Page 23 of Condor’s Vow

“You’re not pathetic, Stephanie. You’re grieving a loss so huge that it’s sinking you. Do you have any support? The children’s father? Family?” Clay couldn’t just leave her without trying to help.

“Their father and I split up after. He blamed me and was angry at the world. He wanted revenge and for people to pay, and I just wanted to crawl into a hole.”

“I’m going to get someone to come and talk to you, okay.”

Stephanie just nodded sadly as she looked out of the window, tears running down her face.

He and Cruz exited, and he ran a hand through his hair in frustration. Listening to anyone hurting was hard, but losing a child was a pain he couldn’t fathom and prayed he never would.

“I’ll get Hawk to check her alibi, but my bet is she’s telling the truth.”

Cruz shoved his hand in his pocket as his cell rang and he read a text with a smile before replying, reminding Clay to check and see if Hattie had responded to his suggestion of lunch.

“I agree. Perhaps we need to look into the husband more.”

Clay and Cruz stepped into the elevator and he pressed the ground floor button. “Sandstorm and Hawk interviewed him, and he has an alibi for the night of Serena’s death. He was at work because he had a sick dog that needed monitoring. We saw the surveillance footage, and it places him there when she was killed.”

“What about the others?”

“Same alibi for all of them.”

Cruz frowned and turned to him as they stepped off the lift. “Doesn’t that strike you as strange that he was taking care of sick animals all night, which conveniently gives him an alibi for every murder?”

“Yeah, now that you say it, it does. I’ll have Omega look into it and see what he can find. How is Dax getting on with the investigation into the original accident that ties them?”

Clay had wanted to make sure this was an accident and not someone’s first attempt at a kill. It had seemed to be a straightforward accident, but nothing was ever as simple as it appeared.

“Good. He should have something for you in a few days.”

Clay felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to find Hattie smiling at him. Her smile hit him in the gut like a truck, and he hooked her around the waist and pulled her in for a chaste kiss instead of doing what he wanted to do.

“I saw your text a few minutes ago as I was walking out of the ER.” She glanced at Cruz and gave him a wave. “Hey, Cruz.”

Cruz was grinning as he saw the way Clay held on to her. “Hi, Hattie. How’s your dad doing?”

Hattie rocked her head from side to side. “Not too bad considering, but he has a long way to go before he’s out of the woods. He had a slight wheeze on his chest this morning, so he has to have some tests to see if he has an infection.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

Clay was hearing this for the first time too and didn’t like that she hadn’t told him. He let it go, knowing she’d probably been busy and didn’t want to call just to tell him that. It didn’t matter how many times he told her to call him if she had news or even if she wanted to talk, she was still holding back. He knew some of it was because she was used to doing it all alone, and he needed her to know that she wasn’t alone anymore.

“Me too, gorgeous.”

“I wish I could say it was a surprise, but honestly, if it hadn’t happened, I would’ve been more shocked. It still sucks, but Todd and Kai are here now, and I promised to bring Dad some pictures of Mr. Chester when I come back.”

“Well, on that note, I need to get going. Good to see you, Hattie. Clay, we’ll speak later, I’m sure.”

Clay turned to Hattie as Cruz disappeared and slid his hands around her hips, bringing her close. “You really okay?”

Hattie held on to his forearms as she looked up at him, their height difference allowing him to see all her beautiful face. “I guess it sucks, but I only just found out, so I’m processing right now. It’s why I wanted to see you. Being with you allows me to clear my head and think straight without the responsibility.”

As she snuggled against his chest, Clay let her words flow over him and relaxed. She hadn’t been hiding from him; she just hadn’t had the chance to tell him. His protective instincts where she was concerned were out of control. He wanted to be with her all the time so he could shelter her from every blow that came her way, but he knew he couldn’t and to try was to take away from how amazing she was.

“Want to grab lunch?”

“Yes, but how about I make us something back at my father’s place? I need to let Mr. Chester out, and I want your opinion on something if you have time.”

Clay took her hand in his and led her toward the exit. “Lead the way.”