Chapter 9
The man’s voice reached them through the side door that had been left open.
“Stay behind me,” Tanner ordered as they rushed back inside to see what was going on.
Everyone seemed to be gathered around the backdoor that led out to the alley and dumpsters.
But with so many people blocking the way, it was impossible to see anything more than their backs and the tops of their heads.
“Tanner, it’s Ethan,” Margot’s voice cut through the others as she rushed over to them.
“I asked him to take out the garbage on his way out, but I forgot to give him the recycle, so I went after him. I was less than a minute behind him, but he was already hurt. Milo is calling for an ambulance, but there’s so much blood. ”
April’s heart sank at the woman’s words. She didn’t trust Officer Ethan Sinclair, but she’d never wanted anything bad to happen to him.
“Stay right here,” Tanner ordered her, then pushed his way through the crowd until he reached what must’ve been Ethan lying on the ground near the dumpster.
Tanner dropped to his knees, and a tense hush came over the crowd.
“Ethan, can you hear me? Everyone take two large steps back,” Tanner ordered the small crowd that had formed around them. “Give me some room.”
As soon as everyone moved, April got a better look at Ethan. His white t-shirt was soaked with blood and there was a pool of it forming on the ground beside him.
April handed her smoothie to Margot and made her way through the crowd.
She was no medical professional, but she knew basic first aid, and she wasn’t about to stand on the sidelines when there was a chance she could help Tanner save this man’s life.
Sirens sounded in the distance, but Ethan couldn’t wait.
She kneeled at Ethan’s other side and looked to Tanner for direction. “What can I do?”
“Looks like he’s been stabbed.” Tanner pulled off his shirt, wadded it up, and pressed it against the gaping wound on Ethan’s side. “Hold this down. Apply pressure to slow the bleeding.”
April swallowed hard at the sight of Tanner’s ripped torso on full display for everyone to see, but she quickly did as she was told.
The moment she applied pressure to the wound, Ethan grunted.
“I’m sorry. I’m only trying to help. Paramedics are on their way.
” She tried to sound reassuring, but he was already so pale.
If help didn’t get here soon, it wouldn’t matter what she said. Ethan was going to die.
Then Ethan suddenly went still. Tanner placed his index and middle fingers to his neck, checking for a pulse. “I can’t find a pulse,” Tanner said a moment later. “Keep applying pressure. I need to start CPR.”
April moved her arms slightly to give Tanner better access to Ethan’s chest. Tanner counted the compressions out loud as he did them until paramedics and several police officers arrived a few minutes later.
She watched as the paramedics cut off Ethan’s shirt and applied electrodes to his chest. “Clear!” One of them yelled, and Ethan’s body arched off the ground, then fell back.
The second paramedic felt the side of his neck.
“Got a pulse.” Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief as one of the paramedics cleaned and bandaged his wound, while the second paramedic started an IV.
“Is he going to make it?” April asked no one in particular.
One of the paramedics, the one who’d just finished dressing the wound, turned to look at her. “Your boyfriend probably saved his life by starting CPR, so he’s got a chance. We’ll get him to the hospital. Then it’s out of our hands.”
“He’s not my boyfriend,” April said, but quickly wondered if that was the wrong thing to say.
She hadn’t forgotten what Tanner had told her in the garden, but still, she didn’t want him to feel pressured.
Since he worked in law enforcement, there was a good chance he knew these people or had at least worked with them before.
This wasn’t the time or place to make any kind of announcements.
When she turned to assess Tanner’s response, he didn’t seem to have one, or maybe he hadn’t heard her over the commotion.
How had everything gone so wrong? She’d just been outside with Tanner, talking about gardening, thinking about Violet planting strawberries. And then there was that kiss. Her body still tingled just thinking about it.
Tanner seemingly materialized at her side then, and she found herself leaning into him. “He’ll pull through. Ethan is a tough guy. He’s survived worse,” Tanner said. “Thanks for your help. Are you okay?”
She met his gaze, worried more about Tanner than herself. “I’m fine.” Her voice was shaky, but she was unharmed. “Who would do that to him?” Even as the question formed on her lips, April realized she likely knew exactly who was behind all this.
“I don’t know,” Tanner said. “But you can be sure I’m going to find out. Right now, I need to get to the hospital. I want to be there when he wakes up. These officers can take everyone’s statements. They know how to get a hold of me if I’m needed.”
“I’ll go with you,” April said without giving it a second thought.
Tanner took her hand in his, and April couldn’t help noticing they both had Ethan’s blood on their hands. “You don’t have to do that.”
“I want to,” she assured him. “Ethan’s your friend. I want to be there for you. I want to help.” She wasn’t sure exactly how she could help besides telling Tanner the truth about his friend. But she also didn’t want Tanner to be alone right now.
“April,” he sounded like he was about to refuse her, but then nodded. He led her to the restrooms, where she washed her hands, and did her best to clean up and look refreshed. Tanner had also gone to wash and clean up in the men’s room, then met her just outside a few minutes later.
At his vehicle, he reached into his backseat for a gym bag, pulled out a clean shirt, and put it on before opening the passenger door for her.
He patiently helped her inside and waited for her to buckle her seatbelt, then closed her door and rushed around to the driver’s side.
Keying the ignition, he fastened his own seatbelt and pulled out of the parking spot.
Before she knew it, they were zooming down the road, lights and sirens.
It was both exhilarating and a little scary.
“His sister. That's why he became a cop.” Tanner’s voice was marred with tension and sadness. But mostly, so much anger. “He wanted to find the bastard who took her. Killed her.”
“They never did?” April asked.
Tanner shook his head. “No. Ethan is the straightest arrow I know. The best cop I know. He must’ve really pissed someone off…”
“A murderer?” April suggested.
“What?” Tanner glanced at her before turning his gaze back to the road.
“You mentioned he helps out in homicide.”
Tanner sighed. “He does, but it’s complicated.” It sounded like Tanner wanted to say more, but when he didn’t, April knew she had to make a choice.
If she believed Tanner’s version of who this Ethan guy was, then how could he work for Ned, and why would he have pulled her over in that Uber?
But if Tanner was wrong about his friend, then he could be in real danger.
After all the time she’d spent with him, the idea of someone hurting Tanner made her stomach hurt and her chest tighten.
“Does it have something to do with Ned Dynam?”
The speed with which Tanner’s head jerked to look at her, and then back to the road, suggested Tanner knew exactly what she was talking about. “What do you know about him?”
April swallowed, hard. The right answer to that question right now would be nothing.
But she’d been trying to do the right thing for three years, and where had that gotten her?
Nowhere. If she was going to trust anyone, it was going to be Tanner.
And it had to be right now, because they were going to be pulling up to the hospital in less than two minutes at the speed they were going.
“I know that Ned Dynam has half the Dallas police force in his pocket. I know he pays them to do his dirty work, or turn the other way so he can get away with whatever he wants.”
Tanner’s eyes got almost comically big. “How? How do you know this, April?”
“Because I work for him. The little girl I nanny for is his stepdaughter.”
Tanner pulled into an empty spot in front of the emergency room. “Dynam told you about the payoffs?”
“No, of course not. But Ethan is…” April knew what she was about to say would likely hurt Tanner since he seemed to trust the guy, but Tanner needed to know.
“What?” Tanner asked impatiently.
“He’s one of the officers on his payroll, Tanner. I’m sorry. I just thought you should know. Ned is no one to mess around with and the last thing I want is for you to get involved, or worse, get hurt.”
Tanner stared at her for a long moment. “What makes you think Ethan is on his payroll?”
“Because I saw him. He and another officer pulled over my Uber a few weeks ago. Ned has officers do that sometimes just to mess with me. To show me that he’s always in control. No matter where I am or who I’m with.”
“Ethan wouldn’t do that,” Tanner said.
The conviction in his voice was breaking April’s heart. “He recognized me today, just like I remembered him. I don’t know why he did it or what his true intentions were, but it was definitely Ethan that night. And he was…mean.”
“He hurt you?” Tanner asked, surprise and anger rising in his voice.
“No. He didn’t touch me. I never got out of the car. I only rolled down my window about an inch just so he could hear me tell him to get lost.”
Tanner swallowed hard and reached over to take her hand in his. “I don’t know what the hell is going on with him. I thought he was working a case, and that’s why he hasn’t been around much. But maybe… I don’t know. I will figure this out though. Until then, you tell no one about this conversation.”