Witness Pursuit

Today was different. Someone was after Cassie. He never should have let her go to the hospital alone. He should have stayed with her, protected her. Right, and how ridiculous was that considering he had a potential murder on his hands?

He struggled to bury his concern and not let anyone see the utter panic tearing at his insides. But as he approached his truck, the bottled-up frustration got the better of him. He slammed his palm against the quarter panel.

A woman’s cry echoed back at him.

Nate froze, his heart pounding.

Leaning forward, he peered into the flatbed. Cassie blinked her bloodshot, terrified eyes.

“You’re in my truck,” he said.

“D-d-disappointed?” She broke into a round of shivers.

He grabbed a blanket from the backseat and climbed into the flatbed beside her. As he gently covered her body, a wave of calm washed over him. She was okay. For now.

“Aiden!” He motioned to his friend who’d gone to get a flashlight. “Over here!”

“I knew you’d come.”

Nate snapped his attention to Cassie. “What happened? Why did you run?”

“A guy...in the hospital...the guy with the shovel...from the cabin.”

“Is it...?” Aiden stopped short and looked at her. “What are you doing in there?”

“Aiden,” Nate warned, wanting him to soften his tone. “She’s trembling.”

“Let’s take her inside,” Aiden said.

“Nooooo.” She clamped her hand around Nate’s forearm. “Not back in there.”

“Cassie, you need medical attention,” Aiden argued.

“That man got to me in there. I can’t go back.” Her pleading blue eyes tugged at Nate’s heart.

“She’s delirious. She doesn’t know what she’s saying,” Aiden said.

“I am n-n-not!” she protested.

“Come on, I’ll help you out.” Aiden reached for her.

“Wait,” Nate said. “I’ve got another idea.”

* * *

Cassie couldn’t believe it. Nate had listened to her. He’d respected her fear of going back into the hospital and found an alternative.

Nate drove her to the urgent care, where Dr. Spencer was on duty. He was a good friend to both Nate and Aiden, and he’d done his share of triage with search and rescue. Cassie knew she wasn’t suffering from anything serious, but she did need medical attention for the gash in her arm.

Closing her eyes, she relaxed under the heated blanket in the examining room. She appreciated the warmth that finally drove the chill from her bones.

“Cassie?”

She blinked her eyes open. A frown creased Nate’s forehead.

“What’s wrong?” she said.

“I thought you passed out.”

“Why, because I stopped talking?” she joked.

Instead of smiling, he glanced down at his hands, holding his Echo Mountain PD cap. He seemed regretful, and she couldn’t understand why.

“Thanks,” she offered.

He looked at her. “For what?”

“Bringing me here. Listening to me, I guess. Not many people do that, especially not my brother.”

“I almost forgot.” He pulled her cell phone out of his jacket pocket. “Your cousin found it in the ambulance.”

“Awesome, thanks. Where is my bossy brother, anyway?”

“He went outside to call your mom.”

“Oh boy, now the whole town is going to know.”

“Maybe that’s not a bad thing,” Nate said.

“You’ve got to be kidding.”

“People will be on the lookout. They’ll keep an eye on you.”

“Right, because I’m so fragile and incapable of taking care of myself. They should consider the fact that I escaped this guy—” she hesitated “—twice, and the first time with a dog in my arms.” She sat up. “Speaking of which, what happened to Dasher?”

“Relax, your sister and my sister are fighting over custody.”

She sighed and lay back down. “Thanks, I’ll pick him up after I get out of here.”

“You should worry more about yourself than some scruffy dog.”

“I have lots of people to support me, but Dasher? He’s got no one. And besides, he’s not scruffy, he’s got character.”

She thought Nate smiled but couldn’t be sure.

The door slid open and Dr. Spencer poked his head into the room. “Sorry, had an emergency. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

“Thanks,” Cassie said.