Page 93 of Last Chance Christmas
“Doctor said I should make a full recovery.” Rainy yawned, then blinked again. “The bullet didn’t hit any arteries in my arm. I’ll need some PT, then I’ll be back to work.” She shifted to sit up higher in the bed and winced.
Kianna rushed over to the woman’s side and untangled the IV cord from the bedsheet. “Can we get you anything?”
“Water would be great.” The woman licked her lips. “Thank you.” Moisture built in her eyes. “For saving my life.”
Cole handed Rainy the Styrofoam cup on the bedside table. “My partner, Titan, did the work of finding you, ma’am. And God helped us save you.” Cole would give credit where it was due. Who knew how God could use this situation to work in her life?
“It was so cold. I figured I would die out there, and no one would find my body until the temperatures thawed.”
“What were you doing out there?” Cole pulled a pad of paper from his shirt pocket.
Kianna took a seat at the table next to the bed.
“It was a foolish move on my part.” Rainy frowned. “I did it to save my own skin. Thought maybe Mackey would really let me go and not kill me.”
“So you were with Mackey?” Cole raised a brow.
“With him, yeah. But not in cahoots with him.”
“Why should we be confident about that answer?” Cole crossed his arms. After the transport truck had crashed, officers had speculated whether Rainy had been in on the escape. “After all, you were the only officer who got away unharmed, while Brighten was left for dead at the scene and died at the hospital. With your disappearance, it sure looks like you were involved.”
Rainy hung her head. A sign of guilt?
Kianna pinched her lips, her brow raised.
If Rainy had been in on the plan, a confession would be good, but it wouldn’t lessen her sentence. Not as an officer who’d sworn to uphold the law.
Rainy lifted her chin and made direct eye contact with him. “The only motive I had was saving my life so I could see my family on Christmas.” She sighed. “That was my last shift before the holiday. Transporting the convicts. And my first holiday ever off the clock. I was planning to go see my family in Montana. My brother’s been deployed, and he’s coming home Christmas Eve. He clued me in on the surprise he has planned for my parents and his wife.”
Cole’s lungs burned as if he’d been running out in the cold for an hour.
He made the mistake of shifting his focus to Kianna, whose eyes welled with tears.
That was not the answer he’d been expecting Rainy to give. His shoulders relaxed now that he knew she hadn’t helped stage an escape for the convicts. Sure, she’d been a patsy. Easily persuaded to do Mackey’s bidding. While he didn’t agree with her actions, he’d argue her case held validity.
This woman was more noble than he. She’d been willing to think about her family. She’d run toward them.
All he had ever shown was cowardice. He’d taken every opportunity to flee and hide from the reminders of his family. The circumstances too difficult to entertain. Who was he to hide when his dad was still living?
Kianna had been right. He still had a chance to show up and make the moments count. Still had a chance at helping his dad. All the years his dad had invested in their family, and Cole had thrown it all away.
“How long were you with Mackey before he left you?” Kianna’s question broke through Cole’s train of thought.
He could worry about how to make amends with his family later. Hopefully in time for Christmas. If they caught Mackey.
“After the truck crashed, Jason attacked Officer Brighten, and there was nothing I could do to help. It was terrible.” She pinched her eyes shut. “I tried to pin Mackey, but he got to my gun, and I knew I was outnumbered.” The beep on the hospital monitor by Rainy’s bedside quickened.
Kianna shifted in her chair to study the numbers. Cole didn’t want to send Rainy into a critical state because of the added stress of remembering the events of the last few days, but he also needed answers.
Rainy took a deep breath, and after a few seconds, Kianna leaned back in her seat.
Rainy opened her eyes and stared at the wall, then continued. “I told Mackey he could turn his life around. That he didn’t have to add another killing to his rap sheet. So he gave me an ultimatum.” The woman rubbed her forehead, then took another sip of water. “It was either die now or help him navigate the woods.”
Cole scribbled the information on his paper. Surely the woman had to know that Mackey was going to dispose of her either way. The convict had made it clear—no one double-crossed him and lived. When Jaxon had tried to go to the police with information, Mackey had gotten to him first. Captured the kid and left him in the woods to die. Did Rainy think she would have been any different?
“I’ve been a hiker for years. I know those woods like the back of my hand and figured I could use that to my advantage. Find help, or lure him to you guys.” She waved her hand in Cole’s direction.
“So what happened?” Cole leaned against the wall.
