Energized (15 page)

A normal morning.

Just like in the barracks.

Sweat trickled down his back as he fought to shove away the memories and remain in the present. He wasn't overseas. He wasn't under attack. He was in Tidewater. In the police station.

For Hannah.

He exhaled a slow sigh of relief.

Hannah of the tawny-colored eyes and fairy face needed him.

“We're here to see Hannah Halloran. We're her attorneys,” Tommy said to the rotund uniformed cop with a badge that read
Spacey
, who came through a side door.

Niall had worked with Tommy enough to know when the man started talking, to let him lead. The Lucky Charm had gotten him out of deadlier situations.

The cop frowned, pulling the door closed behind him. “Who are you?”

“I'm Tom Parker. Her attorney. Now, please take us to her.” Tommy stared intensely at the man until he nodded.

Officer Spacey knocked on the door he'd just come through, then opened it a degree. “I got Miss Halloran's attorneys here to see her.”

The door pushed open to reveal two men seated on one side of a table nearly as wide as the tiny interrogation room and a very pale Hannah on the other. She turned her red-rimmed eyes to him and Niall wanted to yank her out of the room and run until they reached Fincastle. Go back to the beginning, when she didn't look frightened, or lost, or hopeless.

“Hi, Hannah,” Tom said striding into the room, his hand extended. “I'm Tom Parker. You know Niall. We're here to take you home.”

Hannah glanced from Tommy to Niall, her expression hopeful.

“You can't take her anywhere. We're questioning her.” One of the detectives pushed to his feet. His bushy black mustache quivering and his beady blue eyes snapping fire. “Detective O'Dell, tell Mr. Parker here what Ms. Halloran told us.”

The second detective, dressed like the first in a white button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up, tan pants, and
scuffed brown shoes, looked slightly less rumpled than his partner. “She showed up here night before last talking about a murder. Giving us details only the killer could know. And what do you know, a body was found last night. Murdered in the exact manner she'd described.”

“Hmmm . . . very interesting.” Tommy sat down on the corner of the table with his back to the detectives. “Is this right, Ms. Halloran? Did you describe the murder?”

Hannah glanced at Niall. The question in her eyes and the goddamned trust had his chest aching. He nodded at her.

“Yes, sir. I had a vision of the murder and tried to report it two nights ago.”

The two detectives erupted in a show of pounding the table with their fists and declarations of “Bullshit. You killed him. Admit it.”

Niall curled his hands into fists and fought to keep his temper in check. As if he knew it, Tommy gave him a reassuring nod. With a dismissive wave of his hand he said, “You don't have to respond, Hannah.”

Tommy met Niall's gaze and there was no mistaking the banked fury there. That was something else the Lucky Charm could be counted on for: he hated for the innocent to be even verbally abused.

Niall moved from his anchor in the doorway to stand beside Hannah. He braced a hand on her shoulder and faced his old buddy. “Are we done here?”

“No,” the detectives said at the same time Tommy replied, “Yes.”

Niall lifted Hannah's tie-dyed backpack from the floor and helped her to her feet. He wanted to put his arm around her. Hold her. Comfort her. She looked so fucking frightened. But those red-rimmed eyes held determination, not tears, so he settled for carrying her bag and following her out the door.

“She requested a lawyer hours ago. Why is it I didn't get a call until thirty minutes ago?” Tommy's voice carried into the main room. “You had no right to interrogate my client without my presence after she asked for me. You're walking a thin line, detectives. Why don't you go out and try to find the real
killer instead of wasting time harassing a young woman who wasn't even in the Commonwealth when the murder happened? And yes, I already spoke with the M.E. I know the victim died over the weekend. My client hadn't even arrived in Tidewater until three days ago. The day after, she reported the murder. Had you done just a little checking, you'd have discovered she has an unassailable alibi. We're done here. If you want to speak to her again, you had better call me first.”

Then Tommy led the charge out of the building.

On the sidewalk, he resembled the Lucky Charm he'd been in the desert. Happy, carefree, and damned confident that he was always right.

Tommy turned his turquoise eyes on Hannah and a strange pinch of something resembling jealousy had Niall's chest tightening.

“You have quite a story to tell, Hannah. I can't wait to hear it.” Tommy paused, glanced at Niall, then back at Hannah. The carefree look was gone again. He was solemn and all too serious. “But I think you could probably use some rest first. Here's my card. Call me when you're ready to talk about what happened. Sooner, if the cops come to find you again. I doubt they will. They know by now that you couldn't have killed their victim. Or any of the others.”

“Others?” she squeaked the word.

“Yeah.” Again Tommy glanced at Niall.

Recognizing the cue for what it was, Niall stepped up and took Hannah by the hand. Her cool fingers wrapped easily around his rougher ones. “We can talk about that later. Let's get you home.”

She smiled, gave Tommy a quick, impersonal hug, then said, “Thank you. I don't know why you're helping me. But thank you.”

Tommy opened the truck's door. As Niall helped her inside, Tommy said, “Thank Niall. He's the one who called me.”

H
ANNAH
CLUTCHED
HER
backpack to her chest and willed herself to stop shivering. It didn't work. She wanted to be brave. She wanted to show Niall she wasn't some helpless child but she couldn't quite keep her hands from trembling. Not that he noticed.

He stood on the sidewalk talking to the attorney. Tom? Don? John? Dammit. She couldn't remember. And she really should. He'd somehow talked the cops into letting her go.

Not
arresting her. As they had been promising to do for the past six hours.

Her teeth started to chatter and she bit down.

Niall and the attorney shook hands, then Niall climbed into the driver's seat of the truck and started the engine. He pulled a cell phone out of his pocket and handed it to her.

“What's this for?” She stared at the device uncertainly.

“I figure you want to call Karma. She's been really worried.” Niall turned left onto the highway, then added softly, “So have I.”

Her throat tightened. For a moment her vision blurred with tears. She blinked quickly, sucking in breaths to stop the waterfall. She wouldn't cry. Not now. She was free. She was fine.

So why did she feel like a great big ball of weepiness?

The phone rang in her hands.

“It's Karma. Go ahead and answer it,” Niall said, sparing the phone a glance. “I told her I'd call her ten minutes ago, but we were still in there.”

Pressing the phone to her ear, Hannah obeyed. “Hi, Karma. It's me, Hannah.”

“Oh, thank you, baby Jesus! Niall did it. He told me he'd get you out. I shouldn't have doubted him.” The relief in her voice made Hannah's eyes sting all over again. “Tell him I've got it under control at the Cat. Everything will be fine when y'all get in.”

Hannah hazarded a glance at her boss. “Does this mean I still have a job?” And a place to live? But she didn't voice that second question aloud.

“Of course,” Niall said at the same time Karma replied, “Damn straight. Those assholes have messed with the wrong family. I can't believe they didn't let you go when you told them Dev was your brother-in-law.”

“I didn't tell them.”

“What? Why not? They probably would have let you go hours ago.” Karma paused. “Or maybe not. They're not big fans of Dev. He makes them look bad. 'Cause, you know, they suck at their jobs.”

That managed to elicit a laugh, of sorts. Hannah snorted, then shook her head when Niall whipped his gaze to hers.

“Oh, crap. In all the rush, I forgot to leave the door unlocked. Don't worry. Zig's shift just ended. He'll let you in.”

“Karma—” Hannah started to protest but was cut off.

“Girl, I gotta go. Delivery guys are finally here. Only a day late. I need to supervise them. Tell Niall I've got it under control and to take care of you. Bye.” She didn't wait for Hannah to respond but clicked off.

Niall took the exit off the highway and rolled the truck to
a stoplight. Hannah handed the phone back to him. “Thanks. Um. Niall, you can drop me anywhere.”

“Don't you want to get some sleep? You've got to be exhausted.” Niall reached out, and for a moment, it seemed like he was going to touch her face but he curled his fingers and pulled back at the last second. “Let me take you to Karma's.”

“No. Really, I need to find an ATM. I'm starving and I've been wearing these clothes for twenty-four hours. And . . . I need to rent a room. I can't keep staying at Karma and Zig's. Not after last night.” Hannah watched the ocean roll past on her right and added softly, “I don't want to get him into any trouble. Those detectives—”

“Were assholes,” Niall snapped. “Pardon my language, ma'am.”

“Still not the minister's wife.” Hannah surprised them both by quipping back.

Niall's eyes softened and crinkle lines formed around the edges.

Da-yam, the man was hot.

“Zig can deal with the other cops. He'll be fine. You think Karma would tolerate a pussy? Pardon my language. She wouldn't keep Zig around if he couldn't handle himself. But if you're really hungry, let's get food. Then I can take you shopping. Unless, of course, you have a deep-seated need to walk to the store. After that, we'll figure out where you can sleep tonight. Sound good?”

“Not the Boxing Cat, please. I can't face everyone. Not yet. I need a shower and clean clothes first. If that's not okay, then I'll get out at the next light.”

Niall glanced ahead, then back at her. He winked. “In case you haven't noticed, we've turned. The ocean is behind us and only the national park is on the right. You'll have a long walk. So sit back, relax. I'll take you to a nice breakfast.”

The nice breakfast was at the local family diner. They ate in relative silence. That might have been her fault. Niall had tried to initiate a conversation several times, but she didn't want to talk. Not to him. Not to anyone.

He seemed to take it in stride and when their meal was
over got their coffees to go and ushered her back into his truck. Once inside, she expected him to start the engine but he didn't. He turned to her instead.

“You know, when I was in the desert, I met guys who believed if they kept it locked down, the crap they were facing wouldn't bother them. It's a crock. It still bothered them. And some learned to let off a little steam. Others never did and just blew one day.”

Hannah set her coffee in the cup holder and stared at him. “Which one were you?”

He gave her a quick half smile. “Steam guy. I wasn't always. I learned it was better to let a little out than to blow a gasket. So it's okay if you need to vent a little steam right now. You've earned it.”

“I'm fine.” She let the words hang in the air for a moment, then shook her head. “No, I'm not. I'm all turned around. At least I'm not hungry anymore.”

“You look much better than when I picked you up. You've got color back in your cheeks.” He sipped his coffee. “So come on, let me have it. You'll feel better. At least, that's what my mom always says.”

“Your mom, huh?”

She paused, then decided to trust him. In this moment, he reminded her more of the Marine she'd met all those months ago, except stronger somehow. Not that he'd been weak. But now he appeared ready to offer the ear she had offered him. She took a deep breath and hoped she was doing the right thing, because she really needed him right now.

“Ever have one of those days where you have no idea what the universe is trying to tell you?” She sat back and the seat made an obscene noise. Her cheeks heated but Niall only laughed. She gestured to the seat. “Like that. Everything is going wrong. I thought I was supposed to be here. I really believed the signs were pointing me to Tidewater but from the moment I stepped off the bus everything has gone wrong.” She rubbed at the ache in her neck with both hands. “Finding out I work for the guy I had my one and only one-night stand with seemed perfect. I mean, that night had been incredible
and finding out you were my boss appeared wonderful for about five seconds.

“Then you showed up and made it clear my presence made you uncomfortable. I mean, come on. You acted like I was some crazed stalker who'd hunted you down with the intention of knocking you over the head and dragging you off to the nearest wedding chapel. Oh, you covered well, but I saw the panic in your eyes.

“Then I had that awful, sickening vision. Honestly, I've never seen anything so monstrous in my life. When Karma told me to report it, it seemed the right thing to do. Again, the universe sent me a resounding, ‘uh, no way cupcake' sign. Because what happened when I tried to report it? I was booted out of the station in under twenty minutes. If that wasn't bad enough, my hotel burned down. I lost everything I brought with me including the brand-new art bag that my parents gave me at graduation. It's stupid to be so upset about it, but I really am. It was beautiful. Black leather and large enough to hold my art pads, paints, pencils, brushes. They even had it monogrammed. Yeah, I can get another one, but not like that. Not to mention all my clothes are crispy because as you so deftly pointed out I am an earth dog who wears only cotton.”

“Hannah—”

“Then I smashed eggs all over us and you sent me to the grocery store to buy fresh ones. Thank God, you gave me enough money to cover the cost of replacing my ruined uniform, but I don't know how I'm going to repay you if things keep going the way they're going. At this rate, my first check will be in the negative digits. Do you know the best part of my day was when we got slammed with the refugees from the art show fund-raiser? It was the only time I felt relatively normal.

“I mean, yeah, I had to avoid touching silverware and the metal worktables in the kitchen, but no one looked at me as if I was about to jump them or kill them or I don't know . . . burst into flames. And you know what? I
really
like my job. More than I'd ever thought possible. It's more fun than working at a bar. I mean, yeah, I'm supposed to be
an electrician because it's safe and I'm good at it but I also don't get to spend much time with other people. So it's lonely. Working at the Boxing Cat was more fun than I've had in months. And until that stupid vision, it was the only time I could be around people and not worry about accidentally getting a vision off them.”

A stray tear tickled her cheek in a slow slide but she swiped at it and kept going. She couldn't have stopped talking any more than she could have held back that single escaped tear.

“So there I was at the end of the night thinking the universe wanted me here after all, then those cops showed up. They couldn't pull me aside quietly. No, they had to make a production in front of the whole staff, accusing me of murder. And when they put those metal cuffs on me, I thought I was going to die, right there in the backseat of their car. Do you know the last guy they had in those cuffs murdered some old man because he was jonesing for a fix and needed money? He stabbed the guy for six freaking dollars.”

In an instant, Niall had his seat belt off and had unhooked hers. His arms came around her, and still she couldn't stop talking. She gulped air as tears continued to squeeze out from beneath her closed lids. Each breath she drew in smelled like him. Spicy and uniquely Niall.

“Those jerks dragged me out of the only place where I'd felt normal in the whole city and treated me like a criminal.” She buried her face in his shoulder. “They spent hours—
hours
—threatening to arrest me. Telling me that I had to be the killer to know everything I did. That I was sick and crazy. If I didn't go to prison they'd make sure I was locked up in a psych ward for the rest of my life. I knew I was telling the truth. I didn't hurt anyone.”

“Of course, you didn't.”

“But dammit, I started to doubt why the universe had even led me here.”

Then, to her horror, the tears she'd been fighting erupted past her control, spilling down her cheeks and onto his shoulder. Her ability to speak gone, she simply wept. Niall
crooned softly in her ear. “You're okay now. I won't let them hurt you. You're okay.”

He stroked her hair. Gently. So gently. Rocking her, holding her, being so freaking kind.

And that, more than anything, had her weeping harder.

*   *   *

N
IALL HELD HER
until her tears were spent. She wept silently, her shoulders shaking. She was sunshine and joy personified. It wasn't natural to see her weep. And it ripped him apart.

When she finally pulled back, her cheeks were blotchy, her eyes swollen, her nose running, and she looked so lost. He dug through the glove compartment for tissues, but only came up with napkins. He handed her two. “Sorry. It's all I have.”

She gave him a watery smile. “Thank you.” Hannah wiped her face and blew her nose, then tucked the used napkin in her pants pocket.

“Feel better?” Niall asked, still stroking her hair. His stupid-ass rule about keeping their relationship strictly professional was seemingly forgotten by her. And he found that suited him fine. When he held her in his arms, he remembered just how perfectly she fit there. How perfectly they fit together.

“Surprisingly, yes.” She slid away from his touch. “I guess I needed a meltdown. This is all temporary. Right? I mean, I'm only in town for the summer and
clearly
the universe agrees I shouldn't plan to stay much longer. I won't even have a job past Saturday night. So I need to put aside all the stress and focus on the positive. Like not being at the police station anymore. Thanks for getting me out and for listening, Ma— um,
Boss
.”

She used the term to further add distance between them. It left him oddly . . . bereft.

Wasn't that a kick in the balls?

“Hannah, I'm not your boss.” A stricken look crossed her face. He backpedaled. “I mean, I
am
your boss, but don't call me that. Just call me Niall. Okay?”