Page 84 of Shattered By the Currents

Argh. Why had she driven around for an hour before checking into her motel? If she’d just gone straight there, she wouldn’t be a suspect.

Were they going to arrest her? Was she going to go to prison for a crime she didn’t commit?

Her breaths started to shorten, her heart beating loudly in her ears.

Breathe, Raven. Just breathe.

The door burst open, and she shot her gaze up to see Ward stepping into the small room.

“All right, we’re done.”

She straightened. “I can go home?”

“Unless you have something more to tell us?” He stared her down like he was trying to break her.

At this point, she was too exhausted to care about the judgment. She shook her head.

“Well, come on then,” he huffed.

She stood, and a wave of dizziness almost had her stumbling, but she locked her knees.

She followed Ward down a hall, and the second she saw Connor, air rushed from her lungs. She forgot about the headache. About the exhaustion. About the day from hell.

She barely glanced at his face before melting into his chest. “Thank God you’re here.”

“Are you okay?”

“I am now.”

When she stepped away, he studied her face. “Are you okay to drive?”

“I’m pretty tired. Can I just go with you, and we’ll pick up my car later?”

He nodded.

She signed some forms the receptionist put in front of her, then Connor took her hand and led her toward his truck. The second she was in the passenger seat, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. Images of Lottie once again tried to fill hermind, tightening her chest, but she dug her nails into her thighs, the pain a good distraction.

The low rumble of Connor’s engine vibrated beneath her as he pulled out of the parking lot.

“Will you tell me what happened?” he asked quietly.

She turned to look at him. His jaw was set tight, like he was angry. She was angry too, but the exhaustion was winning right now. “There isn’t much to tell. I forgot about a Zumba session Lottie had organized, so I got there late. Lottie’s bag was by the door, so I assumed she got there early and let herself in. But then I opened the office door and…well, that’s where I found her.”

“I’m sorry, Raven.”

“Me too.”

She leaned her head back and closed her eyes again. When they reached his house, she was already dreaming about bed. But first she needed to clean the smell of the station off her. “I might have a shower if that’s okay.”

“Of course.”

Her brows flickered, and for the first time she noticed something about his voice. It was too flat. Kind of distant. “Areyouokay?”

“Just worried about you.”

She nodded, too tired to push.

Upstairs, she had the longest, hottest shower of her life. When she got out of the bathroom, toast and soup were sitting on the bedside table. She had half a piece of toast and a few sips of the soup, but that was all she could stomach.