“Speaking of love, are you still seeing that guy? What’s his name?” he asked.
“Zach? No. I broke up with him like six months ago. Long before you went AWOL. Turns out he wasn’t who I thought he was.”
“I’m sorry,” he said. Hannah was the ultimate believer in true love. “I know you thought he was the one.” He made air quotes around “the one.”
“Why would I take the time to have a relationship with someone if I didn’t think they were the one? I’m looking for my soulmate, Jake.”
“And I’m sure you will find him one day. Maybe the day you let me take you out again.” He teased her, knowing she wouldn’t even consider it until he cleaned up his act.
“Oh, Jake. What am I going to do with you?”
“It’s all right. I’m fine parked here in the friend zone. For now.” He glanced at his watch. “Hey, it’s been great catching up, but I gotta get back to work. See you tomorrow?” He put the lid on what remained of his coffee and stood.
“You know where to find me,” she said, standing and downing the last of her drink.
When he exited, he checked up and down the street for the man with the red hat, but he’d disappeared. Jake would have to remember to ask Hannah about him tomorrow and find out if he hung around a lot or if she’d ever noticed him.
Then again, maybe it was nothing. As a cop, he was pretty cynical. He tended to look for, and usually find, the worst in people. The habit didn’t work well for personal relationships, but it helped keep him safe. That was another reason he stuck to the one-and-done relationships. If you didn’t get close to anyone, you didn’t have to be let down upon discovering their negative qualities.
Several hours later, he was in the same area, having just dropped off some paperwork at the courthouse, and looked up to see Hannah on the corner waiting to cross the street. She was bundled up in an army green, puffy parka and still had on her black Grinder’s Café hat. She must be off and walking home. He knew she lived in a downtown apartment not too far from the coffee shop.
Parked a few cars back, he was waiting at a stoplight and felt like a stalker, but enjoyed watching her without her knowing. She took off the hat and released her ponytail. Her long auburn locks fell to her back, and she massaged her head with her fingers. God, she was gorgeous.
He knew he wouldn’t get a second chance unless he made some major changes, and he wasn’t sure that was in the cards. Commitment might be for others, but he’d take a hard pass on that. He didn’t believe people were meant to be togetherforever. Plus, being with one person for the rest of your life sounded boring as hell.
He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel, then looked at the cars around him and at the light, which was still red. Returning his gaze to Hannah, he stiffened, and the hair on the back of his neck stood on end. The man with the red hat stood directly behind her. He tapped her on the shoulder, and she turned to face him. Before Jake could do or say anything, the man used two hands to shove Hannah into the oncoming traffic, and Jake watched helplessly as she was struck by an SUV.
CHAPTER FIVE
Jake threw the car into park, switched on his emergency lights, and sprinted to the scene while calling for an ambulance on his portable radio. Hannah lay unconscious, her recently released hair flowing all around her on the wet pavement.
Everyone backed off as soon as he arrived, giving them space. Jake knew better than to move her. He yelled for anyone with medical training, but no one came forward. He checked carefully for a pulse and to make sure she was breathing and heaved a sigh of relief after finding both breath and a heartbeat. A trickle of blood leaked from her ear, though. That was not a good sign. Her arm lay twisted in an awkward position and was most likely broken. He hoped to God that was the extent of her injuries, but knew it was the invisible head and internal injuries where the real damage occurred.
He stood just long enough to do a superficial search for the red-hatted man, but he either lost the hat and was blending in with the crowd, or was long gone.
“Three-seven-nine, Seattle, what’s an ETA on aid?” As he asked, he heard far-off sirens coming closer, and after what felt like an eternity, aid arrived and took over. The PD descended in droves, and multiple officers were talking to potential witnesses.
Paramedics braced Hannah’s neck, strapped her to a stretcher, and loaded her into the back of the ambulance.
“Where are you taking her?” Jake asked the paramedic.
“Overlake. See you there?”
“Yeah. I’ll be there in a few.” First, he needed to do a better search for the asshole who’d done this. Hannah had no enemies. Well, none that Jake knew about. Who would want to harm her? Or was it a random act of violence? Because the same man had been watching Hannah at the coffee shop earlier, Jake doubted this was random. That would be too big a coincidence.
Possible motives, thoughts of how to catch the perpetrator, and worry about Hannah’s injuries tumbled around in his mind. He was no stranger to accidents or the blood and gore that sometimes accompanied them, but it was different when you knew the person. His heart felt tight, and it was hard to breathe.
Jake forced himself to take a deep breath and then stopped to talk to one of the officers, giving him his card and telling him he was a witness.
“Are you getting anything other than a red hat?” Jake asked, mad at himself for not noticing more about the man’s appearance.
The officer shook his head. “You’d think with all these people around, we’d have some good information. But you know how people are. They walk around with their heads down, wrapped up in their phones. Even the driver that hit her didn’t see what caused her to be in the street. Of course, the driver’s freaking out so bad it’s hard to get any information out of her at all. She feels horrible.”
“I bet. It wasn’t her fault.”
“Yeah, I told her that. Since no one looked up until after it happened, other than you, we’re not finding any actual witnesses.”
“Anyone see which direction the man with the red hat went?” Jake asked. He’d been so focused on Hannah, even he hadn’t noticed.
