15. Gage
15
Gage
We were sitting in the hospital room chairs when Lori’s dad entered, the nurse close behind him.
“Did you see anything?” Lori asked eagerly, her voice tinged with concern.
“Yes,” Eddie said, settling into the chair beside her. “The doctor said it’s a miracle I got that scan. They found a small spot of cancer on my pancreas.”
Lori gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. “Oh my God, Dad. What did the doctor say about it?”
“He said I’m one lucky guy because pancreas cancer doesn’t usually show many symptoms. I’ve already called my doctor and scheduled an appointment for Wednesday. I’ll need to head back home today to start dealing with it.” Eddie paused, his face softening. “I need to give Jasper a big kiss for barking at me. He might’ve saved my life.”
“That’s incredible,” Lori said, her eyes welling up. “I’ll keep Jasper here with me. I’m leaving in a couple of days, so you don’t have to worry about him being by himself while you take care of yourself.”
Eddie nodded. “That’s a good idea. I was already worried about him. He really is an angel sent from heaven.”
“He sure is,” I added.
Eddie glanced at Lori. “Are you coming to my house when you’re discharged?”
“No,” Lori said, smiling. “I’m going to Gage’s place for a few days—or maybe a week. Who knows, it could be longer.” She giggled, and I couldn’t help but chuckle along with her.
“That’s a great idea,” Eddie said, turning to me. “Where do you live?”
“I’m in Carlsbad, California,” I replied. “Not far from you guys. You and Lori can keep in touch by phone, and if you need surgery, we’ll come to be with you.”
“I’m glad you’re close,” Eddie said. “I guess I’d better gather up Sammy and head home.”
“Why do you need to gather me up?” Sammy said, walking in with a curious look.
“We’re leaving,” Eddie replied.
“What did the test show?”
“I’ll tell you in the car,” Eddie said. “Let’s grab our things from the hotel. Jasper is staying with Lori.” He turned back to Lori and bent down to kiss her on the forehead. “I’ll see you in a few days, sweetheart.”
“Take care of yourself, sis. I love you,” Sammy said, leaning down to hug her.
“I love you guys, too,” Lori replied softly.
I watched as her family left. Lori’s eyelids began to droop, exhaustion taking over. A few hours later, her dad called to let us know they’d made it home safely.
Lori stirred, her hand patting the bed. “Come here,” she murmured. “There’s plenty of room.”
I wasn’t sure about that, but I wasn’t going to turn her down. Kicking off my shoes, I climbed in next to her, wrapping her gently in my arms. Holding her felt right, like this was exactly where I was meant to be. As I drifted off, I felt Jasper jump onto the foot of the bed. I chuckled softly as sleep claimed me.
When I woke up, Lori’s bright eyes were on me, and she smiled.
“This is perfect,” she said. “My man and my dog in bed with me.”
“Am I your man?” I asked, grinning.
“I hope so,” she said shyly.
“Then that’s what I am,” I replied. “And you’re my woman.”
“I like the sound of that,” she said, beaming. Then she glanced at Jasper. “I think someone needs to go potty.”
Chuckling, I got up and took Jasper outside to the dog park. As I waited for him to do his business, I felt eyes on me. Turning, I saw a man and three kids watching from a distance.
I walked over to them. “Can I help you?”
The man’s voice was heavy with emotion. “My wife—their mom—was one of the women those monsters killed. They also took our dog. That’s him, right there.”
Before he could say more, Jasper turned and ran toward them. He leaped onto the boy and girl, his tail wagging furiously. They were all crying, even Jasper.
“Come inside and meet Lori,” I said, my throat tight. “Jasper saved her life—and her father’s. He’s an incredible dog.”
The family followed me into Lori’s room, where she looked up and smiled.
“Sweetheart,” I said gently, “Jasper belongs to this family. Their wife and mom was one of the victims.”
Lori’s expression softened as she held out her hand. All three of them rushed to her, wrapping her in a hug. “I’m so sorry,” she said, her voice trembling. “Jasper saved my life twice.”
The young girl looked up at her. “How did you know his name?”
“What? Are you saying his name is Jasper?” Lori asked, her eyes widening. “Nothing about him surprises me. I love him so much. But I can see how much he loves your family. You’re so lucky to have him. I’m so sorry about your mom and wife. Do you know how many women have been found?”
“Twenty-three,” the man said solemnly. “Where did Jasper find you?”
“Under the house, I found a trap door,” Lori said, her voice steady but haunted. “It was so dark, but then I felt something brush my skin and then a dog lick my face. He showed me how to get out. After that, they found me again, and I was shot in the back. Jasper found Gage and the others and led them to me.”
“It’s all over now,” the man said, his tone heavy with relief. “The guy is dead, and now we can bury my wife. And we’ve got Jasper back. We’re so happy you escaped.”
“Thank you,” Lori replied softly.
Both teenagers hugged Lori goodbye, and Jasper jumped up, licking her face one last time. Lori’s voice wavered as she said, “Goodbye, boy. Thank you for being mine for a short time. I love you.”
When they left, Lori’s composure broke. She sobbed for their mother, for Jasper’s family, and for all the women who had died at the hands of that monster. I wrapped her in my arms, holding her close as she let it all out.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I swear I’m done crying. It’s just so heartbreaking to think about all those poor women.” Her voice cracked, and she shook her head as if trying to clear the horrible images. “I know they suffered. He told me he made sure they felt a lot of pain.”
I cupped her face gently, looking into her tear-filled eyes. “Don’t think about him anymore. You’ve been through enough. He’s gone, and no one will ever hurt you again. I’m here for you—for as long as you want me. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
Lori exhaled slowly as if letting go of the weight she carried. “I’m ready to go home. The doctor said I could leave today. I need to stop by my house and pack a bag. Can we do that?”
“Of course. Do you need to wait for the doctor to sign you out?”
“He already did while you were out. I was going to get dressed when you came in. I’ll change now, and then we can leave. Sammy brought me some clothes, but I’m not sure where they are—oh, here they are, in the closet. I’ll be ready in a minute.”
“Take your time,” I said, watching as she disappeared into the bathroom.
As I glanced around, I noticed a bag on the floor that hadn’t been there before. Curious, I picked it up and opened it. My breath caught. What the hell? I quickly shut the bag and tucked it under my arm. I needed to hide it from Lori until I figured out what was going on. The contents made my stomach churn— hair stained with what looked like dried blood.
“I’m ready,” Lori said, stepping out of the bathroom. She smiled, the simple act lighting up the room. “It feels good to have my own clothes on again.”
“You look beautiful,” I said, leaning in to kiss her. “Are they bringing a wheelchair for you to leave the hospital?”
“Let’s just sneak out,” she said, laughing lightly. “Maybe they’ll forget about the wheelchair.”
I chuckled, wrapping an arm around her as we walked out of the hospital. But my mind kept returning to the bag. I needed to get it to the team and have it tested. The hair looked real, but who would plant something like that—and why?
“What’s that?” Lori asked, pointing to the bag under my arm.
I hesitated. Should I tell her the truth? Taking a deep breath, I met her gaze. “I found this bag in your room. I think someone left it there for you to find, but I don’t know who.”
“What’s in it?” she asked, her brow furrowing.
“It looks like red hair,” I said carefully.
She stopped abruptly, staring at me. “Red hair? This has to be some sick joke. Who would do that?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “Was anyone in your room while I was gone?”
“The nurses changed shifts, and there were a couple of different ones in and out. Maybe when I was in the shower, someone came in. But who would do something like this?”
Her hand shot out, grabbing my arm. Her voice dropped to a whisper. “That killer told me he pulled all of his wife’s hair out before he killed her. He said he followed me for two hundred miles because my hair reminded him of hers.”
My chest tightened. “Let’s get in the car,” I said, leading her to the passenger seat. “I’m going to take a few detours to see if anyone’s following us. If someone is watching, we need to know where they’re going.”
Lori’s voice trembled. “If someone is watching, they might go after my sister. We have to figure this out. Were there more of them? Is that his dead wife’s hair? I’m scared, Gage.”
I reached over and took her hand, squeezing it tightly. “Scoot closer to me,” I said, patting the space next to me. “I won’t let anyone near you. You’re safe with me.”
She slid across the seat, leaning into me.
“We’ll get this to Sean,” I said, trying to sound reassuring. “He’ll take it in and see if they can pull DNA. If it’s real, we’ll know more soon.”
“Who’s Sean?” she asked.
“He’s an assistant on our team—brilliant guy. Laney referred him to us. She knew him when they were in the foster care system together. Laney’s married to Gideon.”
Lori frowned. “But what if someone intercepts him? What if they run him off the road or kill him to get it? I don’t want anyone dying because of me.”
“Sean can handle himself,” I said firmly. “We’ll take precautions. Right now, the important thing is keeping you safe. That’s all I care about.”
“Lori, this is our job. We all know how to take care of ourselves and those we are protecting. I don’t want you to worry. I know what we are doing, and we will first get this hair tested.”
“Do you see anyone following us?” Lori asked. I looked in my rearview mirror and didn’t see anything.
“If they follow us, they’ll wait until they see which way we turn onto the freeway. I want you to relax. I’m going to call River.”
“Hello, how’s it going?”
“Something strange came up when we were about to leave the hospital. Lori was changing when I noticed a bag on the floor in her room. I picked it up and looked inside. It looks like hair with blood on it. Red hair. Lori said the serial killer told her he pulled all of his wife’s hair out. His wife had red hair.”
“Bring it here, and we’ll have it tested,” River said.
“Lori is scared that he might go for her sister, who has two girls. She just left here yesterday. Is there anyone who can protect her?”
“Yes, I’ll have Oliver protect her. Where does she live?”
I gave him the address. “Lori will call her sister and tell her what’s going on. Their dad is having a procedure, so if he can get there before that, that would be great. I don’t know who is doing this, but let’s take no chances.”
“I agree. Are you coming here?”
“First, we are going to see if we are being followed. If we are, I’ll lose them; this is so strange because we know the three men who attacked Lori are dead. Are there more than three killers? I’ll see you later today.”
“This really is strange. Did you call the FBI?” River asked.
“No, because I don’t know who brought the bag to her room. I’ll give you a call if we are being followed. If we are, it will be late tonight when we get there. Can you ensure the DNA test on the hair gets done fast?”
“I’ll have everything taken care of on this end. Be careful. Keep your eyes open. I’ll call Oliver now.”
“Thanks, River.” I turned the phone off and felt better, letting my team know what was happening.
“Is there someone always ready to do a job?”
“We have all been busy; sometimes, we do back-to-back jobs. We have others joining us soon. The Army Special Forces has men who have been through everything you can imagine. We have saved so many service people and civilians. Sometimes, when we first get out of the service, it’s hard to return to regular day-to-day life, but it’s something we do. It’s just that our day-to-day job is to protect and rescue people.”
“Tell me about Oliver. Is he nice to kids?”
“Yes, Oliver is nice to everyone and will keep them safe. You don’t have to worry about Sammy and her girls.”
“Good, what a relief. We have to find out who put that bag in my room. This is crazy. Thank you for helping me.”
“This is the only place I want to be.”