Poison Flowers (21 page)

Marya decided to go home and deal with Dorry as best she could or with her aching ribs, whichever came first. She was opening the door to the Trooper and bracing herself for the increasingly painful climb into it, when she heard a faint cry. She strained her ears and heard it again, or thought she did, even over the sound of the ocean surf. It seemed to be coming from behind the house.

Gritting her teeth, Marya made her way over the uneven path that led back there. Sudden fear invaded her heart. What if someone had hurt Dorry…like Denton had been hurt. She slammed her terrified eyes shut, afraid what she might see in the adjoining woods.

The sound came again, from below her. She whirled toward the ocean. There! Beneath the back deck, in the enclosed swimming pool, was that movement that she was seeing? She drew closer, squinted her eyes to see. It was Dorry! And she was in trouble.

Moving as fast as her injured body allowed, Marya sped to the pool, shedding her wallet, phone and shoes as she went. She waded into the water, which deepened as she walked toward Dorry and was soon over her head. Treading water was agony. As quickly as she could, she dog-paddled to the ocean side of the pool and clung to its edge. Dorry was barely visible. Only the top of her silvered hair showed above the water…until the waves retreated back to the sea and the water receded a bit. Her face appeared then, just long enough for her to suck in a breath or two before the waves covered her again. Her eyes were frantic. Clearly, she’d become trapped somehow and couldn’t free herself.

“Dorry? Dorry, what’s holding you down?” Marya called when Dorry’s face appeared the next time.

Dorry’s lips were blue, evident even in the dimness beneath the deck, and her teeth chattered as she gasped out one word. “Rock.”

Taking a deep breath, ignoring the pain that coursed through her torso, Marya dove below the surface. The salty seawater was murky and stung her eyes, but the crimson of Dorry’s swimsuit served as a beacon that guided her downward. She saw with dismay that one of the huge boulders that defined the swimming area had rolled down on Dorry’s leg, pinning her to the bottom of the rock wall.

Marya resurfaced and pulled close to Dorry. She waited for the waves to recede, then spoke loudly and clearly. “Help me roll the rock off. Now!”

She took another deep breath and dove down, pulling on Dorry’s hands to help her go under. Their eyes met underwater for a brief moment, then together they struggled to shift the heavy boulder. Dorry was the first to let go, needing air. Marya surfaced alongside her.

“We’ll get it, Dorry,” she gasped, her hands cradling Dorry’s wet, drawn face. “One more time, love, we can do this,” she said, breaking off as a wave slapped at them. When it receded, Dorry nodded grimly and took a deep breath.

Marya dove down again, pulling Dorry with her. Again they struggled and this time, in a cloud of debris, the boulder rolled away, almost falling onto Marya’s feet. She moved aside just in time. Alarmingly, the shift also released a frightening torrent of blood from Dorry’s leg. Surfacing, Marya grabbed her and pulled her over to the shallows. Shit! Not only was her leg broken, bone was protruding from the skin. She pressed Dorry’s hands to the wound, applying pressure to slow the bleeding.

“Christ! Hold on,” she said. “I’ll be right back.”

Wearily, painfully, Marya pulled herself out of the pool and crawled along the grassy dunes behind the pool until her hands grasped her cell phone. She pressed the emergency button and told the dispatcher to send an ambulance right away, that Dorry was wounded and bleeding. Assured that help was coming, she hung up and slowly stood, bracing herself for the trip back to Dorry, who was intently watching, waiting to hear help was on the way. She waved and tried to smile. A sudden, tickling cough shook her and a gush of fluid spewed from her mouth and ran down her chin. She lifted her hands to catch it. They came back filled with bright red blood.

“What?” she gasped. She heard a strange crackling gurgle, then realized that she couldn’t take in any air at all. Her eyes flew back to Dorry. She mouthed the words “I love you,” hoping Dorry would see and understand. She took a step toward her, then another. And then her world went dark.

The sounds penetrated first.
Marya
heard
muffled conversation, odd beeping noises and what sounded like air hissing. She wanted very badly to speak, but her tongue was thick, like it was stuck to the roof of her mouth. She cracked her eyes open and saw pale daylight and a white ceiling.

“She’s awake. Oh, thank goodness. Marya? Honey?”

Her mother’s face materialized above her and then wobbled out of focus. She blinked her eyes and her mother’s face stabilized.

“Richard? Is she okay?” Her mother watched her with concern.

“I’m sure she is, honey. These doctors know what they’re doing.”

Marya’s father’s face floated into her range of vision, and she blinked again, stabilizing him as well.

“Don’t trouble yourself, pumpkin,” her father said in a low, calm voice. “You’re going to be fine. You had broken ribs that punctured and collapsed your lung.” He brushed her hair back from her forehead.

“The EMT drew off air, though, and your lung re-inflated so you could breathe. The doctors did some tests after you got here and they say you’re going to be fine,” her mother added.

Marya had to smile. Her parents were actually sort of cute.

“Aww, she’s smiling, Richard. That must mean she’s feeling better.” Her mother gazed at her lovingly, unshed tears brightening her eyes. Marya reached up a hand and clasped her mother’s hand.

The next time Marya awakened she heard faint singing…a nursery rhyme in a voice she didn’t recognize.

An unfamiliar male voice spoke. “I think she’s awake, honey. Her eyes opened.”

Marya turned her head haltingly toward the singing and found Carol sitting in the chair next to her bed. “Hey, girl,” Carol said. “How are you feeling?”

Marya reached up and pulled the oxygen mask from her mouth. She cleared her throat, but even so, her voice was raspy and weak. “Good, good. What’s that you have there?”

Carol smiled from ear to ear. She rose and brought her pink-blanketed bundle close to the bed. “I’d like you to meet Miss Alicia Blue Say. Alicia, Marya, Marya, Alicia.”

Marya watched the rosy-skinned newborn squirm right out of her knitted cap and smiled, tears welling in her eyes. She reached and touched one of the tiny fingers and it wrapped around her finger with unexpected intensity. “Cute
and
strong,” she whispered.

“We’re just glad she’s finally here,” Buddy said, moving to stand behind his family. “And healthy.”

“We’re getting ready to head home, but we wanted to make sure you’re okay. I expect a full report as soon as you recover, missy. I leave you guys alone for a few days and you go out and get all busted up. You know that’s just
wrong
,” she said.

They chatted a few more minutes, and then they left Marya alone. She replaced her oxygen mask, her thoughts flying to Dorry. Nobody had mentioned her. Fear swelled her heart. Had she lost her?

She shifted in her bed, making sure not to dislodge any of the various leads, and pulled herself into a sitting position. The room she was in was pleasant with a bay window that looked out beyond the highway and over the city of Schuyler Point. A silent television flickered on a nearby wall.

“Well, look at you,” said a nurse as she strode into the room and studied Marya, arms akimbo. “I can see we’re feeling better.”

Marya smiled and pulled the mask loose again so she could talk.

“Much better but, boy, am I sore, all over,” she whispered.

“Here, let me help you with that,” the nurse said as she approached the bed and pulled the mask over Marya’s head. She dismantled it, rolling up the tubing and tossing the mask in the waste bin. “You can talk normally now, hon. I know it’s a little sore in there, but you don’t need to be afraid of hurting anything. You’re all patched up. We’re basically just keeping an eye on you for now.”

Marya started to pull out the tubing below her nose but the nurse stayed her hand. “Let’s keep that nasal cannula in for just a little longer. A little bit of extra oxygen right now won’t hurt a thing.”

She poured water into a cup, added a bent straw and offered it to Marya. Marya dutifully took several sips. “Thank you.”

The nurse took her pulse, listened to her chest sounds and her heartbeat and entered the information on her chart. “Let’s get you up and to the facilities,” she said, holding out a bent arm for support. Marya took it, pulled her legs around and placed her feet on the floor. The nurse unwrapped the plastic tubing on her oxygen supply to give her some slack and led her to the bathroom. She emerged, her bladder relieved and ready at last to relieve her mind. She steeled herself for the possibility of bad news.

“The woman who came in with me…do you know anything about her?” Marya asked as the nurse helped her back into bed. “Her name is Dorcas Wood.”

The nurse laughed. “Oh, yes, we all know about Dorry. She’s been driving us crazy, the doctors too, making sure you had the best of everything. She keeps going around telling everyone on the ortho floor what a hero you are and how you saved her life. She’s been up here every day in her wheelchair, checking on you.”

The nurse grinned at Marya. “And I bet there’s not one single patient on this cardio floor who doesn’t know what a hero you are too.”

Marya smiled, relief and love filling her completely. Dorry was okay. That’s all she needed to know.

Marya walked over and hunkered down behind a thick stand of pine. Inspector March was already there. The cell he planned to use to call the backup cars was clasped in his hand.

“So, how much longer?” he asked, his voice tight with anxiety.

She glanced at her watch, holding it up to improve visibility in the gathering dusk. “Another fifteen minutes. Dorry set the meeting for nine.”

“He knows she’s alone?”

“Yep, she asked him if he would mind moving a few boxes for her because no one else was available.”

“Ahh,” March said. “Smart move.”

“Yeah, I thought so,” she answered. It had taken two weeks to convince the sheriff, first, that he should consider Barnes a prime suspect in Denton’s death and, second, that Dorry, even in a full leg cast and wheelchair, was more than capable of handling anything untoward that might crop up. They’d imagined every contingency, developing not only a Plan B, but a Plan C and a Plan D as well. They’d set the best trap for him that they could. They just had to wait now for him to walk into it.

She started in alarm as a uniformed figure approached the house from the access road where a parked cruiser was barely visible.

“What the…! Hey, March, there’s a…” she began just as his cell vibrated.

“Yeah,” March answered it. “Okay, got it.”

He turned toward her. “It’s just Thomas. He’s going down below, where he can be available for immediate support.”

“He won’t push it, will he?” she asked. That’s all they needed, some hotheaded deputy going off half-cocked and tipping the guy off. Especially since Barnes
was
his taekwondo master.

“I don’t think so. Gennis says he gave him strict orders. He’s just going to wait there until they signal the officers to enter.”

Marya relaxed, but only slightly, and nodded to show she understood. They waited.

***

Inside the house, Dorry waited as well. She was trying hard to even out her breathing and slow the beat of her anxious heart. As a taekwondo master, she should have been able to do so easily, but she wasn’t feeling very masterly at the moment. She sighed and squirmed in the wheelchair. To top everything off, her broken leg was itching inside the cast. She tapped the outside of it absently with one fingertip as she peered out the side window.

Could Barnes have killed Denny? It was hard for her to fathom. Sure, he had some kind of weird obsession for her, but killing Denny would only alienate her. Surely he had to realize that.

“Stop tapping, Dorry,” Marya said in her ear. “It’s making us crazy over here.”

Dorry let out a short bark of laughter but stopped her mindless drumming. It wasn’t helping the itch anyway. She glanced at the wall clock. It was time.

Automobile lights appeared at the top of Dorry’s drive.

“Here we go,” she whispered.

“We see it,” Marya replied. “Hang tough. We’ve got your back and Thomas is downstairs. You okay?”

“I’m okay,” Dorry said softly, her heart thrilling at the caring concern in Marya’s voice.

Dorry rolled herself to the rear of the room, so her back would be to the wall. She folded her hands together and willed herself into calmness.
What will be will be
, she thought repeatedly.
What will be will be
.

When Barnes knocked and entered, Dorry was surprised to see flowers in his hands, beautiful crimson roses bound with a wide, deep blue ribbon. He smiled at her and closed the door.

“Hello, Dorry,” he said. “How are you doing?”

“I’m okay,” she responded. “What’s this then?” She indicated the flowers.

“They’re for you.” He placed them in her lap, then stepped back and lowered his head. “It means a lot to me that you asked me over. I…I’ve been hoping you would.”

Dorry grunted, the smell of roses filling her head. “You have, huh?”

“Yes.” He paused as if mulling over what to say. “I know the restraining order says I shouldn’t be here without your permission. So it meant a lot to me that you asked me over to help you out.” He paused as if uncertain what to say next. “And I’m so sorry you got hurt.”

“Thank you, Freddy. I’m not sure what happened, but we were friends once.” Dorry’s voice was calm, belying the feelings roiling inside her.

A silence fell between them. After a few moments, Barnes spoke. “You know…as a team we could be very powerful.”

Dorry indicated the sofa. “Sit and tell me what you mean.”

Barnes perched on the edge of the sofa, and Dorry breathed a small sigh of relief. She knew she had the skills necessary to protect herself, but having him standing over her had been intimidating.