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“Adrenalin,” he mumbled, more to himself than to her. If she hadn't noticed the cuts on her hand, what other injuries hadn't she noticed? “Where else are you hurt?” he asked briskly. He wanted to draw her into his arms and hold her, but his emotions were bubbling too close to the surface, it was so much easier to fall into doctor mode.
“Umm,” she said slowly, her blue eyes were round, and while clear she was clearly struggling to comprehend what had just happened. At least she was falling apart now and not while she’d still been trapped inside her burning house.
“That’s okay.” He forced his voice to come out calm and not betray the terror over what could have happened that was swirling inside him. “Let me look.” His eyes met hers, seeking her permission and when she nodded, he began to run his hands over her body, searching for injuries.
There were a few cuts on her palms and knees from where she must have scrambled over the broken glass in the window getting out of the house. She seemed to be tender on her hip and shoulder, and one of her ankles was a little swollen, probably from landing awkwardly when she jumped off the garage roof.
All in all, she was extremely lucky.
Again.
His eyes moved to the stump on her right hand where her pinkie finger used to be and then to the lump on the side of her head from earlier today.
Hayley had survived the first five years of her life in a house of horrors, then an abduction as a teenager by a psychopath who had killed half a dozen other people. Would she survive Jay Turner?
Would he?
Brian lifted his gaze to find her watching him with a funny expression on her face. He knew what she was thinking. He knew that she had a crush on him, that she had for years now. Back then she’d just been a kid, he was six years older than her, and it wouldn’t have been appropriate for the two of them to date.
But now …
Now, Hayley wasn't a kid anymore. Now she was a gorgeous, smart, caring, courageous woman.
Why hadn't she ever told him how she felt?
Was she waiting for him to make the first move?
“Hayley,” he started.
“Hayley,” someone else said at the same time, flinging open the car door and dragging Hayley out.
“I’m okay, Mom,” Hayley said, but he heard the wobble in her voice as she was folded up in her mother’s arms.
“Xavier called as soon as he was alerted to a problem at your address,” Paige Hood told her daughter, clutching her tightly. He had known Paige and her husband Elias most of his life. She had dated his Uncle Jack for a little while before marrying her husband and had been his Uncle Ryan’s partner for close to two decades when they were both cops. Now she and Ryan ran a private security firm together. Paige had been injured by a violent stalker and left unable to have children and had adopted Hayley and Arianna when he was eleven. Ever since, Hayley had been a firm fixture in his life.
“You said on the 911 call that it was Jay Turner, are you positive?” Ryan asked, standing behind Paige and Hayley, surveying the still-smoldering house.
“Yes. I saw him, and he talked to me,” Hayley answered. “Now my house and everything in it is gone.”
“No, sweetheart,” Paige told her daughter. “Dad spoke with one of the firefighters, and they said whatever accelerant he used wasn't very strong, the fireballs left some damage to the floors and carpet, and your bed is ruined, but that’s it. Water damage is also minimal. Does she need to go to the hospital?” Paige looked to him.
“No,” Brian replied. “She might need some stitches and a few bandages, but that’s it.”
“Let’s go then. Brady and Sawyer are waiting for us at the office, and I told Adam and Jessica to meet us there if they need to question you,” Paige said, ushering her daughter away from the hubbub and into another car.
Brian followed, he wasn't letting Hayley out of his sight. That man was still out there, still a threat to Hayley, and he didn't see him backing off until he got what he wanted.
Hayley dead.
The ride to the offices was quiet. Ryan drove, Paige held her daughter like she never wanted to let her go, and he sat and stared at Hayley like if he didn't watch her she might disappear.
“I’ll grab the first aid kit,” he announced as they joined the third partner in the security firm, Brady Crowley, and another bodyguard Sawyer Watson, who were waiting for them in the conference room. He had a feeling he knew where this little meeting was heading, and he knew how he wanted things to turn out.
“We weren't able to find Jay Turner,” Ryan was saying when Brian returned to the conference room. “He must have run when he heard the sirens, but he didn't go back home.”
“So, he could come after me again,” Hayley said.
“No.” Paige shook her head emphatically.
