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nice as the smile that working in it put on Laney s face.
* * * *
Something woke Laney out of a sound slumber. It took her a minute to realize why the
bed didn t feel right. She was at Zach s, and he was beside her in the bed. That explained why
she was so warm, but not why he was sitting up.
 Another nightmare? she murmured, reaching out a hand.
Zach shook his head sharply and held up a hand. Now that her eyes adjusted to the
darkness, she could see that he was on the phone.
 I ll be right there, he said.  You want me to pick up Xan?
There was a short pause.
 Got it. Tell Mother to hang in there.
He shut off his phone and turned to Laney.  I ve got to go.
 What s wrong, Zach?
 It s my dad&  He swallowed, but Laney couldn t miss the thickness in his voice.  He s
had a heart attack. He s hanging in there, but nobody knows anything more yet. He kissed her
hard and scrambled out of bed.  I have to go.
Chapter Nine
Ohmigod! Laney s eyes filled up with tears as she remembered all too well how she d felt
when her mother got sick.  I ll go with you, if you want, she offered.  I should probably drive.
You re a little shaky.
 No, he said as he pulled on a pair of jeans. His fingers struggled with the zipper.  Oh,
hell, you re right. Besides, if I left, you d be trapped here. At least, this way, you can use my car
to get home. You can drive a stick, can t you?
Laney nodded. It wasn t much of a stretch. She d driven her mom s old manual station
wagon, way back when. It had just been a few years. She was too busy throwing on clothes to
worry much about it. Five minutes later, she was running out the door, right behind Zach.
 The shaking s stopped. I ll drive, since I can run with my flasher on. He didn t even
hold the passenger door for her as usual, just popped the magnetic bubble light on top of the car
while she climbed in. A moment later, they were flying down the road.
Maguire County didn t boast much of a hospital, but the small facility was well
equipped Laney remembered that much from her mother s illness. While there was no
cardiologist in town, she had no doubt that one was in the air via helicopter already or that plans
were being made to move the sheriff that same way to a bigger city.
She didn t say a word when Zach squealed the tires pulling into an illegal parking space
in front of the emergency entrance nobody was going to give him a ticket, after all. Everyone
in town already knew that car. He held tight to her hand, pulling her with him as he ran inside. A
clerk directed them to a private waiting room, and Zach towed her in behind him, both of them
sweaty and out of breath.
Mrs. Shannon and Quinn were in the room. Quinn let go of his mother s hand long
enough to stand and clap his brother on the back.  Xan went to see if she can find out anything.
She wasn t on duty tonight, thank goodness.
 No word since you called? Zach asked.
Quinn shook his head, even as he smiled sadly at Laney and gave her a quick hug.
Zach scowled at his brother but didn t argue about the hug. He dropped Laney s hand to
sit beside his mother and take hers.  You okay, Mom?
 Of course, I m not okay. Zachariah, this is a family waiting room. I d appreciate it if
you d ask your friend to leave. Ysabel s face was devoid of makeup, and for the first time,
Laney saw the other woman s true age. Tears streaked her face, and despite her cold words,
Laney couldn t dredge up anything but sympathy.
 I m going, she said softly.  I just wanted to stop in and say that if there s anything I can
do, ma am, all you need to do is let me know. Anything at all.
 I think you ve already done enough. The words were bitter. So much for making
progress. Though the words stung, Laney tried to keep things in perspective. Ysabel had an
excuse to be a little, well, bitchy right now.
Laney just smiled then kissed Zach s cheek and turned to walk away.  I ll have Andrea
come get me, Zach. That way you ll have your car here if you need it.
 Laney thanks. For everything.
 No need. You just call me, okay? Keep in touch. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]