Alex Kava Bundle - Alex Kava [143]
He waited patiently while the unit secretary recited ingredients of a recipe into the phone. Her eyes told him she’d only be a moment, but there was no urgency in her voice.
“Hi, Nick.” Sandy Kennedy came up behind him, scooted back behind the secretary and grabbed a clipboard.
“Sandy, you finally made it to the day shift.” He smiled at the shapely brunette, while thinking what a stupid thing to say. Why not “How are you” or “It’s been a long time”? Then he wondered if there was anyplace in this city he could go without running into a former lover or one-night stand.
“Sounds like Christine is doing better,” she said, ignoring his stupid comment.
He tried to remember why he had never pursued a relationship with Sandy. Just seeing her reminded him how bright and beautiful she was. But then, so were all the women he chose. However, not one of them could live up to Maggie O’Dell.
“Nick, are you okay? Can we do something for you?”
Both Sandy and the secretary stared at him.
“Can you tell me Agent O’Dell’s room number?”
“It’s 372,” the secretary said without looking it up. “At the end of the hall and to the right. Although she may be gone.”
“Gone? What do mean gone?”
“She checked out earlier and was just waiting for some clothes. Hers were pretty trashed when she came in last night,” she explained, but Nick already was halfway down the hall.
He burst through the door without knocking, startling Maggie, who turned quickly from the window, then positioned her back—and the open hospital gown—to the wall.
“Jesus, Morrelli, don’t you knock?”
“Sorry.” His heart settled down, almost to its regular rhythm. She looked wonderful. The short, dark hair was smooth and shiny again. Her creamy skin had some color. And her eyes—those luscious brown eyes—actually sparkled. “They said you might be gone.”
“I’m waiting for some clothes. One of the hospital volunteers offered to go shopping for me.” She paced, carefully using the wall to shield her back. “That was about two hours ago. I just hope she doesn’t come back with something pink.”
“The doctor said it’s okay for you to check out?” He tried to make it a simple question. Was there too much concern in his voice?
“He’s leaving it to my discretion.”
She caught him staring at her, and when their eyes met, he held her gaze. He didn’t care if she saw the concern. In fact, he wanted her to see it.
“How’s Christine?” she asked, breaking the trance.
“Surgery went well.”
“What about her leg?”
“The doctor seems certain there won’t be any permanent damage. I just took Timmy in to see her.”
For a minute she stopped pacing. Her eyes softened, though there was a faraway look in them.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d almost believe in happy endings,” she said.
Her eyes met his again, this time accompanied by a faint smile, a slight tug at the corners of her lips. Jesus, she was beautiful when she smiled. He wanted to tell her that. Opened his mouth, in fact, to do just that, then thought better of it. Did she have any idea how scared he was when he thought she’d left without so much as a goodbye? Could she even tell what effect she had on him? The hell with her husband, her marriage. He needed to take the risk, let the chips fall where they may. He needed to tell her he loved her.
Instead, he said, “We arrested Eddie Gillick this morning.”
She sat on the edge of the bed and waited for more.
“We brought in Ray Howard again for questioning. This time he admitted that sometimes he loaned the old blue pickup to Eddie.”
“The day Danny disappeared?”
“Howard conveniently couldn’t remember. But there’s more—lots more. Eddie came to work for the sheriff’s department the summer before the first killings. The Omaha Police Department had given him a letter of recommendation, but there were three separate reprimands in his file, all for unnecessary force while making arrests. Two of the cases were juveniles. He even broke one kid’s arm.”
“What about the last