SH Medical 07 - The Detective's Accidental Baby by Jacqueline Diamond Read Free Book Online

fingers stroked her hair.
    She nodded.
    “Ever talk to anyone about it?” he asked.
    “The police. When it happened.” The shakes intensified at the memory of sitting in the hospital corridor, talking to a uniformed officer. He’d been cool, professional and remote as he took her statement. The air had felt as cold as the February chill outside. Physically, Erica had suffered only bruises and cuts. Inside, she’d been plunged into icy darkness.
    Jordan was dead. He’d died shielding her.
    “What about afterward?” There was a slight rasp to Lock’s voice. “Did you get counseling?”
    “My family dealt with problems on our own.” But they hadn’t really dealt with anything. Had never dealt with Jordan’s drug use, and after his death had simply retreated into their shells.
    “Tell me what happened.”
    Around Erica, the shadows lengthened. She swallowed hard.
    “Let it out.” Lock wasn’t asking; he was ordering. Somehow, that helped.
    She concentrated on the circle of light from a table lamp and the warmth of Lock’s body. “Jordan picked me up at nursing school to take me to dinner for my birthday. It wasn’t till he nearly hit a shuttle bus that I realized he was high.”
    “Your brother had a drug problem?”
    “He started experimenting in college.” An image of Jordan’s dancing eyes and quick laugh flashed into her mind. He’d had a gift for winning hearts, including his kid sister’s. “He smoked marijuana. A lot.”
    “No hard stuff?” Lock asked.
    “Not as far as I know.”
    “How did your parents respond?” he probed.
    “They argued. With him and with each other.” Their mother had insisted that she’d tried pot in college, too, and she’d turned out okay. Their father, a trust attorney, had pointed out that marijuana was illegal, and had become more potent since those days.
    They hadn’t insisted on treatment or acknowledged that their son’s life was careening off course, even when he dropped out of graduate school and gave up his dream of becoming a research biologist. He’ll outgrow this phase. Once he gets a job, a girlfriend, a goal in life, he’ll be fine. How many times had Erica heard those excuses?
    “You said he hit a bus?” Lock prompted.
    “No. He missed it.” She had suggested pulling over, but her brother kept driving. “Jordan started weaving in and out of traffic, and I could smell marijuana. When he ran a red light, I thought we’d get stopped, but no such luck.”
    “Go on.”
    There’d been a couple of near misses, corners taken with a screech of brakes, angry shouts and gestures from other drivers. “We were coming up on an intersection when the light turned red. He stomped on the gas pedal and laughed like it was a great joke. The next thing I knew, we were spinning around and he threw himself over me.”
    “You weren’t wearing seat belts?” Lock asked.
    “I was, but not Jordan, and the air bags didn’t inflate. I think he’d set them off before and never fixed them.”
    “And then?”
    “He whispered, ‘Live well.’ That’s the last thing he ever said.” Tears coursed down her cheeks.
    “What about the people in the other car?”
    She’d always been grateful that the crash hadn’t claimed anyone else. “We hit a panel truck. The driver had a few contusions, that’s all.”
    Lock rocked her gently. “How long were you trapped in the car with your brother on top of you?”
    “I’m not sure.” She’d either blacked out or erased that memory. “It couldn’t have been long.”
    “Did you have nightmares?”
    “Yes. I still do.” She wiped her tears on the sleeve of her jogging suit. “He wouldn’t have been there if it weren’t for my birthday.”
    Lock’s arms tightened around her. “You honestly think you’re even a little bit to blame?”
    “At one level, no.” Erica had told herself that, many times. “But my father said…”
    “Your father said what?” Lock demanded after she stopped.
    She’d overheard