Page 57 of Natalie's Nighthawk

But the worst image he recalled was seeing her cringe in fear. Of him. That was the image that was now burned into his brain. He couldn’t unsee the fear in her eyes.

He scowled at the water, resenting the fact he was stuck here when he should be camped out in front of Natalie’s place, begging her forgiveness. And yet, with the cruel words and actions he’d used last night, he knew he didn’t deserve her forgiveness.

He steered the RIB with the latest group of evacuees and their assorted pets and belongings aboard around the debris floating in the floodwater. He should have had David and the others handle this one instead of freezing his butt off in the frigid water and heavy rain as he carried people from their flooded-out homes in southwest Wisconsin. But he was still firmly rooted by his damn superhero complex.

He needed to be home. Needed to figure out what to do about Natalie. All the years he’d been doing search and rescue, he’d never felt pulled to be somewhere else.

Distracted by his thoughts, he nearly missed the turn that would lead to the closest Red Cross station.Get your head back in the game! If he was going to keep doing this job that he loved, he was going to have to find a way to do it without missing Natalie so much. He was going to have to find a way to have a relationship and continue to be effective at the job. But most importantly, he needed to find a way to deal with the losses.

Counseling immediately came to mind and as the thought took root, he knew it was time. Getting help for his issues could be the jump-start the entire team needed to heal their own hurts. And maybe then he could be the man Natalie deserved.

It never occurred to him that these longer missions would be so difficult. It’d been a little over twenty-four hours, but he ached to see her again. He’d tried calling her repeatedly. She still didn’t answer.

Steering the RIB as close to the edge of the flooded road as he could, he waited for this latest group to disembark. He pulled out his cell … again. Nothing from Natalie. He made a quick call that still went unanswered. Then he sent off another text hoping—praying—he’d get through to her. He debated contacting Maddie to check on her. His brow furrowed as he tried to figure out what move would be acceptable. He knew Maddie would do it for him, but would that piss Natalie off more?

David shot him a concerned glance as he handed Graham a bottle of water. “Still nothing?”

“Nope,” he replied, his worry and frustration evident. He uncapped the bottle and nearly chugged the whole thing, the plastic crackling in his hand.

“Want me to ask Maddie to look in on her?”

“I was just debating that. She probably just needs time. I don’t want to intrude too much.” He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “Shit! I don’t know. I know how royally I fucked up and she’s probably still mad, but I need to know she’s safe.” He ran a hand through his damp hair. He’d never felt so uneasy before. “Maybe I’m overthinking everything. But with that note she found last week …”

“I’m calling Maddie,” David said, pulling out his own cell. “If nothing else, it will ease your mind so you can concentrate on the job.”

“Yeah, okay,” he agreed.

“Maddie, yeah, it’s David,” he said into the phone. “Listen, Graham can’t reach Natalie. Can you check on her? Yeah, I’ll wait.” He put the phone on speaker.

“That’s weird,” he could hear Maddie say through the phone. “David? There’s a note on the table here. She says she’s decided to head to the cabin anyway. She wanted to do some skiing.”

Graham breathed a sigh of relief. It was a little strange of her, but if she needed to get away, he was glad she didn’t allow her anger at him keep her from enjoying his cabin. He’d told Natalie where they kept the spare key if she ever wanted to use the place. And he certainly knew how spotty reception was up there. That’s why they kept a sat phone there for when they needed it.

“Okay, thanks, Maddie,” David was saying.

“I’m surprised she didn’t tell me in person. That’s so unlike her.”

“I wouldn’t worry about it too much. Maybe she was just in a hurry,” David reasoned.

“Yeah, maybe,” replied Maddie not sounding entirely convinced. “Any idea when you’ll be back?”

David looked at Graham for confirmation. “Monday, maybe.” He nodded, then shrugged his shoulders. Jobs like this could be unpredictable. It could last another day or another week. They were never sure.

“Okay. Stay safe,” she told them.

“Will do,” David responded before hanging up the phone. “There, does that make you feel any better?”

Graham shrugged. “I guess.” Although, Maddie was right. It did seem kind of odd for Natalie to take off like that. Maybe she was so upset and hurt, she hadn’t wanted to face anyone. But even that seemed out of character.

Graham finished off his water and pitched it into the nearby recycling bin. He needed to get his mind off his worries and back to the job at hand. “Ready to go back out?” he asked David. They both climbed back into the RIB and took off, passing another boat carrying Finch and Logan and their load of evacuees.

Natalie came to, slowly. Painfully. Everything hurt. She opened her eyes or at least she thought she did. She couldn’t see anything. Darkness pervaded. Where was she? She turned her head, pain radiating. Gingerly she touched the place where the pain thumped steadily on the back of her head, her fingers coming away sticky. She groaned and attempted to open her eyes again. There was some light. Faint and far away above her. Was that the sky? She tried to focus through the pain radiating through her body.

Then she remembered. Lauren! The well! Was she in the well? She put her hand down in an effort to push herself up and screamed, her wrist erupting with pain. Broken? She could hardly think through the agony. She tried breathing through the worst of it, keeping her wrist cradled in front of her. If she didn’t move it, it didn’t hurt so badly.

When the worst of the pain subsided to a throbbing ache, Natalie looked up again. Spots of sunlight peeked through … yes! The plywood. Lauren must have covered the well again with the plywood. But parts of the wood had rotted with age, allowing at least some light to reach her. Despite that, it was still intensely dark. Uncomfortably dark. She never thought she'd ever be afraid of the dark, until now.

Natalie got slowly, unsteadily, to her feet. The pulsating ache in her head making itself known. Had she hit it as she fell? Wait, no. She remembered. Lauren had hit her. Hard. Probably with the gun.

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