High Anxiety (30 page)

I did not see the steak knife until it was too late, until Abigail had already thrust it into Thad’s stomach. I screamed. Thad staggered, staring in disbelief at the knife protruding from his stomach. He fell back against the car that was parked beside Abigail’s, and I screamed again when he yanked out the knife and the front of his shirt turned a bright red. He was going down. I dropped the files and wrapped my arms around his waist to try to prevent him from hitting his head when he landed on the pavement. I went down first, and he sank on top of me. I heard Abigail squeal away in her car.

I spied a couple climbing from their car not far away, watching us with horrified expressions.

“Call nine-one-one!” I shouted. “We need an ambulance.” Cradling Thad’s head in my lap, I searched for the wound and pressed my fingers against it to try and stop the flow of blood.

Thad looked up, incredulous. “The bitch stabbed me,” he said. “Do you believe that?”

“Try to be very still,” I told him. “Help is on the way.”

“Do me a favor?” he asked.

“As long as it doesn’t involve getting naked with you in your hot tub,” I said, trying to make light of the situation and keep us both calm.

“If I don’t make it, tell my father I love him. And hang on to those damn files.”

Sirens lit up
the parking lot, and a crowd had gathered as Thad was loaded into the ambulance. I suddenly recognized Officer Jenkins.

“I heard the call come in,” he said. “I’m sorry about your friend. Are you okay?”

I saw that I had blood on my hands and clothes, but I was uninjured. “This is all my fault,” I said, tears streaming down my face. “I confronted Abigail Davis. I was so angry, but I never thought she would go this far.” I suddenly remembered her toying with her silverware, but I hadn’t seen her grab the knife.

“There was no way you could have known,” he said.

“I was able to get her tag number.” I hurried to Thad’s car and grabbed my purse. “I handed Jenkins the slip of paper I’d written it on. “The car is a 1999 white Ford Focus.”

“Excellent. We also have the knife. But you know the routine. We’ll have to take prints of those who may have handled it so we can rule them out.”

I gave him the name of the restaurant where Abigail had pilfered the knife. “I have to go with my friend to the hospital.”

“I’ll drive you in my patrol car,” Jenkins said.

We were on our way in minutes, following the squealing ambulance. I couldn’t stop shaking. I remained quiet as Jenkins fed information to dispatch.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were married to Captain Jay Rush?” he asked after a few minutes.

I gave him a blank look. I wondered how he’d found out, but I was more concerned about Thad. “I didn’t think it was important.”

I reached inside my purse for my cell and realized I had not turned it back on after visiting Alice in the psych ward. I saw that I had messages. It rang as soon as I turned it on.

“Why haven’t you been answering your damn phone!” Mona demanded as soon as I answered. She was crying. “Please tell me Thad isn’t dead.”

“Of course he’s not dead,” I said. “Who told you that?”

“Abigail called Jay and me. She said she stabbed him to death with a steak knife.”

“She did stab him, Mona, but I don’t think the wound is life-threatening. Officer Jenkins and I are on our way to the hospital.”

“Which hospital?” she asked.

I asked Jenkins and relayed the information to Mona.

“I’m on my way,” she said.

“Could you bring me a change of clothes?” I asked. “I’m covered with blood.” I realized how ridiculous my request was. Mona’s size three would never fit me, and her mother was no larger.

“I’ll see what I can do.”

“I’m getting beeped, Mona. I have to go.” I answered the call and found Jay on the other end. “Katie! Thank God you’re okay. Where are you? You’re not alone, right?”

“A policeman is taking me to the hospital,” I said quickly. I gave him the name.

“I got a call from that bitch, Abigail. She said—”

“Thad isn’t dead,” I interrupted. “There was a lot of blood, but I think he’s going to be okay.”

“I’m on my way, sweetheart. A cop is driving me. He plans to use his flashing light, so it won’t take me as long to get there. In the meantime, I do not want you alone for one minute while that woman is still on the street. Do you understand? Stay with the police officer until I get there. Why don’t you just wait for me at the hospital. It’s probably the safest place for you right now.”

“Okay,” I said, although I didn’t relish the thought of spending several hours in the waiting room.

Jenkins and I arrived at the hospital and entered the ER. I noticed the stares from those waiting to be seen; no surprise, since I was covered with blood and being escorted by a member of the police department. I looked at Jenkins. “Could you ask them to apprise me of my friend’s condition as soon as they know?”

“Sure.” He went to the desk and spoke to the receptionist.

Mona and Jimbo showed up minutes later, as Jenkins was trying to take my report. Mona carried a Saks bag. I didn’t realize how much blood I had on me until I saw the look on her face. My hands and arms were sticky with it.

“Do you know Thad’s condition?” she asked.

I could tell she had been crying. “He’s not critical,” I said.

My cell phone rang, and I realized I wasn’t supposed to have it turned on inside the hospital. I grabbed it and answered. On the other end, my mom sounded frantic.

“Abigail called me,” she said.

“I’m fine, Mom,” I said, wanting to shake Abigail’s teeth out for scaring everyone. “Thad is going to be okay.”

“My heart stopped beating for a good two minutes when that crazy lady called me. You can ask Trixie; she’ll tell you.” She put Trixie on the phone.

“I thought I was going to have to perform CPR on your mother,” my aunt said. “Give me the name of the hospital.”

I reluctantly gave it to her. I knew my mother would cause a scene. I hung up and turned off my phone. I suddenly felt dizzy and nauseous as the reality of what I had just experienced set in. And to think, Abigail was still out there somewhere. I was thankful my stomach was empty.

“Are you going to be sick?” Mona asked. “Do you need to go to the restroom?”

I nodded. Jenkins followed us and checked out the bathroom before we entered. “I’ll be right out here,” he said.

I immediately went into one of the stalls, where I suffered a bout of dry heaves. What if Thad
wasn’t
going to be okay? I thought.

I gasped at my reflection in the bathroom mirror. Blood was smeared on my face and neck, and it had already dried on my blouse. My slacks were torn at the knees and stained as well. I stripped down to my underwear and bathed at the sink. Mona pulled jeans and a bright red T-shirt from the Saks bag.

“What happened to your knees?” she asked.

I saw they were badly scraped. “I must’ve done it when I went down in the parking lot. I was trying to keep Thad from hitting his head on the pavement.”

“You’re a really good friend, Kate,” she said.

“No, Mona. A really good friend wouldn’t have gotten her friends and family involved in all this drama.”

“There was no way you could have known how sick Abigail was,” she said. “You didn’t ask for this.”

“Thank you for understanding,” I said. I cleaned up as much as I could in the situation. Mona held out the jeans, and I stepped into them. The elastic waist was stretched and too large. “Are these maternity slacks?” I asked.

“Yeah. You and Tiara wear the same size when she’s not pregnant. It was the best I could do on such short notice.” Mona fished a safety pin from her purse and fixed the problem. She helped me into the shirt and reached into her purse for a brush. I checked my reflection in the mirror and tried to repair my hair. I noticed the shirt had the word “Baby” blazoned across the front, with an arrow pointing downward.

Mona stuffed my bloody clothes into the Saks bag.

If Officer Jenkins thought it odd that I was wearing maternity clothes when I exited the bathroom, he didn’t say. We returned to the waiting room, and he pulled out a small notepad and began questioning me again. I hadn’t answered more than a few of his questions when my mother and aunt rushed through the double glass doors, wearing matching pink overalls with the words Junk Sisters stitched over their left breasts. Arnell was right behind them, wearing a classic A-line dress and matching cardigan.

The look on my mother’s face was borderline hysteria. I felt bad for always causing her so much worry. She threw her arms around me. “I was so afraid for you,” she said, tears gathering in her eyes.

“I’m fine, Mom,” I said.

“Cute shirt,” Arnell said, giving me a hearty wink.

My mother finally released me and stepped back as though to make certain I wasn’t bleeding or missing body parts. She arched one brow when she spied the maternity shirt. “I’m sure there’s an explanation,” she said, “and I’m sure it’s complicated.”

“Well, yeah,” I replied.

She turned to Jenkins. “I demand to know who is in charge. I do
not
want my daughter to be alone as long as Abigail Davis is out there.”

“We’re doing everything we can, ma’am,” Jenkins said. “I’ll see that your daughter has police protection until we’ve arrested Miss Davis.”

“How is Thad?” Aunt Trixie asked.

“I’m still waiting to hear,” I said, “but there’s no threat of him dying.”

“I’m so sorry you had to go through such an ordeal,” Aunt Trixie said, taking my hand in hers and patting it. “You must’ve been scared out of your wits.”

Jenkins looked at me. “I really need to get more information from you.”

“Maybe you and Aunt Trixie should go home,” I told my mother, not wanting her to hear the lurid details of the stabbing.

“I’m not leaving you,” she said.

I had no choice but to answer the rest of Jenkins’s questions. Finally, he closed his notebook. “That should do it for now,” he said. “I may think of something later.” He glanced toward the entrance as another policeman entered. “Would you excuse me for just a minute?”

“Where are you going?” my mother demanded. “You’re not supposed to leave my daughter.”

“I need to speak to the officer,” Jenkins said. “I’ll only be a few feet away.”

“I wish Jay would hurry up and get here,” she said.

I took her hand. “Mom, I don’t know how long this is going to take. You should go home.”

“I want to make sure Thad is going to be okay,” she said. She must’ve noticed my surprised look. “He might not be my favorite person in the whole world, but I don’t want him to die.”

“He’s not going to die, Mom,” I said.

Mona sniffed. “He can’t die. I think I’m falling in love with him.”

My mother looked at her. “Oh, you poor dear.”

We waited. Finally, I was summoned by the receptionist and told I could see Thad. Mona insisted on going with me. We were buzzed through the metal doors that led to the treatment rooms. A doctor was waiting.

“How is he?” Mona said.

“The knife didn’t penetrate any organs. We stitched him up. You can see him now, but he’s probably going to be groggy, since we gave him something for pain. We’re going to keep him overnight for observation.”

Mona and I hurried inside the room, where we found Thad hooked to an IV, his stomach bandaged. His eyes were closed. I started to touch him, then thought better of it and stepped back so Mona could get closer. She stroked his forehead, and he opened his eyes.

“It’s bad,” he said, his voice thick from the drugs.

“No, no, you’re going to be fine,” she assured him.

“You don’t understand,” he said. “I’m going to have a scar.” He closed his eyes again and nodded off.

Mona and I returned to the waiting room.

“How is he?” my mother asked.

I repeated what the doctor had told us.

“We should take John home,” Aunt Trixie said. She looked at me. “We were at the pizza place when Jay called, so we drove straight here. John insisted on waiting in the car so he wouldn’t be in the way. He’s such a nice man,” she added.

“Even if he
is
a crummy liar,” my mother added.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“He’s not who he claims to be.”

“How do you know?” I asked, glancing at Arnell, who shook his head, letting me know the information hadn’t come from him.

“Honey, we’ve known from the beginning,” my mother said, “but he doesn’t have any family or friends, so we decided to go along with it. He doesn’t know we’re on to him, of course.”

“We’ve grown attached to him,” Trixie said.

My mother looked at Jenkins. “I’m going to say this one more time,” she said. “I don’t want my daughter left alone for one second. If something happens to her, you’re going to have to answer to me.”

He nodded.

She and I hugged. “Call me when Jay arrives,” she said. “I won’t rest until I know he’s with you.”

I watched her go. I turned to Mona. “I’m a terrible daughter,” I said.

Mona waved off the remark. “You’re a great daughter. You just have terrible luck.”

 

 

I was dozing
in the chair when I felt someone nudge me. I opened my eyes and found Jay kneeling in front of me. “Hi, babe,” he said. “Are you okay?”

I didn’t trust myself to speak, so I just nodded.

“How is Glazer?”

“He’s going to be fine, except for the scar,” I said.

He shook hands with Jenkins, who filled him in. “We’ve got an APB out on Miss Davis, but so far, nothing. We’re hoping to get prints off the knife handle, but it’s going to take time.”

“I want to go home,” I told Jay, suddenly overcome with a feeling of weariness. “I need to check on Mike.”