Van, Becca - Her Shadow Men [Slick Rock 5] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (9 page)

* * * *

Britt woke from a dead sleep, uneasy and alert. The first thing he noticed was a hint of smoke in the air. Something was wrong. Sleep forgotten, he got up.

He stepped out onto the veranda. The scent of smoke was stronger out here. Britt paced to the other end of the veranda and looked out. Beyond the trees, in the direction of town, the sky was a hazy orange.

The fire was too far away to make out the flames, but the column of smoke reflected its light. And the direction was clear. His thoughts went to Debbie and her shop. The break-in. Glen Parker.

“Shit. Daniel,” Britt roared as he ran back into the house. He dialed Debbie’s home phone, but the call wouldn’t go through. Britt trusted his instincts. He had been trained to do so. Everything in his body told him to go to Debbie.

His brother met him at the back door, fully dressed. “There’s a fire in town. I have a feeling—”

Daniel finished the thought. “Debbie’s shop and apartment.”

Britt had the truck moving before Daniel had closed the passenger door. Britt had the truck moving before Daniel had closed the passenger door. The tires squealed as he planted his foot on the accelerator and the back end fishtailed as he pushed the truck to the limit.

He pulled the truck to a screeching halt four minutes later. He jumped out of the truck, his knees nearly buckling beneath him when he saw Debbie’s shop and her apartment above engulfed in flames. There was no way she could have survived the smoke and flames.

Daniel was already on his phone as he leapt from the passenger’s side. “I need paramedics here,” he yelled as he ran.

Trying to calm his frantic thoughts, Britt scanned the chaotic scene for some sign of Debbie. Darting dangerously close to the flames, he raced around the side of the building.

At that moment, a loud explosion ripped through the air. Fragments of burning wood and glass arced from the building. Britt squinted against the inferno, watching the debris fall. A piece of wood and plaster fell end over end toward the alley that ran along the back of the building. Britt saw the figure slumped against the wall a moment before the debris struck it. The figure collapsed.

Britt took off at a run and was beside Debbie moments later, his brother at his heels.

She looked so small and fragile lying on the cold, hard concrete. Her face was covered with soot, and she had a cut on the side of her head, which was bleeding profusely, but he could see her breathing.

He heard her moan, and then she began to cough. They were deep, racking coughs as her lungs tried to clear out the smoke, but it was the sweetest sound he’d ever heard. She was still alive. Paramedics were at her side a moment later, and one of the men placed an oxygen mask over her face. He slipped a backboard beneath her, and then he and his partner lifted her onto the portable stretcher.

“Where are you taking her?” Britt asked.

“To the clinic down the street. Since the new owners have taken over, they’ve expanded the clinic and have a mini hospital on site.”

“Okay, I’m coming with you.”

“Sir, are you a family member?” the paramedic asked.

“Yes, she’s my fiancée and I’m also a deputy marshal,” Britt replied as he followed. He didn’t give the man a chance to refuse him. He just got into the back of the ambulance after they had Debbie in, and he closed the door. They were at the clinic seconds later.

Britt was thankful the new doctor was already there waiting for them and assumed one of the paramedics had called ahead. He helped get Debbie out of the ambulance and followed her into the office.

The new doctor, Simon Drover, took just enough time to introduce himself, then ignored everyone else as he got to work.

Britt watched as he soaked up the blood from the wound on the side of her head and then took a pair of scissors and clipped the hair away from her scalp. The doctor cleaned the wound with alcohol disinfectant and then began to stitch her skin closed. By the time he had finished Britt counted six sutures and was beside himself with anguish at what Debbie had been through.

He was becoming concerned that she had remained unconscious through her coughing. He was about to question the doctor when he looked down and saw her eyes were finally open. The doctor noticed as well.

“Hi there, Ms. Newsome. I’m Dr. Simon Drover. How are you feeling?”

Debbie began to speak but had to cough instead. Once she had finished her bout, she nodded her head, and Britt cringed when he saw her wince in pain and close her eyes.

“I’m going to keep you in the clinic for the rest of the night and most of tomorrow. You received a head wound which required stitches and your lungs are still affected from smoke inhalation. Is there anyone I can call and inform for you?”

Britt saw Debbie shake her head, and then she closed her eyes. When the doctor moved away to get a bowl of soapy water and a washcloth, he took the opportunity to step up to her bedside.

“Hey, baby, are you okay?” he asked, taking her hand in his. She opened her eyes again, and though they filled with tears, she still gave him a wobbly smile and a nod. She gripped his hand tightly and moved her legs. She winced and cried out with pain, which made more tears spill and leave clean tracks on her soot-covered face. “You’re still in pain, aren’t you, baby? Is it your head?”

Debbie shook her head slightly and pointed down her leg just as the doctor came back. He must have heard him, because the doctor began to ask her questions.

“Is it your knee? No. Your shin? Okay. Is your ankle or foot hurting?” The doctor picked up Debbie’s right foot gently at her nod and examined her foot and ankle. She flinched when he touched her ankle, and Britt had to hold himself back from hitting the man for hurting his woman. He knew he was being irrational since the man was only trying to do his job.

“You have a badly sprained ankle. Let me get an ice pack and then I’ll get you cleaned up. How’s the head? Any headache or nausea?” Debbie shook her head, and the doctor patted her on the leg. “Good. I’ll be right back.”

Britt ran his thumb over her hand as he held it. He wanted to pick her up and cradle her in his arms. To be able to hold her would help him settle now that she was okay, but he knew he would cause her pain, so he just continued to hold her hand. She had her eyes closed again. She was only coughing sporadically now, and he knew her lungs were going to be fine.

The doctor was back five minutes later and wrapped Debbie’s ankle in an ice pack. He then set about washing the soot from her face. When he finished, Britt knew by her deep, steady breathing that she was asleep.

“Is she going to be all right, Doc?”

“Yes. She’ll be fine. She will probably be able to go home first thing in the morning since there seem to be no lasting effects from the head wound. She’ll be on crutches for a few days and will feel a bit tired, but she’s young, strong, and healthy. One of the paramedics told me you’re her fiancé. Will she be going home with you?”

“Yeah, she will.”

“Good. She’s going to need to have someone with her for the next couple of days. You can come back for her around ten in the morning. Oh, and bring her some clean clothes. I’m sure she’ll want to shower and get out of the smoke stench that’s currently covering her.”

“Thanks, Doc. I appreciate your help,” Britt said and offered his hand. He left his woman in the doctor’s capable hands and drove back to Debbie’s store to find Daniel.

Chapter Ten

Britt got out of his truck and found Daniel talking with Luke Sun-Walker and Damon Osborne as they watched the firefighters battle the fire. He stopped beside them and waited patiently for a lull in conversation.

“How’s our girl?” Daniel asked.

“She’s going to be fine. The new doctor put six stitches in her head and she has a bad sprain, but she’s doing okay.”

“Thank God. The fire inspector thinks the flame was started deliberately with accelerants. Whoever the motherfucker was, they started the fire on the stairs to Debbie’s apartment. It spread rapidly from there, but he won’t know for sure until the fire’s out and he starts to investigate,” Daniel explained.

“Jesus Christ. How the hell did she get out of there?”

“It looks like she broke her bedroom window and jumped,” Sheriff Damon Osborne stated.

“Fuck. She could have broken her neck. How the hell high is that window from the ground?” Britt asked, afraid of the answer.

“About ten feet,” Sheriff Luke Sun-Walker answered.

“Holy shit. I’ll bet that’s how she sprained her ankle. She’s lucky she didn’t break it,” Britt exclaimed.

“When are we taking her home with us?” Daniel asked.

“The new Doc says we can pick her up around ten. I’ll call Leah at seven and see if she can pick up some new clothes for Deb. Hopefully she can drop them off at the clinic for her.”

“Do you think this has anything to do with that bastard who escaped from prison?” Damon asked.

“Shit. I’m not sure. This doesn’t follow his MO. He’s never set a fire before. He usually only works with explosives.”

“He could have changed it to throw you off,” Luke suggested.

“Hm. I just don’t know. Maybe once the fire inspector has finished investigating, I’ll be able to answer that question. Make sure he gets a copy of Glen Parker’s prints,” Britt said.

“Will do. Thank God the firefighters were able to contain the blaze and stop it from spreading to the building next door. This whole block could have gone up in smoke. Do you know who called it in?” Britt asked.

“No. Don’t you worry, I’ll be checking into that, too,” Damon stated.

“Why don’t you two go home and get some rest? From what I hear your woman’s pretty feisty. You’re going to need some sleep to be able to deal with her when you get her home,” Luke said with a grin.

“Who the hell have you been talking to?” Britt asked.

“Giles was at your woman’s place putting in a security system she didn’t order. Seems like she was a bit peeved about that. Giles heard her bitching to Leah,” Luke stated.

Britt didn’t answer. He turned away and headed to the truck. Daniel was following him, and the sound of Luke’s laughter carried into the night over the sound of spraying hoses and a diminishing fire.

* * * *

Debbie was sitting up on the bed in a cotton hospital gown when Leah walked into the room. She was glad she had been able to shower and wash away the grime from her body. She hadn’t been able to wash her hair due to the sutures and could still smell the lingering scent of smoke. She’d had a bit of trouble since she could only stand on one leg, but in the end she had accomplished what she needed to.

“Debbie. Oh my God. Are you okay? Britt called me this morning and asked me to get you some clothes. He told me what happened. Are you hurt?”

“I’m fine,” Debbie replied and winced at the sound of her raspy voice as she hugged Leah.

“You don’t sound fine. Your men are going to be here soon. Why don’t I help you get dressed? Shit, look at those stitches. Does your head hurt? I hear you sprained your ankle when you jumped out your bedroom window. Why didn’t you call for help?” Leah babbled.

“Breathe, Leah. I’m okay, really,” Debbie replied as she clung to her friend. Tears spilled over her cheeks, and she sniffed. She didn’t want to start crying now, because she was scared if she did, she wouldn’t be able to stop.

“You could have died,” Leah said, and Debbie heard her voice tremble with emotion.

“Stop it. You’re going to make me cry. And who said they are my men?”

Leah pulled away from Debbie and stood with her hands on her hips, glaring down at her. “You can lie to yourself all you want, but we both know they are your men. Now then, let me help you get dressed. I’ve had to bring you some of my lingerie which I haven’t worn yet, and even though I know it will be too big for you at least you know it’s good quality.”