Page 34 of Colton's Second Chance
Noelle read the data that her latest calculations had spit out and frowned. She’d spent the entire night and morning gathering information, statistics and expert opinions from both forensic specialists and data analysts to double- and triple-check her results.
But the more information she got, the more certain she was that Scott Montgomery was either the sloppiest scientist and most negligent medical examiner in history or one of the smartest to have so neatly altered the crime scene data and forensic data to yield the results that served him best. And gotten away with it. Until now.
She didn’t want to believe Scott was guilty of anything nefarious, largely for Eli’s sake. Being betrayed by someone he worked with and trusted had to be a painful blow.Like the sucker punch you dealt him when you walked away.
She shook her head and shoved the guilty thought aside. She could reexamine her past with Eli once the pressing issues related to this murder investigation were resolved.
She was scanning the table integrating meteorologic history, entomological findings, environmental conditions and decomposition studies with everything the investigation had yielded when her phone rang.
Her pulse skipped seeing Eli’s number on her screen. “Hi, did you talk to Scott? What did you learn?”
“No and a lot. In a sense. I—” He sounded odd. His voice quavered a bit, which was highly unusual for the man with the courage and constitution to investigate gruesome serial murders and manage the roughest of criminals.
“Eli? What’s wrong?”
“I’m at the hospital.”
“What!” she cried, not caring how much her reaction gave away about her feelings for him.
“I’m fine. But Asher’s pretty banged up.” She heard him exhale heavily. Wearily. “We’re both lucky to be alive. Montgomery had rigged his place with a bomb that was triggered when we entered his house. Clearly he had something to hide and wanted to both destroy the evidence and take out the people who were onto him. He accomplished one of the two goals.”
Noelle sank onto a nearby chair. Her mind spun as she rattled off questions. “How bad are Asher’s injuries? Is there anything I can do? Where is Scott?”
“Asher will live, but he’s going to be in the hospital for a few days, recovering. He’s in radiology now for CT scans, checking for internal injuries.”
“But how—” She cut herself off. “Never mind. I’ll get the whole story when I get there. Which hospital?”
“The only one in town.” He forced a note of humor to his tone. “We’re lucky we weren’t farther out in the mountains. He was bleeding pretty heavily.”
“And you promise you’re all right?” she asked, a lump knotting her throat at the idea of anything happening to Eli.
“Minor cuts and scrapes. I’ll be fine. You really don’t have to come to the hospital.”
“Of course I’m coming,” she said, already gathering her purse and coat and keys to the replacement rental car. “Your partner was injured, and I want to be there for you.”
And my findings are the reason you were at Scott’s house to begin with.She clenched her jaw as guilt tripped through her.
Eli didn’t reply, and for a moment she thought she’d lost her connection.
“Hello? Eli?”
“Thanks, Noelle,” he said, his voice thick. “I’d appreciate the company. I’m in the ER waiting room at the moment, but they’ll be moving Asher to a room soon.”
She paused at the hostel door, glancing back at her laptop and the files spread out. On an impulse, she went back inside and packed her laptop into her messenger bag.
Noelle made it to the hospital in record time, but when she arrived, Asher was already settled in a private room.
Eli sat in a chair by the side of Asher’s bed, but Noelle’s focus was entirely on Eli, until she’d assured herself he was as whole and unharmed as he claimed. She gave him a fierce hug and clung to him for several long moments, betraying the depthof her concern and relief that he was safe. Her fingers combed through his hair, and he kissed the top of her head.
“What’s this?” Asher said from the bed, his voice slurring slightly, likely because of pain medication. “Judging from…that steamy hug, she’s more than…just a consultant.” His lips twitched in a groggy grin.
They were spared from replying when the sound of quick footsteps preceded Kansas’s appearance at the door. Her face was pale, her expression distressed, and her gaze flew to the bed immediately.
“Asher! Oh my God! What… Are you…?” Her boots clattered on the linoleum floor as she crossed to the side of Asher’s bed and took in his battered and bandaged appearance. “Are you okay? Really?” When Kansas’s gaze flew to Eli, a note of reproach hovered in her glare. “How did this happen?”
“Long story.” Eli motioned for Noelle to take his seat, then returned a wry look to his cousin. “I’m fine, by the way. Thanks for asking.”
His cousin’s eyes widened. “You were there, too? At the explosion site?”
