“Dad’s right,” Kelly said. “I’m sure Cal will be home or he’ll call soon. He’s not one to leave you hanging. You know. First born, hyper responsible. All that jazz. That’s my big brother.”
Jules stroked Joy’s back, the kitten having been curled up asleep on the couch next to her for the last ten minutes. “That’s good to know. It’s the picture I’ve been drawing of him. Reliable. Honest. Trustworthy.”
Great kisser. Hot body. Gentle hands, she added silently.
“He’s one of the good guys, Jules. I know I’ve said it before, but…because I really like you, too, I want you to know he is g—”
“Well,” Jonathon said, reappearing at the living room door. “I’m headed back to the hospital. No rest for the weary.”
“Dad!” Kelly braced her hands on her hips, clearly disgruntled. “Let one of the other doctors handle…whatever it is. You need to eat and…when was the last time you slept?”
Jonathon glanced away, rubbing the five o’clock shadow on his cheek. When he returned his gaze to Kelly, his expression was stark. “I want to be there myself. I…” He sighed and cut a frown toward Jules that sent a ripple of alarm through her. “That was Ryan… Dr. Palmer. There was a shooting at the police station.”
Jules tensed, her heart slowing.
Kelly gasped. “What!”
“They’re bringing in several people with injuries. At least one law enforcement officer has been shot,” Jonathon said. “I want to be on hand, if one of your brothers…”
Jules swung her feet to the floor and scooted to the edge of the couch. “I want to go, too.”
“We don’t know that it’s Cal…” Kelly said, though her eyes said she was as panicked as Jules felt. “I think we should wait here until…”
At that moment, headlights panned across the front window, and Kelly rushed to look out. “It’s Cal! Oh, thank God!”
Jules clambered to her feet, ignoring the dizzy spin of her head as she hurried to meet Cal at the door. She fell into his arms as he entered the foyer, a haggard look dimming his typically upbeat expression. Without saying anything, she clung to him, and he wordlessly hugged her back, burying his face in the curve of her neck.
“Callum?” Jonathon said finally. “Can you tell us what happened? I had a call from the hospital about a shooting. Multiple injuries. I’m headed there now.”
“Have you talked to Wyatt? To Dylan? Are they okay?” Kelly asked, her voice trembling.
Cal stepped back from Jules and nodded to his sister. “Dylan wasn’t there. Wyatt will be fine. He has a small cut on his arm. He thinks he hit the corner of a metal desk as he took cover.”
Jules swallowed hard. “Took cover. From gunfire. Therewasa shooting, wasn’t there?”
His face remained inscrutable, though she sensed something beyond the shooting was troubling him. “Cal?”
Dr. Colton clapped a hand on Cal’s shoulder as he moved past him to the door. “I’m glad to see you’re unhurt, son. I need to go now and take care of those that are.”
Kelly cleared her throat and edged toward the door. “I’ll go, too… Since you’re here to keep her company, and…well, I don’t want to be a third wheel.”
Jules rallied to tell Kelly goodbye and thank her for the companionship, the food, her steadying influence as she waited. When they were alone, Jules faced Cal and drew a breath for courage. “Tell me. Whatever it is you’re not saying, just…please tell me.”
Nodding, he took her hand and led her into the living room. He gave Joy a cursory glance before moving to the other end of the sofa and pulling Jules down beside him. “Wyatt and the drug task force arrested Chase Hamilton earlier today.”
She straightened her back, and hope filled her chest. “They did? Finally?”
But Cal didn’t look happy about the news, and immediately her chest squeezed again.Shooting at the police station…
Acid pooled in her gut as she shifted to face him more fully. “The shooting. Was that him? He got away, didn’t he?”
Cal shook his head. “No. He didn’t get away. He…was shot.”
Jules took a beat to process this new tidbit of information.
“The task force wanted his arrest for leverage to get him to flip on higher-ups in the drug ring. They were working on a plea deal—”
“Damn it!” Jules exploded. “So he gets offagain?”
