Page 56 of Stand By You
“I understand,” she replied.
“But I’ll call you and we will make plans to go out again on your next night off.”
“I’d like that very much,” she said.
“That is, if Travis will let you out of his sight,” he teased. “He seems to enjoy having his Jilly around.”
She giggled. “I don’t know why he started calling me that again. He hasn’t done that since he was five years old. Jillian was too hard for him to say when he was little and so he called me Jilly. Then he started school, and he made a point of saying my full name because he said he was no longer a baby.”
“I’m sure that was the influence of other little boys in his grade,” Nick said, taking a step back. “Go ahead and unlock your door and let me see you inside for the night.”
“Okay.” She turned and punched in her code, opening the door and stepping across the threshold, then turned back and smiled at him brightly, giving him a two-finger salute. “I’ll be seeing you, Bardou.”
“You too, Grant.”
She sighed, watching him go up the walk until he disappeared into the house and then stepped inside, to close the door and lock it. Exhaustion overtook her and she limped to her bedroom.
She wokethe next morning to her phone ringing. She reached over and saw that it was Nick. “Good morning.
“Good morning. Hope I didn’t wake you, but I just got intel from some of my Navy buddies that a woman washed up on shore near the port. No identification yet. But I couldn’t help overhearing Geneva last night talking to Nathan. She said how she feared her attorney had been killed along with that judge from what her mother said.”
“Yes, she did say that when she saw I wasn’t dead,” Jillian said. “I didn’t realize you wasn’t standing close enough to hear that conversation. That means you don’t know that they were behind my muggings and hit and run.”
“No. I didn’t realize that, why didn’t you say something?” Nick asked.
“I guess it was small potatoes in comparison to us getting Travis back,” she said.
“Jillian, you are just as important to the McGinty family as Travis. This matters,” Nick said.
She frowned noticing he hadn’t said she was important to him. But perhaps that was a declaration for a later time. “I’m the nanny.”
“But you were Nathan’s friend too from what you told me,” Nick pointed out. “I know he would care to know this fact. He said at the hospital that whoever did the hit and run needed to pay.”
“And they will. I’m sure of it,” she said.
“Is Travis coming home from the hospital today?” he asked.
“I hope so, but I haven’t heard yet. I haven’t been up to the main house this morning.”
“Let me know if he does, I want to bring him a present,” Nick said. “And see you again.”
“Are you bringing him a present just to see me?” she asked.
“Maybe,” he said.
Now that made her smile. “I’ll let you know as soon as I find out.”
“Talk to you then,” he said before the line went dead.
She got out of bed, showered, and got dressed before going up to the main house. The kitchen smelled heavenly. Mrs. Hudson had been baking muffins and cookies from the look of the tiered racks on the island.
“Travis will be home soon,” Mrs. Hudson cooed. “They just left to go get him. Sit at the table and I’ll bring you some orange juice and a muffin.”
Jillian nodded and did as she asked. “That’s wonderful.”
Mrs. Hudson sat the glass and plate in front of her. “Detective Simons called and said he’d be by to talk to you again. He’s following up about your hit and run.”
“Okay,” she said and dialed Nick’s number. As soon as he answered she let him know what she found out.
