“Ten bucks says Buck makes it back, unscathed.”
Tabitha laughed. “Ooh. Nothing gets by you. And the pot’s getting more and more interesting by the minute. Five of us,so far, think he’ll survive unscratched. Three believe he’ll see damage, and I haven’t even called the rest of your brothers yet.”
Julian laughed. “I?—”
The words died in his throat as he caught sight of a reflection in the window.
Someone was heading into Petula’s room.
Julian turned, thinking it must be the doctor, but instead he noted the back of Statler’s blond head as he walked through the door.
What the…?
Why would Stat be back so?—?
Fuck! That wasn’t Statler.
Petula’s brother had been wearing a green coat and khakis. Whoever had just gone into Petula’s room was dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt.
“Red alert,” he barked into the phone.
It was all Julian had time to impart before he raced across the hall.
He rushed through the door, and…
Three steps in, Julian noted that whoever was impersonating Statler had spooked at his entrance, picked up a chair and was smashing through the window.
Julian dove across the floor and caught the man’s ankle, but the perp was slippery, and before Julian could get up from the linoleum, the intruder had kicked out of his grasp and dived outside.
Julian found his feet, but knew he had no chance of catching the intruder, who immediately hauled ass across the parking lot.
Julian turned to Petula, stripping off his coat and draping it around her shoulders. She was dressed, but only in a t-shirt and jeans, and now there was cold air coming in through the window.
“Are you okay?”
Petula looked shocked and pale, but she nodded. “Fine,” she told him mutedly.
Julian would check her out more thoroughly later, but for now he’d take her word for it. He leaned down and retrieved his phone from where it had landed on the floor, and dialed Statler.
“Are you in the parking lot?” he barked.
“Down the street at the coffee shop. Why?” Statler snapped back, clearly hearing the urgency in Julian’s voice.
“Someone was just in Petula’s room. Someone who looked an awful lot like you.”
“It was Jefferson,” Petula spoke up quietly from where she sat perched on the side of the bed.
Julian glared toward the broken window and cursed. “Fuck. She says it was Jefferson. And he got away. Last known 20, he was on foot, headed east from the hospital.”
“I’m on my way.” Statler replied tightly. “I’ll find the bastard.”
Julian nodded, even though Statler couldn’t see. “My brothers from the shop are probably nearly here, but I’ll call Mason and make sure he puts out an APB, stat.”
“He didn’t hurt me,” Petula interjected. This time her voice sounded stronger. “He…looks so much like Stat now, and he was…nice.”
Julian punched the button on his phone so Statler could hear what Petula was saying.
“What do you mean, he was nice?” Julian glowered.
