It affected him. He bent down again and drew his mouth over her eyes, her nose, her cheeks. “Don’t,” he whispered huskily. “You’ve been so brave, Keely. I can’t bear to see you cry. Don’t, honey. Don’t.”
Now she knew she was dreaming. Boone had never called her a pet name, and he didn’t care if he hurt her. She closed her eyes, though, enjoying the dream. It was so sweet to have his breath on her lips, his mouth caressing her wet face, his deep voice murmuring sweet and impossible things.
The sound of the door opening stopped the dream, of course. Boone moved away and she was sure it had been her imagination. She’d been heavily sedated, after all, to compensate for the terrible pain. Boone’s expression was taciturn, as usual, and he didn’t look anything like a man who’d been whispering sweet endearments to her. Winnie and Clark came into the room, somber and worried, especially when they saw Keely’s face.
“You didn’t tell her?” Winnie asked angrily. “Coltrain said not to—”
“Tell me what?” Keely asked at once, dabbing her eyes with the sheet.
Winnie’s face contorted. Boone glared at her. So did Clark.
“Tell me what?” Keely demanded, belligerent now, as she looked from one guilty face to the other.
“I said I’d tell her when it was time,” Boone said shortly. “It’s not time.”
“Yes, but…” Winnie stopped, horrified, as the television, overhead, began with the lead story of the day’s news. The first bit was a photo of Ella Welsh and news about her murder. That was what she and Clark had rushed back into Keely’s room to tell him, because they knew the television had been on although turned down, so they could catch the evening news. They’d seen the beginning of this broadcast on the wall televisions as they passed through the waiting room. They hadn’t thought about the murder story being broadcast so soon.
Keely burst into fresh tears, almost hysterical.
“Damn that thing! Shut it off!” Boone shot at Clark as he started toward the call button next to Keely’s pillow. While Clark shut off the television, Boone pressed the button and asked the nurse to come in, before he bent to curl Keely’s face into his shoulder. “It’s all right, honey. It’s all right. I’m so sorry. I never meant you to hear it like that!”
The nurse came in. Boone explained quietly what had just happened. The nurse grimaced and went to call Coltrain, who was, she explained, still making rounds.
The redheaded doctor was in the room scant minutes later. He ordered a sedative for Keely and waited until it took effect before he called the siblings out into the hall.
“It was the damned television,” Boone said angrily. “Why do you have those things in every room in the first place?”
“It wasn’t my idea, believe me,” Coltrain replied at once. “Keely’s going to have a hard recuperation if she has to go back to that house alone.”
“She won’t,” Boone said at once. “She’s coming home with us. I’ve already discussed it with Hayes Carson.”
“Good thinking,” Coltrain replied. He drew in a heavy breath. “I never expected that story to come out so soon. Hell, we don’t even have a local television broadcasting station in the county.”
“San Antonio is plenty close enough to pick the story up, especially on a slow news day,” Winnie murmured. “There’s nothing but political news, and everybody’s sick of that.”
“You’d better hire some bodyguards to protect you at home,” Coltrain advised. “These guys are desperate enough to go after money any way they can get it.”
“Everybody knows they killed Keely’s mother—at least locally we know it,” Winnie said. “They’d be stupid to stick around.”
“These guys will never get work building spaceships,” Coltrain said, tongue-in-cheek. “Otherwise, they wouldn’t have risked coming here in the first place. Hayes Carson would love to get Brent Welsh in his sights on any pretext.”
“So would I,” Boone replied grimly. “He stood by and watched while Keely got mauled saving a kid from a mountain lion. Those scars are going to be permanent, aren’t they?” he asked Coltrain.
Coltrain grimaced. “We might be able to get a plastic surgeon to clean them up, but they’re very deep. She’d have half a dozen surgeries to anticipate, at least. And there’s something else—the sutures weren’t done well, either. She may face some real problems down the road. I’d recommend plastic surgery for that reason alone. But she has no insurance, you know.”
“What the hell does that matter?” Boone asked blithely. “I’ll take care of it. You talk her into it, and I’ll pay the surgeon.”
Coltrain grinned. “That’s a deal.”
Winnie didn’t say anything, but she felt terrible that she and Keely had been friends for so many years, and Keely had never told her about the encounter with the mountain lion. She wondered if she’d said or done something that would make her best friend uncomfortable telling her about it.
“Is Keely asleep?” Boone asked Coltrain.
He nodded. “She’ll be out for a while. It’s just as well. That snakebite is still giving her hell. If Winnie hadn’t found her when she did… Well, it doesn’t bear thinking about,” he added, cutting short the remark when he saw Boone’s tortured eyes. “I’d better get back to work. If you need me, just tell the nurse on duty. They can always find me.”
“Thanks,” Boone said.
Coltrain shrugged and smiled. “I like Keely.”
The siblings gathered around to discuss their plans. Boone decided that he’d better go and see Eb Scott in person. He was going to need specialized talent. Clark and Winnie would take turns staying
