Hunting a Killer by Nicole Helm

Author:Nicole Helm
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2020-11-05T17:38:56+00:00

* * *

THEY WALKED IN silence from then on out. When they reached where Selena had left their packs, Blanca was waiting patiently. After Selena motioned, giving her the permission to move, she bounded toward Axel. She pressed her furry body against his legs and whined.

Axel could only stare down at the dog. Expressing some kind of sympathy or concern...for him.

Selena disappeared into the trees, then returned with both their packs. She was already rummaging around in one, likely for the first aid kit. When she pulled it out, she still didn’t look at him.

He tried not to think too deeply at how much his minor injuries seemed to bother her. What that might mean. In the moment, it couldn’t mean anything.

“Patch up my face so we can call in,” he said gruffly.

She frowned and gestured at his throbbing hand. “Your hand—”

“Patch up my face so we can call in,” he repeated. “We’ll go from there.” The damage was painful, and he’d likely need some professional medical attention eventually, but he could deal for a few days. He had to.

“I want you to walk me through it. Step by step,” she said, opening the kit and getting out what she would need. When she had everything, she stepped toward him and then hesitated.

“You’re too tall.”

His mouth curved. “Not a complaint I usually get.”

It got an eye roll out of her, which was nice.

“Get on your knees. Put that hurt hand in the snow. I don’t know if that’ll help any, but the cold can’t hurt.”

He did as he was told, kneeling before her and plunging the injured hand into the icy cold of the snow. He sucked in a breath and tried to enjoy the interesting position of kneeling in front of Selena Lopez.

But she touched his face with a disinfectant wipe and the burning pain was the only thing he could pay attention to. Since he didn’t want to embarrass himself by cursing up a blue streak or wincing away from what had to be done, he focused on his breathing. On the blue of the sky above them.

He told her what happened in quick, succinct summary.

“This might need stitches,” she said, unwrapping a bandage with hands that weren’t quite steady. “You were shot in the face.”

“The bullet grazed my face. And, hey, it’s not the first time. I’m old hat at this.”

She paused, then instead of smoothing the bandage over his wound, gently touched her hand to his good cheek. Her expression went heartbreakingly sad. Not just sympathy or pity—that he could have ignored, shrugged away.

This was care. It tightened his chest, and for a few seconds the radiating pain in his body seemed to dissipate.

“Ax...” She squeezed her eyes shut, pulling her hand away. She swallowed, wiping at the cut again. “Why would you take a risk like that?”

“I don’t plan on witnessing any more cold-blooded murders in my life, Selena.”

“You didn’t have to—”

He reached up and curled his fingers around her wrist, needing her to understand that this didn’t lie on her shoulders.

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