.
“You can’t leave. End of story.”
“She’s right.” Willow’s voice was low, soft and full of remorse. “I’m being selfish. You absolutely need to stay here and do your job, clear your name.” Her smile looked wan. “We’ll be okay. I’m sure one of the officers will escort us home.”
He pushed down a surge of anger. No, they wouldn’t be okay until they identified and arrested the big boss. The man who’d ordered Carl Dower to kidnap Willow and Lucy. The man in charge of this criminal endeavor, who ordered men, women and even a child to be killed without hesitation.
Leaving an officer on guard at her apartment hadn’t prevented Willow from being taken against her will. From being threatened and almost killed.
No matter what happened to him, he couldn’t bear the thought of failing to protect her again.
“I’ll look at the original digital images and let you know what I find,” Willow added.
“Digital images?” Vivienne raised a brow. “The ones you took of Carl Dower?”
“Yes.” Willow looked tired but still wore the familiar stubborn expression on her face, the one that refused to quit, no matter what. “I want to examine it more closely.”
Nate abruptly straightened. “I have an idea. My laptop is in my SUV, we’ll pull up the photos on my computer and enlarge the image so we can see if there’s anything in the background. We can also call Eden Chang for help. She’s a genius when it comes to uncovering hidden secrets.”
Vivienne didn’t look entirely convinced but nodded. “Fine, but don’t leave the scene. Sarge is on his way and will want to talk to you.”
“Understood.” He put his hand beneath Willow’s elbow. “Let’s go. My SUV is at the end of the alley.”
He led Willow through the mass of officers and crime scene techs to where he’d left his SUV only a short time ago, but it seemed like hours.
It was easy to remember the bitter taste of fear that had clogged his throat when he’d witnessed Dower dragging Willow into the back of the restaurant at gunpoint.
Thankfully, he’d gotten there in time. It had been the first time he’d ever shot a man in the course of duty, but looking back, he didn’t see that he’d had an alternative.
Carl Dower had fired first, leaving him no choice but to take out the threat.
Still, he knew that while he had Willow as a witness, the evidence would have to be carefully examined in order to prove his side of the story.
Especially if Dower didn’t survive his injury.
Shaking off the depressing thought, he opened the front driver’s-side door, leaving it ajar to help air out the vehicle. Willow placed Lucy in the car seat from the other side of the SUV as he booted up the computer and then linked his phone to access the internet.
“We’ll use the back. Murphy needs some water anyway.” He carried the laptop around to the back of the SUV, opened the hatch and set the laptop down. Murphy gracefully leaped into the back, drank some water, then jumped back down.
“Let me access all my photos.” Willow gestured to the screen. “Especially the one I took before I did the editing.”
“Have at it.” He watched over her shoulder as she logged in and pulled up the message and attached photo she’d sent to her photography instructor just ten days ago.
“This is the finished photo, after I blurred the background.” Willow minimized the photograph and went back in her files. “The original one is here, somewhere.”
“If you don’t find it, I’ll get an officer to pick up your laptop and bring it here.” Nate was anxious to see the original photograph on a large screen. There had to be something important that she’d unwittingly caught in the picture.
Something he should have thought about days ago, when she’d first shown him the photo on her digital camera. Had he let his emotional response to Willow and Lucy cloud his judgment?
As Willow worked, he stepped to the side and scanned the alley. Dower was hoisted into the back of an ambulance, the drivers no doubt rushing to take him to the closest hospital. Berk was still handcuffed and tucked in the back of a squad car. The crime scene techs were hard at work preserving evidence, but the number of cops that were around the area had dwindled.
The threat had been minimized and there were no doubt other calls coming in.
“I found it!” Willow’s excited voice drew his attention back to her. “I think I see someone in the background but I can’t make out the facial features.”
“Send it to me, so I can forward the original to Eden.”
“Okay.” Seconds later, his phone pinged with a text message. He relayed it to Eden, then called her. “This is the original photograph that Willow took. Can you sharpen the background?”
“I’m putting together a digital timeline of Dower taking Willow and Lucy to the alley behind the restaurant. Sarge wants it ASAP.”
“Okay, but this photo is important, too.”
She sighed. “Okay, fine. I’ll do my best and will call when I have something, okay?” Eden didn’t wait for his response before disconnecting from the call.
“I’m getting it.” Willow glanced up at him. “Eden probably has better skills, but it almost looks like a woman in the background.”
“A woman?” He frowned, peering over her shoulder. The figure way in the back of the room did seem to have long blond hair. For a moment a flash of recognition flickered. “Deputy Mayor Theresa Gray.”
“I knew you’d figure it out eventually.” The scathing tone caused him to glance up in shocked surprise. The woman in the photograph was standing off to the side. In her hand she held a small yet lethal gun pointed directly at them. “Don’t move, or I won’t hesitate to shoot.” She lifted the gun a little higher and pointed it first at Murphy, then back at Willow. “At this range, I won’t miss.”
Nate’s heart thudded painfully in his chest. He’d found the true perpetrator a little too late.
“You’re going to get into the SUV, slowly,” Theresa Gray said. “Secure the dog in the back. Willow will slide in beside the brat, and you, Detective Slater, will get behind the wheel. We’re going to take a little drive. Trust me, no one will stop a police car.”
He glanced at Lucy, tucked into her car seat. She hadn’t noticed the danger yet. He needed to find a way to neutralize the threat before Lucy had to suffer yet another traumatic event.
He faced the deputy mayor, hoping, praying someone would notice what was going on. But they were mostly hidden behind the SUV. And everyone assumed the danger was over.
If only he’d taken Willow and Lucy back to their apartment as he’d originally planned! Too late, now. He’d protect them both with his life, if he had to. He gathered his scattered thoughts together and cleared his throat, stalling for time. “This won’t work. The original digital file has already been sent to our tech specialist. Killing us now will only make it worse. They’ll easily figure out that you are the one behind all of this.”
Instead of alarm, a slow, evil smile creased her features. “I’ve already thought of that. I always have a plan, unlike Dower, who’s an incompetent idiot. It will be easy enough to pin this entire mess on Carl and Oscar Banjo.”
His heart quickened. “How?”
“I’ll claim I caught Dower in the restaurant talking to Berk as evidenced in the photo and suspected they were planning something. That I tried to figure out what it was, and soon realized Oscar Banjo was involved in something illegal.”
“Selling stolen goods in the Basement Bargains store owned by Oscar Banjo,” he said, finally putting the pieces together.
“Yes.” Theresa’s smile was smug. “My story will be that before I could go to the police, Dower kidnapped the woman.” She waved a hand at the alley. “The rest happened because of Dower, and Banjo panicked. Once you’re both gone and Banjo is arrested, there won’t be anyone who can claim anything different. It will be my word against Oscar’s, and, well, I’m the deputy mayor.”
He didn’t want to admit that she just might be able to pull it off.
“What about Berk?” Willow asked. “He knows the truth.”
The deputy mayor lifted a thin shoulder. “Don’t you know that accidents happen in jail all the time? Tsk, tsk.” Her gaze hardened. “Now move!”
Nate lifted his hands in a gesture of surrender. The last thing he wanted to do was make the trigger-happy woman angry. Yet he knew there had to be a way out of this.
One that wouldn’t cause any harm to come to Willow or Lucy.
Willow stepped around to the side of the vehicle. He took a step to follow her, glancing down at Murphy. They’d have to make their move soon.
Before it was too late.
Willow couldn’t believe everyone around them was completely oblivious to what was going on. Granted there were fewer cops milling about, but several were standing and chatting nearby, unaware that they were being kidnapped by a crazy woman with a gun.
“Get in!” The terse order startled her.
“O-okay.” Willow glanced at Nate and knew by the intensity of his gaze that he was going to risk his life to save them.
No! It couldn’t end like this. She refused to let it end like this!
She abruptly leaped forward to the front seat of the vehicle, slamming her fist onto the center of the steering wheel. The horn blared loudly, echoing off the brick buildings on either side of them.
In the same moment, Nate launched himself at the deputy mayor. “Get her, Murphy!”
The sharp retort of a gunshot could be heard above the sound of the horn. Finally, the officers who’d been standing just thirty feet away came running toward them.
“Nate! Nate!” He’d pinned Theresa Gray against the asphalt, his hands fighting for control of the weapon. Willow didn’t see any blood, but feared the worst. “Someone please help him!”
After barking loudly in Theresa’s face, Murphy shifted and grabbed her ankle in his teeth, clamping down tight enough to make her scream in outrage.
“Get him off me!”
That was all the advantage Nate needed. He yanked the gun from her grip and tossed it out of reach just as two officers joined the fray, surrounding them and helping Nate up and off Gray. In seconds they had the deputy mayor handcuffed.
Willow let out a ragged sigh of relief. This time, it was finally over.
Then she frowned. Bright crimson drops stained the white paint of the police SUV. What in the world? “Nate? Are you hurt?”
He stared at her blankly for a moment before glancing down at himself. Slowly, he put a hand up to the upper part of his left arm. The blue uniform was dark and when he pulled his palm away, it was covered in blood.
She gasped in horror. “She shot you!”
“Yeah.” He looked surprised. “I hadn’t noticed until now.”
Tears pricked her eyes, but she quickly brushed them away. “We need an ambulance!” Feeling desperate, she turned to the front seat of the SUV. There had to be something she could use to help stop the bleeding.
“The glove box.” Nate’s voice was calm and sturdy despite the fact that he’d been shot. “And don’t panic, it’s just a flesh wound.”
A flesh wound that was bleeding like a sieve. Opening the glove compartment, she found a first aid kit. Pulling out some gauze, she turned toward him and placed several white squares against the opening in the ripped sleeve of his shirt.
Seeing the wound up close, she realized he was right. The injury didn’t look too serious, but was bad enough to need at least two layers of stitches. The amount of blood made her think an artery might have been hit.
“I knew you were going to jump toward her.” She kept pressure against the pack of gauze. “I just knew it.”
“Is that why you hit the horn?”
“Yes. I was hoping to get someone to pay attention.”
The corner of his mouth quirked up in a lopsided grin. “Smart move. It startled her and caused her aim to go high and to the side. Probably saved my life.”
Her eyes misted again. “I didn’t know what else to do. I absolutely didn’t want to get into the car with her.”
“Shh, it’s okay.” As if he wasn’t injured, he pulled her close for a moment, brushing a kiss over her forehead. “It’s over now for good.”
She savored his embrace for a moment before pulling away, making room for the paramedics to move in. Feeling helpless to do anything more, she turned to Lucy, who had started to cry when the gun went off. Reaching into the back of the SUV, she gently pried her niece out of the car seat and into her arms.
“Shh, Lucy, it’s okay. We’re fine. Everything is going to be just fine.”
Lucy gripped her tightly around the neck, buried her face in Willow’s shoulder. It occurred to Willow that she’d said those same reassurances to Lucy several times now, but things hadn’t been fine.
Just the opposite. They’d been in danger ever since the moment she’d brought Lucy home to live with her.
And as far as she knew, the police were no closer to finding the mean clown with blue hair that had killed Lucy’s parents. She knew the Brooklyn K-9 Unit was working hard on the case, though.
“I’m sorry, baby. I’m so sorry.” She rested her cheek on Lucy’s wavy hair. “You’ve been so brave.”
“I wanna go home.” Lucy’s words were muffled against her neck.
Willow helplessly wondered if Lucy meant her apartment or her real home, the house she’d once shared with her parents.
“I know, baby. I know.”
She hugged Lucy close, grateful the threat against them was over.
“I can walk.” Ignoring Nate’s protests, the paramedics assisted him onto the gurney. “It’s not that bad.”
“I think it’s better to let the doctor decide that. You may need minor surgery to repair that wound.” The paramedic near the head of the gurney rolled his eyes. “Why do our patients always think they know more than we do?”
“No clue,” the paramedic at the foot responded.
“Hey, stop talking about me as if I’m not here.” Nate scowled and winced as they tightened the straps around him. “It’s just a flesh wound, and I’m not leaving without my partner. Murphy, come!”
The paramedics exchanged a long look. “Listen, buddy, your dog can’t come with us.”
“I can’t leave him here.” Nate levered himself upright. “I’ll refuse to go with you. You can’t force me.”
“Nate, please.” She reached out to lightly touch his uninjured arm. Her heart ached for him, and she realized how much she cared for this man she’d only known a short time. “Do as they say, okay? I’ll take care of Murphy for you.”
He shook his head. “I don’t think Sarge will let you do that. Murphy is a cop. He’ll have to go back to the precinct.”
Vivienne stepped forward, her gaze full of concern. “I’ll smooth things over with Sarge. We can let Willow take Murphy for now. I can always pick him up later.”
Willow wanted to weep with relief when Nate stopped fighting and nodded. “Okay, fine.”
“We’ll take good care of him.” She forced a reassuring smile. “And we’ll see you soon.”
“No.” The word came out so harsh she reared back as if he’d slapped her. “Listen, Willow, do me a favor and take Lucy and Murphy home, okay? You have both been through a lot, but you’re safe now. There’s no reason for you to come to the hospital. I’ll be fine.”
“Why not? I don’t understand...” Her voice trailed off as the paramedic team began wheeling him toward the waiting rig.
She stared after them in shocked surprise. What was going on? Why didn’t he want her to come to the hospital, to be there for him? Was this Nate’s way of telling her their time together was over?
The thought of never seeing him again made her blood run cold. She’d hoped things would turn out differently once she and Lucy were safe. That maybe Nate would decide to give a relationship a try. Hadn’t Nate admitted to putting his faith in God?
Then again, he’d made it clear he wasn’t the kind of guy who wanted a family. Maybe he’d only used his father’s anger and physical abuse as an excuse.
Maybe this was much more personal. That it was just Willow and Lucy he didn’t want.
Nate and Murphy had saved their lives. It was more than anyone had ever done for her. She loved Nate, but would have to find a way to get over it. Time to stop wishing for things she couldn’t have, to focus on the blessings God had granted.
She reached down to stroke Murphy’s pale fur.
They were alive, and relatively unharmed, at least physically. Emotionally? Well, she knew Lucy would carry the psychological scars for a long time to come.
The best thing she could do for Nate was to support his decision. Despite the fact that every cell in her body wanted to scream in protest, she told herself to move on.
Nate had sacrificed himself for them.
The least she could do was let him go without a fuss.