Page 133 of Fragile Sanctuary

Be there in five.

A little of the tension in my chest eased. If anyone could distract me from this nightmare, it was Fallon. I jogged up the back porch steps, locking the door behind me. I gave Biscuit some scratches and a bone to chew on, then grabbed my bag and headed for the front door. Stepping outside, I locked the door and headed toward the squad car standing sentry.

As I got closer, light and shadow played over the open window.My steps faltered as my brain tried to compute the sight in front of me. A body was slumped against the wheel. And there was blood. So much blood. I turned to run, but it was too late.

“Hello, Rho.”

The voice was familiar but deeper somehow, darker.

I turned to find the source of the tenor, to fight, but I didn’t get a glimpse of more than a corner of a T-shirt before pain bloomed in my temple, bright and sharp. The world tunneled as I fell, but I could only think of one thing.

Anson.

44

ANSON

I cursedas my hammer missed the nail, narrowly avoiding my thumb.

Shep straightened from his spot on the opposite side of the new deck we were putting in. “I’d tell you that you should be using the nail gun, but if you were, you probably would’ve put a nail through your hand by now.”

I scowled at him as I stood, tossing my hammer onto the deck and cracking my neck. I’d been a mess all morning. And Shep was right, it was a miracle I hadn’t seriously injured myself.

“What’s going on?” he asked, moving in my direction. “Was there a new update on The Hangman?”

I shook my head. All was quiet on that front. But quiet made me twitchy. Like I was waiting for the other shoe to drop. “No. They’re still working the last crime scene and canvassing the area.”

Shep studied me for a long moment. “Still worried about Rho.”

It wasn’t a question, but I answered him anyway. “It’s hard for me to turn it off.”

Just because they had the person who’d been harassing Rho in lockup didn’t mean I could erase the protective urge. Too much had happened to both Rhoandin my past. It was the sort of thing I worried she wouldn’t be able to handle in the long run. So, I’d shoved it all down and gone to work today, even though it was the last thing I wanted to do.

Shep clapped me on the shoulder. “Come on.” He started toward his truck, expecting me to follow.

“Where?”

“Fallon is picking Rho up for lunch. We’ll crash their day date.”

I frowned at him. “We’re already behind with not having access to the Victorian. I thought you said we needed to get this deck done today.”

Shep beeped the locks on his truck. “The rest of the team is working double-time on the Evans’ project. That’ll help us make up some time. And you and I can knock this one out this afternoon.”

I opened the passenger door and climbed inside. “Thanks.” Taking the time now meant us working faster this afternoon and maybe even staying late. But Shep knew I needed to lay eyes on Rho. Needed to touch her and assure myself she was okay.

He pressed the button to start the ignition. “You’ve been through one of the worst things imaginable. It’s understandable that you might need a little extra reassurance when it comes to the safety of the people you care about.”

I stared out the window as Shep navigated the gravel road that led back to Rho’s. I wasn’t good at the feelings stuff. As much as I’d studied emotion and psychological makeup, expressing it when it came to me wasn’t easy.

“Makes me feel weak,” I admitted.

Shep’s gaze flicked to me. “Because you care?”

“Because I can’t stop obsessing. Thinking about the million things that could go wrong.”

He adjusted his hold on the steering wheel as he made a left turn onto the two-lane highway. “I’d say that’s normal. You’ve beenthrough trauma twice over. Give your mind and body time to recover. And the last thing Rho will think is that you’re weak.”

I knew he was right. Rho would talk me through it and see the silver lining in it, the strength. “I’m an idiot.”

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