Promises of Mercy(Montana Promises-Book 1) (27 page)

Her friend glanced down at the bandage on her arm. “It’s out?”

“Yup. All gone.” Amber put the water back on the stand.

Jamie ran a gaze
up and down Amber’s face. “You look better.”

Amber fingered the stitches.
“Yeah. The doc did a good job patching me up.”

Someone knocked on the door.
“Hello?” Ethan, Cade’s partner came in. “I’d like to take Ms. Henderson’s statement now.”

Cade nodded. “Amber, we should go.”

She nodded then hugged Jamie goodbye. “I’m here for you. We’ll get through this.”

“When are you coming back?” A bit of fear crossed Jamie’s face.

“Tomorrow morning.”

Jamie’s lids drooped. “Okay. See ya.”

Cade wrapped an arm around Amber’s waist and walked her out. “Anyone up for something to eat?”

As much as she wanted to crawl into bed and sleep for a few days, she needed food. It was dinnertime, and the men would be hungry. “How about Italian?” With her
numb cheek, pasta might be the easiest to chew. 

If there was one lesson she learned from coming so close to dying, it was
that she loved her men. As soon as she was able, she wanted to show them just how much.

Chapter Thirty-One

Under the circumstances, last night had been as good as could
have been expected. After a good dinner, Stone and Cade had brought Amber back to their house and made sure she was comfortable.

Once the Novocain had worn off,
Amber had downed some Tylenol and went to bed. The medicine helped, but it was being cocooned between her men that worked best. The downer was they told her they’d keep their hands off her until she completely healed. That meant a week with no sex.
Ugh
.

Cade had driven back to her house and picked up a suitcase
with her clothing. For not knowing exactly what she needed, he did a great job at picking out things.

When she woke this morning, she was sore from Ben having shoved her against the wall, but compared to Jamie, she was in good shape.
Her cheek ached, but not as much as she’d expected.

The aroma of bacon and eggs drifted into the bedroom. While she figured her supervisor would insist she take some time off, Amber wasn’t ready to sit and do nothing. K
eeping busy would help her cope.

She
stepped into the kitchen. Cade was at the stove dressed for work and looked devilishly handsome. “Good morning.”

He looked up and
winced. “Let me look your wound.” He studied her face. “Hmm.”

She’d checked out her appearance and had been quite upset
at first, but she understood that with time, she’d heal. Compared to what her cancer patients went through, this was nothing. “It’s going to get worse before it gets better.”

“That’s true.
Does it ache much?”

“It’s not too bad.” Amber didn’t want to discuss it anymore and
nodded to the stove. “I can do that. You don’t want to get your shirt splattered with grease.”

He cocked a brow
. “I’ll have you know, I am quite capable of staying clean.” Just then, the bacon popped and crackled, and he jumped back.

Amber laughed
but immediately touched her cheek. She’d have to limit what she did today. “Suit yourself.” She busied herself setting the table. “Stone at work?”

“Yes. As soon as I drop you off home, I have to go into work
, too.” He faced her. “Or do you need me to stay home with you? Because I will.”

How sweet was that? “I’m going
to visit Jamie.” She held up a palm to halt his objection.” If the doctors wanted Jamie to stay another day, then Amber would do her rounds. That way she’d be near her friend. If they released Jamie, she’d spend the day with her.

Amber
and the men had talked a lot last night about what had happened, and she was coming to grips with Ben’s breakdown, Jamie’s injury, and her near death experience. It certainly gave her a new perspective as to what cops must go through.

After they ate, Cade dropped her off at home. She changed into her scrubs and then drove to
the hospital. As soon as she found out what room Jamie was in, she took the elevator to the second floor. The staff was actually smiling again and appeared a lot more relaxed. They must have heard Ben had been caught.

Amber knocked and entered
Jamie’s room. Her friend was sitting on the bed, getting dressed.
Yes!

“Hey, girlfriend. Should you be up so soon?” Jamie’s hair was matted and her makeup streaked.

“Just got released, and boy am I happy.” She lifted her good arm and smelled her armpit in an exaggerated fashion. “I stink.”

“Could be the dried blood on your shirt. I came to be your chauffeur, seeing how you won’t be driving for a while.”

A spark lit in her eyes. “Awesome. I was just about to call a cab.” She sighed. “You’re dressed for work.”

“I
put them on in case you weren’t released. I wanted to be nearby.”

“
Aw. Thank you.”

Amber stepped over and helped Jamie button her shirt. “Did you sleep last night?”
Or did you have nightmares?

“I couldn’t turn my brain off. It was terrible.” She yawned. “I finally asked for something to put me to sleep, but now I’m paying for it.  I wish I could go to work, but with my arm the way it is, I can’t really function. It sucks.”

“You want me to see if I can find something clean for you to wear?” She might have a clean pair of scrubs in her locker.

“I just want to go home.”

When Jamie stood, she wobbled a little. “You sure you’ve been released?”

Jamie firmed her lips. “Yes.”

It was another half-hour before all the paperwork was complete, and forty-five minutes before they pulled into Amber’s drive. While Jamie said for her to drop her off at home, Amber insisted she stay with her. “You can’t drive your car home with one arm. Besides, what if you need something?”

Jamie looked to the side.
Way to go. She’s probably thinking Ben would have helped.
“I haven’t thought that far ahead. It sucks it’s my good arm.” She lifted it, winced, and then lowered her arm.

“I figure we might as well recuperate together.”

Jamie leaned her head back against the seat. “As long as you don’t mind me showering at your place and borrowing a shirt, I’m game to be pampered.”

Amber smiled. “Since
you saved my life, it’s a deal.”

Jamie let out a small laugh and looked like her old self. While she had to reach across her body to open the car door, she moved rather well once she got out. Jamie said the bullet had
n’t done too much damage for which Amber was thankful.

She
unlocked the front door, and then walked Jamie back to her room to shower. Amber pulled out fresh towels and a clean shirt. “Here you go. I’m going to make us something to eat.”

“Sounds wonderful.”

“Do you want me to wrap your arm in plastic wrap so the bandage doesn’t get wet?”

Jamie shook her head. “I’ll just
remove it.”

“Suit yourself.” Amber always carried plenty of first aid supplies as Chris was constantly injuring some part of his body. She pushed back the memory. “Take your time.”

She went to the kitchen to prepare some sandwiches. To her delight, Cade had put her groceries away last night. Those two were unique men who were perfect for her. Mostly they’d witnessed a sad woman working hard to cope with what life had thrown her. With Ben behind bars, maybe she could move on and be the type of woman they deserved.

Amber fixed sandwiches
along with some snacks. When Jamie finished showering, she came out looking refreshed.

“How do you feel?”

“Outside better. Inside the same. I’m still in shock.”

Amber brought the food over to the coffee table. “Let’s eat here.”

They both dug in. Even though the stitches and bruising made it a bit painful to chew, Amber managed to eat. Right after she’d finished half a sandwich, she leaned back. “We never got to talk. How about you start from the beginning?” Her last phone call with Jamie had been about her breaking up with Ben.

Jamie heaved a heavy sigh. “I feel bad not telling you
sooner, but I wasn’t proud of what happened.” She drew her knees to her chest and wrapped her good arm around them.

“What do you mean?”

“Benny and I have been dating for three years. He was my best friend. I really did love him.”

“I know. When you and he used to come over, and we’d all watch TV and laugh, I couldn’t imagine you with anyone else.
What changed your mind?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. Benny had no ambition. He
was becoming more and more dependent on me to make all the decisions in the relationship.” Jamie stretched out her legs and leaned back. “I want a man who will take charge—at least in the bedroom.” She looked over at her. “Maybe seeing the way Cade and Stone treated you made me realize what I wanted.”

That made Amber smile, though a hint of guilt snuck in. “Be careful what you wish for.”

Jamie nodded and a small smile lifted her lips. “I can’t say when I noticed it, but Benny kind of got weird right before Emma died.”

Amber bit into the other half of her ham and cheese even though her stomach was doing all sorts of acrobatics. “Weird how?” Poor Jamie. She must be thinking she could have stopped him had she known.

“He’d become distracted when I was talking to him. Once he even yelled at me for no good reason. Right after Emma died, he actually shoved me. That wasn’t the Benny I fell in love with. He used to be the most gentle man alive, one who couldn’t hurt a fly.”

“Did you ask him what had changed?”

She nodded. “He said his supervisor was talking about letting go a few of the techs. He was really scared it would be him.”

“I’d be nervous, too. Do you
think that was what caused him to go off the deep end?”

Jamie wove her fingers together and shook her head. “Not directly. I
believe it was when I told him I didn’t love him the same way he loved me.”

Amber’s breath caught. That would destroy Benny. She tried to put the pieces together. “He told me he wanted to prove to you how much he loved you. How could he think if he killed people who upset you, that you’d love him again?”

“I wish I knew.” She looked up and grabbed Amber’s hand. “He loved Chris. That death had nothing to do with me. I’m certain of that.”

“You have to listen to me, and listen good. None of the deaths are your fault.” She inhaled. “Ben was unstable.”

Jamie’s chin wobbled. “I keep telling myself that, but it’s not working.”

Amber squeezed Jamie’s palm. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” She worked hard not to sound accusatory.

“Like I said, I was embarrassed.” She bit down on her bottom lip then released it. “It might seem like I was stringing him on, but I swear I wasn’t. I loved Benny until he weirded out on me.”

“Hey, you had to do what was right for you.” Amber sipped on her Coke. “When you called me yesterday, were you planning on telling me you suspected Benny of the mercy killings?”

“Shit no. I never would have guessed in a million years he would harm anyone.” Jamie picked up some chips and stuffed them in her mouth. “I called because two nights ago Benny asked me to marry him.”

That was
not what Amber expected her to say. “For real? Even after you told him your feelings for him weren’t as strong anymore?”

“Yes, and trust me, I was shocked
he asked. Maybe he thought I wanted a commitment or something. That I’d change my mind if he showed me a ring.”

“If I’d been Benny, I might have gone that route, too.”

Jamie shifted in her seat and winced. “When I said no, he got really, really mad.”

Amber leaned back. “He must have wanted to blame someone and came after me.”

“It’s possible. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.” She seemed to be saying that a lot.

Jamie closed her eyes for a moment. “I still can’t believe Benny really killed those people, especially Stephanie Osmond.”

“I know. Her death made no sense. There had to be a point when he stopped thinking clearly.” Wasn’t that a kind way of saying Benny had lost his mind?

“Yeah.”

Amber finished her sandwich, her mind speeding. She was sick how Ben had taken Chris’s life in his own hands, but nothing could be done about it now. “
My boss suggested I get some counseling, so I might go see Zoey.”

“Seriously?”
Jamie snagged another handful of chips even though she hadn’t finished her sandwich. “Maybe I’ll speak with her, too.”

She was happy
her friend agreed to receive some guidance. “I could probably spend a few months with her given all the shit that’s happened in my life.”

Now it was Jamie who placed a hand on her arm. “Speaking of shit, what are you going to tell your mom?”

Crap
. Amber hadn’t thought about that. “I’m not sure it will matter if she knows who killed her son, but I will let her know.” Would her mother say it was Amber’s fault for having chosen unstable friends? “All I know is if I’d killed someone, I’d never have been able to get up in front of a crowd of mourners and sing his praises.”

“Amen.”

More than anything, Amber wanted to put this in the past and move on.