Sworn to Protect (Vows of the Heart) (5 page)

Bethany’s anger faded and fear tried to claw its way back into her heart. She remembered Shanahan’s words, he didn’t trust Lancaster and despite her attraction, she didn’t either. Shanahan had been right, working undercover could change a man. She thought again of Aaron and a cold dread possessed her.

Shanahan had also said Lancaster was her only chance. As protected witnesses, Cordova wanted them both dead. Still, there were so many Cordova had managed to buy off or manipulate. Cordova found ways to hold power over them. His favorite tactic was to threaten their families, just like he had done with her, but her father was gone now. Cordova no longer had any leverage.

Bethany’s gaze fell on the parking garage next to the emergency room entrance. She looked up again at Lancaster as he spoke with a nurse. She instinctively knew escaping his notice would be difficult
, but she might find her opportunity within the insanity of the ER.

“Excuse me,” Lancaster said to the nurse and moved next to Shanahan. The orderlies had succeeded in getting him on the gurney. Another nurse started an IV.

Lancaster pulled Shanahan’s gun from its holster and then took his billfold. He handed the wallet to Bethany. She blinked at it, stunned, then looked at Lancaster as he motioned to a security guard. She again stared at the wallet. Unbelievable! Anyone with any clue – wait a moment. Lancaster had no idea who she was or why she was the DEA’s witness. Her hands moved of their own accord.

The security guard, a man in his late forties, stepped forward. Lancaster gazed at him a moment. He was armed. “You a rent a cop?”

The man shook his head. “Police. The hospital has a contract with the city to have us work security for a little overtime pay. It helps when you’ve got three girls and one hell of an alimony check to worry about.”

Lancaster’s lips twitched and he handed the gun over. “Secure this sidearm. Call your buddies at the PD because I want an armed officer posted at this marshal’s door twenty-four, seven. No doubt you are about to be invaded by the U.S. Marshal Service at any moment, but until then your people are responsible for his safety.”

“You got it, Mister,” the man said and took the weapon. He pulled out his cell phone.

The orderlies pushed the stretcher inside. Lancaster reached out, grabbed Bethany’s arm and hurried after them.

“Sir,” the nurse called, trying to catch up with him. “I need more information.”

Lancaster held his hand out to Bethany expectantly. She smiled sweetly and handed the wallet back to him. He opened it, showing Shanahan’s badge and I.D. to the nurse, then gave the wallet to her. She clipped it onto her board and wrote quickly.

Still gripping Bethany’s arm, Lancaster followed the gurney into the emergency room. He stood back and watched the nurses and doctors descend on Shanahan. The chaos was absolute, but also strangely organized. Bethany gazed at Shanahan’s pallid face. God, he looked awful.

“Please let him be okay,” she whispered.

The orderlies pushed Shanahan into a triage room and the nurse made Lancaster stop, closing the door. He leaned against the wall and peered into the small window in the door.

The two orderlies left and moments later so did the nurse. Lancaster released Bethany’s arm and stepped quickly into the room. Just like that, she found herself alone in the hall. She wavered
, uncertain what to do.

Bethany glanced in the window. Lancaster gripped Shanahan’s shoulder and leaned over him, whispering something in his ear. The man’s strained features instantly relaxed and his eyelids fluttered.

She felt an icy chill skitter down her spine, the hairs on the back of her neck stood upright and her skin prickled. The ER became as cold as a meat locker. Fear clamped its bony fingers around her heart. She looked down the busy corridor.

Aaron’s ghost stood in the middle of the mayhem, slightly translucent. But no one else reacted to him. A doctor wearing scrubs put his surgical mask
on and walked right through the spirit.

Horror possessed her. Bethany’s feet started moving before she realized what she was doing. She sprinted for the door. An inattentive orderly pushed a surgical cart into her path. She dodged, grabbed the cart and tossed it to the floor. The loud crash didn’t block out Aaron’s cadaverous scream
.

****

The sound of metal hitting the floor sent fear through Ethan and straightened his spine. Shit! He had left Bethany at the door. He had expected her to follow him in, especially after admonishing her to stay close. It was a rookie mistake – one he shouldn’t have made. Cursing himself for his stupidity, he stood to the side of the door and peered through the window. He saw a couple of orderlies looking at each other in confusion. A startled nurse stared out the door of the ER. A doctor wearing scrubs and a surgical mask over his face ran past Ethan and towards the door, but there was something about his clothing that caught Ethan’s attention. The green scrubs bunched then tightened at the small of his back as he ran, and when they tightened, Ethan spotted the outline of a gun shoved into his waistband.

Fuck! He drew his
Colt and took off after the fake doctor.

Ethan charged through the sliding doors and hesitated looking left then right. He saw no sign of Bethany
, but he caught a glimpse of the fake doctor, now with gun in hand, running toward the parking garage. Ethan sprinted after him, but he had quite a head start.

Ethan entered the garage and lost sight of the
fake doctor for a moment. He suddenly understood why he was still on medical leave. He felt dizzy and short of breath. His lungs ached. A shot echoed through the garage. Ethan swore violently and sprinted off again. Because of the acoustics, it was impossible to tell where the shot came from. He ran past parked cars, the incline sapping the last of his endurance. Then Ethan spotted the fake doctor. He stood near a large Suburban, pointing his gun between cars.

Hell, Bethany had probably tried to hide and the fake doctor had found her. Ethan lifted his weapon
. Dragging a deep breath into his tortured lungs and slowly exhaling, he fired.

The doctor collapsed just as the brake lights on the Sub
urban flared. The engine roared to life and the vehicle flew backwards, tires screeching. It spun around, facing Ethan. What the hell?

Shots
from behind him zinged off the pavement next to Ethan’s feet. He dove to the right, hit the cement hard and rolled, now facing the entrance to the garage. Two more men wearing suits and carrying guns ran toward him. A dark sedan entered the garage and stopped, the doors opening and two more men pointed guns at him. Shit! These guys were definitely Cordova’s goons. No doubt they knew Shanahan had been injured and Ethan would have no choice but to take him to the nearest hospital.

The Suburban’s engine roared. Tires skidded. The vehicle slid around and stopped in front of him, now facing the opposite direction. The passenger door opened.

“Get in!” Bethany cried.

“Holy shit! How in the hell
—”

Bullets struck the back of the Suburban. Ethan dove in. Bethany floored it before he could close the door. She turned sharply, the massive vehicle barely clearing the cement walls as she rocketed up to the next level. Ethan nearly flew back out the door
, but managed to close it before it hit a wall.

“Fuck! You’re going the wrong way,” Ethan barked.

“No shit, Sherlock! Fasten your seatbelt.”

He noticed she already had hers on. “What
—”

“Fasten your fucking seatbelt before I send you through the windshield.”

“Hell,” he muttered, but quickly secured the belt.

The Suburban’s engine roared and they caught air as they hit the second floor of the garage. The cement wall ahead drew closer impossibly fast. Bethany was doing close to 50, they’d never make the turn. She was going to kill him at this rate.

But Bethany hit the brakes and turned the wheel, the vehicle slowed and suddenly the Suburban was in a controlled drift around the corner. Ethan’s eyes widened, he glanced over and noticed she drove with one foot on the brake and the other on the gas. Her hands turned the steering wheel sharply, but also with experience and control, not in a violent panic.

Next to them, a small cement walkway separated the passage leading to the exit. Bethany waited until the vehicle straightened before she jerked the wheel to the left. The Suburban jumped over the walkway, bouncing violently. Ethan would have hit his head on the roof if it hadn’t been for his seatbelt. She again slid the Suburban around to point the right direction. Ethan glanced out the window at the cement wall, less than an inch away.

Bethany floored it, but this time they headed out of the parking garage. She blew through the wooden arm blocking the gate, sending splinters flying, and turned onto a city street.

A few minutes later, Ethan looked back
, but no one pursued them. Bethany continued to drive like a bat-out-of-hell, never traveling in a straight line for more than two blocks.

“Okay, ease up! We’re good!”

She didn’t look at him or back off the gas, her focus remained solely on the road in front of her. Only then did he notice her face was still gray, her breath came in rapid gasps and her knuckles were white on the steering wheel.

“Bethany,” he said, trying to keep his voice soft. “Bethany
, it’s okay.” Gently, he gripped her arm. “They didn’t follow us.”

She sucked in a ragged breath and looked at him, her green eyes wild with terror.

“Slow down, sweetheart, we don’t want to get pulled over.”

She again tried to steady her breathing
,but lifted her foot from the gas until the Suburban slowed to the speed limit.

“Jesus, Bethany, that was some driving,” he said, genuinely impressed. He had been trained for high speed pursuits
, but he wouldn’t have been able to pull off what she had just done.

“Thanks,” she said
, but her voice was soft…too soft.

“You okay?”

Bethany shook her head.

“Do you want me to drive?”

She shook her head, but then abruptly nodded.

Okay - that made no sense.

She pulled over to the curb, unfastened her seatbelt and climbed out of the driver’s seat. Ethan also stepped out, moving in front of the Suburban. She passed him, her hand on the hood, but as she reached the curb, she doubled over and started retching.

“Aw hell,” Ethan muttered. He gripped her shoulder. “Bethany, what’s wrong?” Ethan frowned. He felt her body shaking violently. Bethany stood up, wiped her mouth and leaned against the car. Ethan feared she might collapse.

“I can’t do this,” she whispered. “It feels like I can’t breathe.”

Somehow, Bethany found the chink in his armor. Ethan’s heart twisted at her suffering. He hauled her into his arms and held her tight against his chest.

“It’s okay,” he whispered. Ethan tucked her head against his neck, savoring the feel of her. This time she didn’t fight, but folded her body against his. “We’ll get through this, Bethany,” he murmured into her hair.

She nodded and he noticed her shaking eased.

“We gotta keep moving, sweetheart. You gonna be okay?”

She nodded again and rubbed her eyes. Ethan realized she wiped away tears. He didn’t want to release her
, but knew they couldn’t sit here. He walked her around to the passenger side of the car and helped her get in. Ethan closed the door and hurried around to the driver’s side.

Even though the car was still running, he automatically reached for the keys. Ethan stopped when his hand fell on a metal bar sticking out of the ignition.

“Bethany,” he asked, trying to keep the worry from his voice. “What did you do?”

“Duh…I boosted it.”

He stared at her in shock.

“What? Did you think I conjured the keys out of thin air?”

“No, I thought you got lucky and found a vehicle with the keys left in it.”

She snorted softly. “You have no idea.”

“Enlighten me.” But he had a feeling he already knew. With the driving ability he had just witnessed, plus the fact she had been able to steal the car so quickly with bullets flying…shit! He pulled away from the curb.

“You know I was with Cordova’s operation in Los Angeles.”

“That’s where he was running drugs. Shit, Bethany, I had you pegged for a chick with a minor coke habit and a taste in bad-boys. Now you’re telling me you’re a professional car thief.”

“If you’re going to
assume
, at least you got the bad-boy part right,” she muttered.

“You slept with Cordova?”

“I said bad-boys, not assholes. Cordova is the biggest asshole I’ve ever met. But you’re moving into a close second.” She glared at him, but there were still tears in her eyes.

For some reason
, her comment struck him as funny. He found himself chuckling. She gave as good as she got. He stopped at a red light and glanced down at the ignition again. “But you had tools for this?”

“I keep them sewn into the lining of my jacket,” Bethany said and showed him the small opening. He saw a brief spark of metal before she returned the lining to its place. “Just like I’ve learned to keep my wallet in my back pocket rather than carry a purse. You never know when something like today might happen. You have to get out fast and don’t have time to grab everything.” A large tear dripped down her cheek. “But I’ve never had anyone shooting at me.”