Aurator, The by M.A. KROPF Read Free Book Online Page A

defense. It was the same woman from outside and I now saw the identification she flashed earlier. A police detective, probably the one coming for this woman.
    I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, this case… well, I’m a little upset.”
    “I can understand that. I’m here to investigate. Are you the nurse taking care of her?”
    “Yes.”
    “Okay, we’ll need a rape kit and pictures of the injuries.” She said this so matter-of-factly that I took a step back. Then I remembered that only I knew this woman… sort of… before she came in here.
    “I’ll take care of it.” I tried to go back to work, not looking too much at the patient’s face. Images kept racing through my head. The faces… the screaming… I remembered every detail of the dream. I turned to the detective who was sitting now, writing, and asked, “There are other victims, aren’t there?”
    She raised an eyebrow and looked at me over her glasses. “Maybe, why?” Her look was too intense. I looked back at the patient.
    “No reason, just wondering.” Now I was wishing I had phrased my question a little differently, rather than trying to confirm what I already knew.
    The detective got up and walked toward me. I had finished assessing the patient and was washing my hands. She extended her right hand. “I should have introduced myself to you. I’m Charlene McGuire. Detective McGuire. And you are… ?”
    Drying my hands, I turned to face her. “Megan Hales.” I shook her hand but said nothing else. I tried to pull my hand back but she held on. It was a firm handshake, not one of those limp ones you sometimes get from women. We locked eyes for a moment, and then she let go of my hand.
    I moved away from her, partly because I was uncomfortable with her questioning eyes, but also because her heat was too much.
    She sat down and started writing again. I sighed. Good , I thought, maybe she missed my saying too much.
    “So, have you seen any other victims?” She asked suddenly without looking up from her paperwork.
    Damn . “No,” I tried to say nonchalantly, although I didn’t think I pulled it off.
    She chuckled, “No?”
    “No.” Good, I was much more resolved in my answer that time.
    “Okay,” she said in a conceding tone. “If you do think of someone or something that would help the case, here’s my card. I’m going out to make a phone call.” With that she walked closer to me, handed me her card, smiled a very knowing smile that really pissed me off, and walked out.
    I continued to care for my patient. I couldn’t believe it. How could this happen? I couldn’t ignore this terrible urge, a drive to do something. I couldn’t place the feeling I was having. I knew who I needed to call to help me. Damn.
     
    I got home from work just as the kids were ready for school. My husband was leaving with the oldest and I would be dropping the other two off. They all came running, just as they always do, and we were out the door. I stopped at the grocery store, did the usual shopping and headed home. I knew what I needed to do today but part of me was delaying. I didn’t want to admit that I needed his help.
     
    Back at home, I started putting the groceries away and reluctantly dialed the number.
    “Aaron?” I asked as he picked up the phone.
    “Hello, Megan.”
    “Aaron, I need your help. I guess I need some answers. Can you meet with me today?”
    “Of course I can. I can get out of work in about two hours. Want to meet at the cafe?”
    “Sure. Umm, Aaron?”
    “Yes?”
    “Thanks.”
    “Of course.”
    I finished putting away the groceries, cleaned up, and had time to take a quick nap. I lay down, but my mind was racing. I had seen her in the dream but she wasn’t dead… nobody had killed her. I didn’t know what to think about this. Clearly I was out of my league here. One thing I knew—I didn’t want to admit that maybe he was right about who I was.
     

7. Truth  
    I showed up at the cafe. Right