Her Mistletoe Protector(32)

"I'm sorry, but apparently they went home," she said, her tone full of sympathy.

Home? How? As far as he knew Rachel didn't have any money or a vehicle. Had she hitched a ride with someone? Borrowed money? What?

He stared at the four walls surrounding him, feeling totally helpless. He was in no condition to follow Rachel, to make sure she and Joey were still safe. Had the police arrested Errol? He certainly hoped so. No doubt they'd be here soon to get his statement about the events that had transpired outside of Uncle Wally's cabin.                       
       
           



       

Still, he couldn't believe Rachel and Joey had left without saying goodbye.

* * *

Exhaustion weighed heavily on Rachel's shoulders as she and her son made their way back down to the hospital waiting room. She needed to figure out a way to get home, no easy feat since Chicago was about three hours from Madison. A taxi was probably out of the question, which left a bus or a train.

When she asked the woman at the front desk about a train, she shook her head. "Sorry, there's bus service to Chicago, but no train."

Of course there wasn't a train. Why would anything be easy? She was about to ask about borrowing a phone, when the police officer who'd brought her and Joey to the hospital arrived. "Ms. Simon? Could we talk for a few minutes?"

Did she really have a choice? She forced a smile, knowing that her bad mood wasn't Officer McCarthy's fault. "Sure."

"Let's talk in the chapel across the hall," the policeman suggested. "There's more privacy."

She nodded and drew Joey along with her as they crossed over to the chapel. She sank into a wooden pew and gazed at the simple yet beautifully crafted stained glass cross over the mantel. She imagined this room was used by many family members praying for their loved ones to get better.

Unfortunately, Nick didn't want her anywhere near him while he was recovering. He'd rather face his unknown future on his own.

She forced herself to push away her painful thoughts. "What can I do for you?"

"I just want to go through the events one more time," Officer McCarthy explained. "We found the dead body of Gerald Ashton, as you mentioned before. But we still haven't found the man you referred to as Dr. Karl Errol. And I have to tell you, the vehicle that was parked there is gone, too."

She shivered, hoping Karl had taken the car to parts unknown. Although certainly they could trace the car's license plates? Officer McCarthy assured her they were looking for the vehicle. So she took a deep breath and began describing the events of the night before. Midway through, Sean McCarthy interrupted, asking her to start at the beginning.

With a sigh, she went back to the night Joey was kidnapped, explaining what they'd done. The officer's expression was grim by the time she finished. "I'm not sure if that cop of yours deserves a medal or a demotion," he said. "You're lucky things didn't turn out worse."

She thought Nick definitely deserved a medal, but she didn't say anything. "Look, Officer McCarthy, Joey and I need to figure out a way to get back to Chicago."

"I can give you a ride to the bus station, if that helps," he offered.

She smiled wanly and nodded. As much as it went against the grain to ask for handouts, they'd need money for bus tickets. "Would you loan me the money for tickets? I promise I'll pay you back."

There was the slightest hesitation before he nodded. "Sure, no problem."

Relief at having one problem solved was overwhelming. "Thank you so much," she whispered.

Officer McCarthy looked uncomfortable but gave a brief nod. "Okay, let's go then. I'll come back later to get Butler's statement. He's not going anywhere soon, and I'll probably get a more coherent story once he's feeling a little better."

Thinking of Nick made her sad all over again, but she tried to hide her feelings from Joey. They followed Officer McCarthy to where he'd left his car, parked right in front of the hospital in a clear no-parking zone. The traffic around Madison was crazy busy and the ride to the bus station seemed interminable. Staring out the window to calm her frayed nerves, the Christmas decorations reminded her that the holiday was only two days away.

Inside the bus station, Officer McCarthy used his credit card to pay for their tickets, and then he handed them some cash. "Get something for you and the boy to eat," he said roughly. "And I hope you have a merry Christmas."

Tears pricked her eyes at his kindness and she'd already made a note of how much money she owed him. "Thanks again, for everything," she said softly. "And I hope you have a merry Christmas with your family, as well."                       
       
           



       

He gave both of them a nod before making his way back outside. She sank into one of the hard plastic chairs inside the bus station since the next bus didn't leave until twelve-thirty in the afternoon. Thankfully, just a few hours more and they'd be on their way home.

Waiting was the worst, but finally they boarded the bus and settled into their seats. The bus was busy with what looked like college kids heading home to their families. The ride to Chicago took much longer than she'd anticipated, partially because of the frequent stops and then because of the heavy traffic the closer they came to the city.

While they were stuck in a snarling traffic jam, Rachel realized that she didn't have her house keys. She hadn't been home since the night of Joey's kidnapping. She'd left her mangled car with the keys in it at the scene of the crash as every ounce of energy had been focused on finding her son.

With a groan, she rested her forehead on the cold glass window and realized she'd have to take a taxi to her office to pick up her spare set of keys. Yet another delay before she and Joey would finally get home.

She could hardly wait.

* * *

Nick stared at Officer McCarthy in horror. "What do you mean you didn't find Errol? And now my car is missing? Are you telling me he's still out there on the loose?" The monitor above his head sounded an alarm and he took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart.

"Yes. That's exactly what I'm telling you. The only body we found was Gerald Ashton's. He died of a gunshot wound to his chest."

Nick momentarily closed his eyes, feeling bad that he'd taken a life. He'd been protecting Rachel and Joey after being wounded himself. But that didn't really make him feel better.

"Where's Rachel? And Joey? We need to keep them safe in case Errol decides to come after them."

"I took them to the bus station, bought them tickets to get home and gave them a little extra cash so they could get something to eat."

"You what?" Nick shouted, and this time, he didn't care about the beeping alarms. He tried to throw off the covers and make his way to the side of the bed, but it wasn't easy when his left arm was wrapped up tighter than a mummy. The doctors had explained the numbness was due to some sort of pain block they'd put in, which made him feel even more like an idiot for the way he'd acted toward Rachel.

But nothing was going to stop him from doing the right thing-now.

"Mr. Butler!" his nurse cried as she came running into the room. "What are you doing?"

"It's Detective Butler," he ground out between clenched teeth, trying to ignore the sweat that beaded on his brow. "And I'm getting out of here."

"You can't leave!" The nurse looked appalled and she crossed the room to push him back into bed even as she called out for help.

Frustrated to discover he didn't have the strength of a gnat, he threw a desperate glance at McCarthy. "Help me out, here. Don't you understand? Rachel and Joey are in danger as long as Karl Errol is still on the loose! The guy is working for Global Pharmaceuticals."

"I'm calling your doctor," the nurse threatened, acting as if she hadn't heard a word he said. Or maybe she just didn't care.

"Yeah, you do that," Nick said with a disgusted sigh. "Because I'm pretty sure I have the right to leave against medical advice."

"Only if you can make it out of here without passing out cold," the nurse said tersely, holding his gaze with bold determination.

"Now, just hold on a minute," McCarthy said, holding up his hand and trying to wedge himself between Nick and the nurse. "If you really think Ms. Simon and her son are in danger, I'll help you. No need to act like a lunatic."

Nick couldn't help feeling like a lunatic. He couldn't explain the bad feeling he had about the way Rachel and Joey had left him. Without saying goodbye. Without having Karl Errol in custody. That creep actually had his car!

"Fine," he bit out, knowing that he didn't have the strength to stay seated on the side of his bed for much longer. "What's the plan?"                       
       
           



       

"How about if I send some backup out to meet Ms. Simon and her son at the Chicago bus depot," McCarthy offered. "They can drive her home, stick around a bit to make sure everything's all right."