Justice Delayed (Memphis Cold Case #1)(10)

“I found her on the floor,” Treece said as she came back into the apartment. “I thought she fainted.”

“Why is it so cold in here?” Brad asked.

Andi closed one eye and looked up at her brother, then to the opened back window next to the door that led to the deck and stairs. “Maybe that?” She pointed toward the window.

“Can’t be too much wrong,” Will said, “if she can put you down.”

Andi shifted her focus to her brother’s best friend and tried to ignore the flutter-dance in her heart when Will smiled at her. Or maybe it was the blow to her head.

“Did you leave the window open?” Brad asked.

“Of course not. May not have locked it, though. Must be how he got in.”

“Are you saying someone broke in and attacked you?”

“That’s what I was trying to tell you,” Treece said.

Her brother’s attitude changed instantly. He unholstered his gun and moved cautiously toward her bedroom.

“I’ll take her next door,” Will said.

“Let me get my door unlocked,” Treece said.

The spinning started again, and Andi squeezed her eyes shut, then opened them. Better, except her head still throbbed. “I’m sure he’s long gone,” Andi said as Will helped her to stand. The room tilted, and she swayed against him.

Will scooped her up in his arms, his biceps taut as he carried her across the hall. Andi sank into his chest, momentarily forgetting her aversion to anyone helping her. In Treece’s apartment, he gently set her on the sofa.

A few minutes later, Brad towered above her. “Your apartment is clear, and I’ve called for a crime scene unit.”

It was a little more than Andi could process. Why would anyone break into her apartment? She tried to focus on what her brother was saying. “What did you say?”

“I need you to start at the top and tell me what happened.”

“I was warming my pizza.” She caught her breath. “My pizza—did it burn?”

“No,” Treece said. “I took it out before I came to see why you didn’t come back to my apartment.”

“Save it.” Maybe she could eat it later. “I went to get a bottle of salad dressing from my refrigerator, and he was there. He flipped off the light and came up behind me and wrapped me in a choke hold.”

“So you couldn’t see who it was?” Will asked.

She shook her head. “But I felt his hands. He wore gloves.”

“What did he want?”

The memory of the man’s raspy voice sent shivers down her spine. She wrapped her arms across her stomach as the shaking spread to the rest of her body and tears threatened. “I—I . . .” Her teeth chattered. Why couldn’t she remember what he said? “He wanted something.”

“What?” Brad knelt beside her. “Think. What did he want?”

“I don’t know!” Tears streamed down her face. She swiped the back of her hand across her cheeks. She hated it when she cried. “Stop pushing me.”

“Here,” Will said, his voice soft.

She looked up and took the box of tissues he held out. “Thanks. My head is killing me where he hit me.”

“What!” Three voices raised at the same time.

“Andi! Why didn’t you tell me? We need to get you to the ER,” Treece said. “You probably have a concussion.”

“Why didn’t you say he knocked you out?” Concern filled Brad’s voice.

“I don’t want to go to the hospital. Treece has an ice pack. Just let me have that.”

“You don’t have any choice, little sister.”

“I’m not your little sister anymore. I’m thirty-two years old. And you’re not the boss of me.” She lifted her chin. “Besides, I’m not dizzy anymore. All I have is a little headache.”

“Andi,” Brad said with a groan. “People die from internal bleeding after a bump on the head sometimes. You can go in an ambulance or you can let one of us take you.”

She did not want to spend hours at the ER.

“Or I could call Mom.” Brad held up his phone. “Which is it?”

“Don’t call Mom!” Sure, her brother was worried about her, but did he have to be so bossy? She tried to think of a way out of going to the hospital. Her heart stilled when Will lifted her chin and examined her eyes.

“Your pupils are slightly dilated,” he said. “I think you ought to listen to your brother and get checked out.”

Staring into his cobalt-blue eyes was what made her pupils dilate. This was her brother’s friend—why did his nearness suddenly make her heart rev up like an Indy 500 car? Get ahold of yourself. “Please, I don’t want to spend five hours waiting to see a doctor. Would you settle for a walk-in clinic? There’s one two blocks away, and Treece can take me.”

The corner of Brad’s mouth twitched as he hooked his phone back on his belt, then his eyes softened and he turned to Will. “Would you take her while I wait for the crime scene techs?”

“Sure,” Will said. “Do you want me to ask her about . . .”

“About what?” Andi asked. She looked from Will to her brother. For the first time it dawned on her they were wearing jeans and U of M hoodies. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she remembered it was March Madness and the Tigers had made it to the Final Four. “Wait a minute. You’re supposed to be at the game celebrating Will’s promotion to the Cold Case Unit.”