Officer on Duty (Lock and Key Book 4) (18 page)

She moved through the week’s fitness routine on autopilot, muscle memory serving her well as she demonstrated in front of a dozen girls, churning the pool water and breathing in the scent of chlorine. Ten minutes before the end of class, she noticed that something was missing.

Make that someone. She did a quick headcount – there were only eleven girls.

She’d started out with twelve.

Olivia. She’d filed in with the rest of the girls, but was nowhere to be seen now.

Her heart skipped a beat as she remembered Olivia’s strange behavior at the women’s self-defense seminar. How long had she been gone?

Shit. She’d been so wrapped up in moping over Jeremy that she hadn’t even noticed Olivia leaving the pool. If it had been any of the other girls, she might’ve assumed they’d gone for a bathroom break, but…

“Sammy, can you guide everyone through our cool-down stretches?” Her gaze was drawn to the women’s locker room door.

“Sure!” Sammy was a veteran fitness class attendee, an enthusiastic student with a maternal streak. She jumped at the chance to wrap up class, surprising no one, Lucia was sure.

“Thanks.” Lucia climbed out of the pool and made a beeline for the locker rooms. It was the obvious first choice for where to look for Olivia – there was no way she’d walked out of the building in just her swimsuit.

Hopefully, she was still there.

Lucia found her sitting on a bench in the very back with her knees drawn up to her chest. She still wore her suit, but had wrapped herself in a towel.

“Olivia?”

Her slender shoulders twitched, and she raised her head.

There was moisture on her cheeks, and it wasn’t pool water – her hair was pulled up and dry.

Lucia lowered herself onto the bench.

“What’s wrong?”

Olivia shook her head. “Nothing.”

“You know I’m always here to talk.” She’d known Olivia for over a year, and the girl wasn’t exactly a closed book. Her sudden silence was telling: whatever was bothering her had to be serious.

“I’m just not feeling that great.”

She thought of Olivia bent over and sweating during the self-defense class, pale and exhausted.

Her stomach lurched. Was she battling some sort of serious health problem?

“I noticed that at the self-defense class. Do you want to talk about it?”

For a long time, she didn’t say anything, and didn’t look up.

Then her resolve seemed to waver. “Do you promise you won’t tell anyone?”

“Of course. Anything you tell me stays between us.”

Olivia finally met her gaze, though the eye contact was brief. “I’ve been feeling bad for weeks. I’m so tired, and … I throw up sometimes.”

Realization hit Lucia like a bolt of lightning, and she bit down on her inner lip.

“I was supposed to get my period over a week ago, but I didn’t.”

“Are you normally late?”

She shook her head, and it was obvious that she was biting her lip too, only much harder than Lucia.

Lucia laid a hand on Olivia’s shoulder. It was trembling.

“Have you talked to anyone else about it?”

“No.” Her voice cracked, and she drew a deep, shuddering breath. “I can’t. My parents – they’d kill me. And I don’t even know for sure. I just haven’t had my period.”

“Well, we can find out.”

“I know there are tests, but I can’t risk anyone seeing me buy one.”

It was a legitimate worry for a scared teen – Cypress was a small town.

“There’s a pregnancy resource center just a few blocks from here. They do tests, and it’s all confidential.”

Olivia seemed to consider this. “I think I’ve seen the place.”

“I could go with you, if you wanted. That way you wouldn’t be alone. If the test is positive, then you can decide who to tell and what to do. And if it’s not, this can stay between you and me. Forever, if you want.”

“Really?” She wasn’t shaking so badly anymore.

“Absolutely.” The note of hope in Olivia’s voice simultaneously broke Lucia’s heart and reassured her that she’d said the right thing.

“Is your mom picking you up tonight?”

“No, she’s at work. My older brother’s supposed to do it.”

“Do you think anyone would mind if I gave you a ride home instead?”

“He wouldn’t mind – he thinks driving me around is annoying. I don’t think my parents would care, either.”

“Why don’t you give them a call, then?”

By the time Olivia got off the phone, the other girls were filing into the locker room.

“I texted my dad – he said it’s okay if I ride home with you. And my brother seemed glad.”

Lucia nodded. “Meet me in the parking lot in ten minutes?”

“All right.”

As Lucia hurried through a quick shower and got dressed, her heart raced, spurred into action by Olivia’s situation. She didn’t have to try hard to imagine the stress she was under – it’d been obvious in her eyes, her voice and the way she’d trembled.

And apparently, she’d been enduring it alone for a while now, afraid to tell anyone.

She wished she’d asked sooner, wished Olivia hadn’t had to endure that. Most of all, she hoped that the missed period would turn out only to be a scare. Clearly, Olivia was terrified of how her parents would react to a pregnancy.

There was no way Lucia’s heart would slow until they knew the results of the test, and maybe not even then.

When it came to people she cared about, maybe she worried too much, too soon. But a racing heart was a heart that felt, the good along with the bad. And she wouldn’t have it any other way.

Well, not normally. At the moment, she’d give a lot not to feel the sting of what had happened between her and Jeremy the day before. The only thing worse was the feeling that she’d failed him – that when he really needed someone, she was useless.

Lucia was prepared to cover the cost of Olivia’s pregnancy test, but as it turned out, the Riley County Women’s Health Center offered free tests to women under eighteen. Appointments were required, but the place didn’t seem very busy, and the receptionist at the front desk wrote Olivia in for a test.

Five minutes later, a woman in vivid tropical flower-printed scrubs gave Olivia a paper cup and directed her to a bathroom where she could give a urine sample.

Before moving, Olivia turned a wide-eyed gaze on Lucia.

She looked like a deer caught in headlights, realizing that danger was imminent in the heartbeat before the moment of impact.

Lucia touched Olivia’s shoulder. “I’ll be right here.”

She nodded, set her jaw and retreated to the restroom.

Meanwhile, Lucia took a seat in the small, tiled waiting room.

The facility was modest but clean, with an acrylic shelf holding a dozen different brochures on safe sex, birth control and pregnancy.

She chewed her lip and tried not to fiddle with her purse strap. What if Olivia was pregnant?

A minute later, Olivia returned to the waiting room, looking pale.

“Come have a seat,” Lucia said, indicating the chair at her side. It was empty, like all the others – closing was in twenty minutes.

She sank down beside Lucia and sat with her hands in her lap, saying nothing.

Lucia didn’t break the silence. They’d have the results in just a few minutes – until then, she didn’t want to make any assumptions.

“Olivia?”

The woman in tropical print appeared again, this time with a clipboard.

Olivia shot Lucia a wide-eyed glance.

“Do you want me to come with you?”

Olivia nodded.

The nurse showed them into the nearest exam room, where there was a seat for each of them.

“Your test results were positive,” she said. “It looks like you’re pregnant.”

Lucia heard Olivia’s sharp intake of breath, and then there was only silence.

The nurse was probably used to it.

“I know it’s a lot to wrap your head around,” she said, “but you have options, and we can help you navigate them. You’re welcome to schedule an appointment for a free or low cost exam – probably free, since you’re under eighteen.”

When Olivia said nothing, Lucia spoke up. “What would the exam involve?”

“An ultrasound to determine gestational age and counseling from a doctor who’ll educate you on your options.”

Lucia nodded, while Olivia was still.

“Just to be clear,” the nurse said, “we’re here to educate and support women only. There won’t be pressure of any sort from our staff, and we don’t provide prenatal care beyond the initial screening. We also don’t perform pregnancy termination procedures here. We can refer you to an OBGYN though, and we host group counseling sessions for women affected by pregnancy, no matter what path they choose.”

Lucia nodded again. “Olivia, would you like to schedule an appointment so you can speak to a doctor?”

After a moment, she nodded.

As they exited the exam room, Lucia took her hand and held it until they were in the parking lot, at her car.

Olivia stopped in front of the passenger side door. “I don’t want to go home. I – I can’t.”

Tears streamed down her face.

Lucia hesitated, her heart sinking. “Why don’t we take a short walk before we leave, so you can collect your thoughts?”

It wouldn’t be much, but it was the most Lucia dared to offer – she didn’t want to get Olivia in trouble with her parents by returning her home too late. Still, a little time to take in the news she’d just received would be better than none.

Olivia nodded, and they started down the street.

Lucia had no destination in mind, but she walked away from downtown and in the opposite direction, where things would be quiet and they were unlikely to be bothered. Dusk was taking over, and it helped disguise Olivia’s tears.

They received a lingering look or two, and then they were beyond the light bustle of a small town on a Tuesday night. On a quiet stretch of street that was home to a dry cleaner, a dentist’s office and a shoe store – all closed – Lucia broke the silence.

“Is whoever got you pregnant someone you think you can count on for support?”

“My boyfriend.” Olivia’s voice was soft. “He’ll be a senior when school starts again – he’s seventeen. I don’t – I don’t know what he’ll say.”

Lucia nodded. She’d never met Olivia’s boyfriend. She could only hope he had enough maturity to provide some of the support she might not get from her parents. Of course, that was a tall order for a seventeen year old.

They neared a small park that boasted a fountain, dozens of petunia plants and lilies in full bloom, plus a couple benches.

She wished she could empty her change into the fountain and wish Olivia’s tears away. Instead, she sank down onto a bench facing the fountain, along with Olivia.

Maybe the gentle rush of water would be calming.

“He’s going to join the Marine Corps after he graduates,” Olivia said. “He’s been talking about it for years.”

Lucia met Olivia’s gaze. “Maybe—”

A shadow rushed into her peripheral vision, and then something collided with the back of her head.

She pitched forward, palms and forearms hitting the ground as she toppled out of her seat. The air was knocked from her lungs, leaving her voiceless.

Olivia screamed.

A split second later, she was on the ground with Lucia.

Lucia couldn’t speak. Her mouth flooded with a metallic taste, and her heart pounded in her throat, making it hard to suck in air. Every nerve in her body buzzed with confusion, and then she realized she’d been stupid.

So stupid.

She never should’ve taken Olivia down a quiet street at dusk. Not after everything that’d happened recently.

She’d been so wrapped up in Olivia’s dilemma that she’d forgotten. Now Olivia was lying motionless in the grass.

Footsteps were muffled by the lush lawn, so painstakingly maintained by the town. When four black sneakers came into view, Lucia realized she was seeing double. She blinked, and a single pair of feet came into focus.

Gasping, she pushed herself up off the ground. Every muscle in her body was shaking, but it was fight or die. Because she knew what came next – anyone who’d watched the news lately knew.

If she didn’t stop it from happening, she and Olivia would be strangled or stabbed and left for dead. That was her last thought before everything went black.

* * * * *

It was a slow night, which gave Jeremy plenty of time to stew in his own thoughts as he guided his cruiser through the southwest corner of the county.

And shit, did he have a lot he didn’t want to think about.

Before he’d left for work that afternoon, Paige had asked him whether he and Lucia had any plans for his next day off.

He’d told her no, but hadn’t elaborated.

It’d disappoint Paige if he and Lucia didn’t pick back up where they’d left off – if the break turned out to be permanent. And Jeremy wouldn’t be able to blame Lucia if she wanted it to be, if his jackass behavior made her think twice about dating him.

It’d disappoint Paige, but in the long run it’d probably be easier than continuing to see Lucia, allowing her to become more involved in their lives, and then subjecting Paige to the loss of the only mother figure she’d ever known, besides her grandmother.

He had no doubt that Lucia would become a mother figure to her, if they continued dating, or at least a big sister figure. She and Paige clicked, and Lucia could no more stop herself from caring deeply than a picket fence could stop a freight train.

He swore under his breath, quiet even though there was no need to be. He was alone in the vehicle as he drove by old pines that reached the dusky sky, their needles brushing the emerging stars.

Only the sound of his radio kept him company.

And then it turned on him.

“On scene for an assault in Jennings Memorial Park on Main and Church.”
The voice on the radio was Juarez, one of the officers under Jeremy’s supervision.

“The complainant stated there’s a possible dead body.”

Jeremy’s heart pounded. An assault at the tiny fountain park downtown, with the victim possibly dead?

“Shit.” He gripped the wheel tight.

Within the next minute, the radio blew up.

A woman had been violently assaulted in Jennings Memorial Park, a postage stamp sized haven where people sat during the day to eat their lunches. Juarez had found her unconscious, not dead, and she was being transported to the hospital via ambulance.

Brianna Haynes and Kaylee Wright were no longer alone in their bad luck. Their names raced through Jeremy’s mind as a sour taste filled his mouth.

And then his thoughts shattered as more information
came across the radio, and suspicion hit him like a ton of bricks.

The woman was Hispanic, approximate age thirty. She claimed she’d had a minor in her company – a sixteen year old girl – and that she was now missing.

There were any number of women in the county who met the first description, but Jeremy immediately thought of one. One who worked with teen girls. Maybe a less cynical man wouldn’t have jumped to the conclusion that it might be Lucia, but years of police work had dug a deep well of suspicion in his soul. It overflowed now, gripping him with gut-churning intensity.

He turned his cruiser around and drove toward town with his lights flashing and sirens screaming.