Hostage Midwife Read Online Free PDF Page B

admired his talent. We didn’t talk every day or even every month. But we were close. Maybe it was the DNA, but Iunderstood who he was. At least, I thought I did.”
    Without another word, she wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest. Her touch reached through the wall of self-control he’d built to keep going. There wasn’t time to fall apart; he needed to take care of business.
    Nick hadn’t cried for his uncle, hadn’t shed a tear or acknowledged the pain of losing him, butas he enfolded her in his embrace, raw emotion poured through his veins. His sadness was tempered by anger. How could Samuel commit suicide? Why would he choose death? Nick should have been more aware of his uncle’s state of mind, should have talked to him, should have seen his desperation.
    He lowered his head and rubbed his cheek against her silky hair while inhaling the strawberry scentof her shampoo. Holding Kelly grounded him and gave him clarity. “I’m going to miss him.”
    “He was a part of your life.”
    She shifted her weight and leaned back. Just as easily as they had come together, they separated. It surprised him that he didn’t feel uncomfortable about their embrace. Having Kelly in his arms felt like the most natural thing in the world.
    “I’m glad I came outhere,” he said. “I like seeing you, and I needed a break from Marian and the lawyers.”
    “Did any of them know Trask?”
    “No.” Time to get down to business. “Show me his card.”
    She dug into the pocket of her jeans and pulled out a plain, white card with the name, occupation and a phone number. “He seemed real concerned about Samuel’s dying words, and he didn’t believe me when I saidI didn’t remember him saying anything that made sense.”
    Nick recalled the scene from last night. When Kelly took over with his uncle, he had stepped aside. “I wasn’t aware that he said anything.”
    “He was barely conscious, mumbling. He told me to close the door. I guess he was talking about the door we crashed through.”
    There was one other door in the room, the door to a closet.Though he’d assumed that Samuel committed suicide, Nick had opened that door and looked inside to make sure no one was hiding there. “What else?”
    “Gold,” she said. “He repeated it several times. And he said something about a heart of stone or a stone heart. It reminded me of a lyric in a country-western song. Does it mean anything to you?”
    He shook his head. “You said that Trask didn’tbelieve you. What made you think that?”
    Her lips pulled into a frown. “He told me that I’d better not be holding anything back.”
    “That sounds like a threat.”
    “I’m not sure if it was meant that way.” Her frown deepened. “Trask is a very unpleasant person.”
    “I don’t like him snooping around,” Nick said.
    “Neither do I, especially since he came here. If Trask is dangerous,I don’t want him near Serena and the children.”
    “Agreed,” he said. “We’ll get to the bottom of this as soon as possible. Would you mind coming back to the Spencer Building with me?”
    “Not a problem. But I’ll need to change into a more presentable jacket.”
    “I like the threadbare dragon look.” He fell into step beside her as they approached the house. “How many people live here?”
    “Serena and Nigel have three children and an infant. Serena’s sister is also staying here for a couple of weeks to help out. I’m sharing a bedroom with her.”
    “How long are you planning to stay in the area?”
    “I’m not sure.” She gave a little shrug. “When Serena called and asked me to help with her clients while she was taking care of her baby, I realized how much I missed Colorado.I’ve always loved the mountains, and this feels like home to me. I gave up my apartment in Austin.”
    “That sounds like a permanent move.” And he was glad to hear it. He wanted to get to know Kelly better, which might take more than a couple of