Page 37 of Unhinged

The cop must’ve read her thoughts because he nodded. “Tomorrow would be fine.”

She shot him an appreciative glance. “Thank you. I’ll be there tomorrow afternoon.”

Dropping his hand away, Luke directed his attention back to the officers. “Building was clear. Would you like to take a look around anyway?”

Both officers nodded and Luke turned to her. “Will you stay with the medics, show them back to the lobby?”

At her nod, he lightly ran his fingers down her arm. “I’ll meet you down there in a few minutes.”

One of the officers passed her the purse she’d dropped earlier, as well as Audrey’s, then the men ambled away. A vibration came from inside one of the bags, but she ignored the phone’s persistent alert. She walked with the paramedics to the elevator and rode down to the ground floor. The phone vibrated again as she stepped into the lobby, and she dug through her purse, looking for her phone.

Just as the medics wheeled Audrey outside and loaded her into the waiting ambulance, she pulled her phone free. Several missed calls lit the screen, all from Andrew. It rang again as she was holding it, but she hit the button to silence it. She’d call him back later, once Audrey was taken care of. Luke and the officers exited the stairwell, and she’d just taken a step forward when a man tore through the front door of the building.

“Hannah!”

She offered Andrew a weak smile as he strode toward her. “What happened? I’ve been calling and calling.”

“I know.” She held up the phone. “I’m fine, but someone attacked Audrey in her office.”

His eyes widened. “God. Is she okay?”

“I don’t know.” She drew in a shaky breath. “I have to go to the hospital with Audrey. I have all of her stuff.”

“Of course.” He looped an arm around her shoulders. “Come on, I’ll take you.”

He tugged her toward the doors, and she threw an apologetic glance over her shoulder at Luke. His watchful eyes were pinned on Andrew’s hand where it rested on her shoulder, looking very much like he wanted to rip the other man to shreds.

Muscles tight with tension, mouth set in a grim line, Luke’s eyes slowly slid over to meet hers. He searched her eyes, and she gave a slight shake of her head. His lips turned down in a frown as she allowed Andrew to pull her outside, and she let out a sigh. She’d have a lot of explaining to do later.

CHAPTER

SIXTEEN

Hannah shifted again in the uncomfortable vinyl chair and let out a little sigh. Thoughts spun through her mind as she tried to piece together what had happened and why anyone would want to hurt Audrey.

The logical suspect was Scott, but was he really so upset with Audrey over their impending divorce that he’d stoop to hurting her? It was a possibility, she supposed. It would save him a lot of time and money in legal fees. Then there was the life insurance. Without kids, Scott would surely be her beneficiary.

She peered through her eyelashes across the hospital waiting room where Scott sat jiggling a leg restlessly. He looked anxious, worried, but he’d always been good at concealing his true emotions. He’d played the doting husband for years before Audrey had caught him with another woman. Maybe he was a better liar than anyone knew. She’d heard about their argument yesterday morning. Could Scott actually be responsible for this?

Andrew drummed his fingers on his thigh, and she turned to look at him. “You don’t have to stay, you know. I can call a cab.”

“No, no.” He shook his head. “I’m not leaving you here all alone after everything you’ve been through today.”

She sighed. “Audrey’s the one who’s hurt, not me.”

He crossed one foot over the other. “I’m sure they’ll take good care of her.”

“You didn’t see her, Andrew. She’s lucky to be alive right now.” She rubbed her arms to dispel the chill that had crept down her spine. If it wasn’t Scott, then who could’ve done something so horrible?

The door to the waiting room swung open, emitting a doctor clad in blue scrubs. “Are you Audrey Stanton’s family?”

Hannah jumped from the chair and strode toward the doctor, anxiety gnawing at her insides. Before she could open her mouth, Scott jumped in. “Is she okay? How bad is it?”

“She has a mild concussion, which is to be expected, and she received seventeen stitches for the laceration on her forehead. The X-ray showed no broken bones, but we’ll want to do a CT scan to make sure there are no internal injuries. She’s being prepped now, so we should have an answer in an hour or so. Barring that, she should make a full recovery.”

“Thank God!” Relief washed over Hannah, and she watched as Scott laced his fingers behind his head and bent at the waist. She laid a gentle hand on his back, and he straightened, turning his gaze to hers, tears swimming in his eyes. Whatever she suspected him of evaporated at that moment, and she pulled him in for a quick hug.

“She’ll be fine,” she whispered. “I know she will.”