Say Goodbye (Romantic Suspense #25) by Karen Rose

            “Something like that,” the woman said.

            “Who’s that?” Raeburn demanded.

            “The healer,” Tom said. “Graham said that the healer went to the hospital with Pastor. Her name is Coleen. Amos said she was there when he arrived in Eden.”

            “Let’s go to my office,” Raeburn said. “I want to see this on a bigger screen.”




EDEN, CALIFORNIA

            TUESDAY, MAY 30, 11:30 A.M.

            “I’m fine,” Hayley said through clenched teeth.

            “No, you’re not.” Sister Rebecca had been hovering for hours. She’d thrown Tamar out of Hayley’s little cubicle, but Tamar had refused to leave, standing vigil at the curtain’s edge.

            Hayley glared up at Rebecca from her pallet on the cold stone floor. “I am fine.” Which wasn’t true. She’d been having mild contractions all morning and she was scared enough without the bitch making it worse. “You are making me tense and that isn’t good for my baby.”

            Rebecca’s eyes narrowed at the challenge. Her hand twitched like she was aching to use her fists. But of course she did not. She merely smiled cruelly. Hayley knew without a doubt that Rebecca would grab Jellybean as soon as the baby exited the womb.

            From Tamar’s pained expression, she knew it, too.

            “I want you to stay as still as possible,” Rebecca said. “I don’t want you to go into labor until Sister Coleen returns. I want a healthy baby, so you will do everything in your power to delay labor. That includes staying put.”

            Hayley wanted to kill the bitch. She wanted a healthy baby? “If I promise to lie still, will you go? Because I’m really hating you right now.”

            One side of Rebecca’s mouth lifted. “Don’t worry. You won’t have to expend your energy on hating me for much longer.”

            Tamar’s eyes closed and Hayley knew she wasn’t being paranoid in taking Rebecca’s words as an obvious threat. There were so many things Hayley wanted to say to the woman. She wanted to threaten her back. But Rebecca held the power right now.

            And the woman was right about one thing. She did want to delay labor for as long as possible, because Graham was so close to being able to call out for help. She hadn’t mentioned the mild contractions to him. She hadn’t wanted to break his concentration. He’d set up the last of the healer’s computer equipment this morning and was using this latest trip to empty the pots to try to send out e-mails to the cops and Cameron.

            Please, Graham. Please. Be careful. Be successful.

            Her heart sank when there was a furor out in the common area. She could hear Joshua’s voice. And Graham’s. Neither sounded happy.

            The curtain ripped back. Joshua had Graham by the collar and was shaking him. Bruises were forming on Graham’s face and Hayley wanted to kill Joshua, too.

            But all she could do was watch helplessly.

            “Take him away,” Rebecca cried, waving her hands. “He reeks.”

            “On purpose,” Joshua growled. “He was up there, in the rocks . . . I’m still not sure what he was doing. He had a computer. He somehow smuggled a computer into the compound.”

            Rebecca’s shock was genuine. “What? How?”

            “It’s not mine,” Graham shouted. “I keep telling you. It’s the healer’s. It’s Pastor’s.” Graham’s voice was carrying and already the membership was gathering beyond the curtain. Which, Hayley figured, was Graham’s intent, because Joshua was shaking him again, snarling at him to be quiet.

            Graham was having none of it. There was desperation in his expression, in his voice, in the way he held his body rigid, fists clenched at his sides. He knew he was no physical match.

            He was hoping for someone in the community to have the courage to stand with him.

            “They hid this technology from you!” Graham continued to yell.

            Joshua clamped a big hand over Graham’s nose and mouth, and Hayley struggled to get up. The bastard wasn’t trying to quiet Graham. He was trying to smother him.