[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
is help people heal. I can do that in other ways. She works with a doctor
in Shackleton and has suggested that I speak with Doctor Wallace here
in town to see what he d think about me working with him on a volunteer
basis. I d need training obviously. But it solves some problems for me
and gives me a way to help people.
Oh my, Cassie, that s a wonderful idea. You d be so good at it.
Thanks. Okay, let me talk to Shane tonight and see what he thinks.
I don t need his permission or anything but I want to run it by him. Brian
is the person who deals with my trust and he ll need to handle payment.
I suppose we ll have to get the store appraised too.
I ll get on that today and talk to Edward as well.
Cassie left the shop with a bounce in her step, things were going well.
The more she thought about victim s advocacy and counseling, the more
she liked the idea. She could use the bad stuff she d survived to help
other people. And she loved the bookstore, it would be hers, something to
hold her to town in another way.
At home, Shane was delighted with all her good news. They cooked
dinner, Polly was giving her cooking lessons and she d achieved at least a
basic level of competency.
Of course, as it happened from time to time, Shane got a call after
nine and had to run out. With a sigh, she accepted his kiss and went
into her workroom to finish up some jewelry. As the holidays fast
approached, she wanted to build up her inventory.
She d lost track of time when she heard Shane come in. I m in the
back here, honey. I ll be out in a sec.
Putting away her equipment, she turned to leave the room and saw
not Shane standing in the doorway, but Terry.
www.samhainpublishing.com
Taking Chase 219
Sick dread hit her, replaced by fear and then by fury. What the hell
are you doing here? Backing up a bit, she reached behind her and hit
the 911 button on the phone.
Oh Carly, or should I say Cassie, why ask questions you know the
answer to?
How did you find me?
He laughed and it crawled over her skin like an insect. The second
time I called I heard someone say Chase. And the last time I heard
someone yell out Polly and then Shane. What do you know? When I did a
search for Polly Chase I saw a newspaper clipping and a picture of an
event in small town Petal, Georgia. A drive for the local food bank and
what did I see in the background but my faithless wife. Only her name
was not Carly Sunderland anymore, it was Cassie Gambol. So
unimaginative. He waved around. I take it this is where you and Shane
live? Nice. Not as nice as our house in the hills but for a small town
backwater like this one, I expected shacks and hound dogs on the
porch.
Go away, Terry. I don t want you anymore! In her pocket, she
realized she d dropped a pair of needle nosed pliers she used to tie off
findings on a necklace she d been working on. She slipped her hand
inside and held on.
It s not what you want, bitch! You fucked my life up. I gave you
everything and you threw it back at me. You took my reputation and
dragged it through the mud. I can t practice medicine anymore and it s
all your fault. He came toward her and she stabbed at him with the
pliers, felt them dig into the flesh just below his shoulder.
He bellowed in pain and rage and she ran past him, hoping the call
had gone through, hoping the security guard would drive past and see
something amiss, hoping Shane would come home. For that moment
though, she was on her own and she needed to get to the table next to
the couch to get her gun.
www.samhainpublishing.com
220 Lauren Dane
A hand, slick with blood but with a sure grip, closed around her
upper arm and the weight of him rode her body to the ground. She tasted
blood as her lip split open when he punched her in the face.
You bitch! You won t make it this time. I ll make sure you re not
breathing when I walk away. His fingers moved her to her throat and
began to squeeze.
The world began to narrow as she lost oxygen. Desperately, she
reached with both hands, trying to find something, anything to hit him
with. Shane s coffee mug! Grabbing it with the tip of her fingers she put
all her remaining strength into it and hit Terry up side the head as hard
as she could.
Air rushed into her lungs as she coughed when he fell to the side,
losing his grip on her.
She began to scream over and over as she scrambled around the
coffee table and got to the drawer where her gun was. Fumbling, she
heard him right behind her as her fingers touched the cool metal and
pulled it toward her.
Her head yanked back as she continued to scream. She couldn t get
to the safety to turn it off! Pain seared her as he bent one arm back so
hard she felt the shoulder dislocate which probably numbed her enough
not to feel the full impact when he broke her wrist. All she could think
was thank goodness she knew enough to learn to shoot with her left
hand. He hadn t seen the gun she d been holding in it just yet.
You can t have my life you bastard. You got enough from me! she
screamed.
I m going to fuck you one last time, you whore, and then I m going to
kill you. Leave you for your loverboy to find. His voice was in her ear,
right behind her and she pulled her head forward and threw it back as
hard as she could, hearing the crunch of his nose.
His pain-filled scream gurgled as she realized she d broken his nose.
Time slowed as she rolled, flicking off the safety and pointing the gun,
steadying herself as best she could one handed.
www.samhainpublishing.com
Taking Chase 221
She came to peace with the fact that she was ready to take his life,
breathing out as her finger squeezed. Just before her arm took the brunt
of the shot, a red bloom covered his chest.
Confused, she watched as he hit the floor, her ears ringing as the
shot deafened her. Blinking back the sweat, she saw Shane running
toward her and one of his officers going to Terry s slumped over body,
checking for a pulse.
Honey? Oh God, are you all right? Cassie watched his lips more
than heard him ask. Her hearing was still gone as Shane gently took the
gun from her hand, wincing as he saw her other arm hanging at an odd
angle.
He s dead?
He can t hurt you ever again, Cassie. He s dead, the other officer
told her as he stood up.
Good. God damn it, good. My arm hurts now, Shane, I need to go to
the hospital.
Cassie related it in a matter-of-fact voice right before she passed out
in his arms.
Hours later, at the hospital, he paced back and forth through the
waiting room. Another officer came in and took over the investigation.
Obviously Shane did not have the ability to judge the situation without
bias. Looking at her history and Terry s past and that they d come in as
he was attacking Cassie, Shane was sure his shooting would be justified.
Still, he was placed on administrative leave while the shooting was
investigated and that was all right with him.
Cassie s weapon was discharged but had missed. They found the
bullet in the wall behind where Terry had been standing. She would have
hit him in the chest if he hadn t begun to fall after Shane shot him. There
wasn t any reason to do anything but see her as a victim in the situation.
www.samhainpublishing.com
222 Lauren Dane [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl freetocraft.keep.pl
is help people heal. I can do that in other ways. She works with a doctor
in Shackleton and has suggested that I speak with Doctor Wallace here
in town to see what he d think about me working with him on a volunteer
basis. I d need training obviously. But it solves some problems for me
and gives me a way to help people.
Oh my, Cassie, that s a wonderful idea. You d be so good at it.
Thanks. Okay, let me talk to Shane tonight and see what he thinks.
I don t need his permission or anything but I want to run it by him. Brian
is the person who deals with my trust and he ll need to handle payment.
I suppose we ll have to get the store appraised too.
I ll get on that today and talk to Edward as well.
Cassie left the shop with a bounce in her step, things were going well.
The more she thought about victim s advocacy and counseling, the more
she liked the idea. She could use the bad stuff she d survived to help
other people. And she loved the bookstore, it would be hers, something to
hold her to town in another way.
At home, Shane was delighted with all her good news. They cooked
dinner, Polly was giving her cooking lessons and she d achieved at least a
basic level of competency.
Of course, as it happened from time to time, Shane got a call after
nine and had to run out. With a sigh, she accepted his kiss and went
into her workroom to finish up some jewelry. As the holidays fast
approached, she wanted to build up her inventory.
She d lost track of time when she heard Shane come in. I m in the
back here, honey. I ll be out in a sec.
Putting away her equipment, she turned to leave the room and saw
not Shane standing in the doorway, but Terry.
www.samhainpublishing.com
Taking Chase 219
Sick dread hit her, replaced by fear and then by fury. What the hell
are you doing here? Backing up a bit, she reached behind her and hit
the 911 button on the phone.
Oh Carly, or should I say Cassie, why ask questions you know the
answer to?
How did you find me?
He laughed and it crawled over her skin like an insect. The second
time I called I heard someone say Chase. And the last time I heard
someone yell out Polly and then Shane. What do you know? When I did a
search for Polly Chase I saw a newspaper clipping and a picture of an
event in small town Petal, Georgia. A drive for the local food bank and
what did I see in the background but my faithless wife. Only her name
was not Carly Sunderland anymore, it was Cassie Gambol. So
unimaginative. He waved around. I take it this is where you and Shane
live? Nice. Not as nice as our house in the hills but for a small town
backwater like this one, I expected shacks and hound dogs on the
porch.
Go away, Terry. I don t want you anymore! In her pocket, she
realized she d dropped a pair of needle nosed pliers she used to tie off
findings on a necklace she d been working on. She slipped her hand
inside and held on.
It s not what you want, bitch! You fucked my life up. I gave you
everything and you threw it back at me. You took my reputation and
dragged it through the mud. I can t practice medicine anymore and it s
all your fault. He came toward her and she stabbed at him with the
pliers, felt them dig into the flesh just below his shoulder.
He bellowed in pain and rage and she ran past him, hoping the call
had gone through, hoping the security guard would drive past and see
something amiss, hoping Shane would come home. For that moment
though, she was on her own and she needed to get to the table next to
the couch to get her gun.
www.samhainpublishing.com
220 Lauren Dane
A hand, slick with blood but with a sure grip, closed around her
upper arm and the weight of him rode her body to the ground. She tasted
blood as her lip split open when he punched her in the face.
You bitch! You won t make it this time. I ll make sure you re not
breathing when I walk away. His fingers moved her to her throat and
began to squeeze.
The world began to narrow as she lost oxygen. Desperately, she
reached with both hands, trying to find something, anything to hit him
with. Shane s coffee mug! Grabbing it with the tip of her fingers she put
all her remaining strength into it and hit Terry up side the head as hard
as she could.
Air rushed into her lungs as she coughed when he fell to the side,
losing his grip on her.
She began to scream over and over as she scrambled around the
coffee table and got to the drawer where her gun was. Fumbling, she
heard him right behind her as her fingers touched the cool metal and
pulled it toward her.
Her head yanked back as she continued to scream. She couldn t get
to the safety to turn it off! Pain seared her as he bent one arm back so
hard she felt the shoulder dislocate which probably numbed her enough
not to feel the full impact when he broke her wrist. All she could think
was thank goodness she knew enough to learn to shoot with her left
hand. He hadn t seen the gun she d been holding in it just yet.
You can t have my life you bastard. You got enough from me! she
screamed.
I m going to fuck you one last time, you whore, and then I m going to
kill you. Leave you for your loverboy to find. His voice was in her ear,
right behind her and she pulled her head forward and threw it back as
hard as she could, hearing the crunch of his nose.
His pain-filled scream gurgled as she realized she d broken his nose.
Time slowed as she rolled, flicking off the safety and pointing the gun,
steadying herself as best she could one handed.
www.samhainpublishing.com
Taking Chase 221
She came to peace with the fact that she was ready to take his life,
breathing out as her finger squeezed. Just before her arm took the brunt
of the shot, a red bloom covered his chest.
Confused, she watched as he hit the floor, her ears ringing as the
shot deafened her. Blinking back the sweat, she saw Shane running
toward her and one of his officers going to Terry s slumped over body,
checking for a pulse.
Honey? Oh God, are you all right? Cassie watched his lips more
than heard him ask. Her hearing was still gone as Shane gently took the
gun from her hand, wincing as he saw her other arm hanging at an odd
angle.
He s dead?
He can t hurt you ever again, Cassie. He s dead, the other officer
told her as he stood up.
Good. God damn it, good. My arm hurts now, Shane, I need to go to
the hospital.
Cassie related it in a matter-of-fact voice right before she passed out
in his arms.
Hours later, at the hospital, he paced back and forth through the
waiting room. Another officer came in and took over the investigation.
Obviously Shane did not have the ability to judge the situation without
bias. Looking at her history and Terry s past and that they d come in as
he was attacking Cassie, Shane was sure his shooting would be justified.
Still, he was placed on administrative leave while the shooting was
investigated and that was all right with him.
Cassie s weapon was discharged but had missed. They found the
bullet in the wall behind where Terry had been standing. She would have
hit him in the chest if he hadn t begun to fall after Shane shot him. There
wasn t any reason to do anything but see her as a victim in the situation.
www.samhainpublishing.com
222 Lauren Dane [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]