By twelve-thirty, Dane had gotten Marlie roused enough to visit the bathroom and drink some water, but she had gone to sleep again as soon as he helped her back into bed.
At 12:55, his beeper went off again. The number displayed was Trammell’s. Impatiently Dane dialed it.
“We found her,” Trammell said, his voice cool and expressionless. “Her name is Marilyn Elrod. Her estranged husband heard the bulletin and called from his girlfriend’s house to check up on her. When he didn’t get an answer, he drove over. Her car was in the driveway, and she always put it in the garage, so that bothered him right away. He still had keys to the house and let himself in, and found her upstairs in her bedroom.”
“Marilyn,” Dane said. “Not Maryland. Marilyn.”
“Yeah. Look, do you want Grace to come over and stay with Marlie so you can go to the scene?”
He didn’t like leaving Marlie, but it was his job, his weekend on call. “Send her over,” he said gruffly.
“She’s on her way,” Trammell said. “I gave her directions. She should be there in five minutes or less.”
“You think you’re smart, don’t you?”
“I just know you, pal.”
Grace proved that she drove faster than Trammell by knocking on the door right then. Her normally serene face was troubled when Dane let her in. “How is she?” she asked immediately.
“Still sleeping. I managed to rouse her for a few minutes about half an hour ago, but she was still too groggy to think. She conked out again as soon as I got her back to bed.” As he talked, Dane was slipping into his shoulder holster and putting on his jacket.
“I’m on second shift tonight,” Grace said, following him to the door. “I brought my uniform so I can stay until the last possible minute, but I can’t stay much past two-thirty. I know it isn’t enough time,” she said apologetically.
Dane swore under his breath, but didn’t see anything else he could do. “It’s okay. She’ll be more alert next time. Let her sleep until two, then make her respond to you. Tell her where I am, and that I’ll be back as soon as possible.”
Grace nodded in understanding. As he started down the steps, she said hesitantly, “Dane? Um… I was wondering. That is… Marlie… Can she…? Oh, damn,” she said in frustration. “I don’t know how to say this.”
Dane turned back. It was unusual for Grace to lose her composure. He saw how uncomfortable she looked, and took a guess. “Can she read your mind?”
Grace bit her lip. “Alex said you were good at doing that yourself,” she muttered. “But… yes. Can she read my mind?”
“She says she doesn’t.” Let Grace see if she could find any more reassurance in that than he did. “And I didn’t read your mind. It was a lucky guess, because the idea makes me uncomfortable too.”
Grace nodded, understanding completely. Dane went to his car, and she stepped back inside, closing the door against the heat.
She followed his instructions and at two began shaking Marlie and talking to her. To Grace’s relief, Marlie blinked her eyes open after only a minute. “Grace?” she asked, the word as blurred as if she had been drinking.
Grace sighed with relief. “Yes, it’s me. I’ve made some fresh coffee. Would you like some?”
Marlie swallowed, trying to push aside the thick fog in her brain so she could think. “Yes,” she finally said.
“I’ll get it. Don’t go back to sleep.”
“I won’t.” It was difficult. Marlie fought it, struggling to understand. Grace was here… Where was Dane? Had something happened to him? Sudden panic dissipated the fog even more, and she managed to sit up. She was nude under the sheet; she clutched the bedcovers to her, looking around, trying to gather some clue about what was going on.
Grace returned with a cup only half-full of coffee, making it easier for Marlie to hold without spilling any. “Where’s Dane?” she blurted, her eyes dark with distress. “Has something happened to him?”
“No, of course not!” Seeing her distress, Grace sat down on the bed and patted her arm. “Dane’s fine. He left just an hour ago.”
“Left?” Confused, Marlie closed her eyes. Behind her lids flashed a nightmare image, surrounded with what seemed like a hundred candles, reflected in a darkened mirror. She caught her breath as part of her memory returned. “What day is this?”
“Saturday,” Grace replied.
“Then it was just last night that it happened.” She inhaled deeply, shoring up her fragile control, and opened her eyes.
“The victim’s been found. Dane’s at the scene now.” Grace knew, from talking to Trammell, that the scene was exactly as Marlie had described it. If she hadn’t been there herself last night, and listened to Marlie talking, she would never have thought it possible. Being an eyewitness, however, tended to make one a believer. “He didn’t want to leave you alone, so I came over.”
“Thank you,” Marlie said. “I’m so foggy when I first wake up that it’s easier if someone is here to explain things.” She had always gotten through it alone until Dane, but still, it was nice to have someone there.
“I can’t stay much longer. I’m on second shift,” Grace explained. “Will you be okay by yourself?”
“I’ll probably go back to sleep.” Marlie sipped the coffee. “Does Trammell mind that you work nights?”