Page 33 of A Man After Midnight

A hand landed on her shoulder and she cried out, fearful that he had managed to break away and come after her again.

“I’ve got you,” a woman’s voice said and Caroline looked up to see a woman police officer. Caroline let the female cop help her up and only then did she notice an ambulance nearby. “I’m going to walk you right over there and let the paramedics take a look at you.”

“I-is he … is he c-caught?” she stammered. Her teeth chattered as shock settled into her body.

“Yes, ma’am,” the cop said. She held Caroline’s hand. “I believe you’re going into shock, so just come with me.”

Caroline glanced behind her but she couldn’t see a thing between the men in uniform and the lingering crowd of spectators. Something oozed down her side and when she looked, she saw a ribbon of bright red staining her clothes. Blood. She almost fainted right then and there.

“Where’s Wren?” she managed to say out without stuttering.

“He’s okay.” The cop gave her warm smile. “He’s telling the police what happened.”

“He saved me,” Caroline whispered.

“We know.”

After that, the paramedics took over and she was remanded into their care. It all became a haze as she was placed on a gurney, strapped in and loaded into the ambulance. Her top was cut away and placed in a plastic bag, allowing access to the wound. Medicine was administered and moments later, she let it work its magic, leaning back and closing her eyes.

****

“Oh my God!” Aldy cried, so loud she could be heard over the hum of the busy triage center of the hospital. “You fucking scared me!”

Caroline rolled her eyes. The nurses and doctors turned to glare as Aldy rushed over to hug her. The knife wound had just been a very minor scrape, where the tip had pressed a little too hard. Stitches were not needed but the doctor had given her a shot around the area to numb it while he cleaned and dressed the area. They’d taken blood samples and had given her a tetanus shot. The female cop had stayed with her through the whole process and had taken her statement. Now she waited for the discharge papers, sitting on an ER bed, wearing a scrub top that was a size too large for her.

Wren hadn’t been in to see her, but she’d been told he was asked to go to the police station to make a statement. Caroline wondered if she would see him again.

“Okay, Aldy,” Caroline murmured as she eased out of the embrace. “I’m going to be fine.”

“I knew that man,” Aldy said. “Gil Foley. Didn’t work in my department but I saw him at the conference. Slimy fucking creep.”

“Yeah,” Caroline agreed. “We missed our flight!”

“No worries,” Aldy replied with a negligent wave of her hand. “Troublemaker Cosmetics picked up the tab on shifting our flight. We fly out later tonight.”

Caroline frowned at looked at the cop. “Will I be able to leave? Or will I have to come back to press charges?”

“No,” the cop replied. “Mr. Foley made a full confession. You don’t need to do anything more.”

A weight slid off Caroline’s shoulder and she let out a deep breath of relief. “Good. I didn’t really want to relive that.”

At that moment, a nurse came into the cubicle with several sheets of papers. “I have your discharge papers if you can give me a few signatures. Here’re a couple of prescriptions. An antibiotic, and this one for pain in case you need it.”

Caroline signed everything, and a few minutes later, walked out of the hospital with Aldy on one side and the female police officer on the other, who offered to drive them back to the hotel.

She entered the room behind Aldy and discovered her friend had been busy. Their suitcases as well as their toiletry bags were packed and waiting to go.

“Are we in a hurry?”

Aldy threw her a dark look. “You just got stabbed by a crazy person. Let’s get our stuff and get the hell out of here.”

“But it’s still several hours until our flight.”

“I don’t give a shit,” Aldy said. “I’m never coming back to New York City. I’ve determined I hate it for almost killing you.”

Caroline hugged her friend. “Love you too.”

Aldy sniffed. “Come on, let’s get going. We may be flying out of different terminals, but at least no one is trying to stab you at the hotel.”

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