Chapter 9
I t took way too long to wrap up things at the accident scene and hand it off to Jenkins. Michelle glanced at the dash clock. It had been an hour and no word from Nick.
“Get out of my way!” Temptation to flip on the lights and siren boiled in her blood. Sometimes it sucked to be a cop. Everyone dropped their speed to exactly the speed limit.
The late nineties Buick finally turned, and Michelle leaned into the accelerator. “It’s about time.”
With the increased speed, she slid into the hospital drop-off area and skidded into the designated police parking.
Slow it down. Even with her self reminder, she fast-walked through the doors and straight to the one open receptionist. “Santa was brought in by the paramedics an hour ago. Can you tell me where he is?”
“Do you have a name?” No break in her calm, professional expression.
“Jolley. Russell Jolley.”
“Are you family?”
Michelle paused. “No.”
“One minute.” The woman’s fingers flew over the keyboard .
Michelle wanted to pace. The itch in her legs had her locking her knees.
“Officer. Mr. Jolley is in surgery. It’s through those doors and follow the signs.”
“Thanks.” Michelle’s steps lengthened. Surgery? Shit.
When she rounded the last corner of the maze that was the hospital corridors, she came to the surgical waiting room… And Nick.
The other people waiting faded into the background. Her full attention locked on the tired man with his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. The urge to cradle him in her arms rushed over her in a wave so strong it could capsize a boat.
For the first time in twenty years, she threw caution to the wind and crossed to him. Without another thought, she dropped down in front of him. His head lifted. Their gazes locked. And a second later, they were holding each other.
She took as much of his worry and pain as she could and pushed her own aside. She didn’t speak, only waited. Nick would talk when he was ready.
He exhaled, hot on her neck.
She shivered.
“He’s in surgery.” He tightened his grip.
The pleasure from his familiar embrace made her frown. She rubbed his back and put a few inches of space between them. He’s hurting. Don’t get confused by his touch.
His strong arms slowly slid from her. The grief in her chest was both real and remembered. She needed more than a few inches of space. She needed to focus on the reason she was here.
Stress and worry swam in his eyes.
Okay, one of the reasons she’d come. But first, she had to ask, “Did they say what the prognosis was? ”
Nick blew out a heavy breath. “They didn’t say much. Did some scans, then said he had some bleeding on the brain and took him into surgery. They just took him back right before you got here.”
She slipped a hand over his. She couldn’t help herself. She needed the contact as much as he did.
He cleared his throat. “What happened? Did the van run the light?”
“No.” Michelle exhaled. How to explain her theory to Nick without riling him up.
“Mickey, I can hear those gears turning in your head. Out with it.”
Mickey? He hadn’t called her that since… She took in so much air she could feel her tactical vest tightening. Just lay it out there. “The van driver said she was pushed.”
His brows scrunched, confusion clear on his face.
“Her back bumper had fresh breakage. The vehicle that hit her had left the scene. I didn’t see it.”
His gaze locked on the sign over her shoulder. Finally, he asked, “Did she get a description?”
“A truck. She thinks.”
His eyes locked on hers, waiting.
“A white truck, or…”
“A white van?”
“Could be. The driver who pulled up after didn’t see the vehicle. And the woman driving the minivan had been dealing with kids who thought their mommy just killed Santa.” Shit. She shouldn’t have said that. “Sorry.”
He nodded. “Was it an accident?”
That’s the same question she had. “I don’t know. The hit-and-run driver might not have realized your father was hit. Or, they could have a record and freaked that they would be in deep. ”
“Or they could have intended to hit Dad, but the car was in the way, so they used the next best thing.”
“Everyone loves your father. Who would want to hurt him?” She knew the answer before the last words left her mouth.
“The same people who want the mall festival to fail. Sure, we can get another guy to play Santa, but my dad is Santa.” He mumbled a curse. “You know what I mean.”
She did. Russ was Santa in spirit. He made the mall festival what it is. “There is no proof that it was anything but an accident.”
He glared at her. “Bullshit. You don’t believe it was an accident any more than you believe Dad is the real Santa.”
True, but she needed to be objective. “What I believe is it’s another angle I need to investigate.”
“We.” Nick didn’t say any more. Just flipped his hand over and locked hers in it.
Minutes passed as they sat like that. Quietly, waiting for news. Praying it was good.
Finally, a woman in scrubs came through the double doors. “Mr. Jolley.”
“Yes.” Nick stood, pulling Michelle up with him. They stood arm-to-arm, fingers locked, waiting for the news.
“Your father is doing well. Dr. Groves was able to stop the bleeding. They will finish up and set the break in his left humerus bone. Then you will be able to see him.”
“Thank you.”
She disappeared through the double doors.
Nick’s phone beeped. He glanced at the screen. “Fuck.”
“What?”
“Ava. She gets out of school in twenty minutes.” He ran a hand through his hair .
“Do you want me to wait here while you go get her?”
“No. I don’t want her to have to sit at the hospital… Not after her mother.”
“Ava mentioned she died.”
“In a car accident last year.” The tiniest of cracks slipped through.
An accident… like Nick’s mom. She was hit while on a traffic stop.
Her breath caught. The sudden realization struck her. He didn’t have anyone else.
“I’ll take her. She can come with me to Mom’s. We are baking cookies tonight.”
Uncertainty, confusion, and then relief all flashed on his face. “I owe you.”
What had she just agreed to?
He pulled out his phone and called the school. “It’s all set. Just tell her Grandpa and I had something come up. I will be there to pick her up after.”
“Okay, don’t worry about Ava. She’ll have a blast at Mom’s. My nieces and nephews will be there as well.”
“She’s in for a treat. Your mom makes the best cookies. She used to send them to me when I was in basic training. The guys loved them.”
“She did?” Why did she not know about that?
“Yup. There was more than one fight over the last cookie.” His smile was small but beautiful. She’d missed it over all these years.
“Mr. Jolley?” A man in a lab coat and file folder walked up to them. “I’m Dr. Burns, the staff physician here at the hospital. I wanted to discuss the findings of your father’s toxicology report.”
“His what? Why would they run that?”
“It’s standard policy. It just came in and I had a minute.” He led them to a nearby family waiting room. Nick gestured for her to follow. Inside, he closed the door, and they sat. “We found traces of cannabis in your father’s blood. Was he on any CBD ingestibles?”
“Dad? No. Not that I know of.” Nick leaned in.
Michelle couldn’t imagine Nick’s dad smoking a joint for some relaxation, but with age, several people used CBD products to relieve aches and pains.
“His levels were elevated. He also had increased blood sugars and glucose levels.”
“He’s Santa. He lived on cookies and peppermint candy this time of year.” Michelle doubted Russ Jolley had changed that much over the years.
The doctor’s brows raised in question.
“He plays Santa at the mall, has for years,” Nick said.
“I see. I just wanted to let you know. As his family, you will need to watch medicines and diet.” The doctor shook their hands, then left.
“Could your father have been using CBD products?” Michelle asked as they walked back to the main area.
“I doubt it. He was into all-natural healthy eating, but he had a prescription from his doc for the pain in his hip. I’ve seen him take it on occasion.” He paced, hands in pockets. “I’ll ask him.”
“If his levels were elevated, he could have walked out into traffic. The minivan driver was distracted. She couldn’t say if the light had changed yet.”
His phone alarm sounded. “Ava.”
“Don’t worry.” Without thought, Michelle gave him a quick hug before leaving.
She got into her vehicle and closed her eyes. “I like kids. I’m the favorite aunt. I can do this.” Blowing out a breath, she opened her eyes.
But could she win over Nick’s daughter? It shouldn’t matter, but for reasons she didn’t want to dig into, it did.