Out For Justice (23 page)

Chapter Forty

“Did you check on Mr. Anderson?” Mary's voice carried from the corridor.

“He’s asleep,” Sam heard Matthew answer. “Why don’t we let him sleep through the storm?”

No!
Sam screamed in his mind.
I’m not asleep. Walk into the room. Walk into the room, please!
He felt tears form behind his closed eyelids. The voices were moving away. He’d lost his chance. Lightning cracked and thunder answered. No one would hear.

“Very good, detective.”

Sam slowly opened his eyes. Maggie stood beside his bed looking down at him. Lightning lit up the room behind her very close body. The thunder rumbled and echoed. Outside, the rain slashed the windows.

“Now where were we before we were so rudely interrupted?”

Sam searched his mind. She was going to kill him and there was nothing he could do to stop her. He moved his hand another fraction of an inch hoping to encounter something he could use that would make enough noise to draw someone’s attention.

“You’re not very talkative, detective. Cat got your tongue?” Maggie slid her palm along Sam’s cheek. She tweaked his nose.

Inwardly, Sam cringed, trying to shrink back away from her touch. He blinked twice, hoping to catch her attention and keep her talking.

“What do you want, detective? Do you want to beg for your life?”

Blink. Sam knew he looked like a coward, but knowing that all that stood between him and death was the flip of a switch he’d gained a new appreciation for life. Damn it, he wanted to live. He wanted to spend more time with his wife. Maybe take a trip or two to see their grandchildren. Spend time with his family. Those were things he promised to do if he only made it safely through this situation.

“The big brave detective is afraid of little bitty ol’ me?” Maggie whispered with glee. “Good. You should be. I say who lives or dies. Me. Not God. Me. I have the power.” Lightning flashed outside, once again turning the room from dark to light. Maggie slapped her chest with one of her hands, the sound covered up by the echoing crash of thunder. “You will die. Your lady partner will die. Why? Because I say so.” Pointing at herself, Maggie raged on with savage whispers, “No one is ever supposed to suspect sweet, innocent, Maggie. Never. I’m the good one. Me. I didn’t beat the shit out of myself for nothing. I’ll make you pay. I’ll make all of you pay!”

With surprising speed, Maggie leapt up onto Sam’s bed and sat on his stomach. The brunt of her weight forced air to exhale from his lungs. In shock, Sam watched with wide eyes as her hand moved up to the IV machine next to his bed. He watched with horror as she pushed the off button. Fluid halted in mid-drip.

 Blink. Blink. Blink. Sam’s mind screamed for help.

“Now, which one should I turn off next?” Maggie pointed to the other various machines that beeped and whirred around his head. “This one?”

Sam’s heart raced.

“How about this one.” Maggie flipped a switch. Then another. And another.

Sam closed his eyes.

Chapter Forty-One

Karen spoke into the radio she held close to her mouth. “Any reports?”

“Nothing yet, ma’am,” the voice of David, the security guard, crackled from the radio. “I’ve checked with my men and they haven’t found her.”

“Keep looking,” Karen responded. “Officer Lopez and I will move to the third floor.”

Karen pushed through the stairwell door and took the stairs two at a time. Officer Lopez fell into step beside her. “She can’t hide in this place. Not in a hospital gown. We’ll find her.”

“We better. She’s wanted for assault on a police officer.”

“On you?”

“And my partner. I think she tried to kill him.” Karen opened the third floor door and strode out into the corridor. “He’s here in the hospital right now. ICU.” Karen considered she’d probably make Sam proud by calling for back up and working with the other officers instead of ramming head on into the thick of it without anyone’s help. She guessed she’d learned something after all. It felt good, organizing a team and keeping them working. Searching for this deranged woman.

Karen worked through her mind where in the hell Maggie could possibly be and then it hit her.

“Sam!” Karen took off running pushing past people in the hall. She didn’t look back to see if Officer Lopez was keeping up with her. Instinct told her that Sam was in trouble and that Maggie was the cause.

With a thud, she pushed through the swinging doors into the Intensive Care Unit. Nurses were calling out to one another. When they saw Officer Lopez’s uniform, they pointed down the corridor and yelled, “The police are here!”

ICU staff waved Karen and Officer Lopez past the nurses’ station and toward Sam’s room. Karen knew. She swallowed a large lump that forced its way up her throat.

“Officer. Here, come quick.”

Karen followed.

“She’s sitting on top of him. She says she’s going to turn his ventilator off.”

“Oh my God.”

“Hurry!”

Karen rushed to the door of Sam’s room. She pushed others out of her way and told them to stand back away from the door. “Get back, damn it. Let me in, I’m a police officer.” She could hear Officer Lopez moving people away from Sam’s door behind her.

“Maggie, what on earth do you think you’re doing?”

“Back off, detective. I’ve turned off everything else. I only have one more switch to go.” Maggie’s hand hovered over the off switch to the ventilator.

Karen held out her hands in a gesture of faith. “Look, Maggie. It doesn’t have to be like this. We’ll get you some help. What do you say?”

“I say hell no. I know what kind of help you’re talking about. You want me to admit I’m crazy. Well, I’m not. No one can make me go back to that damn place.” She shifted slightly so that she was sitting more firmly on top of Sam’s body. “You can all just go to hell.”

Lightning flashed and thunder boomed. The storm raged outside. Wind blew and rain battered the windows.

Without taking her eyes off Maggie, Karen motioned to Officer Lopez. She knew she had to follow procedure on this one. Sam’s life was at stake. Out of the corner of her mouth, she said, “Call for back up. We need a negotiator.”

“Already put in the call. Anything else I can do for you?”

“Yeah, get these people back. Move everyone down past the nurses’ station. I need room to work.”

“You got it.” Lopez turned to the crowd. “All right, everyone. Back up. Go on. Get back. I want everyone on the other side of the nurses’ station. Move.”

Karen sighed with relief after the crowd of people moved further back. She had never participated as a hostage negotiator, but she remembered the training she received. Ensure public safety and keep the hostage taker talking. Don’t antagonize the suspect. She rolled her shoulders to help ease some of the tension and turned her full attention back to the situation at hand. “Maggie. Let’s work this out. Why don’t you get down from there and let’s go someplace and talk.”

Reminiscent of a rabid dog, Maggie snarled and snapped at Karen’s suggestion. “Right. You want to go someplace and talk. You mean to jail. I’m not going to jail.” She leaned further toward the ventilator and put one hand on the hose connected to Sam’s mouth and kept the other on the power switch.

“Let’s talk here then.” Karen shifted her weight from one foot to the other. Could she burst in the room and tackle Maggie? Would she be able to reach her before she had time to hit the switch? Karen wasn’t sure.

Lightning lit up the room. The thunder crashed.

“What do you want to talk about detective? You need my advice on what to wear? Want me to do your hair? I don’t think so.” Laughing, Maggie said, “I’m not into that girl talk kind of shit. So just back off.”

“Why don’t you tell me what happened to Ray? Wasn’t he your friend? Didn’t you care about him?”

“Ray? You want to talk about Ray? Fine, let’s talk about that stupid son-of-a-bitch. He had to get all freaked out on me. I don’t know what his problem was. He couldn’t handle it. He said he could, but he didn’t. Weak-ass bastard. He didn’t have what it takes to be God. He couldn’t handle the power. The control over other people’s lives.” Maggie lowered her head. “He became a drag, so I let him down easy.” Her voice trailed into a sing-song pattern. “Nice and easy. Just get ‘em high, and give ‘em a little more and that’s all it takes. Nice and easy.” Maggie lifted her head. A twisted smile splayed across her mouth. “He never suffered. Too bad for him.”

“Do you like to let your victims suffer, Maggie?”

“They need to know who’s in control. God doesn’t control their lives, I control their lives.”

“You’re not God, Maggie.”

“Don’t you say things like that! I have the power! Me!” Maggie yelled at the top of her voice. She screamed in anger. She beat her fist on Sam’s chest. “I should have killed you. You should be dead! I could be out of here. Gone. No one would have to know. Damn you!” Maggie slumped over, one hand on the power button. She pushed the switch.

Sam’s machine let out one last gasp and all was quiet. Lightning flashed. The thunder answered from a distance.

Karen shot into the room and launched herself at Maggie. She screamed for Lopez to get someone into Sam’s room to turn the machines back on. With a solid collision, the force of her impact with Maggie’s body brought them both up and off Sam’s bed and onto the floor. Karen’s head bounced off the wall near the window. She fought through the pain. Maggie wasn’t going to get the best of her this time. Forcing Maggie onto her stomach, she planted a knee into her back and grabbed Maggie’s arms and pulled them behind her back. “Stay where you are. Don’t move!” Karen said through clenched teeth. “You’re under arrest.” Karen fumbled for her handcuffs and brought one end down onto Maggie’s left wrist then twisted and cuffed the other hand. She let out the breath she’d been holding and stood up, keeping one foot planted in the middle of Maggie’s back.

Lopez stood at the doorway with his gun drawn. A nurse stood next to Sam’s bed, trembling as she hurried to switch on the various machines connected to Sam. The ventilator gasped back to life, forcing air back into Sam’s lungs.

More police officers appeared at the door of Sam’s room. Back up had arrived. Karen smiled when she saw Detective Hendricks at the front of the pack. She waved.

He waved back. “You all right?”

“Yeah.” She looked down at the small, blonde woman lying at her feet. “Boy, have I got something to tell you.”

“Your boyfriend called. He was worried about you.”

“I can take care of myself.”

“So I see.”

“I couldn’t have done it without help, though.”

“Yeah?”

“It’s not so bad working with a team.”

“Good for you. Now why don’t you give that guy of yours a call and let him know you’re okay.”

“Sure thing. One sec. Lopez? You want to help me with this?” Karen pointed down at Maggie Morris. Lopez helped Karen lift Maggie to her feet. “Read her her damn rights.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Lopez pulled Maggie out of Sam’s hospital room and into the hall.

Thunder rumbled from a distance. The storm had passed.

“Sam?” Karen looked down at the man in the hospital bed.

A nurse spoke. “It looks like everything is okay. I’d like to get a doctor in here to check him out.” The nurse fussed over Sam, straightening his sheet and smoothing the wrinkles out of his forehead.

Karen looked into Sam’s eyes. “Okay, partner?”

Blink.

“Good. You can’t check out on me yet.” Karen reached down and held Sam’s hand.

Blink. Blink.

“Okay, I’m glad you don’t want to either.”

Blink.

“Did I do okay?” Karen squeezed Sam’s hand gently.

Blink.

Karen felt movement in her hand. Sam was moving his fingers. She looked down and watched as his fingers closed over and his thumb stood up. Tears welled up in Karen’s eyes. She returned his thumbs up gesture. “Thanks, partner.”

Chapter Forty-Two

“You were worried about me?”

Mike drew a heavy breath. He held Karen close as if to never let her go. “Damn right, I was worried.”

“I am a police officer.”

“I know.”

“And I work Homicide.”

Mike drew another deep breath. His stomach twisted into a knot. “Karen…”

“Hmmm?” Karen gently caressed his arms while he held her tight against his naked body.

“Karen?” Mike shifted his position. He needed to see Karen’s face when he talked to her.

Karen shifted herself as well and pushed away so that she sat up on the bed. She pulled a sheet up and tucked it under her arms and over her breasts. She looked at Mike expectantly.

Mike saw the growing affection in Karen’s eyes. They’d already moved so far into their relationship. She meant the world to him. And what he went through today made him age ten years.

“Today scared the shit out of me,” Mike said in a soft even tone, although he felt like taking her by the arms and shaking her to her senses. “I wasn’t even there and it scared me.”

“It was dangerous. I won’t argue that. But I followed procedure. I called for back up. I handled it.” Karen looked at him with her head cocked to one side as if she were asking him if he questioned her abilities.

“I know you’re a great detective. You proved that by the way you figured out it was Maggie Morris who was the actual killer. It’s just…” Mike paused. “I don’t know if I can handle going through that every time you’re on a case.” He lowered his head.

“Mike.” Karen touched his shoulder. “Mike, look at me.”

He lifted his head.

Karen smiled at him. “I won’t deny that there are going to be times when my job will put me in dangerous situations. Maybe even life-threatening. But I’m a trained police officer. And thanks to today’s events, I even figured out that working as a team is better than going it alone.” Karen touched his face gently with her hand, caressing his cheek. “You have to have faith and believe I’m going to be all right. And you have to trust me to take care of myself.”

Mike leaned into Karen’s touch. “This is so damn frustrating.” He pulled away and shook his head. “I’m usually so sure of myself and in control. But around you…” Mike lifted Karen’s chin with his thumb and forefinger. “Around you, I melt into Jell-O. What’s the matter with me?”

Karen giggled. She kissed the tip of Mike’s finger and then let his thumb slide past her lips. She sucked it lightly. “Maybe…I don’t know.” She gave him a smile that caused his chest to contract and lose his breath. “Maybe you more than ‘like’ me?”

Mike didn’t laugh. Karen’s tongue swirled around his thumb. It sent hot shivers up and down his body. Did he more that like her? Could that be it? “Karen, all I know is that I’ve tried to figure out what to do both ways. With you and without you. And without you I’m lost. I’m incomplete.” He gave Karen a dejected look. “I can’t imagine myself as a functioning human being. My life becomes meaningless.”

Karen kissed his thumb, held his hand and turned it over so that she could kiss the palm. “And with me?” she whispered.

Mike sucked in a breath. His stomach contracted and he felt a familiar longing that started between his legs and swelled upward. “With you…” He pulled Karen to him. He pushed the sheet aside. “With you…” Touching her soft skin, stroking her exposed breast, watching the nipple contract and harden. Mike tenderly pushed Karen onto her back. He stroked her thigh, lightly running his knuckles up the inside touching her delicate skin. He leaned over her. Pushed a stray strand of hair back behind her ear.

“I meant to get a haircut this week,” Karen apologized while pushing her hair away from her face.

“Shhhh.” Mike touched her full lips. He kissed her once. Then leaned back in for another longer, more thorough kiss. When he lifted his head he said, “With you, the world starts spinning again.” He shifted his legs so that his hardness stroked her thigh. “With you, my heart starts beating again.” Mike kissed her on the tip of her nose. “Yes, Karen. I think I more than like you.”

Mike lowered his body, gently pushed Karen’s thighs apart with his knee, buried his hands in her hair, and kissed her full on the lips. “Let me show you exactly how much I love you.” Then he kissed her again, deeply, with his tongue entwining with hers.

“Mike,” Karen gasped after his kiss. “I love you.”

“Good, I’m glad we have that straightened out. Now,” he nibbled on her lower lip, “it’s time for a little show and tell.”