Page 45 of Ashes and Lilies
“You’re okay,” I told her, and after what felt like ages, she began to hiccup and nodded against my chest, and finally, I was able to pull away. Stands of her long hair fell in messy curls around her face—much different than the thick, neat braid she’d had earlier—and she was staring past me, at some point on the wall. But what made my chest tighten the most was her eyes; normally expressive, the spring green were now glazed with overflowing tears.
“Bianca.” I moved my hands to her shoulders. She was still trembling, and a surge of anger began to swell in my chest at the thought of what might have caused her to act like this. “What happened? Are you hurt?”
Bianca POV
“What happened? Are you hurt?”
I wasn’t sure if it was his words or his tone that reached me, but the soothing way he comforted me caused the furthest edges of my fear to disperse. He’d already saved me at least once, and he was strong. No one could hurt me while I was with him.
My skin flushed as I released his shirt, and yet, a lingering vulnerability still made my breath on edge. As if, at any moment, someone might step out of the shadows and take me away.
I pulled my hands close to my chest and struggled to control my breathing.
“Um…” I looked at my knees, and my teeth rattled as Damen began to run his hands down my arms, checking for injuries. His attention lingered on my knee and the palm of my hand, where I must have scraped them when I fell.
“I—I’m not hurt,” I told him.
I wasn’t hurt, not really. But then, why was I still upset?
He crooked his finger under my chin, urging me to look at his face. “What happened?” he asked again.
“I w-was at the pond and,” I began, and noticed that we had an audience. I looked at the ground. “And t-two men jumped out of the bushes and—” I clenched my fists over my knees, shivering. “—they tried to grab me. I got away, and they chased me. I fell and ran here.”
“What can you tell us about them?” the stranger asked, and I glanced at him.
He had a serious, somber expression and a strong build that reminded me of Dr. Stephens. Since he was sitting behind the large desk and seemed to be in a position of power—if the professionalism behind his gray suit was an indication. I assumed thathe was ‘Detective Joseph Kohler’ as the tag on the surface indicated.
Could he be related to Julian?
“Um…” I touched my fingers together in front of my mouth. I wanted to answer, but the features of my potential abductors were already blurring together in my thoughts. “They were wearing black?” I ventured. “And one had reddish-blond hair, and the other was dark-haired.”
“Anything else?” he asked. “Did they say anything?”
“I—” My thoughts were blank as my focus turned from him toward the plant on his desk. It was a flowering plant and should be in season—at least indoors—but it wasn’t in bloom. “I don’t remember,” I told him. “O-or if they did, I didn’t hear it. I-I’m sorry.”
“You don’t need to apologize,” Damen told me.
“So, they chased you?” Dr. Stephens interjected. “Nothing else?”
My shoulders tensed as I curled my fingers into my skirt. “N-no,” I answered softly. “They just tried to grab me and chased me.”
Someone knocked on the door, and Detective Kohler moved to his feet—proving that he was as tall as I expected—and answered, opening the door only a crack. Damen held my hand as the detective spoke to someone on the other side.
“An unmarked van was seen speeding away a few minutes ago,” he said as he returned, speaking to Damen and Dr. Stephens. “We’re trying to track it down, but no luck yet. They must have left when she got away.”
“It has to be related to Caleb’s murder,” Damen said, squeezing my arms as he looked at the other two. “What are you going to do about it?”
“There’s nothing we can do yet.” The detective shrugged as hereturned to his seat. “Just keep an eye out and continue to monitor things while we investigate. There’s no indication that Michelle Nolan is involved or that anyone in the Cole family has a part to play. We need to handle this carefully. As for now, the area is secure.”
“That’s not good enough!” Damen protested.
“W-why…” I began. Something the detective said had caught my attention, and I waited until he looked at me to continue.
“You said that you need to handle things carefully. Why?” I asked. Besides standard procedure, which I understood—I, too, was a fan of procedural justice—there had been an underlying warning in his tone.
Detective Kohler quickly glanced at the door. I didn’t know him, nor how he worked with Dr. Stephens and Damen, but he had a severe and dependable way about him. “Alexander Cole is the current chief of police—and my direct supervisor,” he told me.
Hence the need for discretion.
