“No,” Allie said distractedly, looking up at Flynn. “Do you think you can radio someone in the field and find out what’s happening with Ash?”

• 117 •

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“Sure.” Flynn stroked Allie’s hair for a second and then stepped away to the far corner of the room.

“Reese will make sure she’s taken care of,” Tory murmured. “How about letting me get you taken care of?”

“Fine. Whatever. Do anything you want.” Exhausted, guilty, and just plain scared, Allie closed her eyes. “I can’t freaking believe this.

The sheriff puts me in charge and I totally fuck it up.”

“Somehow, I find that hard to believe.”

Allie didn’t think she would ever forget the sight of Ash falling, just disappearing. Even though she’d lost Ash long ago, the thought of truly losing her forever was the most terrifying feeling she’d ever experienced.

“It’s going to hurt a little bit,” Tory murmured as she began injecting the wound edges with lidocaine. “Okay?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Allie whispered. The pain in her leg was nothing compared to the pain in her heart.

v

“Stand by on the line,” the firefighter shouted up to the team on the surface, who waited to winch up the rescue sked, a molded plastic litter that could be used to immobilize and drag a victim out of the tightest of confined spaces.

“Have them drop a rope ladder,” Ash repeated for the tenth time.

“I can climb out now that you’ve got the sides braced.”

The young dark-haired man in a bright yellow turnout coat ignored her and tightened the safety straps around her waist and thighs that secured her in the narrow stretcher. After an hour of carefully removing loose debris and shoring up the remaining support structures, he’d slowly worked his way down into the V-shaped depression where she’d been lodged when a portion of the floor had fallen into the basement.

Fortunately, she’d tobogganed down on top of the debris and none of it had fallen on her. The steep angles of the cavity and the instability of the structure had made it impossible for her to climb out before.

She was still worried that the vibration set up by her ascent might trigger further collapse, and the young firefighter would be beneath her handling the guide ropes. She didn’t want him at risk. “I’m not injured.

I can climb.”

• 118 •

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“This is safer until we can get a medic to look you over.”

Ash grimaced. “I’m banged up a little, but nothing serious. We’ll stand less chance of destabilizing this area if we don’t use the winch.”

“Can’t do it, ma’am. Protocol.”

“Listen, hotshot, imagine how you’d feel if you dropped through a floor and your buddies had to bring you out in a basket.”

He grinned, his grime-streaked face devilishly handsome in the bright light of the halogen lamps shining down on them. “Definitely a dick-shrinking thought.”

“Damn right. So have a little pity. It’s your call to make, so unstrap me and tell them we’re climbing.”

He tugged on the guideline attached to the bright orange sked.

“On the line,” he called up. Then he gave her a charming boyish smile.

“Don’t worry, ma’am. The shrinkage is only temporary.”

She gripped his hand. “What’s your name?”

“Mike Torres.”

“Thanks, Mike. And be careful down here.”

“I’ll be right behind you.”

After five painstaking minutes, she was at the surface and being rapidly transferred into the back of the waiting fire rescue van. She peered up at the small African American woman guiding the front of the stretcher into the brightly lit rear compartment. “What happened to Allie Tremont? The officer who was with me? Is she all right?”

“I think she went to the clinic in the first truck,” the woman said as she efficiently slapped on EKG leads and ripped open the plastic sheath around a bag of IV solution.

“What do you mean, she went to the clinic?” Ash grabbed the woman’s arm and tried to sit up, fumbling frantically to release the safety strap. “She’s hurt? Where did they take her? How badly is she hurt?”

“Hey! Whoa. Take it easy,” the tech said. “Let’s worry about you first.”

“I’ve been telling everybody for the last hour, I’m okay.” She’d landed on her left side, and her hip and shoulder pounded unmercifully.

Still, she could move everything. She’d been hurt on the job before, and she’d be in for a couple of weeks of discomfort, but this was nothing major. “I want to talk to someone in charge. I want to know what happened to her.”

• 119 •

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“Look. We’re on our way to the clinic right now. As soon as I get you lined up, I’ll see if I can get some information. But you have to cooperate.”

Ash slumped down, suddenly exhausted. “Okay. Okay, fine. But call someone, please.” The jostling of the vehicle set her back and hips on fire, and she closed her eyes to fight down the pain. Time became fluid, and the voice of the technician reporting her vital signs drifted into an incoherent rumble in the recesses of her mind.

When the vehicle came to an abrupt halt, she groaned and opened her eyes. The double doors sprang open and she was being lifted out into a parking lot.

“Where’s Allie?” she demanded again.

“She’s inside,” a new voice said.

Ash focused on the woman walking beside the stretcher. Blond, young, chiseled face and tight body. She knew her. She’d seen her the night before. Allie’s girlfriend. “Is she all right?”

“The doc’s about finished with her. She’s fine.” Flynn looked down, grinning. “I thought I was going to have to tie her down to keep her from going back after you. She’ll be happy to see you.”

“Tell her I’m okay. She doesn’t have to hang around here.”

“I’ll tell her, but you know your partner.” Flynn guided the stretcher up the few stairs to the main entrance and pulled the door open. “I doubt she’ll leave until she’s satisfied that you’re all right.”

Partner. Ash gritted her teeth. Allie wasn’t her partner, not in any sense of the word, and the very last thing she wanted was Allie and her new squeeze waiting around. “Do me a favor and get her to go home.

There’s nothing she can do here. Nothing at all.”

• 120 •

RetuRning tides

chapteR thiRteen

Reese pulled into the clinic parking lot right behind the EMT

rig, left her cruiser, and followed Ash and the EMS personnel inside to the treatment area. At the far end of the hall, Tory directed the medics guiding Ash’s stretcher into an open treatment room.

“How’s everyone doing?” Reese asked.

“I’ve only got a minute because I need to see to Ash,” Tory said,

“but Allie’s okay.”

“Nothing serious?”

“Lacerations and abrasions,” Tory said. “She’s shook up and she’s going to be sore for a while. She’s handling it well, but I’d still recommend putting her on desk duty for a day or two. Any problems getting Ash extricated?”

“It all went smoothly. She’s pretty banged up too, but from what I could tell, she got lucky. They both did.”

“How are you?” Tory asked.

“Me?”

Tory smiled at Reese’s genuine confusion and stroked her arm.

“Things must’ve been pretty harrowing there for a while.”

Reese glanced around to make sure they were still alone. “I didn’t have any recurrence of those symptoms. That’s what you’re worried about, isn’t it?”

“Let’s say concerned.”

“Don’t be. I’m okay. You’ve got enough to do taking care of my people.”

“You’ll always come first,” Tory murmured.

• 121 •

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Reese glanced at her watch. “By my count, you’ve been standing for close to ten hours again. How is your leg?”

“Better than I’d hoped.”

“That’s a cagey answer, Doctor. I know you can’t leave now, but as soon as you can, all right?” When Tory nodded, Reese kissed her quickly. “Can I see Allie?”

“Yes. She’s across the hall in three. I’ll update you on Ash when I know something.”

“Thanks. I’ll call Kate and tell her I’ll be by to pick Reggie up in an hour or so.”

“Good. I hope I’ll be home about then too. I’ll see you later, darling.”

Tory left to see Ash, and Reese crossed to the other treatment room.

Just as she was about to knock on the door, Bri barreled in from the reception area. She looked like she’d just jumped out of the shower—

her dark hair was wet and windblown, and she wore threadbare jeans, a faded blue polo shirt, and her motorcycle boots. From the wild look in her eyes, she’d probably rushed over to the clinic after hearing about the cave-in on her police scanner. Reese held up a hand.

“Take it easy. Everybody’s okay.”

“Allie?” Bri asked, panting from her run in from the parking lot.

Reese nodded. “Cuts and bruises. Nothing worse. I was just about to check on her.”

Bri let out a long sigh of relief. “Man, that’s good news. Can I go in with you?”

“Yes.” Reese checked behind her. They were still alone. “I told Carter about Everly. We checked his mother’s house today. No sign of him.”

“Thanks for the heads up.” Bri added casually, “I’m okay with you telling whoever needs to know.”

“Did you talk to Caroline?”

“Not yet. She was just leaving when I got home. I’ll tell her tonight.”

“Don’t wait any longer. There may be nothing to worry about, but make sure she’s careful.”

“Don’t worry. As soon as I leave here, I’ll do it. She’s been with Rica at the gallery all day, so I figured she was safe.”

• 122 •

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“Good enough.” Reese reached for the doorknob on treatment room three. “Let’s go see how your partner’s doing.”

v

“You talked to her?” Allie asked Flynn as she pushed herself up on the side of the stretcher and started buttoning her shirt. Tory had removed the IV and cleared her to go home, but she couldn’t leave until she knew Ash was all right. “She looked okay?”

“She was stable when I talked to her.” Flynn rubbed Allie’s back soothingly. “Awake and asking about you.”

Allie stiffened, resisting the little trill of pleasure that came from just knowing Ash had asked about her. “What did the EMTs say? Is she hurt seriously?”

“I only got a quick report from Sharon, the medic who brought her in, but it sounds like she’s in good shape. She looked it to me.”

“Good,” Allie said briskly. “That’s good.”

Flynn clasped Allie’s hand. “It will probably be a while before Dr.

King is done with the x-rays. Maybe you ought to go home.”

“I feel pretty normal right now.” Allie squeezed Flynn’s hand.

“Thanks for looking after me and making sure I got here okay. I guess I was more shook up than I realized.”

“You had a right to be shook up—you were both really lucky.”

Flynn kissed Allie’s cheek. “When I heard what happened, I was pretty scared.”

Allie forced a laugh, feeling oddly guilty about Flynn’s concern.

After all, the entire debacle had been her fault, and since it happened, she hadn’t been able to think about anything except Ash. Through the whole thing, Flynn had been a rock—supporting her, comforting her, looking after her. “You were great, Flynn. I’m really glad you were there and I really appreciate—”

“I wanted to be there. I want to be here. Don’t thank me,” Flynn murmured, dipping her head to kiss Allie on the lips.

Allie jerked away when she heard the door open. Reese and Bri stood in the doorway. Reese’s face was completely expressionless. Bri smirked ever so slightly.

“Officer Tremont,” Reese said, continuing into the room. “I

• 123 •

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understand Tory has cleared you to leave. I suggest you head home and get some rest. I’m taking you off rotation tomorrow. You’ll be on the desk when you come back the next day. I’ll need your report before that, including anything that you or Ash might have found suspicious in the structure. Can you take care of that while at home?”

“Yes, Sheriff,” Allie said formally, processing the news about desk duty. Was she being reprimanded because she’d screwed up? Probably.

She could’ve gotten Ash killed just because she’d let her personal feelings compromise her judgment, even if for only a few seconds.

Maybe Ash was right all along. Maybe she wasn’t mature enough for anything—a relationship or her job. “I’ll type up the report tonight and e-mail it to you. You’ll have it on your desk by start of first shift tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow by noon will be fine, Tremont,” Reese said. “Take it easy tonight.”

“Thank you, but I want to finish what I started.”

Reese glanced at Bri. “Can you take her home?”