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“You’re pale and shaking. I think you’re in shock.”
Gray snarled at him. “I said I was fine.”
The man wrapped a blanket around him anyway and turned his attention back to Jenna. She was fading as pain meds and exhaustion hit her, but she still clasped Gray’s hand tightly.
Was he in shock? No, the world looked a bit fuzzy, and he couldn’t keep his hands from shaking—the one Jenna wasn’t clasping at least—but he was holding it together. He just needed to get through the debrief and get home. He brushed the hair off Jenna’s face, and she gave him a goofy smile. She was safe for now, but what would happen to her? He would have to make sure she was well taken care of.
For the first time since Gray had stepped into Whittaker’s bedroom, he became aware of the world around him: the buzz of people talking, news vans, reporters with cameras, onlookers crowding the barricades surrounding the house.
Had Jack and Mason seen the news? Did they know he was okay? Hopefully, they knew only Whittaker had been killed.
Gray scanned the crowd. To his right, Thornton was talking to two of the members of the SWAT team. When he saw Gray watching him, Thornton broke away and headed toward him. “You up to giving me a play-by-play?”
Jenna’s grip had slackened in his hand as the pain meds put her to sleep. “She didn’t want me to leave her.”
“We need to take her to the hospital,” one of the paramedics said.
Gray frowned. “She’ll panic when she wakes up alone.”
“I’ve got an idea,” Thornton said. “Let’s call Andy. Maybe he can be there for her and explain that you sent him.”
Andy ran the youth shelter where Jack volunteered. He’d know how to talk to Jenna, and maybe she could get a spot at the shelter once she was discharged.
“Why didn’t I think of that?”
“Because you’ve been through hell.”
“Not compared to…” He gestured toward Jenna.
“Gray, you were held at gunpoint by a psycho and”—he gestured toward Gray’s clothing—“you’ve got Jenna’s blood all over you. Even the most stoic of us wouldn’t weather that easily.”
Gray considered his words. “I am a bit shaken up.”
Thornton rolled his eyes. “You’re white as a ghost.”
“Here.” One of the paramedics handed Gray a bottle of water and a chocolate bar. “At least rehydrate and get some sugar in you.”
“Okay.” No reason to fight that suggestion. He drained half the water and took a bite of chocolate as he listened to Thornton talk to Andy.
“I appreciate it, and so does Gray… I know… Yes… That would be fantastic.”
Thornton hung up. “Andy’s going to head to Durham Regional in the next half hour. If Jenna’s awake, he’ll talk to her. He’ll also connect with her assigned social worker and get the paperwork started to get her a spot at Bull City Youth Center.”
Relief rushed over Gray. Andy was one of the kindest, hardest-working people he knew. When Jack had been struggling to recover emotionally from being shot, Andy had done wonders for him by assigning him to be Henry’s mentor.
“You ready to talk now?” Thornton asked.
Gray nodded. But when he let go of Jenna’s hand and stood, the world wavered.
Thornton took his arm. “Sit back down.”
“No, I’m fine. I just need a second.”
“Yeah, right. Let’s see if we can get you to the car without you falling over.”
An officer ran up to them before they’d gotten through the crowd. “Is this yours, Detective?”
It was Gray’s phone. “Yeah. It’s not needed for evidence?”
