Mounting Evidence Read online

  Cal stood up, took the drink out of Rachel’s hand, and set it on the counter. She rested her hand on the top of Rachel’s head and massaged her scalp with gentle fingers. “Yes, we’ll have a lot to do starting tomorrow. But right now you’re safe and Abby’s safe and Legs is safe. The rest can wait until you’ve had some sleep.”

  Rachel took both of Cal’s hands in her own and laid her cheek against them. “I can’t bear the thought of going through this again. Worrying about the team. Wondering why someone is out to get us.”

  “I know, sweetheart. But it’s different this time.” Cal tugged on Rachel’s hands and got her to stand. She kissed her lips until Rachel sighed and relaxed. “This time, we’re in it together from the start. There’s nothing we can’t do.”

  Rachel wanted to share her optimism, but she had too great a responsibility. Everyone counted on her to lead and protect the team. Even tonight, when Abby was injured and Legs was acting up, Rachel had made the call to get out of the situation with as little fuss and attention as possible. With all the chaos around them, she didn’t think most people had noticed Legs and Abby because they were so busy watching the fight. She could have had Abby dismount right there while she called the medics and had someone lead Legs back to the barn. She had evaluated the situation and decided Abby would be better off riding back to the privacy of their deserted aisleway. Legs was less likely to get free if someone was riding her and not leading her. The other horses had surrounded Legs and kept her calm and quiet. But how much of Rachel’s choice had been based on Legs and Abby, and how much on the fragile reputation of the mounted team? She wasn’t sure.

  She wrestled with the questions in her mind while Cal led her into their bathroom. She wasn’t sure which thread to follow first, but she knew her top priority without a doubt. Cal. She had to do her best to convince Cal of it, too.

  “I need to ask a favor of you, love.”

  Cal was fiddling with the temperamental faucet in their shower. She didn’t turn around when she spoke. “No, I will not stay away from the fairgrounds until this is over. If you’re there, I’m there, too.”

  “But I can focus on solving this better if I’m not worried about you.”

  “We’ll have two brains working on the puzzle, yours and mine, so it won’t matter if you’re using only half of yours. Abby and your teammates can take up the rest of the slack.” Cal took off her tank top and sweatpants. Rachel swallowed hard when she saw Cal standing in front of her naked. She’d seen her without clothes plenty of times since they’d started their relationship, but the sight never failed to turn her on. Rational thought was draining away, soon to be replaced by pure lust, but Rachel tried one more tactic.

  “What if it’s like last time, when Eugene’s goons tried to shoot you? It paralyzes me to think of you being hurt.”

  “Well, you’re going to need to get over it,” Cal said. She unbuttoned Rachel’s uniform top, managing to hit all her most sensitive spots as she worked her way down.

  “Get over it?” Rachel repeated. She was trying to make her voice sound stern, but it came out breathy and with a definite catch as Cal brushed against her nipple.

  “Yes. We’re a team now, you and I. So get used to me being around, even if it isn’t convenient for you. Now get in the shower and we’ll wash those hospital germs off you.”

  It wasn’t a matter of convenience, but one of pure fear. Rachel couldn’t bear the thought of Cal being hurt, but her involvement with the mounted unit had taken a dangerous turn yet again.

  Rachel stood still in the shower stall for a few minutes, while Cal soaped her from hair to toes. Her touch was exciting, turning the things Rachel did every day, like shampooing her hair, into erotic acts. Rachel was so tired. Tired of being a target. Tired of watching her team go through constant trials. But Cal brought her back to life. Made her realize she was strong enough to lead her mounted unit, even when they were at risk. Cal supported her when she felt weak and made her strong again.

  Cal was rubbing her scalp as she rinsed shampoo out of her short, curly hair. Rachel grabbed her hands and spun Cal around so she was facing the shower wall. She kept them both under the spray of hot water.

  “You’re right,” she whispered in Cal’s ear. She flicked her tongue inside and smiled as Cal gasped. Cal’s whole body seemed to quiver at her touch, no matter how brief. She held nothing back when she gave of herself, and she deserved the same from Rachel.

  “I usually am,” Cal said. She ground her hips against Rachel and almost made her come right then, from the sheer, beautiful friction she created between them. “But what was I right about this time?”

  “Modest, aren’t you?” Rachel laughed and held Cal’s wrists captive over her head with one of her hands. She slid her other down Cal’s wet stomach and stopped when she felt her damp hair. She moved her hand back and forth until Cal moaned. “You’re right when you say your place is with me. I worry about you, but I need you there.”

  She dipped her hand lower, until she slid her fingers between Cal’s lips. She was dripping wet, and Rachel groaned and bit Cal’s neck. Cal needed her, too. Rachel felt it here, in Cal’s responses. She felt it in Cal’s touch, whether sexual or tender. She felt it every time Cal looked at her.

  “We’ll get through this together,” Rachel promised. She increased the pressure of her hand until Cal’s breath came in hard, shuddering gasps. She had fought against needing anyone for too long. Cal made her weak in the knees, but strong where it counted. “Together,” she whispered again as Cal climaxed under her touch.

  Chapter Fifteen

  The next day, Abby parked next to the nature center at the Snake Lake nature preserve. She reached across her body to put her car in park with her left hand and climbed out. She wasn’t supposed to be driving yet, but she decided the doctor would have arranged for a chauffeur if he’d really been serious about that. He hadn’t, so she was driving. Everything was awkward without the use of her right hand, but at least the pain had eased to a dull ache since the doctor had released her tendon from its pinched position between two ragged edges of bone. Her wrist was still tender and swollen, but she’d get by.

  She paused by the Discovery Pond play area and watched a couple of preschoolers splash in the shallow water while their mothers chatted on a nearby bench. The little pond, with its strategically placed rocks and bridges, was a human-made depiction of nature, condensed into a small space with a view of a gas station and a huge grocery store. The entire preserve was ringed by civilization. A Highway 16 overpass roared over the southern edge of the lake, and there were stores, a high school, and apartment buildings on the other sides. Kira might feel this was a success story, but Abby couldn’t help but see it in a more cynical way. It was a token piece of nature, barely able to keep out city growth and noise. Of course, the only times she’d been on the trails leading around the lake, she’d been there as a patrol officer chasing out illegal squatters. Perhaps she hadn’t fully appreciated the area’s beauty and importance because it had been the middle of the night and she’d been up to her ankles in slimy mud.

  Abby stopped by a large wooden map and checked out the trail system. The various options were labeled with different colored paint. One mile, a half mile. None of them were very long, but she hoped Kira had gone on one of the shorter walks with her group. Abby had barely slept the night before, and as soon as morning had come, she’d made an effort to be wide awake every time a nurse stopped by her room so they’d believe she was well enough to go home. She hated hospitals.

  The doctor had finally discharged her, and Cal had come to pick her up and take her to the fairgrounds, where her car was parked. The news there had made her want to go back to the hospital and pull the covers over her head. Strychnine? Another case of sabotage against her mounted unit? Rachel and the team were organizing guard duty yet again, and one of them would be with the horses every minute until either the fair was over or they figured out who had drugged Legs. Abby was thankful the
mare was recovering well. She also felt a selfish pang of relief because she’d been worried that the horse’s behavior was a response to her own rusty riding skills.

  Abby started down the main path that circled in a loop around the lake. Kira had been leaving messages on her phone since last night, but Abby hadn’t had a chance to answer yet. She hadn’t been sure how to explain the accident, especially to someone outside the team, but something in Kira’s voice made her realize she couldn’t put off their conversation for long. In her last message she’d said she’d call again after she led a tour here at the nature center, so Abby had decided to stop by on her way home.

  A few yards along the path, the sounds of the city started to fade. The decaying greenery and lush mossy undergrowth coated the air with a thick woodsy smell. Abby took a deep breath, and then another. She’d been carrying the tension of her wild ride on Legs deep in her shoulders and spine, but the packed-dirt path and protective towering trees loosened something inside her. Small birds flitted by her head, and the occasional squirrel came to watch her progress. She guessed that plenty of people ignored the signs asking visitors not to feed the wildlife because they seemed eagerly expectant of a handout.

  Abby was almost sorry when she heard a group of people chattering up ahead. She wouldn’t have minded walking alone for a while longer. She heard Kira’s voice rise above the muddled voices of the group, and she felt her body grow tense again. No, not tense. She stopped and paid close attention to the unfamiliar feeling. Anticipation? Yes. Eagerness, even. She was overly exhausted and susceptible to every little emotion running through her. All she needed was a good night’s sleep—helped by some of the painkillers her doctor had prescribed—and she’d be able to control those responses again. Kira couldn’t keep this hold on her when she was in full control of her faculties. Well, maybe she could, but Abby had plenty of experience resisting personal urges. She’d be fine.

  Or maybe she wouldn’t. She came around a corner of the path and saw Kira standing on a wooden footbridge while she addressed a group of a dozen or so seniors. She was brightly dressed in a sunny yellow T-shirt, khakis, and those red sneakers, but she somehow fit in her environment without needing to resort to the props of earth tones and naturally dyed fibers. She wore her hair in a short braid and had a pair of binoculars around her neck.

  She noticed Abby as soon as she rounded the corner, and Abby heard the falter in her voice before she picked up the thread of her lecture again. She gave a brief wave, and Abby returned it with her left hand. She edged closer to the group and listened to Kira speak.

  “You’re going to see many different species of flora and fauna on our short tour, and you might wonder why it’d be important if we lost any one of them. For instance, think about these willow trees you can see rimming the lake. There are plenty of other varieties of trees here, so why should this one type matter to conservationists? Willows often grow along the water in lentic or riparian—lake or river—ecosystems. When they’re destroyed by development, overgrazing, or some other destruction of their habitat, the cascade effect can be significant. The willows provide shade for fish, cooling the water and offering places to spawn and feed. If those areas are removed because the willows are gone, there will be a reduction in the number of fish in the stream or lake. Predators that eat fish will have a decreased food supply, and if the fish had been feeding on plankton, their numbers will increase. A similar process will happen with songbirds that nest in the trees, and beaver that use tree limbs for food and dams. The system is no longer in balance if it loses a single part. Sadly, we often don’t realize or recognize the value of each particular species until it’s gone. And then it might be too late to restore the balance we’ve destroyed.”

  Kira paused and studied the lake around her. Although she had hesitated when she saw Abby, the passion she had for her wetlands had seeped back into her voice as she spoke. She had a true calling to do her job. Abby had as deep a connection to her own career, but it wasn’t based on passion. Still, she was as tied to what she did as Kira was.

  “If you look to your right, you’ll see several types of waterfowl. There are hooded mergansers and wood ducks, and about five others I recognize. Why don’t you use your guidebooks and see how many you can identify?”

  She squeezed through the group as they filed onto the narrow bridge. Her smile faded when she saw Abby’s bandaged arm.

  “What happened to you? Please tell me there were no zip ties involved.”

  “Just a little accident while I was on patrol last night. Legs and I had an altercation with a tent pole. I lost.” She tried to joke her way out of the full explanation, but Kira’s face showed too much concern for her to ignore.

  “I’m fine, really.” She held up her hand and wiggled her fingers even though the movement made her grit her teeth.

  Kira gently grasped her fingers and stopped their motion. “Please stop proving how little you hurt, or you’re going to pass out. I’ll just pretend I believe you, okay?”

  “Thanks,” Abby said. She disengaged from Kira’s touch and cradled her arm against her stomach. “You, on the other hand, are looking much better. I barely noticed the marks on your wrists.”

  Kira held out her hands. “It looks like I’m wearing bracelets now, unless you’re close. My face itches still, but at least the tape mark is fading. I hated getting such blatant stares whenever I was out in public.”

  She looked over her shoulder at her tour group. Some of them were still watching the ducks, but most were getting restless. “I need to talk to you, but I have to finish this tour first. I’ll only be fifteen minutes or so if you want to follow along.”

  Abby was tempted. She loved hearing Kira talk with so much conviction and verve, but she gestured toward a bench carved out of a tree trunk instead. “I wouldn’t mind just sitting for a few minutes. Can you come back here when you’re done?”

  “Of course.”

  Kira walked back to her group and asked them about their duck-identifying experience. They walked farther along the bridge and Kira stopped to point out some more native plants. Abby listened as long as they were within earshot, and then she leaned back and closed her eyes. She hadn’t been lying when she said she’d rather sit alone than join the group. She enjoyed the sound of Kira’s voice too much for comfort. More than self-protection, though, she wanted to try to recapture the sense of peace she’d felt before she’d met up with the tour. She let the sound of chirping birds and rustling leaves lull her past the frantic thoughts on the surface of her mind and deeper to a place of quiet. She sighed and slipped closer to sleep.

  *

  Kira quietly sat down on the bench next to Abby. She looked terrible. Her skin was too pale, and her cheekbones stood out too prominently, as if she’d lost significant weight since Kira had last seen her, only two days ago. Abby had tried to brush off Kira’s concern about her wrist, but her little finger-wiggling stunt had about done her in. Kira had watched pain move across Abby’s face like a tangible wave.

  She wanted to smooth Abby’s frown lines with her fingers. To kiss the side of her jaw where her skin pulsed, most likely in reaction to tension and clenched teeth. But she figured Abby wouldn’t appreciate the compassion. She had seemed touchy around Kira after their brush with physical contact, and then she’d practically disappeared. Admittedly, Kira was feeling just as hesitant to spend time alone with Abby. Touching her had seemed more innocent, less significant and dangerous, when they’d been eating barbecue together. Now Kira knew Abby better and she craved her in a deeper way. Maybe Abby was feeling the same way toward her. Just now, she’d have preferred if Abby had kept with the group so they could have talked when they got back to the nature center, instead of meeting alone on the isolated path. The preserve was always quiet on weekday mornings and would be the ideal place for a romantic tryst. Kira knew a few private places where they could slip off the public path and conceal themselves behind a lattice of branches and shrubs. The needle-covered dirt
would be cool and scratchy on her back, and pliant under her clawing fingers…

  She had to rouse Abby. Get her the hell out of here. She wanted to let her sleep since Abby seemed to need it, but she couldn’t stay here and watch or she’d be waking Abby with a kiss instead of a shake of her shoulder.

  “Abby, time to wake up,” she said, shaking her firmly.

  “I’m not sleeping,” Abby said. She sat up and looked around her, tucking a loose strand of auburn hair into her French twist. “Well, maybe I was. Just a little.”

  Kira smiled at Abby’s confession. She felt more comfortable with Abby when she was able to show an occasional weakness. Kira had more than enough experience with someone who would never admit to being at fault or out of control.

  “Are you going to tell me what really happened last night?” Kira asked. She didn’t believe the nonchalant version Abby had given earlier. “I watched you on Legs, and I can’t believe you accidentally ran into a booth. She seemed like such a quiet horse, and you’re too good a rider.”

  “Thank you,” Abby said with a weary-looking smile. “We’re still trying to figure out what happened, so I can’t give all the details, but…well, Legs was drugged. She was given a stimulant and she became…hard to manage. I didn’t fall off, but I hit my wrist hard enough to need very minor surgery. It’ll be fine soon, though. The doctor says I’ll probably regain full use of it, and Legs is going to be okay. So it worked out fine.”

  Abby’s attempts to keep the story light and worry-free failed miserably. Kira had a hundred questions, but she didn’t know how to ask. She guessed Abby would gloss over most of the real facts, anyway. She tried to reconcile the beautiful, delicate Abby who had been sleeping on the bench next to her with the hard-edged and imperturbable police officer. Her world was one of violence, where people hurt horses and put the lives of cops and bystanders in danger. She knew how easily the situation could have turned deadly, with a drugged horse and so many pedestrians in the way…