Page 18 of In Darkness Transformed
Darn, darn, double darn.
What could she say to that? She really wished her father were there to field these questions. He might not have any better answers, but it wouldn’t bother him to lie to Eli. In contrast, it made her sick. She not only owed him for saving both her and her grandfather, she liked him far too much to want to deceive him like this.
Finally, she slumped back in her chair and sighed. “I know I don’t have the right to ask this of you, but please don’t mention the attack on me and don’t bring up Martin’s name unless the deputy does.”
Eli picked up his sandwich and took a big bite. This wasn’t the first occasion where he’d used food to buy himself time before answering one of her questions. She hoped he didn’t make a habit of it, but she had no reason to complain. It wasn’t as if she was rushing to tell him the truth, either. He finally washed the bite down with a swig of his drink.
“Fine. I’ll tell them I was out hiking on the mountain when I crossed paths with your grandfather. He could barely breathe and lost consciousness right after he told me his name. I performed rudimentary first aid and then carried him to where my truck was parked. It was faster to bring him to the hospital myself than to call for help.”
He paused to take another bite. Gosh, she was really starting to hate that sandwich. After another drink, he continued with his new narrative. “I recognized his last name and figured in a town this size that you and he had to be related. I called you on the way here, which is why you arrived right after we did. Halder was unconscious when we got here, and the doctor said they would need to take him straight to surgery. Since he wasn’t able to talk, we don’t know anything about what happened before I found him, and I didn’t see anyone else up on the mountain. End of story. Short, sweet, and even mostly true.”
“Thank you, Eli.”
He shrugged and went back to eating. His reaction had her cop senses tingling. The man was definitely up to something, most likely something she wouldn’t like. Before she could call him on it, a young woman poked her head into the room and looked around. As soon as she spotted them, she pasted on a bright smile and headed straight for them. She was pushing a mobile stand that held a computer screen and keyboard.
“Hi, I’m Angelica from Admissions. Are you Mr. Dennell’s granddaughter?”
“I am.”
“Great! I have a few questions for you.”
While the two of them dealt with all the requisite paperwork, the deputy from the sheriff’s office arrived. The knot in Safara’s chest eased up when she spotted Will Dayson. Not only was he a familiar face, he was married to one of her distant cousins.
He grabbed a cup of coffee and waited patiently while Safara and Angelica finished up the last few questions. As the younger woman wheeled her cart back out the door, Will joined her and Eli at the table. He glanced at Eli before turning his attention to her. “Sorry to hear about your grandfather, Safara. What the hell happened?”
She performed the necessary introductions first. “Deputy Will Dayson, this is Eli Jervain. He’s the one who found Granddad and brought him to the hospital. He moved into Martin Jervain’s cabin up on the mountain about a month ago.”
“Glad you stuck around, Mr. Jervain. I’ll need to get your statement.” Will opened his laptop and set it on the table. While it booted up, he said, “I met old Martin a time or two. I take it you two were related?”
Eli nodded. “We were, although it’d been years since I’d seen him. That coffee smells good. I’m going to get a cup. Safara, can I get you anything while I’m up?”
“No, I’m fine.”
While Eli’s back was turned to them, Will mouthed, “How much does he know?”
She responded in kind. “Nothing for sure, but he’s seen enough to have questions.”
Eli was already on his way back, cutting off any chance for more communication. Regardless, Will would tread carefully with Eli. He would do his job, but he’d do it without putting her people at any unnecessary risk.
As soon as Eli rejoined them, Will launched in with the usual questions like name, address, and phone number. He took Eli’s statement starting from the moment he’d left his cabin for a hike right up through his arrival at the hospital with Halder Dennell. Eli kept his promise to stick to the basic facts without bringing up the earlier attack on her or anything about Martin’s death.
Will began packing up. “Nasty business, but we won’t know exactly what happened up there until your grandfather is able to talk to us. Safara, call me when he can answer a few questions, and I’ll get here as soon as I’m available.”
“Thanks, Will. I appreciate it.”
He pushed his business card across the table to Eli. “I’ll also need to examine the place where the attack happened. It would be dark by the time I could get a team up there, and I’d rather see everything in the daylight. Would you be available first thing tomorrow morning to show us where you found him? Say around nine?”
“Sure thing. You’ve got my number. Call if you need to change times or anything.”
“Will do.” He stood to leave. “Safara, tell your dad I’ll let him know what we find.”
“Thanks again, Will.”
When he left, Eli asked, “Do you want to wait here for news or would you rather sit out in the lobby?”
She picked up their tray. “The lobby would be better. Dad should be getting here soon, and he’ll wonder where I am.”
They headed back down the hall. “You don’t have to hang around, Eli. You’ve already done enough for us today.”
