CHAPTER TEN
Three more days. Tessa tried not to focus on that number as she made her way across the parking garage to where her car was parked. Her twelve-hour shift had gone over by about two hours, and she was practically dragging her feet. Sleep wasn’t on her agenda, though. Derek was already at her house, most likely sleeping in her bed. She planned on waking him up with a little more than just a kiss.
Tessa wanted to take advantage of every piece of sand left in the hourglass. She never would have thought that her life would have changed so drastically over the last five days. There hadn’t been a moment of her spare time that she hadn’t spent with Derek, and she didn’t regret a single second…not one. He made her laugh at the most foolish things, he warmed her heart with just a smile, and a simple touch from him lit her soul on fire. She was a completely different person, and he’d opened her eyes to what she’d been missing.
Screech!
Tessa’s steps faltered at the high-pitched squeal. The keys in her hand jangled as she quickly palmed them in response. A slice of anger shot through her as piercing fear consumed her body. She hadn’t once thought of Bennett or the events that had happened prior to the reunion, because everything had gone quiet. She’d rationalized that the string of events hadn’t been related at all, just as Derek had done the same after days had gone by without incident.
She now forced herself to even out her breathing as she took in her surroundings, trying to explain away a noise that could have come from anything or anyone in a hurry. No one was around at four o’clock in the morning. Even the security guard was most likely in his booth near the exit. No other sound was heard, and she forced herself to pick up her pace, quickly making her way to the left of the garage where her vehicle was parked in the far row.
It wasn’t surprising that Tessa would be taken off guard at a noise that advertised someone else’s presence. She’d lowered her defenses. She’d spent almost every non-working hour with Derek, who would then in turn spend his time with his family while she was on duty at the hospital. Her schedule had worked out for the both of them, but had it been a detriment to her welfare?
Tessa finally reached her car, immediately pressing the appropriate button on her key fob. The blaring click of the opening locks ricocheted off the other vehicles and around the open space. It was still a somewhat comforting sound. It meant security.
Unfortunately, she wasn’t going to be able to close herself inside her car. She wasn’t going to be able to lock the doors so no one could get inside. She had been so busy looking over her shoulder that she’d been too preoccupied to see what was directly in front of her.
Blood.
Blood was dripping down the side windows of her car, but the red, sticky substance wasn’t what scared Tessa most. It was the one word message left behind that somehow spoke volumes and let her know that she hadn’t been wrong in assuming she was in trouble. She was in danger. And apparently, it was only a matter of time before this person took these somewhat innocent pranks to an entirely different level.
Soon.
* * * *
Derek slammed his car door, frantically searching for the one woman who had literally almost caused his heart to fail. His mother almost had someone else to cry over in a hospital bed. He’d never experienced such panic as when his cell phone rang, answering only to hear Tessa’s terrified voice coming over the line trying to tell him something about blood, her car, and the fact that someone wanted to kill her.
“Tessa!”
Derek had spotted two uniformed police officers and the security guard. He jogged up the small incline, finally catching sight of Tessa’s blue scrubs she’d left for work in yesterday afternoon. Her pale features and the manner in which she was holding herself caused his chest to tighten in a torrent of emotion, but foremost was relief that she was physically unharmed. He didn’t have to make his way through the three men blocking his way, for she had immediately ran forward into his open arms.
“I wasn’t imagining it, Derek,” Tessa whispered in a somewhat stilted tone. She was thrown off balance, but it wouldn’t be long before she developed that fighting spirit he’d seen the night of the reunion. “Someone is after me.”
The driver’s side window confirmed Tessa’s declaration. Soon. What the hell did that mean? The blood had somewhat dried, if it even was blood. It could very well have been paint, but it was in that moment that he’d caught the slightest scent of copper in the air. Damned if it wasn’t blood.
“What do you have?” Derek asked Officer Gusten, who was now facing them with his square features practically set in stone. It was easy to make out his nametag. The other policeman had turned away and was talking into the mic attached to the shoulder of his uniform. Derek held Tessa close as he continued to ask his questions. This had to be resolved before he went back to Afghanistan. “Have you checked the video surveillance?”
“We have,” Gusten confirmed, unclicking his pen so that he could slide it back into the pocket of his uniform. “The incident occurred around ten o’clock last night, right at shift change of the guards. Unfortunately, the perpetrator was dressed in all black and had one of those ski masks covering his or her entire face.”
“His or her? The camera couldn’t even make out a shape?” Derek shot a quick glance over at the security guard, who didn’t appear in the least fazed by the fact that this misconduct had happened at the beginning of his watch. “You can’t tell by the size of the body?”
“The security feed is recorded in black and white, making it hard to decipher the figure of the assailant, especially considering the manner in which the camera was angled.” Officer Gusten tapped the small notepad he held in his hand against his other palm as he addressed Tessa. “Ma’am, I’m aware of the other circumstances you reported over the last month. You mentioned previously you thought Bennett Harris might have something to do with them. Is that still your understanding? We’ll speak with Mr. Harris to confirm his whereabouts last night, but is there anyone else you think could have done this?”
Tessa shook her head, her fingers pressed against her pallid lips. It was all she could do to keep it together, and Derek could sympathize. She’d dealt with this harassment basically on her own for over two weeks, only to have everything stop when they started spending time together. She wouldn’t have expected what had transpired tonight, so she was entitled to be a bit shaken.
“Someone had access to a lot of blood, which would indicate it’s most likely someone from inside this hospital. Could we see the video footage?” Derek inquired, wondering if there was something about the aggressor that Tessa could identify, maybe something in their mannerisms. She was familiar with a good portion of the residents in Catfish Creek. Chances were good, especially considering what had taken place at their high school reunion, both of them knew the identity of her pursuer—someone from their graduating class who worked at the hospital. But why? What could his or her motive be in tormenting Tessa? “There might be something in his or her bearing Tessa recognizes.”
The security guard looked over at Officer Gusten for approval, who was already nodding his head in confirmation. Derek wanted a moment alone with Tessa before they followed behind, so he let them know they would follow along shortly. He then drew Tessa back into his arms, savoring the fact that she hadn’t been hurt and making a silent promise to see to it that it stayed that way.
“I’ve got you, sweetheart,” Derek murmured softly against her temple. “We’ll figure this out quick.”
“Will we?” Tessa asked harshly, resting her forehead against his chest. He rubbed her back as she wrapped her arms around his waist, going over their options. “This person keeps getting closer and closer to me, but I have no idea who they are or what they want.”
She had a point. What did her pursuer want? There had been juvenile incidents with vague threats that amounted to nothing. He and Tessa were missing something vital that could no doubt unravel the reason she was being targeted.
“Let’s go look at the video footage,” Derek insisted as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder, guiding her to where the two officers and security guard were waiting for them. “We’ll then sit down and go over every single detail of what’s happened, mapping it out the way we would process raw intel on an insurgent or terrorist. The answer is right in front of us, Tessa. We just have to look for it.”