He shifted his feet uneasily. “You were looking kind of…dangerous, or something.” He laughed without a trace of humor. “Like this car crash was personal, or you planned on a vendetta.”
If only he knew how accurate his statement was.
“Personal?” Her laugh matched his. “Colton was hurt.” She looked over her shoulder at Jolene. “I’d really like to go see him and make sure he’s okay.”
Al’s round face cleared. “That’s what you were thinking about. Colton. I guess I was being paranoid.”
She jerked her head in a nod, unable to tell him that actually, he’d been dead-on correct. This entire incident was personal. Leo’s people again.
“We’ll go in a minute, okay?” Jolene chewed her fingernail.
Jewel nodded. She scanned the crowd of gawkers the police were keeping contained behind yellow crime-scene tape. The hired killer could be any of them. She had no way of knowing.
Pushing through her dazed co-workers, she grabbed a uniformed officer’s sleeve. “Excuse me, please. Was the driver of the car—?”
“We’re still looking for him, ma’am.”
“What about under? Have you checked to see if anyone was pinned under the car?”
Compassion darkened his expression as he patted her arm. “We’re checking on that right now, miss. We’ve got people moving as much debris as they can. As long as the structure remains safe, we’ll continue looking.” He hurried away.
When Jewel would have followed him, Jolene grabbed her arm. “Come on, honey. I’ll take you into Athens now to check on your man.”
For a second, the words didn’t register. “My…” Colton. She meant Colton. “I’d like to know about the driver.”
Gently, Jolene steered her away. “That driver is long gone. For somebody to do something like that, he had to be drinking. A guy like that won’t want to be found.”
Because she was right, Jewel let the other waitress lead her away, toward the parking lot.
“How badly was Colton hurt?”
Not wanting to seem ungrateful, Jewel tried to focus on Jolene’s face. “He was unconscious, but they didn’t seem overly concerned.”
“Good.”
The drive to the hospital passed in an early morning blur. With sunrise still hours away, their headlights cut a path through curving road and wilderness. Jolene chattered nonstop with Jewel managing to nod at all the appropriate places.
East Texas Medical Center looked all too familiar. Her wolf recoiled and Jewel shuddered.
Jolene noticed. “Honey, I hope you’re not in shock.”
“I’m not.” As soon as they’d parked under a light post, Jewel climbed out of the car. “Come on.”
“Slow down.” Jolene hurried to catch up. “It’s still dark and no one else is around. We need to stay together.”
“You’re right.” Jewel slowed her pace, so the older woman could keep up. “I’m sorry, I’m so worried about Colton.”
When they entering the brightly lit deserted lobby, the temperature dropped twenty degrees.
“Why are hospitals always so cold?” Jolene complained.
“We’re here to check on Colton Reynolds.”
The woman at the front desk smiled at their inquiry. “Let me see.” She punched his name into her computer. “You ladies are in luck. Looks like they just moved him from intensive care to a room on this floor. His room will be that way.” She gave them directions.
Moving silently down deserted well-lit hallways, they turned corner after corner without encountering a single person.
“I feel like a rat in a maze.” Arms wrapped around herself, Jolene looked uncomfortable. “I’ve never liked hospitals.”
