who would be hurt.
It took just a glance at her face to make him realize just how wrong he had been—about everything. He’d abandoned her when she’d needed him most. He had made a huge mistake and compounded it with more wrong choices. He’d failed her. After all these years, there was probably nothing he could do to fix it.
But he was going to do his best to try.
“Good morning.” The soft, wistful sadness in her tone made him feel as if someone had reached inside his chest and squeezed his heart. “I heard you were back in town.”
“I didn’t expect to see you this morning.”
She smiled sadly and shrugged. “Why would you?”
It was the words not spoken that filled the room and heightened the tension between them. The mild censure in her last question was understandably deserved. He’d left without a word and he had returned—still, without a word.
She stood up, stretching her arms and back like a cat after a summer nap, and stepped forward. “I suppose we should talk.” She nodded toward the tiny body covered with white sheets lying on the bed. “About Jeremy.”
“How long have you been here?” He moved toward the bed to check his patient’s monitors.
“All night.”
That surprised him and he turned to look at her. “Why? Doesn’t he have any family? Grandparents?”
“No. Kate told me that Dave lost his family in a car accident when he was a teen. Her father died of a heart attack a couple years back. Her mother’s alive but has dementia and is living in a nursing home in Poplar Bluff.”
“Aunts? Uncles?”
“My team will check it out but I don’t think so.”
“Poor little guy. As if autism wasn’t a big enough challenge for him.” He brushed his hand over the sleeping boy’s head and then turned his attention back to Liz.
“So, why did you stay? You have a guard right outside the door.”
“He’s afraid of uniforms.”
“What?”
“Jeremy.” She stretched again and rubbed her lower back as though trying to work out a kink. “Kate…that’s his mother…was his mother…” She bit her lower lip, frowned and looked across the bed at him. “Anyway, she told me once that Jeremy is terrified of people in uniforms. I thought the sight of the medical and police uniforms might send him over the top. I’ve met Jeremy a couple of times when Kate brought him with her to church. He might remember me. I thought I should stay close by to see if I could help when he wakes up.”
Adam gave her a closer look and noted for the first time the loose flowered blouse covering her uniform. Only the bottom of her holster peeked from beneath the edge. If the boy did wake up, what he’d see was a pretty lady and lots of flowers—not a cop.
A wave of respect washed over him. She’d grown up to be a caring, intelligent woman. But then, he’d always known she would because that’s what she’d always been. Most teenagers are self-serving and selfish until they find their place in the world. Lizzie was an exception. She was always loving, kind, trusting. It was the trusting part that made another wave of guilt wash over him.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t here when the boy arrived last night. I had an emergency in Poplar Bluff. But the hospital staff updated me by phone.”
“That’s okay. The staff sedated him almost immediately and he’s been sleeping ever since.” She gently brushed the boy’s hair off his forehead and then raised her eyes to his. “I was surprised to hear that you’ve moved back to town.”
“Why? This is my home.”
“Really?” She tilted her head and studied him. “It didn’t seem to stop you from leaving it the first chance you got.”
Ouch. There it was. The elephant in the room.
He recognized the challenge behind her words. She had a chip on her shoulder and she was daring him to address the issue or try to knock it off. He knew anything he said right now would open old wounds and change nothing, so he remained silent.
“I’m sorry,” Liz said. “That was mean.” She chewed on her bottom lip, something he remembered her doing when she was nervous or upset.
“Forget it.” He smiled at her and hurried to change the subject. “Right now, I’m filling a temporary consultant position in Poplar Bluff. It’s not that long a drive from here. They had a real need and I owed a friend a favor. But as soon as they hire a replacement, all my attention will be here. I have big plans for Country Corners.”
Liz grinned. “Really? You sound pretty excited. What kind of plans?”
For an instant, it felt like old times again.
When they were in high school, Liz had always been willing to listen and often offered sage advice beyond her years when he needed it. He thought he’d burst with his need to tell her about his plans for the community. His plans included her. He’d done his research before returning. He knew she was still single and not seeing anyone special. He was here to make amends, to right wrongs, to win her back.
One look into her steely, challenging gaze told him it was going to be more like Mission: Impossible than the uphill battle he had expected. But he was going to try.
“I’d like to tell you all about it. Maybe over coffee?” He hoped she’d still be able to read him, to sense his sincerity, at least.
Indecision and wariness flashed across her face. She opened her mouth to respond but he spoke first.
“But this isn’t a good time. Give me a rain check?”
She closed her mouth and just stared at him.
He nodded at the tiny body lying on the bed. “Right now, I’m only interested in what you can tell me about this boy.”
When she looked across the bed at him, there was a telltale glistening in her eyes. He wasn’t sure if it was his words or the child’s situation that caused her such pain. His gut twisted when he realized it was probably both.
“This little boy has lost everything and everyone,” Liz said. “He’s so young and vulnerable and…”
“Autistic?”
“Yes, autistic. Kate told me that he was making great progress with his verbal skills. And even though he still wasn’t a fan of eye contact or light touch, he would crawl into her lap and allow her to hug him or sit quietly while she rocked him.”
She blinked several times and her eyes hardened. “I need to get the guy who did this. I’m going to get this guy no matter what.”
Adam nodded his understanding and empathized with her. A person capable of destroying a family as though they were without value or worth did not belong on the streets.
“Was the boy a witness?” Adam asked.
“I
