Winds Of Fortune Part 37

"I'll be with you in fi ve," Reese said. "Don't forget to restock the cruiser with emergency supplies."

"Roger," Bri said, hurrying away.

"How's she doing," Tory asked, applying burn ointment to Reese's hand.

"Solid. She's got a natural instinct for command."

"That's good, isn't it?"

Reese chuckled. "Better than good. Someday, she'll take Nelson's place."

* 259 *

RADCLY fFE "Not you?" Tory taped the gauze she'd wrapped around Reese's wrist and got unsteadily to her feet. She wore her ankle brace, but after eighteen hours on her feet, nothing could prevent her leg from stiffening. Reese rose quickly and slid an arm around her waist.

"These few weeks as acting chief have been more than enough for me," Reese said. "Now it's about time you took a break."

"I'm all right."

"No you're not. Come on."

Tory tried to protest, but Reese just ignored her.

"Sit here," Reese commanded, indicating a bench along the wall.

"I'll be right back."

Bowing to the inevitable, Tory slumped down, leaned her head back, and closed her eyes. The sound of Reese calling her name and gentle shaking brought her awake. She rubbed her face.

"Oh my G.o.d, I fell asleep."

Reese handed her a cup of coffee and a hastily a.s.sembled ham and cheese sandwich. "For about fi ve minutes. Here. Refuel, Dr. King."

Tory took a bite because she was too tired to argue and suddenly realized she was hungry. She fi nished the hasty meal and washed it down with a gulp of coffee. "Thanks."

"Just doing my job," Reese said as she leaned down and kissed her.

Reese's eyes were clear and sparkling. The pain that so often rode through them was gone. Tory brushed Reese's hair back with her fi ngertips. "Welcome home, darling."

"It feels really good to be here. I love you."

"I love you." Tory listened to the rain and the wind. The storm was not over, but perhaps the worst had pa.s.sed. "You've got people to see to, don't you?"

"I do."

"You will be careful out there, won't you?"

"I will."

"Then go, Sheriff. I'll see you when you come home."

Reese kissed her one last time. "I'll be home just as soon as I can."

Tory watched her go, content in knowing that Reese would always do whatever it took to come home to her.

* 260 *

Winds of Fortune y Deo awoke with a start and immediately tried to sit up. Something was holding her down, and for a second, she thought she was underwater again. Gasping, she struggled to get to the surface.

"Deo, baby," Nita said urgently. "Deo, it's all right. Lie still."

"Gabe!" Deo gripped Nita's arm so tightly Nita cried out. "Where's Gabe?"

Nita leaned over so Deo could see her face and stroked Deo's forehead. "There's been an accident, sweetheart. You've been hurt, but you're going to be all right."

"Nita?" Deo whispered, growing still.

"Yes, baby. I'm here."

"Gabe's dead, isn't he?"

Nita thought her heart might break at the forlorn sound of Deo's voice and the terrible naked pain in her eyes. "Yes, baby, he is. It was a long time ago. It was an accident."

Deo closed her eyes and Nita kissed her forehead.

"It wasn't your fault," Nita murmured. "Do you hear me? It wasn't your fault."

"What happened?" Deo asked, fi nally opening her eyes.

"What do you remember?"

Deo frowned. "Storm. Back then, when Gabe died." She shivered.

"And tonight. Another storm."

"Yes. There's a hurricane."

"Joey!" Deo jerked almost upright, then fell back with a grimace, clutching her abdomen. "Oh. Jesus. That hurts."

"You have to lie still," Nita snapped. Even though the abdominal pericentesis fl uid had come back clear and KT had pulled the tube out, p.r.o.nouncing Deo stable, Nita was frantic that something serious could be going on and they'd missed it. "You've been hurt. Joey is fi ne."

"He's not dead?"

"No. No, baby, he isn't. He might have been hurt, but you made sure he wasn't." Nita wasn't certain how well Deo was able to distinguish the past from the present, and she didn't want her to suffer through the pain of losing Gabe again. "Joey is here somewhere. In a minute, I'll fi nd him so you can talk to him. How do you feel?"

"My head hurts. So does my belly." Deo smiled fl eetingly. "It's * 261 *

RADCLY fFE good to see you though."

"It is so good to see you, too." Nita kissed her on the mouth.

"You've got some burns, nothing serious, and a good b.u.mp on your head. KT had to make a small incision in your stomach to check for bleeding, but you're okay."

"I remember now. Sort of. A big fi re." Deo frowned. "We needed to work on the pier. Joey. Joey was behind me and the building was burning. Burning. G.o.d, Nita, the fl ames were right on top of him!"

"Easy, sweetheart," Nita soothed. "Joey might have been hurt, but you took care of him. Do you understand me? You took care of him.

He's all right."

"Why are you crying?" Deo asked.

"What?" Nita touched her cheeks and was stunned to fi nd they were wet. "I...I guess I'm happy. You make me happy."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," Nita said softly. "Now, close your eyes and try to rest."

"Okay," Deo said wearily, struggling to keep her eyes open. "Will you stay with me?"

"I might have to leave for a few minutes, if I have patients, but I'll be back. If you need me, I'll be here. I promise."

"That's good. I love you," Deo whispered, and closed her eyes.

Nita caught her lip, feeling the tears she couldn't seem to stop on her cheeks again. She'd never understood what it meant to cry from happiness. Sylvia told her countless times that she loved her, but her love had been a weapon. Deo's was a gift.

"You need something?" Allie asked quietly. "Coffee or soda or something?"

"No," Nita said, brushing at her face as she looked up at the young offi cer beside her. Like every other member of the emergency response teams, Allie's face was streaked with sweat and grime, and shadows marred her fl awless skin. She was, nevertheless, strikingly beautiful.

"I'm holding up. How are you?"

"Fine." Allie glanced down at Deo. "Is she going to be all right?"

"I think so. We just need to watch her carefully for another twelve hours or so." Nita wondered how much Deo's sometime-girlfriend had heard. The look on her face as her eyes skimmed over Deo said there might be more than a casual fl ing fueling her concern. "I should check * 262 *

Winds of Fortune with Tory and make sure everyone's taken care of. Would you mind sitting with her for just a few minutes in case she wakes up again?"

"Sure," Allie said, her voice registering both surprise and grat.i.tude. "I've got about fi ve minutes. What should I tell her if she asks for you?"

"Tell her I left her in good hands and that I'll be right back."

Allie grinned. "Smooth."

"Thank you."

"I'm Allie, by the way, a...friend of Deo's." Allie held out her hand.

"Nita Burgoyne. I'm Deo's lover."

"There goes my summer," Allie proclaimed.

Laughing, Nita nodded. "Looks like it." She squeezed Allie's shoulder. "I won't be long."

"I'll tell her."

Nita hurried in search of Tory. She didn't want to leave Deo for long, not until she was certain she was completely out of danger. She wondered fl eetingly why she wasn't jealous, and then she realized that Deo could have had Allie or likely any number of other women. But Deo wanted her. Her.

It felt good to be wanted for who she was. And it felt even better to tell the world that Deo Camara, the s.e.xiest, bravest, and most compa.s.sionate woman she'd ever known, was her lover.

* 263 *

* 264 *

Winds of Fortune

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT.

Sit your a.s.s down and stop being a pain in mine," KT growled.

"But-"

"But nothing, Deo. You've got a hole in your belly that needs to heal and a lump on your hard head that's going to have a neighbor if you make me tell you again to stay in bed."

"Is she giving you a hard time?" Nita asked, skirting around the makeshift screen that shielded the cot where Deo lay from the rest of the room.

"No," Deo said quickly.

"Yes." KT motioned Deo down. "Pull up your shirt."

Deo lay back and complied.

Nita held Deo's hand as KT removed the neat square bandage covering the incision below Deo's navel. She peered over KT's shoulder to get a look at the incision.

"It looks good, don't you think?" Nita asked.

"It's fi ne." KT straightened and skewered Deo with a frown. "But you're still not ready to go back out there."

"When-"

"The storm's wearing itself out," Nita said. "The real cleanup will start in a day or two. Don't worry, there will still be plenty left for you to do."