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My heart stopped.
The miserable sound of my ragged breathing was all I could hear. Silence filled the space around us. It felt like I’d been running for a year before another turn finally brought me to a stop. I could see Kara on the ground, her body unmoving. A tall figure stood over her, his hand clutching a gun. If I moved any closer, the stupid mirrors would give me away.
“Kara!” Dan yelled, pushing past me.
The figure with the gun turned; I called out, “Dan, get down!”
He dropped, and I opened fire. Triple shot to the chest and the figure collapsed to the glass strewn floor. I cautiously made my way closer, kicking the gun away. The body was unmoving—dead. I snatched the hood back to find Ian Sterling’s bruised and bloody face staring back at me. I thumped his head against the floor and turned to find Kara, crying against Dan’s chest.
“Shh, it’s okay, sis. We got you.”
I put my gun away and knelt beside them. “Kara, love, look at me.” I took her face in my hands, looking her over. She had a bruise forming on her jaw and across her cheek.
“He—I tried…to…get…away…” She started to sob.
I scooped her up, holding her against my chest, and stood.
“Salem Police Department, don’t move. Put your hands up.” Dan followed their orders, but I could not. I would not. I was not letting go of Kara.
“My name’s Callum Asher; I work for Rizer Security. The woman in my arms is our client. She was being stalked by that man. He had a gun on her when we came in. He turned that gun toward me, and I took him down. My credentials and my carry permit are in my back left pocket; my wallet is in the right. My gun is secured in a lower back holster.”
“Hey, hold up, these are my guys.” Laurence Berkley came barreling into the corridor. His bulk pushed the men back. It was a pretty stupid move on his part, but hey, that was how he did things.
“Sir, get back. We had calls for shots fired and of a woman being dragged from a bathroom.”
“No shit, Deputy. I made the call.”
“Deputy.”
“Sheriff Randolph,” the younger man nodded to the older gent who came in, his hand resting on the butt of his revolver
The big man looked over at us. “You the men from Rizer Security?
“Yes, sir.”
“I just got off the phone with your boss. Deputy Marx, secure your weapon. Secure the scene. There is an ambulance out front. I will ride with you all to the hospital. You will not leave my side until we have full statements on the events of today.”
“Cal, we got the security—Sheriff, Deputy, we got a copy of the security vids. It shows Sterling pulling Ms. McGee from the bathrooms. She put up a fight, too,” Maurice Norton said as he came in holding up a flash drive.
“I’d like a copy of that.”
“Yes, of course. I have two copies.”
“Great. You’ll be accompanying us to the hospital. My team will be in to get statements.”
I moved across the open space and walked out of the fun house with Kara. She had stopped crying, but she was shaking. I was afraid shock was setting in. I needed to check her for injuries.
“Is she injured?”
“I don’t know.” I walked toward the front gate; the flashing lights of the ambulance drew everyone’s attention. The EMT’s rushed our way.
“Injuries?”
“I don’t know. She was found face down on the ground. I’m sure she’s in shock.”
“Get her inside.”
Once in the ambulance, Kara was looked over; there were only minor injuries. Cuts on her arms and cheek, bruising on her jaw and face and across her ribs. Her blood pressure was sky high, both numbers in the triple digits, but her O2 showed a normal amount of oxygen. Her heart rate was coming down since she’d been removed from the situation.
