She had never been so terrified in her life. Not even the worst moments she had faced before compared to the crushing panic that had seized her when Dan told her Sean had been struck by a car. That fear had lodged beneath her ribs and refused to ease, even after seeing him battered but awake in the ER. It had taken nearly an hour for her heartbeat to slow and the trembling to leave her hands.
He was alive, and his injuries would heal. That was all that mattered.
All she wanted now was to get him home, tuck him into bed, and take care of him until he was back on his feet.
The sound of approaching footsteps pulled her from her thoughts. Sheriff Griffin ended the phone call he had been on and strode toward them, his expression grim enough to make her stomach drop.
“That was Brad and Rafe. There were only two witnesses—the woman who called 9-1-1 and the one who gave first aid. They’d been out for a walk and had just turned the corner onto that street seconds before Sean was hit. One of them is a volunteer with the local ambulance corps, so she knew what to do. They only confirmed what Sean told me earlier—it was a newer gray four-door Toyota Camry with unknown North Carolina plates. They think it was a lone male driver, but they’re not positive. One thing they were sure of, though, was that the driver sped up and drove straight at Sean. It was intentional.”
The words sucked the breath from her lungs. Her fingers tightened around Bonnie’s hand as a cold wave swept through her.
Intentional. This had not been some distracted driver glancing at a phone. It wasn’t an accident. Someone had tried to kill him.
Her chest constricted at the thought of how close they had come to losing him.
Pacing the floor, Brian dragged a hand through his hair, his frustration plain. “It had to be our killer. But how the hell did he know where Sean was? I told him to let me do the press conference!”
The anger in his voice made her and Bonnie flinch.
Dan rested a hand on his nephew’s forearm, stopping him in his tracks. “Easy, son. There’s no point in playing Monday-morning quarterback. What’s done is done. Thankfully, Sean will be okay.”
“We’ve got an APB out on any gray Camrys with front-end damage,” Sheriff Griffin informed them. “We’ll also get it out on the news. Obviously, this wasn’t how we wanted it to go down, but maybe the psycho finally made a mistake.”
She hoped so.
The thought that someone had aimed a car at Sean with the intent to kill made her stomach churn. If he had reacted even a second slower...
She forced the thought away as the waiting room door opened, and the nurse who had been caring for Sean since the ambulance brought him in stepped through. “He’s back from the CT scan. As soon as we get the results, Doctor Romansky will release him, provided they’re normal. You can come back and stay with him until then. He’s asking for you all.”
Relief swept through Grace, and she moved for the doorway before anyone else.
Walking back into the treatment room, Grace took in the changes the last half hour had brought. Sean looked more worn than he had before they wheeled him off for the scan. Fatigue shadowed his eyes, and the bruises along the left side of his face and neck had darkened beneath the harsh hospital lights. The shapeless blue-and-white gown hanging from his broad frame still looked ridiculous, though the sight of him sitting up and waiting for them brought a measure of comfort.
The paramedics had cut away his torn shirt earlier to check for injuries, though his jogging shorts had remained. The angry scrapes along his legs were raw enough to make her wince, and she could only imagine how much pain he had to be in despite the medication they’d given him.
Brian reached into the go-bag he kept in his vehicle and tossed a T-shirt onto the bed. “Figured you could use that.”
Sean grimaced as he tugged at the gown. “Thanks. Can I get out of here yet?”
“As soon as they get the test results back.”
Grace picked up the shirt before he could struggle with it himself. Bunching the fabric in her hands, she guided it over his injured arm, careful not to jar his shoulder.
Pain flashed across his face, and her chest ached at the sight.
Working together, they eased the shirt into place. Once it was on, she bent and brushed a gentle kiss across his lips. His good hand lifted to her hair, his fingers threading through the strands. “Thanks. For the help and the kiss.”
“My pleasure.” A small smile tugged at her mouth. For the first time since Dan had interrupted yoga class, the tension coiled through her body began to ease. “How do you feel?”
“Aside from getting hit by a car, I’m good—sore but good.”
Trust Sean to shrug off being run down.
He looked toward Brian and Matt. “Any luck with the witnesses?”
Matt shook his head. “No. They didn’t have much to add to your report.”
As the sheriff filled him in, Grace studied Sean’s face. The strain around his eyes was impossible to miss despite his calm front. He needed ice, pain medication, rest, and someone to keep him from trying to jump back into work before he was ready.
