Call Me Cat (Call Me Cat Trilogy #1)(39)

He held me after, arms wrapped around me as his fingers ran through my hair. I'd given myself to him fully, but he still didn't know my secret. Guilt tickled my gut and kept me on the edge of sleep as I worried over how to tell Ash the truth.

I opened my mouth, ready to confess everything, when someone banged on our hotel door. "Police, open up!"





Chapter Thirty Three


Close Call


WE DRESSED QUICKLY and he noticed the stain of blood on the sheets. He looked at me, wide-eyed. "Did I hurt you? Did he hurt you?"

He looked ready to bring Lucky back to life just to kill him again. I shook my head. "It… it was my first time. I'm not hurt."

He stopped buckling his pants and then pulled me into another hug. "Oh, Catelyn. Why didn't you tell me? This should have been so much better for you. I could have made it so much better."

Tears stung my eyes. "It was perfect. You were perfect."

He kissed me deeply and wiped away a tear. "The next time will be magical, I promise."

I smiled and pulled on my jacket and heels, my heart practically jumping out of my chest at the knowledge that he wanted there to be a next time. It sunk when I realized he might not feel the same way after learning the truth about me.

We let the police in and our room became smaller as Detective Gray, his pot-bellied partner and a female officer filled the space.

Detective Gray looked at my wounds and frowned. "We have medics coming, but the weather is making it hard for everyone to get through. We found Lucky's body and everything was as Mr. Davenport described. I need you to tell me everything that happened."

I did, starting with the dress and note. When Ash heard that, he looked crushed.

Detective Gray turned on him. "Tell me again how you happened upon her in the middle of nowhere?"

"I told you already. I got a text from a blocked number saying if I wanted to see her alive again, to come to that location. It said if I called the police, she'd be killed immediately. I didn't want to risk it, so I came alone."

The woman took Ash's phone and dropped it in a plastic baggie as evidence.

After getting both of our statements, the police packed up and stood to leave. "I need to get back to the crime scene," Detective Gray said. "We'll dust for prints, collect evidence, try to make sense of all this and see if we can lay your parents' death at Lucky's feet as well."

"It has to be him, doesn't it?" I asked.

"It seems likely, but we just need to make sure it all adds up," he said.

I nodded and Ash wrapped his arm around me.

"I'm leaving Officer Larsen here until the medics arrive and check you out. If you need me, she can reach me," Gray said.

They left, and Larsen stood by the door talking quietly on her phone. I excused myself for the bathroom, using the privacy to clean up from my first sexual encounter. As the endorphins from my orgasms and the adrenaline from my capture left me, my body succumbed to all the aches and pains those chemical reactions had kept hidden, and I gripped the sink to keep from passing out.

Ash found me, pale and shaking, and called for the medics, who had just arrived. My breath came too fast and I couldn't get enough oxygen to keep my head from spinning.

Working efficiently, they laid me on a stretcher and rolled me to the ambulance. Their voices came from far away, and I heard Ash arguing with someone as they hooked me to oxygen and tested my blood pressure.

"I'm going with her, and you're not stopping me," he growled.

"Sir, there's no room. Would you prefer we lost a trained medic to give you space?"

The argument must have worked, because Ash's motorcycle engine revved, and the van door slammed shut.

The cool hand of a woman pressed against my head. "She's burning up."

A flurry of words flew over me, but I closed my eyes and let my mind wander to my time with Ash, the way his hands had known just how to touch me to bring me maximum pleasure, the way our bodies fit so well together.

I dreamed of this life with Ash, of making love every morning and falling asleep in his arms every night.

I woke to his voice, his face smiling down at me, his hand brushing through my hair. "Welcome back, Catelyn. You gave us quite a scare."

"What did I do?" I asked.

His eyes glossed over and his voice shook. "You almost died."





Chapter Thirty Four


Call Me Catelyn


"LUCKY POISONED THE knife he'd used to cut your neck," explained Ash. "While the wound itself was harmless, the poison had infected your blood stream and was working toward your heart. If the medics hadn't arrived… " His eyes filled with tears.

Smiling, I took his hand. "I'm fine."

Ash started to say something, but stopped as Detective Gray entered the room.

"Catelyn, I'm glad you're awake. How are you feeling?" Gray asked.

Ash took a seat next to my bed, still holding my hand, as I sipped water and answered the detective. "Like I've been poisoned, beaten and left for dead," I said honestly. Morphine dripped into my IV, and I pressed the button, giving myself an extra influx of pain relief.

"It looks like Lucky was the Midnight Murderer. We found evidence at his apartment of the other crimes, including DNA from his victims."