You Can Run... (13 page)

“Because . . . Because . . .” Diana felt her eyes blur with tears. “Because what happened last night was so awful and you were right in the middle of it. You saw the horror. You seemed to really care about those people. Yet you just dumped Willow off and you’ve never even asked about Penny, who’s probably going to die! That’s why I’m so mad. You’re not even worried about them!”

Diana’s fatigue, the shock caused by the explosion, the terror she’d experienced at the hospital, and the overwhelming grief she felt for Penny all seemed to come down on her, nearly crushing her beneath the weight. Suddenly she began to cry—humiliated yet unable to stop the sobs coming from the depths of her being, the tears washing down her face like a sudden rush of rain.

Vaguely, she saw the young cop move away as Tyler stepped toward her, stood uncertainly for a moment, then wrapped his strong arms around her, pulling her against his tall, muscular body. Diana knew she should shake free of him—she barely knew him and she was quite sure she
didn’t like or trust him—but at the moment all she wanted was for him to keep holding her, to let her cry against his chest as he rested his chin on the top of her head and murmured, “Don’t cry, darlin’. Don’t cry.”

“I can’t help it,” she wept into his T-shirt. “And I’m not your ‘darlin’, dammit!”

“Maybe you are and you just don’t know it. Miracles do exist.”

Diana leaned back and looked at him fiercely. “Then what happened to Penny? What was
her
miracle? Why couldn’t she have been farther away from the house and closer to Willow? Willow told me she’d been at the edge of the woods looking for sparkle bugs when Penny spotted her and headed toward her.”

“Why was she trying to catch sparkle bugs?”

“Because Penny was so upset last night.”

“Penny was upset? About what?”

“I don’t know. I talked to her briefly the night before. She was really worried but she didn’t tell me the problem.”

Tyler’s hands moved to her waist and pushed her back a few inches. “You must have some idea.”

Diana was regaining control of herself, the sobs quieting, the tears beginning to slow. “Why are you asking me all of these questions?”

“I’m curious.”

Diana looked at his brilliant blue eyes now grown narrow and suspicious. She felt the tension in his arms and saw the muscles in his jaw tighten. “You’re not curious the way most people would be. You aren’t casually curious. You’re almost desperate to find out why Penny was so upset.”

“I am not. Why would I be? I don’t even know the woman.”

“Don’t you?”

A short, sharp silence fell between them. Tyler’s eyes narrowed even more, his gaze seeming to bore into hers. “What does
that
mean?”

“It means that even the most empathetic person couldn’t sound as fierce as you did about finding out what was upsetting a young woman he doesn’t know.”

“I was here. I helped the firefighters—not much, but I tried. And the mother of a young child is so badly burned she’s probably not going to live. I know you think I don’t have a heart, that I can’t feel for her even if I don’t know her, but you’re wrong. You’re not as smart as you think you are.”

He held Diana’s arms and she did not pull away. Both of them had wary looks in their eyes, and a thin, tingling wire of anger and distrust seemed to vibrate between them. Diana’s heart pounded, but she was determined to show this man he didn’t intimidate her. She was not going to pull herself free and dash for her car. She would stand there matching him look for look for an hour. Longer.

Gradually, his breathing growing lighter, the ferocity in his eyes dying, he said slowly, “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“You didn’t scare me. You also had no right to demand I tell you
anything
Penny said to me. You have no rights here at all!”

“I . . .” Tyler looked down, drew a deep breath, then raised his azure gaze. Diana could feel him fighting for composure, trying to harness what she could sense were natural instincts to get the information he wanted, no matter what methods he had to use. He was an unknown element and she had no doubt he was dangerous. No doubt at all.

Still, he looked at her with a trace of sad gentleness in his eyes. “I guess my behavior hasn’t been the best, but there’s a reason for it. If you have
any
knowledge of what was bothering your friend, you have to tell the police. I mean it, Diana, because—”

“Yes? Because?” she asked, trying to sound haughtily dismissive.

He glanced around as if to see if anyone were near
them. “Because the fire marshal has determined this house didn’t catch on fire because of a gas leak or anything accidental,” Tyler said softly. “Diana, the explosion last night was caused by a bomb.”

Bomb
. The word felt like a sword thrust. She stared into Tyler’s eyes, but she really didn’t see him. She saw Penny’s seared, blistered face against a background of blinding flames on the black canvas of night.

“Diana, did you understand me?” Tyler asked finally.

“Yes,” she said vaguely, trying to fight her way out of her vision and back to the present. “You said it was a bomb.” She forced herself to focus on Tyler. “But how do you know there was a bomb? I don’t think the fire marshal is discussing his findings with
you
.”

“I overheard him telling one of his men.”

“You could have misunderstood.”

“I didn’t. Do you see that guy over there? Tyler nodded toward a middle-aged man with thick, graying brown hair and a grim expression. “He’s with the ATF—Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.”

“I know what the ATF is, Tyler.”

“Then you know they don’t come to the site of an ordinary house fire. They are sent for when the cops find something suspicious—in this case, a bomb.”

“But how do they know? On what are they basing this bomb theory?”

Tyler looked around again and kept his voice low. “They found a big, jagged hole in the basement floor. A bomb would have a concentrated blast point, causing a crater in the concrete. An explosion from a gas leak—”

“Would be more diffused,” Diana interrupted, lost in memory. “I once saw a house whose basement had filled with gas from a leak and something ignited the gas. There was no ‘ground zero,’ I guess you’d call it, no specific point
like the hole in the concrete floor where the explosion must have ignited.” She frowned, feeling as if she were speaking weakly from the depths of a well. “Don’t tell me you overheard the fire marshal discussing the basement floor, too.”

“I didn’t, but that young cop Patterson heard him, and sometimes cops new to the job get a little too chatty when they’re excited.”

“And how do you know so much about cops new to the job?”

Tyler hesitated then said reluctantly, “I had an uncle on the force. He lived and breathed the job. He died a long time ago. . . .” Tyler seemed to mentally catch himself, and Diana saw his eyes become veiled. “This house was bombed, Diana. I suspected it last night because of the force of the blast. That’s why I came back today. I wanted to know for sure. I probably shouldn’t have told you just now. The police don’t want the information released to the public yet.”

Still feeling dazed by the news of a bomb, Diana said, “
I
certainly won’t run to the press, but what about that policeman over there talking to the newswoman? Will he tell her?”

“Not if he wants to keep his job. He’s probably just giving the usual line about this being an ongoing investigation and saying the police will release a statement when they know more.”

Diana glanced at the newswoman dejectedly walking back to the news van as the cop strode toward the remains of Penny’s house. “Looks like she didn’t get much information.”

“What did I tell you? You won’t be hearing about a bomb on the evening news. Maybe tomorrow . . .” Tyler shrugged. “They won’t be able to keep a lid on this for long. And you have to promise me you won’t tell anyone. I probably shouldn’t have told
you
.”

“Why? Because you think I can’t keep a secret?” Diana flared. “Well, I can! I am totally trustworthy, Mr. Raines.”

Tyler gave her a satisfied smile, and she suddenly felt bewildered by her girlishly earnest assurance of her
trustworthiness. What was wrong with her? After all, she didn’t trust
him,
she reminded herself sternly.

He was still smiling when embarrassment caused her to snipe, “You helped the firefighters and found Willow, but that still doesn’t explain why you’re involving yourself so much in this situation. You don’t even know Penny and Willow. Why do you care if their house was bombed?”

Tyler’s smile turned into a look of deep annoyance. “Damn, Diana, are bombings a regular occurrence in this town? I don’t think so. Wouldn’t you be interested if a bomb had been set off in someone’s house, even if you didn’t know the people whose home had been bombed? Besides, maybe I don’t know Penny and the little girl, but I do know Al Meeks, my grandfather’s friend,
my
friend who lives not too far from here. I found out last night he knows Penny. Then there’s you, Clarice Hanson, and your uncle. All of you know Penny.”

Diana gazed at him uncomprehendingly. “Okay, we all know Penny. So what?”

His face tightened in frustration and he spoke slowly, as if explaining something to a child. “You’re a smart woman. Use your head. Obviously someone tried to murder Penny—someone so vicious he didn’t care if he killed her little girl, too. That person may have wanted to kill Penny because she knew something dangerous to him. If so, he might think she’d told Al Meeks, or Clarice, or your uncle, or especially you. And there’s still Willow. Even if she’s only five or six, she could know something.” He paused. “Diana, every one of you is a target.”

Diana stood in the main concourse of the mall, her hands trembling, her head aching, her thoughts skittering like frightened mice. Normally, the mall would be extremely busy on a Saturday afternoon, but the day was so beautiful many people had opted to stay outside. Still, in spite
of the lack of a crowd, Diana could not seem to get her bearings. She paced through the concourse, looking blindly into store windows, trying to remember what she needed to buy for Willow and the proper sizes.

A bomb. Bomb.
Bomb
.

The word tolled in Diana’s head until she couldn’t concentrate. She read newspaper stories about bombings in the Middle East or in Europe. Sometimes bombings in places she’d never visited claimed lives. Occasionally bombings occurred closer to home. Even though she’d been young, she remembered the stunned sadness she’d felt over the bombing of the Federal Building in Oklahoma City in 1995—a bombing that had claimed 168 lives and injured over 800 people.

Still, she’d never really considered a bombing could never directly affect
her
.
How naive,
she now thought scornfully. Not only had a bombing occurred close to her, she’d almost lost her life because of it, and her closest friend would most surely lose her own battle to survive it.

What had happened at Penny’s home seemed impossible.
But it wasn’t,
Diana thought, her steps lagging, her desire to simply sit down and sob almost overcoming her. The bombing
had
happened, and her only comfort was that Willow had escaped, physically at least. Who knew what long-term emotional effects the violent tragedy would have on her?

And what about Tyler’s claim that everyone who knew Penny could be a target for a killer? He might still be in pursuit of Willow. At that moment, Diana had almost told Tyler about the night in the hospital when she’d been certain someone had hidden in the bathroom. She’d stopped only because her story sounded so flimsy. Why would someone come into a crowded hospital and hide in a bathroom, waiting for the right moment to murder her or Willow or both of them?

Her belief that the firecrackers had been a diversion for the would-be murderer’s escape also sounded melodramatic on this sunny afternoon. Add to it the fact that
two orderlies and two security people had searched her room and found absolutely no trace of an intruder, and she certainly sounded like a hysterical woman. That didn’t change Diana’s mind—she knew she hadn’t been dreaming—but she couldn’t stand to be laughed at by Tyler Raines. For some ludicrous reason that she didn’t understand, she wanted his respect.

Diana’s cell phone buzzed in her tote bag and she jumped. Of course, Simon would have recharged the battery, she thought in weak amusement as she rummaged through the bag until she found it.

“Hi, Uncle Simon,” she said. “Couldn’t stand the thought of me carrying around a cell phone with a dead battery, could you?”

“I’m sorry to have invaded the inner sanctum of that saddle bag you call a purse, but a cell phone with a dead battery is of no use. I just thought I’d make sure you’re all right.” His voice was tight with the effort of trying to sound offhand when he was obviously worried. “You’ve been gone longer than we expected.”

“I’m fine,” Diana tried equally hard to sound at ease. “I thought I was going to need a presidential mandate to get into Clarice’s house. The living room and kitchen will need some work, but the two bedrooms and bathroom are fine. The fire marshal accompanied me into the house and I gathered up everything I thought Clarice would need.”

“That’s wonderful. I’m certain Clarice will be glad to have her own possessions.” He paused then asked offhandedly, “Did the fire marshal say what caused the fire at Penny’s?”

“No,” Diana answered truthfully. The fire marshal had said nothing about a bomb. That revelation had come from Tyler. “They’re still investigating.”

“They should know something! It’s after five o’clock,” Simon said irritably.

“Maybe they’ve come to some conclusions now,” Diana
returned evenly. “I left there a couple of hours ago. Traffic was heavy and the mall is crowded,” she lied. “I’ll be home soon, though.”

“Good. I shouldn’t have checked on you. I promised you I’d never act like your parent.”

“You aren’t. My parents never noticed how long I’d been gone.”

“They were a bit self-involved,” Simon said mildly. “Anyway, I’m sorry for being a bother. After what happened last night, I’m acting like a mother hen.”