The Village of Gerard's Cliff (14 page)

"I'm moving in two days to
a small apartment in the village." Allie looked up at
him.

"I know. Tilda told
me..."

A silence fell between
them.

"I'll walk you out." Allie
stood up, and walked ahead of him to the front door.

Allie leaned back against
the door jamb, and looked up at Connor, her arms folded lightly
across her waist. As hard as she tried to fight it, the lethargy
continued to overcome her, making her feel hopeless at times. But
she didn't want Connor to remember her like this. Who knew when she
would see him again? When he pictured her in his head, she wanted
him to remember her as a strong woman who could handle anything. In
the few short days they had spent together, she knew without a
doubt how she felt about him. Strange, she thought, that she could
be married for years to a man she never really knew at all, but in
days, she felt so close to Connor...so connected. She lifted her
chin, straightened up and took a deep breath.

"You have Ben's number,
right?" she shivered, suddenly starting to feel chilled.

"Yes, and I'll call as
often as I can." Connor reached out and rubbed her arms. "I expect
things to be pretty hectic for a while at the office." He searched
her eyes, and she saw the concern there. "Allie are you going to be
alright? I know you're putting on a brave front for everyone. It's
okay to feel the way you are...it's only natural...you've been
through a lot." He folded her into his arms, and she reached around
his broad chest, and leaned into him. She felt him nuzzle her hair.
"I just wish I could do more. I wanted to go back to the inn with
you and see if we could salvage anything." His lips trailed down as
he planted soft, lingering kisses around her ear and neck. She
didn't want this to end...for him to leave. Her hands loosened
around his chest, as he pulled back to look in her eyes. She tried
to hold the tears back, but saw his gentle face descend to hers
through a blur. Tears streamed down her face, as he kissed her. Her
hands moved up to grasp the back of his shoulders, and they held
each other tightly. She could feel the heat from his chest
penetrate and spread through hers, marveling that he could make her
feel this way. He lifted his head, and smiled. She felt his warm
hands come up to cup her face, as he looked lovingly down at her.
She never wanted to forget how he looked at this moment. Looking
back down at her upturned face, Connor lifted his chin slightly,
nodding, as he gazed into her eyes, reassuring her. Allie saw that
his eyes were moist. He bent down to kiss her again, one last
time.

Allie found a space one
block from her new apartment, and parked her blue Dodge. She hopped
out, grabbed the two bags of clothes from the back seat, and walked
briskly down the street toward her new home. The old brick
building, painted a taupe color, with white trim and dark green
shutters appealed to her for several reasons. It was close to the
ocean, the rent was reasonable, and the month to month lease
allowed her to be flexible with her decisions concerning the
inn.

She opened the front door,
and walked up the two flights of stairs. There are advantages to
renting furnished, she thought. Allie unlocked the door to her
apartment, and walked into the small front room. Closing the door
behind her, she placed her bags on the floor, and stood still,
pleased that, at first glance, it looked exactly as the landlord
had described it to her over the phone. She took a deep breath and
looked around her. The refurbished apartment was painted a soft,
golden yellow, with a sofa and chair slip-covered in a co-ordinated
floral pattern. The side tables and other furniture were stained a
dark oak. She could just glimpse a sliver of the ocean through the
back window. The living room led directly to the kitchen, and she
could see a small table to the left of the doorway.

Allie walked over to the
chair next to the back window, and sat down, suddenly aware of the
silence. She turned her head to look at the ocean again, vowing to
explore the beach as soon as she could. Maybe the sight of the
ocean would erase this emptiness that had overtaken her after
Connor had left. Her family in Virginia, full of concern for her,
called often to check on her, and planned on coming up as soon as
she was settled in the apartment. Ben and Tilda did their best to
keep her engaged in conversation. They even accompanied her back to
the ruins of the inn, despite her protests, declaring that it would
be too overwhelming for her to go alone. In truth, she would have
rather gone there with Connor...she had assumed it would be the two
of them, going back together, holding hands as they climbed through
the rubble, looking for whatever could have survived the
fire.

Connor...only two days
since he had reluctantly released her and driven off... and to her
it felt like an eternity. She recalled his beautiful eyes,
reassuring her, as his warm hands cradled her face. He had called
the next night, and she had propped up on Ben's sofa with a glass
of wine, snuggling with the afghan, as they talked for hours. She
couldn't get enough of his warm, deep voice over the phone....as
she pictured him leaning back on his sofa, his legs crossed, an
elbow on the arm rest, and the side of his head resting on his
thumb and forefinger. He had even managed to make her laugh several
times, and she could tell that it pleased him. She knew he wanted
to come back to Gerard's Cliff, but wasn't sure if he could...at
least not until this case had been wrapped up.

Allie picked up the bags
that held her only possessions, and carried them into the bedroom.
She took out the jeans, and pull-over sweater, and other items that
Connor had gotten for her, and placed them in the bureau drawer.
The other bag held the only salvagable pieces from the inn...five
of her blue patterned dishes, and three picture frames. What was
left of the inn would be bulldozed, the land cleared by this time
tomorrow. Then, she would have to make a decision on the next step.
She walked back to the kitchen and stacked the plates on top of the
white ones already in the cupboard. She propped the small,
pictureless frames on the side table in the living room.

She needed to make a list.
After getting the notebook and pen from the bag, she sat down at
the kitchen table, and wrote down everything she needed to buy, for
herself and the apartment. List in hand, she grabbed her coat,
feeling energized, and eager to get on with turning her apartment
into a cozy home. Walking across the living room, she was startled
to hear urgent knocking at her front door. Puzzled, Allie peered
through the peephole, and was surprised to see Tilda's distorted
face. She opened the door.

"Tilda, how sweet of you
to..." Allie started....but Tilda was already in the apartment,
with Ben close behind, his hands around her waist. Allie closed the
door, puzzled, and turned to the couple.

"Now, Allie...you need to
stay calm..." Tilda wrung her hands...looking as if she was going
to burst into tears at any moment. "Ben...you tell her."

"Tell me what?" Panic rose
in her throat and her eyes widened as she turned and stared at Ben.
"What's wrong...tell me!"

"Allie, Connor's been
shot...he's at a hospital in...in..." He turned to Tilda for
help.

"...in Bethesda, Maryland,
sweetie....oh...dear...." Seeing Allie's face turn white, Tilda
grabbed her arm. "He's asking for you, Allie...he's going into
surgery now...his brother called us a few minutes ago and we rushed
over here....oh dear...oh dear." Tilda had tears streaming down her
cheeks.

"He went with a group of
officers to arrest two men, and was ambushed." Ben finished for
her. "It's pretty bad...his family is with him, but he wants
you."

"Ben...can you drive me to
the airport?" Allie felt amazingly calm. They both nodded their
heads, Tilda sniffling, as Allie ran to the phone, dialed the
operator and was connected to the closest airport, a thirty minute
drive, at best. She booked a flight to Washington National Airport,
about eleven miles from Bethesda. "I'll grab my things. The
flight's in an hour. Tilda, do you still have the number his
brother called from?" Tilda nodded and started rifling though her
coat pocket. "Call him back and tell him I'm arriving at 7:30, if
you would. Oh - ask him to tell Connor." As Tilda rushed to the
phone, Allie ran into her room to throw together the little she had
to take with her.

Allie felt numb as they
raced down the stairs....getting to Connor was the only thing on
her mind. The flight was five hours long...then, after a taxi
ride...she figured she should be at the hospital by eight that
night.

The three of them rode in
silence, packed together in the front seat of Ben's old pickup.
After what seemed like an eternity to Allie, Ben pulled in to the
drop-off lane in front of the airport.

"Are you sure we can't
come in with you?"

"No, I'll be fine...I
can't thank you enough." Allie hugged them both, as Tilda's eyes
welled up with tears.

She entered the bustling
airport, and bought her ticket at the desk, relieved to see that
her flight was running on schedule. Allie boarded the plane,
carrying her one small bag, which she set in her lap. She leaned
her head back and closed her eyes, her hand resting over her heart.
The plane taxied, then rose, turning toward the south, Connor, and
her inexorable fears.

"Allie
Colborne?"

Allie swung her head
around in the direction of the deep, male voice. She stopped and
let the other passengers exiting the plane go around her, craning
her neck to find the person calling her. She spied a tall,
dark-haired man and a thin, brunette woman with short, teased hair
motioning to her. Allie squinted her eyes, puzzled, as she walked
toward them.

"Are you Allie?" the woman
spoke this time.

"Yes?"

"I'm Catherine, Connor's
sister-in-law." She smiled, seeming very relieved. "This is
Connor's brother, Mark. We're so glad to meet you, Allie." She
extended her hand.

"How is Connor?" Allie
tried to hold back tears as she shook their hands, hoisting the
strap of her bag over her shoulder with the other.

"He's out of surgery."
Mark took a deep breath. "The doctors said that he was one lucky
guy. The bullet barely missed a major artery. They were just taking
him to recovery, when we left for the airport, so we haven't seen
him yet."

"He was in surgery for
quite a while." Catherine added.

"Thank God." Allie put her
hand to her mouth, and closed her eyes. She blinked back tears.
"Thank you so much for picking me up. I wasn't quite sure where to
go when I got here. I forgot to get the name of the hospital. I
just knew it was in Bethesda."

"I'm surprised at how
quickly you got here, Allie." Catherine patted Allie's arm, as they
headed to the exit. "Connor will be so happy."

Mark chuckled. "I
understand from the doctors that he asked for you 'incessantly'...
I'm quoting them. They probably put him under just so he'd
stop."

Allie laughed, relieved
that Connor had made it through the surgery well enough that his
brother could joke about it. It eased her mind in one sense, and at
the same time, made her even more impatient to get to his
bedside.

"You know, one of the
other agents wasn't so lucky." Catherine shook her head. "He died
at the hospital while we were there."

Allie lowered her head,
knowing it could just as easily have been Connor. She blinked away
the tears, trying to stay calm and focused.

"Allie, you take the front
seat." Catherine had already opened the back door of the station
wagon, and was climbing in. "With two kids, the back seat is always
a mess." Allie nodded and climbed in beside Mark, already feeling
at ease with them. "Connor told us about your inn. We're so very
sorry. It must be devastating for you." Catherine reached out and
put her hand on Allie's shoulder.

Turning to smile at
Catherine, Allie searched for the right answer. This morning she
might have used the word devastating, but now...

"Actually, I would just
say that it was unfortunate. Connor and I got out alive...he's
alive now, and that's all that matters." Allie felt the tears
threatening to overtake her again. "An inn can be replaced, you
know?" Catherine patted her shoulder, as Allie turned, staring at
the lights on the road ahead.

Catherine and Mark kept
the conversation light the rest of the way, recounting humorous
stories about their children. Allie was grateful that they kept her
distracted, and she was sure they understood why she only
half-listened.

Mark pulled in front of
the entrance to the hospital. "You girls go on ahead. I'll park the
car and meet you upstairs."

On the way to the surgery
unit, Catherine filled her in on who she could expect to meet in
the waiting room. She also warned Allie that the surgeons had told
them that there might be some sort of permanent damage from the
gunshot. They would know more once they explored the area during
surgery. Allie nodded, trying to keep herself together for Connor's
sake.

Catherine motioned to the
next room off the hallway, where Allie could hear laughter. "They
let us have the whole waiting room to ourselves, probably because
we're so loud." She laughed and escorted Allie into the room, at
which point the occupants stopped their bantering and turned to
look at her.