AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Lainie?”
“Uh, yes.” She let out a shuddering sigh. “Sorry. Yes.”
“Really?”
“Really.” She slid the bag off her shoulder and rummaged in the side pocket, then pulled out a pair of tweezers that he took from her. He snagged the receipt, his wound protesting the movement, and he made sure to straighten a lot slower than he normally would. “What about tissues? I need two. I’ll slide the receipt in between them until I can get to an evidence bag. I want the lab to run this for prints.”
“Right. Prints.” She pulled two tissues from a small packet and returned the rest to her purse. Then she held the tissues while he arranged the receipt between them.
He tucked all of it into the front pocket of his shirt, then raised a brow at her. “We’ve covered the fact that I probably shouldn’t drive yet. But Cole can. We’ll follow you home. Just to be on the safe side.”
She ran a shaky hand over her hair, then pressed a forefinger and thumb to her eyelids. In that pose, she nodded. He took her hand in a light grasp and lowered it. She opened her eyes and met his gaze. “I’m sorry. I should have stopped when you were calling my name.”
“Why didn’t you?”
She bit her lip and looked away. “I just ... needed some space.”
“You had a panic attack, didn’t you?”
Her eyes locked back on his. Her cheeks darkened to a deep red, but she nodded once again. “I did.”
“And you were embarrassed for me to see it? Even after my episode in the hospital?”
“Yep. Pretty much.”
“Aw, Lainie. You need a break.”
“No, I need to figure out who this guy is and what he wants, but honestly, I just want to go crawl in a hole and hide.”
But she wouldn’t. “Let’s get you home, okay?”
She sighed. “Fine. Thank you.”
“Come on, Cole’s probably worn a hole in the tile.”
Her gaze swerved to the direction the car had disappeared. “Wonder if the driver will show up on any of the cameras.”
“Might get the full plate number. We can check.ThenCole and I will follow you home.”
Ten minutes later, with a BOLO put out on the plate and make and model of the vehicle, he, Cole, and Lainie headed back to the parking garage, where he climbed into Lainie’s car to ride with her.
“Let’s stop at the dry-cleaning place,” she said.
“I already have that on my list to take care of.”
“I’m sure you do, but I want to see for myself what Sophie, the woman who works there most days, has to say. She knew Adam. She and I only talked a few times, but I think she’ll remember me.”
“All right.” He texted Cole and got a thumbs-up emoji in response. The three made their way to the dry cleaners about a mile from the hospital, where James followed her inside, his back molars clamped against the pain.
Cole joined them.
When the little bell above the door announced their arrival, a young woman came from the back. Her eyes widened. “Lainie Jackson? I haven’t seen you in forever. Not since...” She frowned, her gaze soft with compassion. “Well, since Adam died. I saw what happened on the news and was shocked. I’m so sorry.”
“Thank you, it’s good to see you again.” Lainie cleared her throat. “I found a receipt from here and wanted to see if you could tell me who picked up the clothes.”
“What’s the date on it?” Sophie’s curious gaze flipped back and forth between James and Cole, but James didn’t bother to say anything since Lainie was doing a fine job in getting what they came for.
“Yesterday,” Lainie said.
