Aftermath (38 page)

“The kid started freaking out about going to jail and managed to wiggle out of her hold. He dashed out the front door. Camelia went after him.”

A crew worked with a Jaws of Life on what was once two separate vehicles, but now the latter half of a Corolla eaten by a red Hummer.

If Amanda had answered her phone sooner or spent less time with her head in Robinson cloud central, she might have made it before this.

She cleared a thickness from her throat. “Is the kid still hanging around?”

Davis nodded toward a set of beat cops hovering near a teenager on the other side of the road, under a street lamp. Detective Brink stood beyond the boy, who sat on the concrete shoulder, elbows balanced on bent knees, hands threaded through sandy brown hair.

“She just ran out. In front of. My. Car!” A shrill female voice split through the sirens and whine of equipment. It pulled Amanda
’
s attention back to the scene in front of her.

A paramedic stood near the driver
’
s side door and spoke in low tones, to a blonde with a slow trail of blood coming from a cut in her hairline. Another one was crouched with an oxygen tank and bag full of supplies near the underbelly of the converging vehicles.

When Amanda stepped into his working light, he looked up. Did a double take and then shot to his feet. “Beth?”

Everything around her stilled a moment. The noise in the air, gone, as if it had never been present. It happened far too often and she still hadn
’
t found a built-in response to people confusing her with a crazed serial bomber.

And judging from the half-scared, half-stupefied look on the paramedic
’
s face, there was only one Beth he meant.

“Get your eyes checked, buddy.” Davis moved beside her, something feral in her stance. As if she were a momma bear protecting her cubs, same as the other day with Sandra.

When Amanda shot Davis a look, her partner met her gaze, one brow higher than the other on her forehead. One hand clasped the opposite bicep in a white-knuckled grip. “What? It’s true.”

Okay.

The paramedic hadn’t moved.

“I
’
m Detective Nettles.”

“Holy crap,” he breathed, the act seeming arduous. “That
’
s embarrassing.” As if trying to clear the image from his brain, he blinked in rapid succession. “I
’
m sorry. You look—well, never mind. Knee-jerk reaction. Matt Gabriel.
”
He lifted his hand, seemed to remember it was gloved and covered in blots of red and pulled it back. Instead, he pointed toward the unmistakable heap of woman
’
s clothing beneath the mangled metal. “Do you know this woman?”

A hitch in her breathing made her want to turn away. Forget she
’
d been called to this scene by name. Instead, she hunched toward the ground. Had to flatten herself on the harsh pavement.

Remnants of the accident poked into her flesh as she spotted the ashen woman beneath the vehicle. The gap beneath the car and hard asphalt was barely enough to see to the other side, in spots, but the paramedic—Matt—had managed to stabilize her spine with a cervical collar. Had applied oxygen and started a large bore IV.

“I used to work with her.” Matt’s voice floated to her. “Never saw it coming.”

Fan-freaking-tastic. Amanda didn’t move. Didn’t need clarification on Matt’s words. She ground her teeth together. Pushed a breath through her mouth. “Give me the specifics.”

“On…?”

Amanda glanced up at him. His face had gone pale.

She shifted. And pointed toward the underbelly of the vehicles.

His gaze flicked between her arm and the car, comprehension dawning like first light on his face. “She
’
s pinned between both vehicles so tight, I
’
m not sure what
’
s left of anything below her hips.” His voice was a bare whisper. “We
’
ll know once we get her out of this mess. Her pulse is pretty thready. Abdomen
’
s rigid.”

“Paige?” The other woman
’
s eyes strained against the immobility of the cervical collar, found Amanda at the very edge of her vision. Lacerations gouged one side of her face. A bandage covered the other side of her forehead. As Matt had pointed out, her upper torso rested on the pavement, but her hips were one giant conglomerate of both vehicles, her legs nowhere to be seen from the ground. Lights illuminated a pool of blood forming near her abdomen as she lay smack-dab in the middle of both cars.

A strong metallic odor filled the space between burnt rubber and hot metal. Amanda bit back a wave of nausea. Took a breath through her mouth. “Camelia, it
’
s Detective Amanda Nettles. We spoke this morning.”

As if she
’
d not said anything at all, the older woman said, “Paige, that boy won
’
t tell me what happened.” Her hand moved off her abdomen, as if she meant to touch Amanda. It hit the top of the car and pinged right back to where it had been.

As if noting her surroundings for the first time, Camelia
’
s gaze flicked around the metal above her and circled back. Panic blossomed in earnest. “Where am I?” She tried to move. Didn
’
t succeed. A trickle of blood seeped from the corner of bluish lips.

The firefighters were getting closer with their tools, the noise jangling Amanda
’
s nerves as she watched panic turn to gut-wrenching fear on Mrs. Jurik
’
s face.

“Camelia, I need you to stay calm. You’ve been in an accident.”

“An a-accident?” Her voice came out on a high-pitch squeak, filled with terror. And then she started to cry, huge racking sobs that tore into Amanda
’
s heart the way a shark clamps down on a swimmer
’
s body. “You have to get me out of here.”

She placed a hand on the metal around her and tried to tug her body from between the vehicles, without success. “I can
’
t be here.”

“It’s okay. We’re gonna get you out of there. You’ll be patched up in no time.”

“Ma
’
am.” Matt flattened himself on the ground, next to Amanda. “I need you to hold tight.”

Camelia continued as if he
’
d said nothing.

Amanda rose into a kneeling position. Whipped off her jacket and shoulder holster and flung both at Davis, who waited nearby.

As if the other detective sensed her direction, she forced herself between Matt and Amanda, blocking a smooth return to the distressed woman. “Whoa.” The items Amanda had given the other woman hit the ground. “What do you think you
’
re doing? That thing isn
’
t steady. Why do you think the paramedic stabilized her as best he could and got back out?”

Camelia Jurik would likely die before they reached her. Die knowing her child was out there in the world without her.

She
’
s all I have left.

“I
’
ll be okay.”

Davis tugged Amanda’s arm as if the act would convince her to abandon this quest. “Will you think with your brain for once?
This
is the type of thing Dentzen
’
s always harping on us about.”

Amanda shrugged her off. She always used her brain. Sometimes in conjunction with other organs. “Move, Davis.”

Every second counted.

“For once, think about your family instead of everyone else
’
s.”

“I am.” She forced her partner aside. Prepared to get as close to Paige
’
s mother as possible.

“This is why everyone thinks you
’
re a liability, Nettles.” Her voice worked to compete with the noise around them. Anger bubbled over like a kettle left on high.

It robbed Amanda of breath for a second. Davis had included herself in on the consensus. A sharp-pronged fork of doom. It speared her in places that would have still been numb and impervious a week ago.

That steely green gaze refused to give an inch.

From his perch next to Amanda, Matt watched the interchange in silence.

“You find the straight line. Get the bad guys. Gold star for you. But the way you do it is risky. It
’
s going to get you killed. And while the department is worrying about the money they
’
ll have to dish out, in the event of your death,
I’m
actually trying to cover your backside.” One hand balled into a fist, index finger pointed toward the ground. “You want to help a woman you
’
d never met before a few days ago? Fine. But. Do. Not. Go. Under. That. Car.”

Maybe if her heart and brain hadn
’
t agreed on how much Camelia needed someone, she might have listened. Might have stepped back. Done as Davis suggested. Instead, she slid her upper torso against glass and rock, until she was face-to-face with the other woman, who still struggled to free herself.

Amanda placed a hand on the other woman’s shoulder. “Camelia.”

She stilled, her gaze locking on Amanda as if seeing her for the first time.

The vehicles shimmied. Amanda adjusted to the tight fit. Held her breath as the crew changed positions and started in again. “We
’
re gonna get you out of here soon.”

“Your friend
’
s right.” The blood near her mouth hadn
’
t increased and she seemed more aware of her surroundings. “It
’
s dangerous under here.”

Amanda would have shaken her head, if she
’
d been able to do more than face the other woman. She refused to dwell on it. Or her rapidly pounding heart. “She
’
s not a friend. Just a co-worker.”

“Sure sounded like...” She winced. “A friend to me.”

Whatever. “A few witnesses say you brought in a boy. And that you were asking for me. Wanna tell me why?”

“You look so much like my Paige.” A shaky hand moved toward her. “Thought that the first time I saw your picture in the news.”

Amanda caught the cold appendage in her grip, to the left of her head. “I
’
m her biological aunt. And I promise I
’
ll find her, but I need to know everything you know, Camelia.”

“She loves painting. And science. Biology. Has this crazy sense of humor that always keeps me laughing.”

Another hack, from the machinery above, brought a groan from what was once the Hummer
’
s front axle. Amanda held still as her heart skyrocketed. She didn
’
t dare breathe. Something sharp dug into her jawbone. She lifted her head a fraction. Came in contact with solid iron.

Camelia
’
s fingers tightened around hers. Or maybe that was the other way around.

Some risks are worth it.

She
’
d repeat the phrase as many times as needed. “How are you doing, Camelia?”

“You’ll find my Paige?”

She’d give it her all.

A crunching of rock floated toward them. Then the flash of a Maglite landed in Camelia
’
s face. “Nettles?” Robinson
’
s voice sent waves of warmth into her body.

A puff of breath left her lips.

“I told her not to go under there. It
’
s dangerous.” Davis
’
s voice held a tinge of panic.

More shuffling. Then, “That comes with the job.”

The light and angle of her head prevented her from seeing his face, but his voice spoke volumes.
I
’
ve got you covered, but hurry it up already.
His warm hand met the back of her thigh and gave a reassuring squeeze.

A pinching bit the back of her eyes.

“While we appreciate your concern, Camelia and I have everything under control.” She tried to infuse as much cheer into her voice as possible. As if they were anywhere but under a ton of shaky steel. “Got ourselves a bunch of nervous Nelly’s out there.”

A wobbly smile hit the other woman
’
s lips, then tapered off. “She
’
s all alone out there. What if she
’
s scared? Or hungry. Or hurt.”

Or dead. Sold on the black market. Heaviness blanketed the air around them. “Sounds like she
’
s a smart girl. She
’
s counting on you and you
’
ve been doing a great job trying to get to her. What
’
s the boy
’
s name? Where is he from? And why did you bring him in tonight?
”