Part 23 (2/2)
”It took me a while to understand that.”
How could he understand what she didn't? ”You can't-”
”Accept it?” he interrupted as his fingers curled behind her neck. The cal uses dragged across her skin. With steady pressure, he drew her forward. ”Accepting how you're seeing things is where I'm struggling.”
He was standing on the threshold. One more step and she'd be there, too.
”Don't do this, Walt.”
”Don't do what?” he asked in that low baritone that always slipped below her defenses. ”Don't touch my wife?
Don't hold her? Don't kiss her?”
”Don't try and make it stop hurting,” she whispered as she took that last step.
It would never stop hurting and trying just gave her new failures and new guilt.
With a slow, careful move he pul ed her into his embrace.
”Then how about I just share the hurt with you?”
She blinked, staring at the base of his throat. His pulse was beating faster than normal. She was upsetting him.
”You can't.”
”He was my son, too.”
The black cloud of grief gathering on the periphery of her awareness, rushed forward. Clenching her hands into fists, she pressed them against his chest. If he didn't let her go, she was going to break. ”I know. I'm so sorry.”
He didn't let go. Why didn't he let go? ”It was n.o.body's fault. It just happened.”
That was a lie. She could barely get the words out.
”Everything happens for a reason.”
And that reason was her.
”Not that, sweetheart.”
It was wrong to stand there and let him stroke her hair, rest his cheek on her head, comfort her. She didn't deserve comfort.
”I should have checked on Danny earlier.” Why hadn't she checked him earlier?
”You were tired.”
She shoved away, stumbling back two steps when he let go. ”What kind of mother sleeps while her son is dying?”
He opened his mouth to answer. Shaking her head, she spun around. She didn't want to hear it. She'd been running for months so she wouldn't have to hear him say what she saw in his eyes every time he looked at her. Tears blinded her. Sobs stole her breath. She took a step, misjudged the depth of the stair and fel . Cement rushed to meet her in a wash of gray. Her head hit the garage floor with a thunk that made everything in sight jar out of focus.
”Kathy!”
For a moment, she lay stunned, unable to move while everything around her progressed in slow motion. She saw Walt lean over her, saw the anguish in his eyes. Saw him reach for her head, saw his fingers come back red. She was bleeding. Behind him Sebastian jumped down the stairs, taking them both in one leap. Oh, no. He couldn't jump.
She looked back. Walt was on his cel phone, giving their address.
She tried to talk, nothing came out. Sebastian leaned down, whined and placed a sloppy kiss on her cheek. Walt shoved him back. She struggled harder. He couldn't do that.
”Don't.”
His hand pressed on her chest. ”Lie stil .”
She had to make him understand before the darkness rol ing toward her took over. ”Sebastian. Heartworms.
Shot.”
If Sebastian got too active, the worms in his heart could break off and just like a blood clot, lodge in his lungs and kil him.
”I'l take care of him later.” Her chest was shaking. Or was it Walt? Was Walt shaking?
”Just lie stil . The ambulance is coming.”
There wasn't time. ”Now,” she gasped.
She couldn't bear another death on her conscience.
In the distance a loud wailing sounded. Beside her, Sebastian joined in, his howl echoing ghoulishly in the garage.
”d.a.m.n it, Kathy! You stay with me.”
She tried, she real y did, but the darkness was too pervasive, too thick. And just like before, when it rol ed over her, she couldn't find him.
CHAPTER FOUR.
Walt sat beside Kathy's hospital bed, holding her hand as she lay unconscious. Concussion. They said she had a concussion. He'd known a lot of officers with concussions.
They'd always bounced back, but this was Kathy and she was so thin now, so pale from living on nothing but nerves.
He didn't see how she could survive anything, let alone a knock on the head. Daniel's death had almost destroyed her. Them.
<script>