LITMIR.BIZ

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if by magic, the phone rang beneath his hand, and he wrapped his fingers around the receiver. “Brody, homicide.”

      “Detective Brody, this is Officer Yin with Central. We have a situation here with one of your witnesses, Elise Duran. She requested that we call you.”

      “A situation?” Sean’s pulse picked up speed.

      “Someone stabbed her on the parade route.”

      The pencil in Sean’s other hand snapped. “Is she all right?”

      She had to be. She’d asked for him.

      “The wound just broke the skin. She’s okay, but understandably upset. We’ve got an ambulance on the scene, but she doesn’t want to go the hospital and insisted we call you first.”

      “Does she need to go the hospital?” Sean had already grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair and swept his keys into his pocket.

      Elise needed him.

      “My guess is she’s going to need stitches.”

      “Get her in that ambulance and tell her I’ll meet her at the hospital. And I’m gonna want your report.”

      “You got it.”

      For the second time in as many days, Sean raced to the hospital to see Elise—only this time it was much more personal.

      When he got to the emergency room, he found her sitting on an examination table, her legs swinging and hospital paper wrapped around her waist.

      She jerked her head up at his approach. “Can you believe this? He got to me. I swear I wasn’t followed.”

      In two steps he was at her side. “Tell me what happened.”

      “I was standing in a big crowd of people watching the parade. When the dragon float passed by, everyone surged forward. I could barely breathe. I was just trying to keep my balance when I felt a sharp pain in my thigh.”

      She rolled onto the side of her hip and pointed to a bandage on the back of her leg.

      Sean flinched at the spot of blood forming in the center of the white gauze bandage. It was not as if he hadn’t seen his share of blood. Hadn’t he just left a bloodbath on the shore of the bay? Seeing Elise injured made his blood boil. She’d endured enough already.

      How had he gotten to her?

      She continued. “When the crowd cleared, I reached down to feel the sore spot and found sliced jeans and blood instead.”

      “Did anyone see anything? Notice anybody?”

      “Not that I know of.” She twisted her lips. “I screamed bloody murder, and I think that scared everyone away. The cops asked around, but nobody noticed anything.”

      “Cameras in the area?” He knew that some cameras were stationed in Chinatown, but closer to the banks on the edge of the area.

      She shrugged and her eyes widened. “How’d he find me, Sean? I’m sure nobody followed me. I kept my eyes glued to that rearview mirror.”

      “Maybe this was just a random attack. Were there any other reports of violence along the parade route?”

      “You don’t believe that. I can tell by your voice you don’t believe it. You don’t have to try to make me feel better.”

      Oh, but he did. He wanted to run his hands across the smooth skin of her face and brush away all the pain and fear.

      “Just trying to look at all possibilities.”

      A doctor poked her head into the room. “Are you Elise’s husband?”

      “I’m Detective Brody, SFPD Homicide.”

      The doctor’s brows shot up. “Homicide?”

      “We think this attack is related to a murder. Is Elise going to be okay?”

      “She’ll be fine. We cleaned the wound and I’m going to put in a few stitches. You can wait in the hallway or the waiting room.”

      “I want him to stay...if he wants to.”

      “I’m not going anywhere.” He shouldn’t have made a promise he couldn’t keep. He couldn’t be Elise’s round-the-clock bodyguard and protector—but the wobbly smile she’d just aimed at him made him want to try.

      The doctor snapped on a pair of gloves, and the nurse wheeled a cart of instruments next to the cot.

      “Lie down on your stomach and we’ll get this stitched right up.”

      The paper on the table crinkled as Elise scooted back and rolled to her stomach.

      Sean sat in a plastic chair in the corner while the doctor and nurse went to work. The killer must’ve followed Elise from the bridge parking lot and she hadn’t noticed. That meant he’d been lurking around waiting for her. Someone that bold would make a mistake sooner or later.

      And if this guy wanted to continue playing games with him, he’d have the pleasure of bringing him down.

      “Try not to get it wet.” The doctor was peeling off her gloves. “And you should be fine.”

      Fifteen minutes later, Sean was escorting Elise out of the hospital. “I’m assuming your car’s still parked in Chinatown.”

      “It’s still at the station.” She turned and wedged her back against his car. “Why did he do it? Why did he come after me again if he wasn’t planning to kill me?”

      “I think it’s obvious.”

      “Why didn’t he take the opportunity to kill me?”

      “In the middle of Chinatown? That would’ve been a little more noticeable. He sliced your leg in the crowd, knowing you might not register the pain right away or wouldn’t immediately identify what had happened. Then he made his getaway.”

      “But why did he bother? Why take that chance if he wasn’t going to finish the job he’d started last night?”

      “He’s toying with you, Elise. He’s sending you the message that he can get to you.”

      She shrugged off the car and yanked the door open before he could reach for it. “Let him try.”

      Sean chewed the inside of his cheek as he went around to the driver’s side of his car. He understood Elise’s anger, but a healthy dose of fear wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.

      He started the car. “I didn’t ask, but I take it your friend wasn’t with you at the time of the attack?”

      “She had an emergency with a client—she’s a therapist.”

      “I hope you asked if you could stay at her place.”

      Elise reached into the side pocket of her purse and dangled a key ring from her finger. “I’m all set, but I have to go back to my place to pack a bag and get my stuff for school.”

      “Does your friend live closer to you or closer to Chinatown?”

      “Closer to Chinatown. Why?”

      “How about if I drive you to your place first and then take you to your car at the station?”

      “Are you a cop or a chauffeur?”

      “Sometimes I ask myself the same question.”

      She tapped his arm. “No, really, I don’t want to put you out.”

      “No problem.” Problem? Sean was reluctant to let her out of his sight. If she thought she’d been looking out for a tail when she’d left the bridge and this guy managed to follow her anyway, he must be good.

      Elise’s temporary digs had better be secure, or he didn’t think he’d be able to leave her. She’d gotten under his skin, not that he hadn’t felt protective about witnesses

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