“Unfortunately, I think you’re right.”
They doubled up the rest of the ride down the mountain, with her arms wrapped around his waist. He took her straight to the clinic to be checked out despite her protests. Three teens hung out nearby, ready to earn a few bucks running messages.
“Got a pen and paper?” he asked the nearest one.
“Sure.” The young man handed Gideon an index card and a pen.
Gideon wrote his message and folded it, then handed it along with a five-dollar bill to the guy. “Take this to the nearest cop you can find. It’s self-explanatory, but if he or she has a return message, I’ll be here at the clinic.”
“Got it.” The kid took off and Gideon motioned to the door.
She crossed her arms. Carefully. “I’m a doctor, Gideon,” she said. “Really, I don’t need to go inside. I just want to get a hot cup of coffee and forget this happened.”
“I don’t think the security officers are going to let you do that. And you know as well as I do that doctors make the worst patients. Please, Maya?”
She groaned and rolled her eyes but followed him inside.
A pretty woman with dark skin and tired eyes walked up to them. “Maya, it’s not your turn to take a shift yet.”
“She’s not here to work,” Gideon said. “She jumped off her snowmobile and landed hard. She needs a once-over.”
“Goodness, my friend. What in the world?”
Maya held a hand out to the woman. “This is Dr. Delilah Morgan. Del, this is Gideon. My self-appointed protector.”
“Nice to meet you,” the woman said to him. “But let’s circle back to you jumping off a snowmobile. What’s that all about?”
Maya grimaced. “The brakes and kill switch didn’t work, so it was either jump off or crash into the lodge. I chose the one I thought I—and everyone else—had a better chance of walking away from.”
“Hon, come on in here. I know you’re perfectly capable of deciding if you’re all right, but why don’t I take a look just in case there’s something you’re missing. Adrenaline can cover up a multitude of hurts.”
“I know.” Maya sighed. “Fine.” She shot Gideon a look. “I’ll be right back.”
“I sent one of our little messengers to let security know to treat that snowmobile as evidence,” Gideon said, “and they need to have a qualified mechanic go over to see if it was tampered with.”
“That’s a good idea.” She started to follow the other woman.
“And just for good measure,” Gideon said, “I’ll send another teen to tell security to meet us here. We’ll make a report, and I’m going to ask if they can put a guard on your cabin.”
She whipped around to meet his gaze. “A guard?”
“You said it yourself, it looks like someone is after you. Until we can get you out of here, we have to do something to keep you safe.” He paused. “I’m not a cop, Maya, but I was in special forces and worked with military police a lot, so I know how an investigation is run. But mostly, I just know how to fight.” He looked away for a moment. “Being a soldier was about the only thing I’ve ever been good at.” Much better than being a businessman, that was for sure. He shoved that thought aside. “I have no authority with law enforcement, but I think if we tell them everything that’s happened, then they’ll see the wisdom of having someone watch out for you. It’s not like you can leave to get away from this person, and I really don’t like that. So, either the guard or I will be campingout on your doorstep.” Another pause. “Not to guilt trip you or anything, but, just in case you haven’t noticed, it’s cold out here.”
Another grimace slipped across her features. “Yournotguilt trip is kinda mean.”
“I know.”
She offered him a small smile, then nodded. “Okay then. Fine. I’ll go along with a guard if they’ll assign one. For now.”
He’d take the “for now.”
For now.
She disappeared behind a privacy curtain at the back of the room, and he paced from one end of the “lobby” to the other, replaying the break-in. Had the intruder run because Maya hadn’t been alone? If she’d been by herself, would he have confronted her? Killed her? The tampering of the snowmobileshouldhave killed her.Couldhave killed her and someone else. He shuddered. That was something he’d never be able to forget.
And would probably add to his nightmares. But the two questions foremost in his mind were ... why and who?
Why had the person trashed her place, and who was doing it? Which raised more questions. What had they been looking for, and what did killing Maya gain them?
