Something in his tone made Lacey look up from her patient monitoring, and she found Dean watching her with an expression that made her heart skip unexpectedly. She took a step back and skidded on some water. Dean caught her before she hit the floor, and their eyes locked. Lacey wasn’t sure who moved toward whom, but the next moment their lips met, and the world faded. The kiss that followed was gentle and sweet,filled with all the emotions they'd been holding back for months. When they finally broke apart, both of them were smiling despite the tears in their eyes.
"Would you have dinner with me tomorrow night?" Dean asked. "Somewhere special where we can talk about everything without worrying about injured animals or investigations or any of the chaos that's been surrounding us?"
"I'd love that," Lacey replied. "How about at the yacht club?"
"Perfect," Dean agreed, leaning down to kiss her again.
This time the kiss deepened, and Lacey felt herself melting into his embrace, forgetting for a moment about everything except the warmth and safety of being in his arms.
The sound of footsteps in the hallway made them spring apart just as June appeared in the doorway, stretching and looking around with concern.
"How's our patient?" June asked, apparently oblivious to what she had just interrupted.
"Doing very well," Lacey managed, hoping her voice sounded more normal than it felt. "All his vital signs are stable, and there's no sign of complications from the surgery."
"That's wonderful news," June said with relief. "I was worried about him all night."
The next morning, Dr. Vernon arrived at the clinic bright and early to find the entire group still camped out in the treatment area with their marine patient. Lacey caught her up on what had happened.
"Why didn't you call me?" Judy asked with obvious disappointment when Lacey updated her on the manatee rescue and overnight surgery. "I could have helped with the procedure or at least taken a shift monitoring him so you could get proper rest."
"One of us needed to get some real sleep so we'd be functional today," Lacey explained. "I figured it was better to have you well-rested and ready to handle regular clinic operations while we dealt with the emergency."
"That makes sense," Judy agreed, moving to examine the recovering manatee with professional interest. "He looks like he's healing beautifully. You did an excellent job with those sutures."
"If you're comfortable looking after him for a few hours, I'd like to grab a couple hours of real sleep and then go check on the other two manatees before coming back this afternoon," Lacey said.
"That sounds like a perfect plan," Judy replied. "I'll monitor his vital signs and maintain the water circulation system. The clinic is in good hands."
The four exhausted friends left the new clinic in Judy's capable care and went their separate ways to shower, change clothes, and get some much-needed rest before regrouping later in the day.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, after arranging for a rental pickup truck and making a thorough check on the two recovering manatees at the sanctuary site, Lacey returned to the clinic feeling refreshed and optimistic about their patient's progress.
"How's he doing?" she asked Judy as she entered the treatment area.
"Wonderfully," Judy reported with a smile. "His breathing has been strong and regular all morning, and I checked his surgical sites an hour ago. Everything looks clean and healthy."
Lacey breathed a sigh of relief as she conducted her own examination and confirmed Judy's assessment. The manatee was definitely on the path to full recovery.
"Oh, someone dropped off some mail for you," Judy mentioned as Lacey finished checking the animal's vital signs. "I put it on your desk upstairs."
"Thanks," Lacey replied, heading toward the staircase that led to her new office on the second floor of the historic building.
The mail turned out to be a mixture of bills, professional correspondence, and what appeared to be a few personal notes from community members thanking her for the manatee rescue. She was sorting through the pile when she came across a handwritten envelope with no return address.
Her eyebrows shot up as she opened it and began reading the contents. The letter was brief but chilling:
I think it's time we met face to face. Message the number at the bottom when you're ready to meet.
A cold sensation crept up Lacey's spine as she read the final line again.
With shaking hands, she pulled out her phone and typed a message to the number at the bottom of the letter:I got your letter. I'm ready to meet.
The response came within minutes:Then I'll be waiting at the burnt-out cabin in Ember Lake Campground. Be there in twenty minutes, stick to the rules of the letter, and don't involve anyone else, or your family and loved ones will pay the price this time.
Another chill ran down Lacey's spine as she read the threatening message. But she typed back without hesitation:I'm on my way.
She stood up from her desk and reached for her phone to call June, but stopped as she remembered the chilling words about her family and loved ones paying the price.
