Page 97 of Jep

“I’m fine. I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t. We need to get your legs looked at.”

“The pain isn’t from the fall, it’s from sitting in that closet too long. I’m all pins and needles. It’ll pass.”

“Are you sure? The way you fell, I expected a fracture, especially after you had to walk. We need to get x-rays. Just in case.”

“But there’s no swelling.”

“Yeah.” He made another pass over her other leg.

“Forget about my legs. Are we safe? Tell me what happened to you.”

“The explosion was in the apartment. It went off as I approached the door.”

She closed her eyes and rested her head on the back of the couch. “I couldn’t stop thinking you were dead.”

“I guess God’s not done with me yet. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get the journal.”

“I’m just glad you’re alive.”

“You’re not at all disappointed that we’ve got nothing?”

“Are you kidding? The journal never even crossed my mind. I mean, I know it was important, but not at the expense of your life. Allow me a moment to celebrate the fact that you are here right now, living and breathing.”

He bit his lip while the corners of his mouth turned up, and he looked at her from under his brow. She couldn’t remember a time when a man had looked at her like that.

“By all means,” he said. “Take your time.”

“Good. Thank you.” A silence opened up that embarrassed her, but he teased her with a charmingly crooked grin.

“All right. That’s enough,” she said, pushing up off the couch. “I think I’m good now.”

“You sure? I can wait.”

“Yes, that was plenty.”

“It’s not often a beautiful woman celebrates my life. I have a birthday once a year you could commemorate if you like.”

“Me and my big mouth.”

“You ready to get out of here?”

“Yes, please.” She held his arm as they walked to the door until she was confident she could do it on her own. “So that’s it then? You almost died, and we got nothing?”

“I came close to catching one of them.”

“When?”

“After the explosion. I saw him fleeing the scene and followed him. I had him cornered, but his friend came in from behind and knocked me out.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” She pulled him to a stop and looked at him again. Reassessing. “You’re lucky he didn’t kill you.”

“I think our backup arrived before he could.”

“Another miracle.”

“We’ve had a few of those lately.”

“But not the kind that gives us the answers we need,” she said.

---