Desperate Measures Read online

  “I thought I could handle it, Jen. But ARM is just too powerful.”

  “What do you mean? What happened to Mr. Sutherland?”

  “You’re as bad as the sheriff, you know that?” Scott shifted, groaning and tipping his head back in pain. Through gritted teeth he said, “Like I told her, I don’t know anything about Sutherland. I haven’t seen him.”

  Jennie wanted more answers, but he was in so much pain she didn’t have the heart to ask. “It’s okay.” She brushed his dark hair from his forehead. “I’m sorry. Here your leg is broken, you’ve got a concussion, and I’m interrogating you.”

  “It’s all right.” He gripped her hand. “I’ll tell you all I know later.”

  A young man in pale green scrubs approached the bed. “I’m sorry, miss, but I’ll have to ask you to step out. We need to get this guy’s leg reset and casted. He should be admitted in his room in about an hour.”

  “Sure.” Jennie turned back to Scott. “I’ll be here.”

  Going back out to the waiting room, Jennie gave the others a report, then insisted they go home. She had her car and would stay awhile longer.

  “Are you sure you don’t want us to wait with you, Jen?” Lisa handed Jennie her keys. “If the others don’t want to, I can.”

  “No, that’s okay. You go ahead. The doctor said Scott would be okay. I promised to stick around until his leg is set.” Jennie stuffed the keys in her jeans pocket.

  “You look exhausted,” Lisa said. “Why don’t you get some sleep and come back in the morning?”

  She was tired. It had been a grueling day, but she had no intention of leaving. “I’ll stretch out on the couch in here and take a nap.”

  “All right.” Lisa shrugged into her jacket. “But call us if there’s a problem or anything.”

  “I will.” She gave Lisa and Megan hugs and thanked Kyle and Algie for their help.

  When they’d gone, Jennie curled her long body onto the short couch and closed her eyes. About an hour later one of the nurses woke her. It took several seconds before she could orient herself to where she was and what she was doing there.

  “Sorry to interrupt your sleep, but I thought you’d like to know your friend’s room number. We’ll be taking him up in a few minutes.”

  Jennie mumbled a groggy thank-you, and after using the rest room and splashing her face with cold water, she dragged herself down the hall and into room 26. Thankfully, it was a small hospital. In her present condition, anything bigger and she’d probably have gotten lost.

  “You must be Jennie.” One of the nurses intercepted her in the hall outside Scott’s intended room. She had chocolate brown eyes and a wide, cheery smile. Jennie wondered how anyone could look so wide awake at one in the morning. “I’m Crystal Chavez and I’ll be taking care of your friend.”

  “Hi. Um—they told me he’d be here soon. Is it okay if I wait in the room?”

  “Sure. How long will you be staying?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Well, you can stay as long as you’d like. There’s a recliner in the room if you need it. The last patient was a little boy. We had the chair moved in for his mom so she could spend the night. Not the most comfortable bed, but it’s better than a straight-back chair.”

  “Sounds fine to me.”

  “Oh.” Crystal turned in the direction of the voices and the two green-garbed men wheeling a stretcher toward them. “That must be Scott now. Why don’t you let us get him settled, then you can go in.”

  Jennie backed out of the way while they wheeled Scott in. He’d apparently had to go to surgery to get his leg set because he was wearing one of those silly shower caps. His dark curls peaked out from under it. His thigh-high cast rested on pillows. Ice packs lay over the cast to keep the swelling down. He was asleep—probably still under from the medication they had given him. His handsome face looked like an impressionistic painting with all its bruises. She suspected the black eyes were from the broken nose Mr. Sutherland had given him. The others—the abrasion on his chin and the swelling along his jaw—must have been from the accident.

  Jennie wandered to the end of the hall and back. Peeking in the room she saw that they’d transferred him to the bed and were getting ready to leave. She waited until they’d taken out the stretcher before going in. Crystal wrapped a blood pressure cuff around his arm, and after checking that and his pulse and respirations, she wrote them down on the chart. She then checked the IV site and solution and explained how to work the call light. “I’ll look in on him every few minutes, but if you need anything, just push the button.”

  Jennie nodded, then stood beside the bed a long time, wishing she could read Scott’s mind but not getting a clue as to what had happened to him that day. What had he meant about ARM being too powerful? Had they coerced him into working for them?

  His eyes slowly opened. They looked dazed and unseeing. His lips curled in a half smile. “You’re still here.”

  “I told you I would be.” She took hold of his hand when he reached for her.

  “Shouldn’t have left like I did this morning.”

  “It’s okay, you don’t need to talk now. Plenty of time for that later.”

  “No … need to tell you in case something happens to me.” He seemed to forget what he was saying, and the next words out of his mouth were “I love you.”

  Jennie swallowed hard, not knowing how to respond. She cared a lot about Scott, but love? As a friend, sure, but …

  “Don’t want you to get hurt.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “No accident. Be careful.” His eyes drifted closed again. “Need to stay away from me … or they’ll get you too.”

  “Who’ll get me?” Jennie tightened her grip on his hand. “Don’t know—too close.”

  “Shh. Just rest, Scott. You’re safe here.”

  “Water.”

  He’s delirious, Jennie told herself. He doesn’t know what he’s saying. Still, he might be trying to tell her something important. Jennie offered him a drink from the glass on the bedside stand, placing the straw between his dry lips. “Who are you talking about?” Scott opened his eyes, their green depths hazy. He raised his head slightly, sucked in a couple of swallows, then let his head fall back onto the pillow without answering.

  It was still too soon to ask. Jennie chastised herself for being so persistent. He needed to rest. Morning would be soon enough to talk to him.

  “How’s our patient?” Crystal came in and handed Jennie a blue cotton blanket. “In case you decide to go to sleep. It can get chilly in here at night.”

  “Thanks. He woke up for a minute—talked but didn’t make much sense. I gave him some water. Hope that was okay.”

  “That’s fine. I wouldn’t expect him to be making too much sense at this point.” She checked his vital signs again.

  “Can I get you something—tea or a cold drink?”

  “Tea would be nice.”

  She nodded. “Be right back.”

  Crystal came back a few minutes later and set the tea on the bedside stand. Making one last check on her patient, she left.

  Jennie settled into the recliner and drank the soothing chamomile tea. It felt good and warm. She tucked the blanket around herself, reclined the chair, and watched Scott. The tea relaxed her, and in moments, unable to keep her eyes open, she set the cup on the floor beside her and drifted off to sleep.

  “Excuse me, Jennie? Wake up. It’s morning.”

  Jennie groaned, wondering whose voice had entered her dream. It was a woman’s voice, but not Mom’s. And not Aunt Kate’s or Gram’s. But then, it wouldn’t be any of them. She wasn’t home. And this wasn’t her bed. It wasn’t a bed at all. Little by little the events of the night before tumbled into her head. Scott. She opened her eyes. An older woman in a pastel uniform smiled down at her. “Sorry t
o wake you, dear, but we have a patient coming.”

  “Patient?” Jennie frowned at the odd remark and glanced at her watch. Eight o’clock. “I didn’t mean to sleep so long. How’s …?” Jennie’s question hung unfinished as her gaze settled on the empty bed.

  13

  Jennie rubbed her eyes and looked at the bed again. Her eyes weren’t focusing—probably from lack of sleep. “What happened? Is he …” She couldn’t bear to say the word dead. But that didn’t stop her mind from racing on with the thought. “He was all right last night.”

  “Who was, dear?” The older nurse looked at Jennie as though she had two heads.

  “My friend Scott. Your patient. He was here last night.” Jennie closed her eyes and massaged her temples.

  “I’m afraid you must be mistaken. We don’t have a patient named Scott.”

  “Then why am I here?”

  “I don’t know. Crystal said you were visiting a patient and needed to sleep for a couple of hours.”

  “What do you mean you don’t know? He couldn’t have just walked out of here.”

  The nurse looked uncomfortable. “You seem confused. Perhaps you should see one of the doctors.”

  “I don’t need a doctor.”

  “I wish I could be of more help, but I really don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Crystal would know. She’s the nurse who was taking care of him. Can I talk to her?”

  “I’m afraid not. She’s gone home. If she admitted a patient to this room, I’m certain she’d have mentioned it in the report.”

  Jennie took a deep breath. Stay calm, McGrady. There has to be a reasonable explanation. If she could just get her brain functioning. “Okay,” she said. “Let’s try this again. Scott Chambers was the victim of a hit-and-run. I found him in the ditch and rode in the ambulance with him to this hospital. He saw Dr. Engstrom in the ER, had his leg reset and casted, and was brought up here. Crystal came in to check on him several times.”

  “Perhaps he was discharged and she forgot to tell me. We had a busy night last night. Several patients to admit. Sometimes patients come in and out so quickly …”

  Jennie rubbed her neck—wishing she could get over the strange, woozy feeling. Lack of sleep had left her feeling groggy and nauseated. “He wouldn’t have left without telling me.” Or would he? He’d been concerned for her safety, but he was in no condition to walk anywhere.

  “If he was discharged, there’d be a record or a file, wouldn’t there?” Jennie asked.

  “Of course, but—”

  “Please, Mrs. Casey,” Jennie read the name on her pin. “I’m afraid something terrible has happened to him.”

  “All right. We can have a look, but I’m sure you’re mistaken.” She led Jennie down the hall and into the nurses’ office, where she looked through a stack of charts. She shook her head. “Let me try the computer. If he was admitted …” She didn’t finish the sentence but typed Scott’s name and hit enter.

  After trying several variations, she looked up at Jennie. “I’m sorry. I have no record of a Scott Chambers ever being in this hospital. I don’t know what to tell you.”

  “How I can get ahold of Crystal?”

  Mrs. Casey rubbed the back of her neck. “I’ll call her.”

  The nurse went into another room and picked up the phone. Jennie glanced through the names on the charts, but none of them bore Scott’s name. She was beginning to think she’d dreamed up the entire episode. Jennie leaned against the counter. There was no way Scott could have recuperated that quickly and walked out of the hospital. without help. But who would have taken him? Tess? Was it possible she’d arrested him and hauled him off to jail while Jennie was asleep? Doubtful. Make that impossible. She couldn’t have slept that soundly. Could she?

  “Crystal must not be home. Or else her phone is unplugged. She does that sometimes so the ringer won’t wake her up during the day.”

  “Could you tell me where she lives?”

  “No.” She wagged her head from side to side. “It isn’t that I don’t want to help you find your Mr. Chambers, but I can’t be giving out personal information about my nurses.”

  There was no point in arguing. About the only way anyone could have gotten Scott out without Jennie knowing was to have drugged her, and considering the way she felt at the moment, that was certainly a possibility.

  She was still groggy but managed to drive the three blocks from the hospital to the sheriff’s office.

  “Jennie, you look awful. What happened?” Tess asked.

  “Scott’s gone. The hospital has no record of him being there.”

  “What? That’s impossible. I asked one of my volunteer deputies to keep an eye on him. He’d have told me if …”

  Jennie gripped the desk. Her knees buckled at the same time her stomach lurched.

  “Maybe you’d better sit down.” Tess shoved her chair back and came around to the other side of the desk.

  “I don’t need to sit.” Jennie dragged a hand through her disheveled hair, nearly falling in the process. “I just need to know where Scott is.”

  “We’ll get to that in a minute. Now, sit.” Cupping Jennie’s elbow, she directed her to a chair.

  Jennie sank into it and gasped for air. “I don’t feel so good.”

  “Put your head down.” Tess pushed Jennie’s head to her knees.

  “Stay put. I’ll get a cool cloth.”

  Within a few minutes the dizziness passed. Jennie sat up and used the cool, wet cloth to wash her face. “What’s going on, Jennie? Are you on something?”

  “No. I don’t do drugs. I don’t even take … unless …”Jennie tossed the cloth on the corner of the desk. “That nurse—Crystal—gave me some tea. I fell asleep right after, and when I woke up Scott was gone. We have to do something. He tried to warn me. Whoever hit him must have come back and kidnapped him from the hospital.”

  “Stop, Jennie. Do you have any idea what you’re saying?” Tess pinched the bridge of her nose.

  “I know it sounds crazy, but how do you explain it? He’s gone, and if you didn’t take him, who did?”

  “There’s only one way to clear this up. I’ll call the deputy. I’m sure it’s all a misunderstanding.”

  Jennie doubted it but didn’t say so. Tess would find out soon enough.

  Tess picked up the phone and dialed. A frown etched her forehead. “He’s not answering.” She slid the phone back in its cradle. “Come on.” She grabbed her jacket from the coatrack and waited for Jennie to join her. “We’re going back to the hospital. I want a doctor to take a look at you. Then I intend to find some answers.” Jennie rode in the squad car, her head resting against the seat.

  She had no doubt now that there’d been something in the tea. Whatever it was seemed to be wearing off, but not quickly enough to suit her.

  Tess picked up her radio and called in her location and her plan to go to the hospital. “Has Jeff checked in with you?”

  “No.”

  “Try finding him for me, will you? And keep trying until you get him.”

  “Will do.”

  Jennie’s eyelids closed. Not having the strength to open them, she folded her arms and rested her head against the seat.

  “Any word on Sutherland?” Tess asked dispatch.

  “Nothing. S and R went out at dawn. They haven’t reported in.”

  “Keep me posted.”

  “Roger.”

  “Oh, and call Agent Tucker for me. Have him meet me at the hospital. Tell him his decoy is missing.”Decoy? Jennie’s eyes snapped open. “Agent Tucker? As in FBI?”

  “Do you know him?”

  Jennie shook her head. “Is the FBI involved?”

  “ARM is a national organization. The Feds are conducting their own investigation. Bottom line is they want the head honch
o.”

  “Sonja.”

  Tess tossed her a questioning look. “How did you know that?”

  “Scott told me the first day I was here. It’s a code name.”

  “Agent Tucker may want to talk to you. If Scott really is missing, as you seem to think, he’ll be none to happy.”

  “You said decoy. Was Scott working with the Feds?”

  “I really can’t disclose anything, Jennie. Tucker made it clear that it was strictly a need-to-know situation.”

  “Well, I need to know. Was the FBI using Scott to get information about ARM?” It made perfect sense. Scott’s anger about the release even though he’d been a part of it—or at least pretended to be.

  “You’ll have to talk to Agent Tucker. I just learned about the connection this morning.”

  Jennie nodded. “I can see why the FBI might want to use Scott to infiltrate ARM. He’s been a member and might be privy to inside information. With his friend being killed, he’d be willing to help the authorities.” Jennie hated where her thoughts were heading. “Someone from ARM must have caught on to Scott’s deception. If that’s the case, Scott could already be dead.”

  “You’re getting ahead of yourself, Jennie. If ARM wanted Scott dead, why would they go through all the trouble of taking him out of the hospital? There is one other possibility. Agent Tucker may have realized Scott’s life was in danger and transferred him to a safer location.”

  “You think?” She relaxed a bit then, giving in to the hope that Scott was indeed safe and in the protection of government agents. The clandestine flavor of removing any trace of Scott definitely sounded like something the government might do. They may have sworn the deputy and the night nurse to secrecy. Yes, that was it. Scott was one of the good guys. And he was safe.

  Jennie held on to that hope during her examination and blood test, which would confirm their suspicions that she had been drugged. Jennie thanked the doctor and walked to the waiting room where Tess was talking to a middle-aged man in a suit. The concerned look on their faces turned Jennie’s stomach to mush.