Page 76 of Nora
Lucian nodded to the edge of the cave opening and Craig took a step closer, putting him and Miles right at the edge. Taking a chance, Lucian darted across the entrance, then pressed his back against the rock on the other side.
Both he and Craig craned their heads to see inside. He knew Craig wouldn’t see anything other than darkness and shadows. But from where Lucian now stood, he caught a glimpse of Angelo’s foot sliding along the cave floor. As if he’d been kneeling and was now crawling? Lucian couldn’t imagine why the man would be on his knees, but that’s how it appeared. Then again, he thought with a smile, it was so like Nora to bring a man—even a murderer—to his knees.
“I’m so sorry for everything you suffered, Angelo,” she said.
Lucian heard what he thought was a muffled sob. Was it possible Nora truly had talked the man down? If anyone could do it, she could. But did he trust that? Did he have a choice other than to trust it?
He decided he didn’t. Based on what he’d heard, Nora knew they were out there and that she could call for help at any time. She hadn’t done that, though. She wanted to do this her way, and he didn’t have the right to second-guess her. The best he could do was stand at the ready and wait for her direction.
Craig was watching him, waiting for an order. Lucian raised a hand and started to give a “stand down” gesture when Angelo spoke again. Only this time, his words hit Lucian like a knife to the gut.
“I’m sorry, too, Nora.”
Without hesitation, Lucian shifted gears. Before the order was out of his mouth, Craig was following it. “Miles, attack,” he barked.
The shepherd shot off into the cave, Lucian and Craig following. Angelo screamed and Nora gasped, but the shadows made it hard to see anything other than their forms against a far wall. Only Angelo wasn’t beside Nora anymore, because Miles had him by the shoulder. His jaws were locked on the joint, and the man was being dragged back and away from the wall.
“Nora!” Lucian called.
“I’m here,” she replied. Pulling a penlight from his pocket, he flicked it on. Turning it in the direction of her voice, he saw her sitting against the wall, untying a leash knotted around her ankles.
“Craig?” he called as he moved toward Nora.
“I got this. Miles, guard!” The dog emitted a low growl and backed a foot away from where Angelo now lay on the ground clutching his shoulder.
“There’s a knife,” Nora said as Lucian reached her. He shoved her hands aside and started working on the knots.
“I see it,” Craig answered. “It’s far enough away he won’t get to it. I’m going to leave it until the police arrive.”
Lucian was aware of the conversation, but his entire focus was on Nora. Finally, the last of the knots slid free. He wrapped his hands around her ankles and started massaging them.
“Are you all right?” he asked. She was awake and breathing and looking at him with her big green eyes, but he wasn’t going to take anything for granted.
She nodded. “A little bit of a headache. My face got scratched somewhere, maybe the fence he would have dragged me under. And my shoulders and legs are a little sore. But otherwise, I’m okay.”
He turned her face to get a better look at the scratch. “The knife?” He was almost afraid to ask.
She brought her hands up and cupped his cheeks, forcing him to look at her. “I’m okay, please remember that. But yes, he was going to use it. When Miles came in, he had it against my throat.” He swallowed and willed his body to stop shaking. “I had it under control, but still, I’m grateful for Miles’s intervention, and we should all call him the hero of the day.”
The dog hadn’t taken his attention off Angelo, but his tail thumped once. It did not surprise Lucian in the least that he was so attuned to Nora. From day one, those two shared a unique bond.
He raised a hand and gently drew his fingers down her cheek, her skin impossibly soft and familiar. He’d almost been too late. He’d almost lost her. Yes, she could have managed on her own. But the point was, she didn’t need to.
His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he reached for it. A message from Ben flashed on the screen, asking where they were, specifically.
“It’s Detective Miller,” he said to Nora, before calling out “In here!” Then, taking her hands in his, he rose, pulling her up with him.
“Are we clear?” Ben called from the entrance of the cave, his gun at the ready.
“We’re clear,” Lucian said, then he turned to Nora to fill the man in. She shifted to speak to the detective as he approached, and it was then he noticed the blood.
Before he could stop himself, he was tearing at her scarf and calling for a paramedic. Miller rushed to join him as he directed his deputies to deal with the man on the ground.
“What is it? The paramedics will be at the parking lot in ten minutes,” Ben said.
“I don’t need the paramedics,” Nora said, the gentle tone of her voice irritating Lucian in a way it never had before.
“He cut you, Nora!” he all but barked. Nora drew back but didn’t otherwise react. Slowly, she lifted her hand, then touched her neck. When she pulled her fingers back, they stared at the blood coating them.
