Page 56 of Engaging the Deputy

If he died here, she would too.

He heard her calling his name as his vision finally cleared enough to find Cody lying next to him. For a moment, he thought the man had taken his weapon to shoot himself. Then he looked up and saw Livie. She still held Cody’s gun in her hand, resting it on the edge of the hole. She was crying as he crawled forward, stopping short of the edge to take the gun and hold her hand.

“Cody?” she whispered.

He shook his head as a wail of sirens filled the air. “Let’s get you out of there.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

The rest of the night was a blur of sirens and lights. Jaden had managed to get Livie out of the root cellar by using all four of the canvas bags of money. She had climbed out into his arms as more of the unstable earth tumbled down into the hole.

With the arrival of help, EMTs saw to both his and Livie’s injuries. He vaguely remembered them encouraging him to go to the hospital, but he was more worried about Livie and what she’d been through. Nor had he wanted to let her get out of his sight. The whole ordeal had left him afraid that he still might lose her.

There was so much he wanted to say to her. He worried that after everything she’d been through, the last place she’d want to be was in Montana—with him.

A state trooper arrived and took photographs and statements from them. When the coroner showed up to transport Cody’s body to the morgue, he saw Jaden’s injuries bandaged up temporarily by the EMTs and said, “Someone get this man to the hospital right now.”

That was the last he remembered until he woke up in the hospital to find a doctor standing over him. “How are you feeling?”

He hurt all over, but he was alive. “Livie?” The doctor frowned. “Olivia Brooks?”

“Patched up and released.”

“I have to see her,” Jaden said and tried to sit up.

The doctor put a hand to his shoulder. “She’s just fine. You, on the other hand, aren’t going anywhere. You lost a lot of blood. We had to operate on your leg. Those were some nasty wounds. You’re also not going anywhere on that other leg of yours.”

He looked down to see a cast on his ankle. “Broken?”

The doctor shook his head. “Badly sprained. It’s going to take some time for those tendons to heal. So just relax if you want to be able to walk again. You’re going to be here for a while so we can make sure there isn’t any infection.”

He glanced around. No landline. “Can I at least get a phone to make a call?”

There was a twinkle in the doctor’s eye. “To call Livie? Not necessary. She’s right outside and very anxious to see you.”

Jaden let out the breath he’d been holding and relaxed back on the bed.

“I’ll tell her you’re awake after your surgery. Remember what I said about taking it easy, Deputy.” He smiled and left.

A moment later, Livie came in. She moved quickly to his bed and took his free hand. He hadn’t even noticed how hooked up he was to machines. Had he looked, he could have seen his heart rate take off at the sight of her.

“I was so scared when I learned how injured you were.” Tears filled her eyes. “All the time you were busy saving me… You had to be in so much pain.”

He smiled. “I don’t remember. All I could think about was getting to you and making sure you were safe.”

She squeezed his hand. “Thanks to you, I am.”

“Livie.” His voice filled with emotion. “I was so afraid that I’d lost you. I’ve been such a fool—”

She touched her finger to his lips and shook her head. “You were right. I didn’t know what I wanted. For years, I had this plan. Then you came along, and I didn’t see how I could have both. I felt I had to stick to my plan.”

He kissed her finger and took her hand. “I never wanted to keep you from it.”

“I know. I thought a clean break was the best thing so neither of us got derailed on our plans.”

He chuckled at that. “I was already derailed. I realized I didn’t want to continue on to law school. When I got the opportunity to go to the academy, I took it. After we broke up and you left, I was lost without you. But becoming a deputy…” He grinned. “I think I found my calling.”

She laughed. “I’d say so.” She leaned down to give him a kiss.

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