Chapter 14: Part 4

Amanda stepped out of the cab, still favoring her left leg. The hospital had released her this morning and she'd slipped out unnoticed. Still amazed that no one knew where she was, Amanda moved through the city with little fuss. Of course she looked different. Her skin had aged at least ten years. She was painfully thin, almost anorexic. She could imagine the headlines the rags would publish. The next few years would be painful if she chose to remain in the public eye, or she could retire and get lost somewhere in America.



The glamour and the glitz were gone. No longer did she want to be the center of attention, letting the masses praise her every move. A small house in the center of the country would suit her just fine.



Amanda pushed through the doors of the police station looking for detective Bertrand. Louis Bertrand had wanted to speak to her at her earliest convenience after leaving the hospital. All the extra guards had been dismissed at her insistence. She would be fine. The guy who had attacked her was long gone. He probably sailed back to the states or off to another tropical location where another girl would be duped into torture.



The noise in the station overwhelmed her. Amanda closed her eyes and leaned against the cool wall. Nothing would ever be the same. Every man in the place was suspect. Never again would she really relax.



"Excuse me miss, do you need something?"



Amanda opened her eyes to see a smiling dark skinned man standing in front of her. She stepped back, putting more distance between the two of them. The man's smile faded.



"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to spook you. Can I help you?"



"Detective Bertrand please."



"Yes, have a seat. You need water." The officer handed her an unopened bottle of water and pushed her into a chair.



Amanda didn't protest, instead she opened the bottle and drained half. She'd felt thirsty every waking moment since coming back to civilization.



The rest of the water sat in the bottle waiting for her to drink but she didn't. What if's spun through her mind. She needed to buy some more bottles and always keep one with her. No two.



She picked up the bottle and held it in front of her. She noticed that her hand shook. She closed her eyes and did her best to block out the racket from the police station but it did no good. There were too many people, too much talking.



A hand touched her shoulder and she jumped, it was Bill. "What are you doing still here? I thought you'd gone back to the states."



"Amanda," he knelt beside her and brushed a strand of hair out of her face. She batted his hand away.



"You didn't come back to the hospital. You weren't there when they discharged me."



Bill's mouth turned down into a frown. "I'm sorry. Can we talk?"



"I don't know. I came her to talk to detective Bertrand."



"Is there something I can help you with?"



"The detective wanted to speak to me. I'm guessing he is trying to catch the scum who took me."



"Come with me, please. Let's talk. I'll bring in Louis, but I need to speak to you."



She followed him to a small room and immediately felt trapped when he closed the door. Part of her wanted to bolt. Why had he told her he was going to leave and stay? Did she not mean anything to him?



Was this how everything was going to be now that she no longer looked beautiful? Her head ached and her mouth felt dry. She held up the bottle, worried that less than half of the water remained. Her throat felt parched. She needed a sip, but what if she ran out.



"Here, take another one." Bill passed a bottle of water to her.



"No, I'm fine."



"Amanda, you went through a huge trauma. Take the water with you. You need to stay hydrated."



"You're just saying that because I look like an old leather purse."



He took a step forward, his fingers caressed her shoulder. "You are beautiful."



Tears formed in her eyes. She didn't want to cry. Crying would make her face blotchy. A blotchy face would look ugly. Bill pulled her into a tight hug making her tear up even more.



She pushed at his chest but he didn't budge. "Stop, I'm going to cry."



"It's okay if you cry."



"This isn't how it's supposed to be. I can't believe you told me you were going to leave."



"I'm married. Even if my wife is cheating on me I can't..."



Amanda wiped away the tears and pushed back a little. "I'm too pushy."



"Pushy? No, it's...it's difficult. I don't want to..."



"Don't say anything. I think I understand."



Bill tipped up her chin and "Do you?"



"You're not like the guys I usually date."



Bill's laughter echoed around the room. "No, I would never have rated in your previous life. I would have been one of the invisible."



"No."



"Amanda, really, I'm a nobody FBI agent who would never even have the chance of meeting you."



"Maybe."



"Ha, no maybe about it. Did you ever go grocery shopping for yourself?"



"No."



"What about to the mall?"



Amanda knew her life wasn't like others. She'd been different. Some would say special. "No."



"Me neither, can stand crowded stores." He made a face, squinting his brows together.



"You're just saying that to make me laugh. I bet you go shopping every extra minute you have."



"Ha, as if. Not me, not the shoppy kind of guy. I'm more into football and sailing."



"I see that. Actually, I feel that." She rubbed her hand down his shoulder, feeling the muscles under his shirtsleeves. "Nice muscles."



"Don't make me laugh."



"Really, you're like the real deal."



"Real deal? I'm not the real deal." Bill dropped his arms and turned around. His shoulders slumped. "My marriage is failing. My boss hates me. My family thinks I'm stupid. I need to solve this one or else...Hell, I don't know what will happen."



Should she put her hand on his shoulder? She wondered how he would react. "Your job?"



"I'm not the typical agent. It doesn't come off well with coworkers."



She moved around so he could look in her eyes. "You're great, just as you are."



"I have to find this killer. No more women can fall victim to this guy." He pulled her into a tight embrace. "I can't believe..."



She broke town, sobbing and shaking. She'd shed more tears in the last few days than she had in her life. Since regaining the ability to cry she'd cherished every tear, but crying in front of Bill sucked.



"I'm going to find this guy. I promise you that."



Her tears erupted again. Having Bill care for her hurt. She'd lived a long time without anyone caring for her. It was ironic that after her body had gone to crap and her skin looked like crinkled up crêpe paper she found Bill.



She swiped at her nose, knowing that she looked above and beyond crap. Bill handed her a tissue. Blowing her nose had been something she tried to never do in public. Mainly because she usually had a microphone in front of her. Really her life was an illusion. No one ever saw the real Amanda. Real pictures of singer ended up in the Star or the Globe told as desperate cries for help or drug induced binges.



"You're too nice." Amanda turned to blow her nose. "I'm a total mess. Really, you are being way to nice to me."



"No, not I'm not. Finding the guy is my job."



"But you checked in on me so many times. So much so that I relied on you being there."



"I shouldn't have dragged that out for you. It was unfair. I thought...never mind what I thought."



"No, Bill, I want to know."



"I thought I could handle having a relationship with you, but I'm still married and that wouldn't have been fair to you."



Amanda felt another round of tears gearing up. She didn't want to cry. Bill had been thinking of her. She'd never had a guy think of her and her needs. Most men didn't care. They only wanted to be seen on her arm so they could get bragging rights.



"Listen, I need every ounce of information about the guy who attacked you. I need to do my job. Then I'll go home and straighten out my personal life. After I get that finished I want to go for coffee with you. Get to know you."



Fear flashed through her mind. Maybe he was just like those other guys dying to be seen with her.



"And by go for coffee I meant to some quiet place where no one will know it's you, and if we can't find that we'll go somewhere like my back porch and sip our latte's there. How does that sound?"



"You really don't have any ulterior motive."



"No, what you see is what you get."



Amanda blushed, she liked what she saw. He had a great body and moreover he was kind and supportive. "This is strange. We're in a police station. No one can see us through this can they?" Amanda tapped the glass.



"They can see, but not hear."



"I would kiss you if we had more privacy."



Bill coughed and shuffled his feet.



"It would probably be better if I didn't. I'll give you some time. Solve this case."



"You need to get a body guard."



Amanda shook her head. "No."



"Listen to me, he's out there. I don't know where the jerk is though. I need to know you are safe. Please for me?"



"I don't want people to know who I am."



"Fine, stay in your room but have a body guard there with you. I need you to stay safe."



"Okay, I'll do it, but I'm not going to like it."



Bill pulled her into a tight hug. "I will do everything I can to stop this guy. And until..."



"All right, bodyguard. I'll get one."

Copyright Sara Thacker 2011