Operation Reunion (11 page)

Chapter 18

“Y
ou won’t believe this, but Cutter sent us.”

Kayla wiggled her nose in irritation at the oxygen cannula the E.R. staff insisted she keep on. She felt much better now, and she wished they’d take it off. But when she spoke, or tried to, her voice was just raspy enough that she thought maybe they were right about it.

“He did?”

Hayley nodded. “We heard the sirens—you’re not that far from us—but when it quieted down we didn’t think much more about it. But Cutter wouldn’t let us go back to sleep. He started pacing the bedroom, whining, coming over to us, then walking to the door, back and forth.”

Kayla thought of her initial encounter with the dog and then the way he’d led them to Teague in the warehouse. That part wasn’t surprising.

“Finally he sat in the middle of the room and started howling, like a wolf looking at a full moon. We had to get up before he’d shut up.”

“But then he did?”

Hayley laughed. “Yes. He was too busy dragging our shoes over to us. We got the clue at that point.”

“Are you sure he’s just a dog?”

“Sometimes, I’m not sure at all.”

Kayla shifted, winced as the three stitches in the back of her left shoulder pulled slightly. She knew she’d gotten off lucky with some cuts and what would be a colorful array of bruises. The smoke had been the worst, but Mr. Reyes, bless him, had gotten there and broken the window in the front door to open it in time.

“Where is Quinn?” she asked.

“He’s talking to the investigators.” Hayley smiled. “There’s always a bit of lag time while they check us out.”

“Like Dane did,” Kayla said, that stubborn inner ache rising, making her outward injuries pale in comparison.

“He was pretty thorough,” Hayley agreed. “He was worried about you.”

“He’s not anymore,” Kayla muttered.

“Don’t be so sure. I’ve seen you two together. You don’t turn feelings like that off so quickly.”

“It wasn’t quick. It took ten years.” She sounded as bleak as she felt. She knew she had driven him to this.

“Don’t give up yet,” Hayley said gently. Then, “The investigators will be here momentarily, I’m sure. Is there anything you want to tell me before they arrive?”

“I don’t know who it was,” she said. “I didn’t hear anything. I couldn’t sleep so I was in the living room.”

“That probably saved your life,” Hayley said.

“The house,” Kayla began.

Hayley shook her head. “I don’t know. The fire department was still all over it when the paramedics loaded you up. I wanted to stay with you, so I didn’t really see how bad it was.”

“Thank you,” Kayla said. “I would have felt...really alone if you hadn’t.”

Hayley smiled. “You’re not alone. But think, Kayla. Was there anyone around? Did you hear any cars, any noises in the yard?”

Kayla tried, replaying the awful night in her mind, but nothing surfaced. “I don’t remember anything, but I was pretty upset, so I’m not sure I would have noticed.”

But the process of trying to remember if she’d heard or seen anything unusual kick-started Kayla’s brain. Things tumbled into place, and with a little shock she realized that someone had tried to kill her tonight.

And that made her realize she’d been so focused on finding Chad and proving he hadn’t killed their parents that she hadn’t spent a whole lot of time thinking about who actually had.

“Do you think this is connected? To my parents, I mean?”

“It does seem odd that shortly after we start looking into things you get attacked.”

Kayla didn’t know whether to hope this was all connected or hope it wasn’t.

“Maybe my work, maybe somebody from the counseling group? One of them had a son murdered a month ago.”

“We’re looking into it,” Hayley agreed.

“Definitely.” Quinn’s voice came from over Hayley’s shoulder as he parted the curtains and stepped into the E.R. alcove. “How are you?”

“Okay. I think.”

Quinn nodded. “A detective and the arson investigator are right on my heels. Anything I need to know?”

“She doesn’t remember anything out of the ordinary,” Hayley said.

“Not surprising. Maybe later. How bad was your fight with Dane?”

“Fight?”

“In the driveway.”

Kayla frowned, then remembered Mr. Reyes had been in his own driveway at the time. Given the man had saved her life, she found it hard to be upset with him.

“It wasn’t a fight. We were a little tense, snapped at each other, but that’s all.”

“Any threats?”

Kayla blinked. “What?”

“Did he make any threats. ‘You’ll be sorry,’ ‘I’ll make you pay,’ anything like that?”

Bewildered, Kayla stared at him. “Dane?” She sounded as incredulous as she felt. “Of course not. Dane would never say—”

She broke off, suddenly realizing the import behind his question.

“No! No, no, no. Not Dane. Never in a million years.”

“You sound awfully sure about a guy who just walked out on you,” Quinn said, his gaze never leaving her.

“He had every right to do that,” Kayla said miserably. “But it doesn’t change who he is inside.”

“You’re interfering in an investigation, Mr. Foxworth.”

The warning came from behind them in a voice that held the ring of command.

“Ms. Tucker is a client, Detective Dunbar,” Quinn said without missing a beat. A dark-haired man in civilian clothes, but with an air about him that matched the voice, pushed aside the curtains. Even Kayla could have guessed he was a cop. He was tall and rangy and looked fit and tough. A touch of grey at his temples suggested he might be older than Quinn, although he didn’t really look it otherwise.

“Is Dane Burdette a client, too?”

Quinn hesitated, which already Kayla knew was unlike him. She took advantage even as she wondered if he’d done it purposefully, to give her this chance.

“Yes,” she said quickly. “And he did
not
do this. He would never, ever do anything remotely like this.”

“I’ve heard the same from the family and friends of everything from terrorists to serial killers.”

He didn’t say it coldly or cruelly; in fact, if anything his tone was sad as he looked at her.

“He didn’t do it,” Kayla insisted. And it struck her suddenly that she was once more in the position of protesting the innocence of someone the police seemed to have already decided was guilty.

“He has no alibi. He can’t prove he wasn’t there,” Dunbar said.

“But that’s not the question, is it?” Quinn said. “The question is can you prove he was?”

“Where is he now?” Kayla demanded.

“You seem very concerned,” Detective Dunbar said. “Didn’t you two just break up yesterday?”

“I’ve loved him since I was fourteen,” Kayla said, “and I still do. You’re not listening.” She shook her head, then wished she hadn’t as the room spun a little. She closed her eyes. “God, do the police never listen?” she whispered.

“I’m listening,” Dunbar said, sounding different now, but Kayla felt too drained at the moment to answer. As if he sensed that, although Kayla wasn’t yet ready to cede that much sensitivity to him, he changed tack and began to question her instead on what exactly had happened.

She opened her eyes and went through it all again but remembered nothing new to add to the account.

“So you say you heard nothing, saw nothing, until the actual explosion itself,” the detective said. He didn’t say it in an accusing tone, but to Kayla it sounded that way anyway.

“I wasn’t even in that room,” she explained again. “I was in the front of the house.”

“Still, a broken window makes a lot of noise.”

“Is that how it was done?” Hayley asked.

The detective didn’t look at her as he nodded; he kept his gaze on Kayla’s face.

“I’m not the arson people, but it looked to me like there was a small explosion in addition to a pretty standard Molotov cocktail, with the ignition point at the foot of the bed, although it spread fast enough and was hot enough that I’m thinking there might have been more than just gasoline involved. Probably trying to destroy any evidence.”

Kayla smothered a shiver. She hadn’t realized until this moment just how narrow her escape had been. If she had stayed in bed, she might well be dead.

As if he thought he’d put her off guard, Dunbar went back to his questioning.

“And you were upset,” the detective said. “Distracted, by the fight you had earlier.”

“It was not a fight,” she insisted, pushing back another shiver of reaction. Right now it was more important to convince this man. “And I was upset by Dane’s absence, not a couple of sharp words.”

She closed her eyes again, feeling battered now.

“It was Dane’s choice,” she heard Hayley say.

Kayla’s eyes snapped open. It didn’t seem like Hayley to rub it in.

“Exactly,” Quinn agreed, looking at the detective. “He’s the one who walked away—she didn’t leave him—so why would he turn around and try to kill her?”

“Maybe he’s angry over why he had to walk away,” Dunbar said. Kayla thought she heard doubt in his voice, as if he’d wondered that himself. Then again, maybe it was wishful thinking.

“When Dane gets angry, which isn’t often, he goes out and rides his bike twenty miles,” Kayla said. “If he’s really mad, he does half of it uphill.
That’s
how he deals with anger. Not blowing things up or...”

Her voice trailed off. The very idea of Dane trying to kill anyone, let alone her, was beyond absurd, too absurd to deserve being put into words.

The detective’s cell phone rang. Kayla supposed the no phone rule in emergency rooms didn’t apply to police. He walked a few feet away and answered quietly.

Moments later he was back. His gaze was fastened on Quinn.

“You’re that Foxworth? The one who helped take down that cop-killer over in Seattle?”

“We played a small part, yes,” Quinn said.

“Word I got was it was more than a small part. He shot you.”

Kayla’s eyes widened, and she saw Hayley’s gaze snap to Quinn.

“Not well,” Quinn answered dryly. “He left me standing.”

“So that scar’s from some ‘stupid accident’?” Hayley said, her voice tight.

A glance at the woman’s face confirmed this information was news to Hayley, too. Hayley’s expression told Kayla there would be a discussion about this later. She didn’t envy Quinn; the woman did not look pleased.

“It was stupid. But the bullet ended up being the final nail in his incarceration coffin,” Quinn added.

The detective smiled then. Which made his next words as he turned back to her even more ominous.

“Burdette’s in custody.”

Chapter 19

“H
e wouldn’t. He didn’t,” Kayla said fiercely, staring at Quinn and Hayley as if she could will them to believe.

“You must feel like you’ve spent half your life saying that,” Hayley said, reaching out to take Kayla’s hand.

“But with Chad it’s just faith. With Dane it’s rock-solid fact. He simply would never do such a thing. To anyone.”

Quinn studied her silently. Detective Dunbar had left them, with an admonition to Kayla that he’d want to speak to her again later. It wasn’t quite “Don’t leave town,” but it was close enough.

And now, she thought, he was off to grill Dane. Already assuming he was guilty, just as the police then had assumed Chad was guilty. History repeating itself. She stifled a moan, barely.

“We’ll get it straightened out,” Quinn promised.

“You believe me? That he wouldn’t do this?” Kayla pleaded.

“He doesn’t seem the type,” Quinn said. “Not a sneak attack like this.”

Kayla felt a little less pressure in her chest. “He’s not. At all.”

“Who is?”

“What?”

“Who would be the type? If it’s not Dane, it’s somebody else. Who?”

Kayla blinked. “I have no idea.” Her earlier thought ran through her mind, that she’d been so focused on proving Chad hadn’t killed their parents that she hadn’t thought enough about who had. Now she was looking at that same kind of question again, with the intended victim clearly she herself.

Belatedly, something about his question occurred to her.

“Wait, you think this is someone I know?”

“It’s someone who obviously knows you. Or at least enough about you and your home to place that bomb in the most likely place. So it’s a possibility.”

That made it all even worse.

Kayla shook her head, wishing she could think more clearly. This time, at least, the room didn’t spin.

“So now you think this isn’t connected to my parents’ murders?”

“I think it’s far too early to take any options off the table,” Quinn said.

“I wish the police had thought that way ten years ago,” Kayla said, not caring about the bitter note that had come into her voice.

“I think,” Quinn said, “you might find Detective Dunbar a different type.”

“Type?”

“He’s ex-LAPD. I get the feeling he takes things a bit personally. It may be why he left. That kind of cop takes a real beating in places with frequent serious crimes.”

“Personally?” Hayley asked.

Quinn nodded. “The kind who takes the work home with him. Good for victims, not so good on the cop.”

“He didn’t seem to be on my side,” Kayla said.

Quinn smiled. “Don’t mistake me. He’s still a good, thorough cop, I think. What he did here was pretty standard. He has to ask those questions, look for holes in your story. It’s his job.”

“What kind of holes?”

Quinn shrugged. “They have to consider all the possibilities. Insurance on the house, for instance.”

With her fuzzy head, it took her a moment to get there. “You mean...I might have done this myself to get the insurance money?”

“It’s been done. And you were safely out of the room.”

“She needed stitches and oxygen. Your interpretation of the word ‘safely’ and mine obviously don’t match,” Hayley said, and there was such a “We’re going to talk about this later” tone in her voice that Kayla nearly smiled despite her turmoil. Quinn had some explaining to do about that getting shot business, obviously.

“I love...loved my house. I would never—”

She broke off. It all seemed like too much; she wanted nothing more than to lie down and sleep for a week. Tears brimmed and she dashed them away angrily. She would not be one of those weepy women who fell apart. She’d done that once, gone completely to pieces, and while Chad’s fate was apparently being sealed she’d done little to head it off. She’d only made it through at all because of Dane’s unwavering support.

And now he was in trouble.

With an effort she sat up.

“I want out of here.”

“Whoa,” Hayley said. “Take it easy.”

“I’ve been x-rayed and hooked up to machines for hours. I’m fine, and I want out of here.” She yanked the oxygen tube over her head and pulled the clip-like monitor off her finger.

“You’re fine now,” Quinn said. “Smoke inhalation can be tricky. Sometimes you seem fine at first, but a day later your lungs—”

“I’ll deal with that a day later then,” she said.

Quinn grimaced slightly, then said, “I’ll find the doctor.”

After he’d gone, Kayla looked at Hayley. “I have to help Dane. He didn’t do this.”

“I know.”

For a moment Kayla just looked at her. Was she merely placating her? Trying to keep her calm?

“He wouldn’t do this. He felt he had to make a choice and he did, but he would never try to hurt you.”

Just hearing those words from someone else was a salve to Kayla’s battered emotions. Tears escaped this time, and before she could wipe them away Hayley was handing her a tissue.

“We’ll help him,” Hayley assured her. “Whether this is connected to Chad or not.”

After a study of the improving trend of her oxygen saturation levels since she’d been here and securing a promise she would return for a follow-up comparison chest X-ray, and after Hayley had assured her Kayla wouldn’t be left alone for the next couple of days, the doctor agreed to release her.

“The coughing resumes, or she starts sounding more hoarse, I want her back here.”

“If I have to carry her,” Quinn said, and Kayla wasn’t quite sure if that was a promise or a threat.

“I want to see Dane. Even if he doesn’t want to see me.”

“He’s still being questioned, I’m sure,” Quinn said. “For now let’s get you cleaned up and some clothes that don’t smell of smoke.”

“Clothes,” Kayla said, almost numbly. “I probably don’t have any, do I?”

“We’ll deal with all that,” Hayley said as they got into Quinn’s SUV.

Kayla paused before sliding into the backseat. “My car.”

It wasn’t a question, but Quinn answered as if it had been. “The garage looked fine from what I could see. The fire fighters did a good job keeping it from spreading. The fire itself was confined mostly to the bedroom. The rest of the house seemed okay, except for smoke damage. Definitely reparable.”

She didn’t answer, although she appreciated the information. It was too much to think about just now.

“If you ever wanted a bigger bedroom, now’s your chance,” Quinn said.

“Is that your version of looking on the bright side?” Hayley asked.

“My version of the bright side is that she’s not dead,” Quinn said.

A moment passed before Hayley said, “Point taken,” with a smile.

They were, Kayla realized, talking to each other so she wouldn’t feel pressured to join in. And not for the first time tonight—well, it was nearly morning now—she was thankful for this remarkable couple who had come into her life.

Or been dragged into it, she thought, remembering the determined dog who had brought all this about.

Hayley turned in her seat to look at Kayla. “I’m a bit taller than you, but we’re close enough in size I think we can find you something to wear. Then you need to get some sleep.”

“But—”

“I’ll check on Dane’s status,” Quinn said, correctly interpreting her protest.

It occurred to her finally to wonder where they were going. Had the smoke affected her brain, her thought process? The doctor had said it could but that she didn’t think she’d breathed enough to do damage, and surely if that were the case she wouldn’t have released her. She must just be tired. She had, after all, been up all night.

“Where are we going?” she asked.

“You’re coming home with us,” Hayley said.

That sounded surprisingly comforting. The only pang it gave her was the realization that if things were as they should be, it would be Dane taking care of her and they’d be headed to his apartment.

What turned out, oddly, to be most comforting about it all was the greeting she got when they arrived at the house tucked into the trees. She heard the bark first, looked up and in the growing light of dawn saw Cutter racing toward them. The moment she opened the car door, the dog was there, bypassing his own people, as if he could see they were fine but he wasn’t so sure about her. He nudged her with his inquisitive nose and licked at her hands and then her face when she bent to greet him.

“Hello, Cutter,” she said formally. “I guess I have you to thank for sending the cavalry.”

The dog whined, his tail wagging madly. As if satisfied now she was truly all right, he danced over to greet Hayley, who had exited the car also. The dog then looked into the vehicle at Quinn.

“I’ll go do another round with Detective Dunbar,” he said, and Kayla had the oddest feeling he was explaining to the dog as much as anyone.

Somehow, it wouldn’t surprise her.