In the Shadow of Evil (36 page)

Her eyes opened wider. She lay on the edge of the walking platform. Her leg dangled with nothing below it.

Nothing but five stories of wood, steel beams, makeshift floors, and air.

"I'm coming. Just don't move." Maddox's voice was strained.

He was coming for her! She smiled. Pain shot through the left side of her face.

Splinters! Had she been shot in the head?

She reached up and touched the tenderest area, her temple. Her fingers came back wet. Blood.

Nausea roiled her stomach. Panic seized her lungs.

Layla pinched her lips together, forcing herself to breathe through her nose. How badly was she hurt?

Ed had moved so fast, coming straight at her. She'd heard the gunshot, then . . . nothing.

Ed! Where was he? Did he still have his gun? Would he finish her off?

"I'm almost there. Hold tight." Maddox . . . reassuring. Safe. Protection.

Sirens erupted below her. Her head pounded. She groaned and covered her ear.

Oh, God, I don't want to die.

WHEN LAYLA'S KEYS HAD passed him and crashed, Maddox's heart followed. All the way to the ground.

He increased his efforts, calling out to her. Closer to her, he could see the precarious position she was in. If she rolled forward, she'd fall off the narrow board keeping her safe. He tightened his grip and climbed faster.

Pull up. Steady. Find footing. Secure. Grab another board.

Again.

"I'm coming, Layla. Just don't move."

Pull up. Steady. Find footing. Secure. Grab another board.

Breathe.

The fire department and ambulance had arrived below him. Several floors below him. Maddox refused to look down.

Pull up. Steady. Find footing. Secure. Wipe off the moisture from his palms. Grab another board.

She groaned.

Every nerve in his body almost shot out of his skin.

She shifted. Dirt trickled down, hitting him in the face. Her leg hung off the board supporting her.

"Be still, Layla. I'm almost there."

He climbed higher . . . faster. Adrenaline pushed him.

"Maddox?" Houston's voice rose up to him.

"Yeah?"

"We've got a net-thing stretched out below y'all."

But if they fell, they'd still hit some of the floors on the way down.

Maddox held still. Layla was right above him. He needed to be very careful in his approach. If he moved her the wrong way, they'd both crash to their deaths. Despite the net-thing.

He steadied himself and pulled up a final time. Layla looked up at him with wide eyes. His grip tightened.

"Can you get to the elevator?" Houston yelled.

That's right. The elevator was at the top. Here.

Maddox eased himself beside her, then let go of the board.

She was in his arms in an instant.

He held her tight against his chest. A big knot stuck out on her left temple. A trickle of blood seeped from the gash there.

But she was alive. She was going to be okay.
They
were going to be okay.

"The elevator?" Houston yelled.

"Ed shot it. Won't work." Layla's breathing came in little pants.

"Young took it out," he screamed to his partner.

A heavy silence followed, save for Layla's and his labored breathing.

"Okay, they're sending a ladder up to you now."

Maddox glanced down to the activity below them. He held tighter to Layla. So. High. Up.

The ladder jerked upward.

"You came for me." Layla's words were a whisper against his neck.

It fed his pulse. He kissed her crown. "We'll talk later about your actions. Right now, I'm just thankful you're okay."

"Ed?"

He swallowed. "Not a threat anymore."

She snuggled against him. "Now that you're here, everything's perfect."

Even though he smiled, Maddox couldn't help but wonder how hard she had hit her head.

The ladder thudded against the edge of the building frame.

"Okay, Maddox, y'all get to the ladder and come down. Slowly."

The ladder was a good fifty yards away. And the walking platform didn't run in that direction.

Maddox's muscles seized. "Uh, I don't know that we can."

"I can." Layla shifted and grabbed the beam behind her, pulling herself upright.

His blood froze. "Don't move too much."

"I'm okay. Guess I just had the wind knocked out of me." She pulled to standing.

"A fireman is coming up to get you," Houston hollered.

"No, we'll come down." Layla yelled before Maddox could protest. She pressed the pad of her palm against her forehead. "Splinters, that hurt my head."

"Maybe we should wait for the fireman. You might be hurt worse than you think."

"I can still get myself down from a construction site, Maddox. This
is
what I do for a living, you know."

"It's not what I do," he muttered.

She offered her hand. "Come on, let's get out of here. My head's killing me and I want to get it looked at."

He took her hand and let her help him up. He grabbed a two-by-six and held on for all he was worth. And then he looked down.

Big mistake.

Layla turned and balanced on the edge of a plank. "Just put your feet where I do. We'll reach the ladder in no time." And she took off.

His legs wouldn't budge. He couldn't even loosen his grip on the board.

"Just slow and steady. Not so hard, huh?" She glanced over her shoulder and frowned. "What's wrong?"

He hadn't moved. Couldn't.

"Maddox?"

He couldn't stop staring at the ground. So. Far. Down.

"Maddox, look at me."

He yanked his gaze to meet hers.

"What's wrong?"

"Uh, I'm afraid of heights."

"You're afraid of—Maddox, you climbed all the way up here."

"Had to. Had to make sure you were okay."

She smiled, and heat nearly suffocated him. "Then you need to follow me."

"I don't know that I can." Now she'd think he was a wimp. But he couldn't help it—his body still refused to move.

"Yes, you can." She came back to him, standing right in front of him. "You
can
do this. Just follow me."

"I-I—"

She leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. The kiss wasn't nearly as soft and gentle as before. This one was urgent, hard, strong. And sent him reeling.

Layla grabbed him and held him to her. She ended the kiss and met his stare. "You will follow me. I'll turn around, and you just concentrate on stepping where I do. Don't look down, don't look up. Just look at my back and mimic my moves. Got it?"

He opened his mouth to protest.

She gave him a quick peck. "For once, Maddy, don't argue with me. Just do as I tell you."

Maddy. Only his mother had called him that.

His body stiffened.

Before he could respond, Layla turned and began making her way to the ladder again. "Just follow me and do what I do. Grab the beams for support, step. Support. Step. Easy."

He reached for the wood and held it tight. It was steady. Strong. He took a step.

"That's right, keep coming," Layla coaxed over her shoulder. She took three more steps over open space, gently setting her foot on the narrow board. "Grab, step. Grab, step. You're doing great."

His breaths came in pants, but he concentrated on where Layla stepped. What she grabbed.

Grab. Step. Grab.

Follow Layla.

"That's good. We're almost there."

Grab. Step.

And then he was right behind her.

"Okay, now we have to pivot and step down to the ladder. Just watch what I do. Okay?"

The edge of the building felt so . . . open . . . exposed . . . high.

"Maddy, look at me. Concentrate."

He trembled, but he managed to give a nod.

"Good, just watch. It's easy." Still holding a support beam, she put her back to the open air. With her right foot, she stepped to the rung. She put her left foot beside it, then let go of the beam and held each side of the ladder. "See? It's easy."

She was literally hanging off the side of nothing—five stories high!

"Maddy? Come on. I'm right here. You won't fall."

How did she know?

"Grab the beam and turn around. You can do this."

He reached for the wood. His hands were slick with sweat and his grip didn't hold. He wobbled.

"Maddox, hold that beam!"

He gripped it again, pushing splinters into his palm.

"Good, now turn around."

Using only his toes, he pivoted. He fought for control against the tremors traveling down his legs.

"Perfect. Now, take a step back."

His feet had grown roots.

"Take a step back. I'm right here. You aren't going to fall."

He inched his foot back.

"Now stop."

He froze.

"Good. Now use your toe to feel the edge of the plank. You can look, but don't look down past your feet. Feel for the rung."

He'd never vomited on the job before, but he just might do so now.

"Feel for the ladder's rung. It's right there."

He took in a deep breath and closed his eyes.
Okay, God, You kept her alive. You got me up here. If You're real, You're gonna have to help get me down.

"Not even two inches down. Come on, feel for it with your foot."

Maybe it was Layla's assurance. Maybe it was feeling as if his prayer had been heard. Maybe it was realizing that God wasn't a crutch for the weak. Or maybe he'd just lost his mind. At any rate, Maddox found his body responding to his commands.

He used his toe and found the rung. Stepped down. Put his other foot down. Let go of the board and grabbed the sides of the ladder.

"Excellent. Let's get out of here."

He kept his eyes closed as he descended. Layla continued to whisper encouragements to him, but he wasn't really hearing her.

There was something else running through his mind and rewinding, over and over again. The psalm his father had quoted to him:

"The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold."

THIRTY-SIX

"I believe that man will not merely endure. He will prevail. He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance."

—WILLIAM FAULKNER

LAYLA WAS TRULY SICK of the hospital's emergency room. Although this time, she wasn't in the waiting room. For the first time, she was in an examining room as a patient.

She touched the bandage on her temple again. Eighteen stitches, the doctor said. Would leave minimal scarring. They'd ruled out a concussion. The nurse should be in soon with her discharge papers.

Where was Maddox? He'd ridden to the hospital with her in the ambulance, holding her hand the whole way. As soon as she'd gotten into an examining room, Houston came for him. Maddox said he'd be back, but that was so long ago.

The door opened and Houston's wife, Margie, stepped inside, clipboard and paper bag in hand. "How're you feeling?"

"Fine. Ready to go."

Margie smiled. "I've got all your paperwork ready." She waved the little brown sack. "As well as your medications."

"What kind of medication?" She didn't like taking medicine. Did her best to avoid it if at all possible.

"Just some pain killers. Trust me, honey, you'll need some later tonight." Margie handed her the sack, then went over her discharge instructions. "Do you have any questions?"

"Do you know where Maddox is?" The heat skyrocketed to her face. "I mean, I don't have a ride home or anything."

Margie grinned. "He's with Houston talking to their commander. He should be done in a few minutes."

"Okay."

"Want me to get him for you?"

"Oh, no." Her tongue felt two sizes too big for her mouth. "It's not important. I don't want to interrupt a business thing. I'm fine."

Margie smiled wider. "Why don't you head down to the cafeteria and get yourself a big cup of coffee?" She reached into her pocket and passed Layla a five-dollar bill.

"Thank you, but I'm fine."

"I insist. I think you need the caffeine. And I'll tell Maddox where to find you when he finishes up with the commander."

Layla scooted off the examining bed. "Oh, okay. That sounds good. Thank you."

"You go right on ahead, honey. Get you some coffee and get some color back into your pretty face."

Like the blush wasn't enough?

Layla mumbled another thanks, then headed out of the examining area, past the emergency room waiting space, and toward the main entrance. She pushed the button at the elevator bay and waited.

What was she going to do about Maddox? There was no denying something strong pulsed between them. She could pretend it wasn't happening, or try to figure it out.

The elevator dinged and the doors slid open.

Ms. Betty stepped out. "Hello, Layla, dear."

"How are you?" She grabbed a quick hug as the elevator shut.

"As well as can be expected." The elderly lady frowned as she lifted Layla's bangs over the bandage. "What happened to you?"

"Just a little incident. I'm fine." She didn't want to go into details. Her mind was whirring already without reliving the moments. "What are you doing here?"