4 Malice in Christmas River (14 page)

I sat in the bed with Daniel, watching him as he slowly ate green Jell-O out of a white hospital cup.

He stared at the flashing TV screen, his eyes glazed over more than a Krispy Kreme donut.

When I’d come back upstairs after grabbing breakfast, Daniel was wide awake, groaning in agony. It scared me to see him like that. I found one of the nurses, telling her how much pain he was in. She had told me there was nothing they could do, that they were already giving him the doctor-approved dose of pain medication. I argued with the old bag to no avail. She just kept shaking her head. I was livid, and my mouth ran away from me. I said some pretty unpleasant things to her, none of which I regretted.  

Finally, I went over her head and found the doctor. She listened and upped Daniel’s dose without me having to ask twice.

I could still feel the adrenaline from the fight with the nurse coursing through my veins as I lay there with Daniel. But at least he was feeling a little better. His eyes were open, but he was far, far away. Which was what he needed right now.

I was lying with him in the bed, positioning myself carefully so I wasn’t putting any pressure on his broken leg. He had one arm over my shoulder. Early afternoon sunlight filtered through the blinds, shifting across the linoleum floor.  

“I’ll start packing tomorrow,” he said, finishing the last of the Jell-O cup.  

“What?” I said, looking up at him.

“For Hawaii,” he said. “I’ll start packing. Remind me to get some sunscreen at the store before we leave. I don’t want to be a lobster this trip.”

I thought about what to say.

He was in no condition to hear that we’d missed the flight, and that now, our honeymoon suite at the Royal Lahaina was sitting empty.

Hell. I wasn’t in any condition to think about that either.

“Shhh,” I finally said, rubbing his arm. “We’ll pack for the trip later.”

“Okay,” he said.

“How are you feeling?” I asked, for what was probably the tenth time in the last hour.

“Dandy,” he said.

I was glad at least the pain medication was doing its job, even though I wasn’t sure where my husband was right now.

We lay there, watching some old Scooby-Doo reruns. I was only half paying attention to Scooby and the crew. The other half of me was thinking hard about what Erik had said earlier.

Do you know of anyone who would want to hurt your husband?

I’d been trying to come up with a list. A list of people who would purposefully unlock a horse trailer and spook it with the intention of it trampling Daniel.

My list was lukewarm at best. Pohly County was like any other county when it came to its relationship with its law enforcement. Folks around here approached the Sheriff’s Office with both a measure of wariness and gratitude, more or less depending on which side of the law they fell on.

There were always people out there who hated cops and law enforcement. But the county, for the most part, had welcomed Daniel with open arms. Young, handsome, and honest, he’d impressed most folks in the community with his strong sense of justice, his intelligence, and his personable way.

He was a far cry from Trumbow, the county’s former sheriff. And I always got the impression that for most in the community, Daniel taking over the Sheriff’s Department was like a breath of fresh air. 

And as far as I knew, there wasn’t anyone who had it in for my husband.

But there was a modifier in that.
As far as I knew
…

My mind flashed back to the way Daniel was in the days before the accident. He’d been tired and overworked. And more than that, he’d been concerned about something.

I thought about when we went fishing. About the dark clouds that seemed to pass over his face. About the things I knew he was keeping from me.

Could what happened at the Rodeo have had something to do with whatever was bothering him then?

I looked up at him. He had pushed his half-empty tray of food away, and his eyelids seemed to be growing heavy.  

“Daniel,” I whispered.

He looked down at me.

“What is it,
Sweedeedee
?”

I raised an eyebrow. He’d never called me that before.

It must have been the pain pills.  

“Has anything come back to you about the accident?” I asked. “Anything at all?”

He stared at the TV for a moment and then shook his head.

“Nothing,” he said. “Just… Just
The Sandman
.”

I furrowed my brow again.

“What?” I said.

He fought to keep his eyelids open, but they looked to be as heavy as anchors.  

“
The Sandman
,” he said. “I think I saw—”  

His eyes shut and his head lulled off to one side. A moment later, soft snoring sounds were coming out of his mouth.

“Who’s The Sandman, Daniel?” I said.

But it was too late. He was already in dreamland.

Chapter 33

A soft rapping on the open door of the hospital room startled me awake.

My eyes flung open. The world was a blurry mess of light and shadows. I rubbed my sleep-encrusted eyes, squinting at the door, trying to make out what caused the noise.  

Two figures stood off to the side of the doorjamb.  

“I’m sorry,” one of them rasped. “I didn’t realize you were sleeping.”  

I looked over at Daniel, who was still out like a light. Through the half-closed blinds of the window, I could see the sun was starting to slip down into the horizon again. I wondered how long I’d been in the hospital for now. Two days? Three? Maybe four? I didn’t know. Time seemed to bleed away between the sea foam green walls and the sound of the heart rate monitor. 

“It’s okay,” I said, my voice scratchy and dry “I’ll come out there in one moment.”

The woman nodded and stepped outside. I slowly pushed myself out of bed, doing my utmost not to disturb Daniel. He shuddered in his sleep slightly and moved his head to the opposite side.

I straightened out the sweatshirt I was wearing and shuffled across the linoleum floor in my flats. One of my legs had fallen completely asleep. It felt like I was dragging a sandbag behind me as I slowly walked out of the room and into the bright lights of the hallway.

I squinted again, recognizing the two ladies who had come to visit. 

Laurel and her daughter were standing in the hallway. Laurel was buried under a beautiful bouquet of sunflowers.

I was surprised to see her here. There’d been a few deputies from the station who’d come by to check on Daniel earlier, a couple of buddies Daniel knew from his rec baseball league too, but other than them, Tiana, and Kara, I hadn’t expected anybody else to stop by.  

“How are you holding up, doll?” Laurel said.

I zipped up the hoodie sweatshirt I was wearing, attempting to look halfway-decent, though if I looked one-tenth of how I felt, then I’d sorely lost the battle.

“I’m doing okay,” I said.

She handed the flowers to Ashley and then gave me a great big bear hug.

“I’m so sorry this happened,” she said. “What a terrible, terrible thing.”

I was stunned by the kindness and compassion in her words.  

“These are for the Sheriff,” Ashley said, handing me the bouquet after Laurel had let me go.

I didn’t respond for a moment. I genuinely couldn’t find the words.

Sometimes, it seemed as though you were mostly alone in the world. Then something terrible happens, and you realize you have a whole community around you, rooting for you, supporting you.

Maybe I was just exhausted and was letting my emotions get the better of me, but I was really touched by Laurel and her daughter coming by to see us.  

“How’s Daniel?” Laurel asked.

I rubbed my eyes again, trying to rid them of the tears that threatened to brim over the sides. I let out a sigh.

“He’s, uh, he’s busted up pretty good,” I said, my voice shaking slightly. “But he’ll be okay so long as he keeps improving. The doctors want to keep him here for a little while to make sure he doesn’t have any swelling… well, to make sure he’s okay.”

I cleared my throat.

“That sounds like a good prognosis,” Laurel said. “Don’t you worry. They’ve got some of the best professionals working here at this hospital. When Bernie’s uncle had his heart attack five years ago, they took care of him real good.”

She patted me on the shoulder.

“You’re doing an admiral job, doll. I swear, if it were me in your position, well, I think I might just snap like a twig.”

The edges of her mouth turned down slightly.   

“That’s real nice,” I said. “All of this is real nice. I can’t… I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you stopping by.”

“Of course, Cin,” she said. “You let me know if you need anything. Anything at all. I’ll be here quicker than you can say
Honey-Lemon-Ginger Apple Pie.
”

I forced a smile, looking down at the flowers.

“These are really beautiful,” I said. “I’m sure Daniel will appreciate them in the room. I know I will.”

“Ashley picked them out,” Laurel said.

Ashley smiled bashfully.

Part of me wondered if she didn’t have the tiniest, itsy bitsy crush on Daniel. I knew that sometimes he was invited to the high school to do anti-drug presentations and the like.  

That was just the sweetest.

“When Daniel gets well enough, we’ll have to have you two over to the house some time,” I said. “Pick up where we left off.”

“I’d love that.”

She gave me another hug, and then Ashley gave me one too. I watched as they walked away down the hallway, making it just as the elevator doors were closing.

I realized I was still smiling long after they’d left.

Chapter 34

“Go home and get some rest, Cin. I’ll be okay here.”  

Daniel was sitting up in bed for the first time. He had just finished off a grilled American cheese sandwich, a small container of grape juice, and a Snack Pack pudding cup. He hadn’t much cared for the American cheese in the sandwich – he hated American cheese – but he’d eaten the whole thing anyway.

For the first time since being in the hospital, he actually seemed to be lucid and making sense. His eyes were brighter and lacked that dull, drugged-up look they’d had before. I took it as a good sign, but I still wanted to be cautious. We weren’t out of the woods yet.

“I’m not going anywhere,” I said, flipping the channel to
Ancient Aliens
, a show that Daniel and I loved to veg out to late at night, making fun of the ridiculous conspiracy theories and its host’s crazy hair.

“C’mon,” he said. “I’m feeling a lot better, and you’re looking worse than I am.”

“That’s a gross exaggeration,” I said, shooting him a sharp look.

“Have you looked at yourself in the mirror lately?”

I clicked my tongue against the top of my mouth and was tempted to punch him in the arm, but held back in light of his state.

“What kind of thing is that to say to a lady?” I said, crossing my arms. “You’re lucky that you’re in the condition you’re in right now, Daniel Brightman. Otherwise, I’d have no choice but to make you pay for those words.”

He smiled, and it made my heart flutter.

He was looking so much better.    

“I’m only looking out for you. Besides, you know I’m right,” he said. “I want you to get a good night’s sleep.”

“I don’t want to go,” I said.

He let out a short sigh.

“Well, if you’re not going to go for yourself, go for me then,” he said.

“What?”

“This bed is too small for the both of us, and you’re hogging all the blankets.”

“Daniel Brightman, I oughta…”

He pecked me on the cheek.

“I’m tired,” he said. “And so are you. Take the rest of the night off, Nurse Peters. You’ve earned it.”

“What if something happens when I’m gone?” I said.

“Don’t worry. Nothing will. I’m not going anywhere.”

He nodded to the cast on his leg.  

“You’ve got me trapped, Nurse Peters. Just like that Kathy Bates movie. You know, the one with the writer in the car accident?”

A mischievous grin crossed his face.

“Daniel Brightman, you’re being a real pickle tonight,” I said.

I was glad to hear him making jokes again. That had to be another good sign.

“Fine,” I said. “But let the record show that I’d much rather stay here with you tonight.”

“Noted,” he said, kissing me on the top of the head.  “Now get yourself out of here before it gets much later. And call the room when you make it home, okay?”

“Okay,” I said.

I got up, pulled on my hoodie, and grabbed my purse from off the chair in the corner.

“I’ll be back first thing in the morning, Daniel,” I said.

“Sleep in,” he said.

“I’ll be here.”

I leaned down, kissing him lightly on the lips.

“I love you,” I said.

I pulled away, but he reached up, pulling me back toward him, giving me a slow, passionate kiss. Something the doctor wouldn’t have approved of maybe, but something that I approved of very, very much.

“I’m glad I’m still here to do that,” he said.  

I smiled.

I was too.

Chapter 35

I tossed and turned all night, unable to get much rest.

The bed was too big without Daniel or Hucks, the latter of which was staying with Kara until things got back to normal. It was too hot in the house. And I was too tired to sleep.

My mind wouldn’t rest. I kept thinking about the accident. About the possibility that it hadn’t actually been an accident.

I thought about Trumbow. About how he’d been sure it was just a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. An intoxicated horse owner, a loud clap of thunder. Daniel just happening to be right there as the horse bolted.

The Rodeo was a wild and rowdy place. Especially at that hour of the night. It
could
have been an accident.

But it also seemed like it could have been something else.