Lunatic Revenge (24 page)

She could see all the other diners eating and talking, some laughing—a couple of them quietly fighting—but she imagined that they couldn’t see her. In that moment a wave of déjà vu washed over her that left her reeling. It seemed that she’d been through times like this before—great worry and sadness, and yet an observer without ever participating—but in other centuries—as other people.

And then her uncle turned around. He was smiling as he carried the tray with their food back to the booth and just like that, the feeling passed and she was her sore and bruised self again, waiting for that chocolate malt to arrive.

“Here you go, honey, one chocolate malt for my best girl.”

Tara smiled as he set the frosty cup in front of her, then tore the paper off her straw, poked it through the lid, and took her first sip. It was cold and sweet, and when she swallowed, the taste of chocolate stayed strong all the way down her throat.

“Taste good?” Pat asked, as he bit into his bacon burger.

She nodded and took another sip. All in all, it was turning out to be a better outing than she’d expected, and they finished eating without incident.

When Pat went back to pick up his to-go order for Mona, Tara headed to the bathroom. She locked the door behind her, used the bathroom and then quickly washed up, anxious to get to the hospital. She was drying her hands when someone rattled the knob.

Beware.

Tara froze.
Beware? Of who?

Henry said to tell you that when you get out, throw an elbow and run.

Tara was in a panic. OMG. What was happening here?

Just do it.

She took a deep breath, readied her stance and swung the door inward. She caught a glimpse of a big woman and a flash of gaudy red hair as the woman lunged forward, grabbing Tara’s forearm.

She threw her elbow up, and at the moment of contact, flashed on a face as she heard her grunt in pain. Tara pulled free of her grasp and ran up the narrow hall, hit the exit door with the flat of her hands and was outside and in the parking lot, running toward the car where her Uncle Pat waited.

She jumped inside and quickly locked the doors.

“Drive,” she said breathlessly.

Pat looked wild-eyed. “What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know, but Millicent told me to run and I did. There’s a big red-headed woman who keeps showing up everywhere I go, and I just saw her again. She grabbed me as I came out of the bathroom but I got away.”

“I’m not driving away. I’m going to give that woman a—”

“No, Uncle Pat! Drive! Please!”

Pat was frowning as he put the car in gear, then backed out of the parking space and quickly drove away.

Tara looked back over her shoulder just as the woman came running out. She was holding her eye, and even though Tara couldn’t hear her, she knew she was cursing. Tara also knew now that the woman wasn’t stalking her to get her fortune read. This was the woman she’d seen in the picture with Sam Nettles and Michael O’Mara. She was definitely heavier and her hair was a different color, but there was no mistaking the fact that Tara had seen Michael O’Mara’s face when the woman grabbed her arm.

Tara pulled out her cell phone and made a quick call to Detective Rutherford. It didn’t seem strange to her that she had his private number on her contact list. Her life was so lunatic that she really should have it on speed dial. When he answered, she relayed her info quickly.

“Detective Rutherford, this is Tara. You remember I told you about that woman in Sam Nettles’ life?”

“Yeah. Don’t tell me you know where she is?”

“At the Braum’s just off Western, if you hurry?”

“How the hell, excuse my language, do you know this?”

“Because she tried to grab me as I came out of the bathroom. I gave her a bloody nose and ran. She was still there when we left, but I doubt she’ll be there long.”

“Did you see what she was driving?”

“No, but for the record, I realized it’s not the first time I’ve seen her. I think she’s been stalking me and I didn’t know it.”

“Go home and stay there.”

“Nope. On the way to the hospital to see Flynn.”

“Then don’t leave there until you hear from me.”

He hung up in her ear, which was fine with Tara. She’d delivered the message.

Pat took a deep breath as he braked for a red light. “You’re being stalked?”

“I think so, but I didn’t know it until just now.”

“You’ve seen this woman before? When? Why didn’t you tell me?”

“She started to come into my room the first night I was in the hospital. I thought she was just another nut wanting me to tell them lottery numbers or something, but she got freaked about something and left without asking me anything but my name.”

“Good lord,” Pat muttered.

“I thought I saw her once after that, and then the incident just now. But one good thing came from our contact.”

“What’s that?” Pat asked.

“I know for sure she had a relationship with the guy who kidnapped Flynn, which means she could have known about that hidden money. I’m pretty sure she’s the person who killed Sam’s brother, Floy. I hope they catch her. If they do, that will mean Flynn and his mother won’t be in danger anymore. Oh
 . . .
and Detective Rutherford told us not to leave the hospital until we hear from him.”

Pat muttered beneath his breath.

“What did you say?” Tara asked.

He sighed. “I was reminding myself about the promise I made to God when I found out you’d been hurt.”

Tara frowned. “What did you promise?”

“That I would never take another drink as long as I lived if He’d just make sure you were all right.”

Tara gasped. “Did you really, Uncle Pat?”

“Yes, honey, I did. And you may not have noticed, but there’s not a drop of liquor left in the house. I poured it all down the drain the day I brought you home from the hospital. However, if you don’t quit scaring years off my life, I may have to resort to something else to calm my nerves. I may have to take up knitting or whittling, or something equally embarrassing to stay sane around you.”

Tara slid her hand across his arm. “That means a lot to me. I’m really proud of you,” she said softly.

He grinned wryly. “Yeah, I’m pretty proud of myself, too. If we can just get you out of this latest mess and get Flynn well in the process, I’ll be a happy man.”

“Me, too, Uncle Pat. I know Flynn is waking up, but I’m so scared that he won’t
 . . .
that he will have
 . . .
” She rubbed her face, as if trying to wipe away the bad thoughts. “That he won’t be the same.”

“I know, but at this point, Mona is willing to accept whatever his condition might be, as long as he lives through this.”

Tara understood that. But she was thinking about what Flynn would accept, and she knew him well enough to know he would rebel in so many ways if he came back with physical or mental issues he couldn’t control. Still, it was all out of their hands. At this point, all Tara could hope for was that the cops caught that crazy woman before she caught up with her.

French Langdon had traded
his Harley for an SUV and was parked in the back of the Braum’s parking lot, waiting for Tara and her uncle to emerge. He saw her uncle come out on his own and get in the car, then kept watching for Tara. But when she finally came out, he didn’t expect to see a panicked expression on her face, or for her to be running.

He immediately started the car, uncertain what was about to go down. Then, just as they were about to drive away, he saw a big red-headed woman come running out of the store. She was holding her eye and cursing at the top of her lungs.

He grinned. Score one for the Luna chick again. And then he took a better look at the woman, past the god-awful red hair to her features.

“Well, I’ll be a—”

He reached for his phone and hit a number on speed dial. “Boss. It’s me. Guess who just crawled out from under a rock? May Schulter, sporting red hair and about a thirty-pound weight gain, but it’s her. Want me to pick her up?”

His eyes narrowed as he listened for further orders. “Yeah, I can do that,” he said shortly, and disconnected just as May Schulter made a run for her car.

When she drove out of the parking lot, French made it his business to follow. Not enough to make her suspicious, but close enough not to lose her. He was a little disappointed that he would no longer be tailing Tara Luna, but orders were orders. Besides, Tara would be a whole lot safer, now that they knew where the last piece to their puzzle was at.

Mona was alone in the
waiting room when Pat and Tara arrived.

“We brought you some supper,” Pat said, and handed her the sack with a Braum’s burger and shake.

“You’re both darlings to think of me,” Mona said. “It’s still a few minutes before visiting hours. Sit with me while I eat.”

Tara sat, anxious to hear news of Flynn’s progress, but she waited until Mona had taken a few bites before she began bombarding her with questions.

“Did he wake up yet?” Tara asked.

Mona shook her head. “No, but he’s moving his arms and legs, which was a huge relief to all of us. The doctor didn’t tell me at first, but they have been concerned that he could have suffered a spinal injury as well.”

“Oh, my gosh, I’m glad I didn’t know that or I would have really been freaking out,” Tara said.

Mona nodded and then smiled at Pat, who offered her a handful of napkins.

“Also, I think he responds to my voice. When I talk to him, I can see his eyes moving beneath the lids. And once when I squeezed his hand, I felt a slight squeeze back.”

“This is really good news, isn’t it, Uncle Pat?”

“It sure is, but I’m worried about you, too, Mona. Have you gone home at all?”

“Yes. My sister has been staying with me. She comes through the day and stays so that I can go home and shower and get a little sleep. Although you can imagine how much sleep I actually get. I can’t wait to get back here. I’m always afraid he’ll wake up and call for me and I would be gone.”

Pat glanced at Tara, remembering how fearful he’d been that he’d lose her, too.

“That’s tough, but I definitely understand,” he said.

“Is it okay if I go in with you when it’s time?” Tara asked.

Mona smiled. “You go in by yourself, Tara. I think he’d like that.”

Tara’s vision blurred, but she blinked away the tears. No crying. Not while there was still hope for the best.

Detectives Rutherford and Allen
and a couple of police cruisers arrived at Braum’s, but it was too late. The red-headed woman was already gone. After talking to the work staff who remembered seeing her, and finding out they had a security camera overlooking the parking lot, the detectives were in a better frame of mind. The manager took them back to his office where they quickly viewed the last hour of footage.

They quickly spotted Tara Luna and her uncle’s arrival, and within a minute of them going inside, they saw an older model, dark brown pickup pull into the parking lot and park close by. They watched a big, heavy-set woman get out. To their surprise, she walked over to Pat Carmichael’s car, circled it slowly and wrote down the tag number before going inside.

A bus pulled out the lot, and a couple of other cars pulled in a few seconds later. One was a family with children, the other was a single driver in an SUV. They couldn’t see his face, but when he parked at the back of the lot and didn’t get out, they thought was strange.