I panicked and took the coward’s way out. Then I made it worse by having Gladys greet you every time you came to the island. I thought if I did that, I wouldn’t fall for you. I wouldn’t want what I couldn’t have.
But my plan backfired in the worst way. Because Gladys told me everything. How you always remembered her aches and pains. How you cleaned the gutters for her one week. Changed her smoke detector batteries another. How youstarted to smile after a few months. How much you liked her chocolate chip cookies.
I fell for you through her stories.
You’re in danger now. Because of me. Parker has friends. It won’t be hard for them to figure out who owns the sea plane that left Blakely in the middle of the night. Or track down your address.
They’re not stupid. You’ll be fine during the day. But as soon as you see this letter, I need you to call those “not friends” of yours and tell them you need protection.
I’m leaving town in the morning. Right after I call Gladys and tell her to stay with Bella for a while. I have a few things to do—affairs to put in order—and then I’ll let them find me. In a week, I’ll be gone, and they’ll have no reason to come after you again. You’ll be safe.
I wish we’d had more time. I wish I could have told you all of this in person. But I’m afraid if I tried, I wouldn’t be able to walk away.
Yours,
Natasha
My tears soak the fancy leather blotter. When did I start crying? I can’t tear the paper from the pad. My hands shake too much. I’m starting to get dizzy. Stress, exhaustion, and my injuries are all threatening to pull me under.
I can sleep for a few hours. Then I’ll be steady. Then…I’ll be able to walk away.
Stretching out on the couch, I cover myself in a blanket from the foot of Doc’s bed. It smells like him. Woodsy. Fresh. Like…home.
My tears have stopped. But now, the regrets are a thousand tiny daggers piercing my heart.
“I’m sorry, Doc. For everything.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Doc
“You decent?”Raelynn pokes her head in the door with her hand over her eyes.
Of course McCabe would send her. He knows I have a soft spot for the woman. Or maybe this is his way of washing his hands of me. After all, shewasthe last member of Hidden Agenda I treated.
I try one more time to get my left arm through the sleeve of the button down shirt but give up when darkness creeps along the edges of my vision. The only other option in my ruck—a black t-shirt—was a no-go from the start.
“A little help?” I ask.
Raelynn drops her hand and her eyes go wide. “Shee-it, Doc. Is there any part of you that ain’t bruised?”
“Bottom…of my right foot? Maybe.”
Before I can pass her the shirt, Raelynn’s at my side with her hand on my shoulder. “Tell me the truth. Should you be leavin’ the hospital?”
“Probably not.” It’s still hard to take a deep breath. The chest tube only came out a few hours ago. The attending physician wanted to keep me another day, but I signed myself out “against medical advice.” Lying in a hospital bed while Nat’s out there alone? Fuck that. I have to find her. “But I’m going…with or without your help. Or a shirt.”
“Well, you’re lucky I have some experience bein’ down an arm,” she says with a smile and a wink. “Drop your left shoulder.”
I do, and she works the shirt up my arm. It’s easier to maneuver my right hand into the sleeve with her help. The sight tremble in my fingers pisses me off, but I manage to fasten the buttons before Raelynn offers to do them for me.
“If you eventryto pick up that bag,” she warns, “you’ll be sorrier than a one-legged man at an ass-kicking contest.”
I’m not about to fight her. Standing is hard enough. If I make it to Raelynn’s car without losing consciousness, it’ll be a fucking miracle.
“Got you a stylish ride down to the garage,” she says, opening the door to snag a wheelchair waiting in the hall.
I don’t object.
