Foxfire (20 page)

Harri's fingers gently touched Brad's
blackened fingers. “Brad, I love you so much. Please, don't leave
me.”

Grace leaned forward and looked at the
ambulance driver. “Can't you go any faster?”

“No ma'am,” he drawled.

The paramedic across from them pulled the
stethoscope from his ears, letting it dangle around his neck. “He's
going to make it. His heart is strong and his blood pressure is
stable. None of his injuries seem life-threatening.”

Grace clung to his words, grasping hope. She
squeezed Harri's hand.

Harri turned her ravaged face to meet Grace's
eyes. “This is my fault. I should have made him listen.”

“Harri, it's not—”

“It's my fault. I told him I'd seen him lying
in a hospital bed, but he laughed at me like he always does. He
said he was perfectly healthy, that there wasn't a thing wrong with
him. He wouldn't listen to me. We...we had an argument, and I
dropped him off at the bottom of the drive and made him walk up the
hill. He had to carry a box of clothes I'm donating for the church
rummage sale, too. I should have driven him up here. Stayed with
him.”

“It's not your fault, Harri. Besides, those
clothes probably kept him from being hurt more than he is. You
didn't do anything to cause this. If you'd been with him, you'd
have been hurt, too.”

The ambulance pulled up to the emergency
entrance at the hospital. The doors flew open and two attendants
lifted Brad's stretcher. They pushed him through the automatic
doors, and Grace and Harri followed closely behind.

While they rushed Brad away, Grace and Harri
were told to stay in the waiting room.

“Grace.” She turned at the sound of her
name.

Tyler walked up to them. “How's Brad?” he
asked.

“We don't know anything yet.” She flicked a
glance at Harri, who sat stunned in one of the well-worn
chairs.

“He's going to be okay,” he assured them.

“Where's Jake?” Grace asked.

“I left him at Brad's place talking to the
sheriff.”

Tyler brushed a lock of hair off her
forehead.

It seemed hours before a doctor finally
approached them. “Which one of you is Harri?” he asked.

Harri jumped up. “I am.”

“He's awake and asking to see you. You can
visit for a few minutes. One caution, he won't be able to hear you
clearly right now.”

“But how is he otherwise?” Grace asked.

The doctor turned to her. “Are you a
relative?”

Grace hesitated for a second before replying.
“I'm his granddaughter.”

The doctor smiled at her. “Your grandfather's
leg is broken in two places. He'll be in a cast for a while. He's a
fairly healthy man for his age. He has a few burns and cuts,
bruised ribs. It could have been worse. We'll keep him in the
recovery room until he stabilizes. Only one person at a time can
see him until we move him into a room. In the meantime, someone
needs to fill out paperwork so we can admit him.”

“I'll take care of that,” Tyler spoke up.
Grace gave him a grateful smile. The doctor led Harri away and
Tyler went to the admitting desk.

Left alone, Grace felt her earlier fears fade
with a growing anger. She sat dry-eyed, chewing on the inside of
her cheek, using the pain to keep her from running off to find
Max.

The man was evil through and through. She
couldn't imagine what demons drove him. How had she ever found him
attractive?

He deserved to die. Look at all the innocent
lives he'd destroyed by smuggling in billions of dollars worth of
street drugs. She shuddered, knowing she'd nearly become one of his
'girls.'

Though she'd escaped, she still felt tainted.
Now he'd brought his dirty games to Foxfire, hoping to destroy her
and those she loved. It was time she stood up to him. Time to stop
his evil reach.

He wanted to kill her?

She'd give him the opportunity.

But it would be Max who died.

****

Grace had never seen Brad look so vulnerable.
To her, he'd always been vital, full of life. He'd been moved to a
private room Tyler had arranged. His eyes were closed, his face
pale. A cast covered his leg from ankle to thigh, and a monitor
beeped steadily at the head of his bed.

Harri sat in a chair next to the bed, her
hand lying gently on his.

Tyler came into the room, glanced at Harri,
then moved to Grace's side. She had to find a way to get rid of him
without making him suspicious. She glanced out the window at the
sun's orange glow. Soon it would drop below the horizon and Grace
wanted to be back in Foxfire before dark.

Tyler leaned close and asked in a hushed
voice, “Are you ready to leave?”

“I'm going to stay here. I don't want to
leave him.”

“The doctor said he'd sleep through the
night. There's nothing you can do by staying. You need to rest,
too.” He touched her shoulder. “Don't forget about Tiffany.”

Just like Tyler to use her dog as a bribe.
However, if she didn't deal with Max tonight, other innocent people
would be hurt. “That's unfair,” she responded sharply.

He paced to the door and back, his hand
combing through his hair. He stopped beside her chair. “You're
right. I'm just worried about you.”

Looking into his concerned gaze, she almost
believed him. Almost.

“Where's Jake?” she asked.

“He went back to the apartment to check on
some leads. With all his resources, we're bound to catch Max before
long. I told him we'd be joining him soon.”

“I think I'd rather sleep at my house,” Grace
said. “That way you two can work without any distraction.”

Tyler frowned and nodded toward the
hallway.

Grace glanced at Harri, who appeared to be
listening intently to their conversation. Deciding not to upset her
further, Grace followed Tyler out of the room.

His face showed stress from the last two
days. Shadows ringed his eyes, making them appear more deep-set.
Stubble dotted his jaw line which only emphasized the tired lines
etching his face. Even his voice sounded tired as he spoke. “What
happened to your big speech about being included in our plans? Did
you change your mind? Not that I'm complaining.”

“I'm just worn out mentally,” Grace said. “I
don't think I'd be any help tonight at all.”

“You need someplace safe to sleep. Come home
with me. You can have the bedroom. Jake and I can camp out in the
living room.”

She gazed into his eyes, knowing he would
never agree to let her stay alone. Not until Max was caught. “I
want to stay a little longer. When Adam comes back from the
cafeteria, he can drive us to Harri's house and I'll spend the
night with her. She shouldn't be alone either.” She must have
sounded convincing for she saw the tension easing from his
face.

“That's a good idea. I'll send a couple of
men to watch the house just in case. You'll probably be safer at
Harri's anyway. I'll wait for Adam to make sure he doesn't
mind.”

“You don't have to wait. He has to drive back
anyway. I'm sure he won't mind. He'll be going right past Harri's.
Why don't you go ahead. You look tired, too. I'll call when we get
there.”

“I don't want to leave you alone.”

“I'm not alone. There's a bodyguard at the
door, thanks to you.”

He pushed away from the wall. “Watch for
anything that looks or sounds suspicious. Max is out there
somewhere.” His unspoken words hung heavy between them. Max would
be looking for her.

Grace was counting on it. Tyler talked to the
man guarding Brad’s room and held the door open for her. She went
back inside, and the door closed softly behind her.

“Where's Tyler?” Harri asked.

She felt bad lying to Harri, but there was no
other option. She had to protect her friends. “He went outside to
use his cell phone. He's waiting for me. Are you going to stay here
tonight or should I ask Adam to drive you home?”

“I'm not leaving Brad's side.” Her worried
glance went back to Brad.

Grace hugged her. “He's going to be fine, you
know. Don't worry.”

Harri wiped a tear from her face. “I can't
help worrying. I love him.”

“Me, too.” Grace leaned down and kissed
Brad's cheek. “I love you,” she said. Grace wished she could
reassure him there'd be no further danger. She owed him that much
and more.

Grace hugged Harri again before she left.
There was a strong possibility she'd never see her friends again.
Though she knew she had no choice but to face Max, in all reality
he might kill her. For all her bravado, she wasn't certain she
could best him. Sure, she'd had her self-defense classes, but would
she even remember what to do? Knowing ahead of time what the
attacker would do worked well in a classroom setting, but in
reality, one never knew what might happen.

She had her gun, but even Tyler doubted she
could shoot anyone. Could she? If faced with life or death, could
she pull the trigger? All she could do was pray her strength held
out and she actually got a chance to face that dilemma. Odds were
against her. Still she had no choice.

The elevator doors opened and Grace stepped
into the hospital lobby and gazed around to make sure Tyler was
nowhere in sight. She walked over to the information desk. Grace
explained about riding to the hospital in the ambulance and
forgetting to bring her purse. She asked if the woman would call
her a cab and went outside to wait.

She paced the small sidewalk outside the main
entrance, getting more nervous as the minutes ticked slowly by.
Just when she decided to go back inside and ask the woman to call
again, a cab pulled up. Heaving a sigh of relief, she climbed into
the back and gave the driver her address.

“Lady, that’s at least thirty miles. Do you
know how expensive this is going to be?”

“I know. Don’t worry about the money. I'll
pay you.”

He shrugged and pulled away from the
hospital.

She settled into the seat. Her attention was
drawn to the back of the driver's head. Something about him seemed
familiar. She darted a glance at the rear view mirror, but he had a
cap pulled over his forehead, shadowing his face. Her heart jumped.
Could it be Max? Impossible. How would he know she'd call a
cab?

She closed her eyes and leaned her head back.
Foolish. Her imagination was running away with her. She dried her
clammy hands on her jeans and sneaked another look at the driver.
Though she couldn't see his eyes, she knew he was looking at her,
too.

The cab continued moving on a correct route
to her house. Max wouldn't drive her home. He'd take her off some
place and kill her.

She battled her overactive imagination as the
sun dropped below the horizon. It was fully dark when they pulled
into her driveway forty minutes later. She asked the driver to wait
while she went inside to get his fare.

He nodded without speaking.

She kept her back straight and tried not to
run. At any moment she expected a bullet to take her down. She
ventured a look back before she opened the door and slipped inside.
She closed the door and peered through the peephole. She flipped on
the porch light as he stepped out of the cab and leaned a hip
against it, staring at the house.

The driver wasn't Max. She'd never seen this
man before. She shook off her tension and hurried to get her
purse.

After she paid him, he thanked her, gave her
a half-hearted smile, and drove off. She watched the taillights
disappear before she turned and went back inside.

Chapter Thirteen

Tyler dialed Harri's number and put the phone
to his ear. Why hadn't Grace called yet?

“Give it a rest. You called less than five
minutes ago,” Jake said.

“Something's wrong.” Tyler glanced at his
watch. “They should be there by now.”

“Maybe they stopped to eat. It's been a long
day for everyone.”

“Maybe.” Tyler closed the phone. It was a
possibility, but Tyler had a bad feeling chewing at his gut. “I'll
give them another half-hour, but if she doesn't call by eight, I'm
heading back to the hospital. It would be just like her and Harri
to stay the night with Brad.”

“So? We've got a man there.”

“You know as well as I do there are no
guarantees. Max is full of surprises. I want Grace here where I can
protect her.”

Jake laughed. “Is that what you were doing
when I got here today? Keeping her safe?”

“That's none of your business.”

“Natalie's been gone a long time, Tyler. I
loved her, too. But you need to move on. Get over it. Grace seems
like a woman who has her head on straight.” He grinned wickedly.
“The rest isn't bad either.”

“Don't go there, Jake.”

Jake held up his hands. “I'm not planning to
move in on your territory, but do yourself a favor and admit you're
in love with her.”

He wasn't in love with her. He'd admit he
felt something...but love? He doubted he'd ever love anyone again.
He was too jaded. Yet, he did long to have what his dad and mom
had. Their relationship had been solid and strong until the day she
died.

Tyler had thought Natalie and he had that
kind of relationship, until Max had destroyed that dream. That's
why Tyler had to forget how Grace felt in his arms, how she tasted,
how she moved when—

“I'm not admitting anything,” Tyler said. “We
have a job to do.”

“Any leads?”

“Nothing in the hotels or motels angle. If
he's still around, he's got to be holed up in a vacant house. I
can't see Max camping in the woods. He's not the type.”

“You're right. My gut tells me he's close by.
I just don't know the area good enough to scout him out. We need
Grace's help.” He looked at his watch. “Damn it. Where is she? Did
you send a guy to Harri's?”

“I asked Rob to fly in, but he's not here
yet. I told him to take a cab. He's got the address. He'll call
when he lands and I'll tell him to report back once he gets to
Harri's place.”