Page 119 of In Her Eyes

“I guess I did.”

“This might sting a little.” He squirts saline solution on my head.

I wince. It stings a lot.

“God, I need to call Grandma and Lynn’s family to let them know she’s okay.”

Jake rubs my back. “Let the medic do his work. You can make calls on the way to the hospital.”

The medic bandages my head. “This should hold you until we get you to the hospital. Let’s check your side.”

I lift my shirt, and a purple bruise is forming on my side.

“They should take an X-ray and make sure there’re no broken ribs. With some rest and pain meds, you’ll be good as new in a few days.”

He glances at Jake, who’s hovering as close as he can without being in the way. “Does anyone else need help?”

“You need a body bag for that asshole.”

The medic’s brows shoot up. “Give me five, and we’ll take you to the hospital.”

“Miss Ava.” Chief Malone squints at the bandage and shakes his head. “You are a very lucky lady tonight.”

“So I’ve heard.” The pain is making me cranky. “What about Lynn? I want to see her.”

“You will. They’ll take you to the same hospital where she’s being checked out right now. I want to thank you, Miss Ava. We would not have found your friend without your help.” He looks at Jake. “And you for believing in her in the first place.”

Jake nods once. Looks away as if uncomfortable with the praise. “We found Emily, too.”

“What?” The chief takes a step back.

“Can you get a recovery team in the morning? Her remains are in a duffel bag at the bottom of an underground lake in the abandoned mining cave.”

“Jesus. All this time, it was him?” The chief reaches out and squeezes Jake’s shoulder.

I hop down and grimace. That hurt. “I want to go now. Can we go now?”

The medic who treated me appears. “Yes, I’m here. We can go right now. You get back in the bus.” He points at the ambulance behind me.

A woman also wearing a medic uniform approach. She smiles at me. “I’m no vet, but I checked the dog, and I think he’ll make it. Officer Sherman is taking him to the animal hospital right now. He called in for the emergency vet. They know he’s coming.”

Jake gives the cruiser keys to the chief. “Can someone drive it to the hospital? I’ll go with Ava.”

Chief Malone takes the keys. “I’ll send someone.” Then he leans closer to Jake and whispers, “We found three more bodies in that bunker. He had a walk-in freezer. I think one is the girl from the bowling alley.”

Jake’s eyes widen. “Jesus.”

The chief nods. “That’s not all. We found journals and polaroid pictures, too. The bastard liked to keep notes.”

* * *

“Lynn!” I hug myself and walk stiffly to her side. Now that the adrenaline is fading, the pain in my side and head is increasing. She looks so small in the hospital bed with a blanket pulled up to her chin. A red-purple bruise blooms on her cheek, and she has a black eye but no other visible injuries.

Her eyes flutter open, and it takes her a moment to fix her gaze on me. “Ava? You okay? They told me you’re okay. They said you’re the one who found me.”

“I’m good, hurting a little, but okay.”

She looks at the bandage on my head, the blood-stained shirt. “What happened to you?”

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