She did, but from the corner of her eye, and it seemed as if she was genuinely horrified by what she was seeing. Him, slumped against the table, and her, grabbing his gun to return fire.
Clayton hit Pause again the second she pulled the trigger.
It was a clear image of not just the truck but of Lenora. The way she was holding the gun. The expression on her face. The precision with which she returned fire.
There are only two types of people who react that way in a life-or-death situation, he said. Law enforcement and criminals.
She didnt ask which he thought she was and didnt deny his conclusion. Lenora mumbled something, shook her head and walked away from him.
I need some air, she said. Before he could stop her, she went to the side door just a few feet away and threw it open.
The hot July sunlight speared through the tiny church.
Clayton couldnt quite choke back a groan, and he shoved on his glasses. Too late, though. The pain came.
Whats wrong? Lenora immediately asked.
He turned away, fought back the throbbing in his head. Maybe it wouldnt turn into a full-blown migraine.
The sunlight, he managed to say. I get headaches.
She jerked the door closed and hurried back to him. From the gunshot?
He nodded and forced out some hard breaths. Sometimes it helped.
Im sorry, she whispered. I didnt know. That wasnt in any of the reports I read about you.
Even through the blinding pain that got his attention, and he stared at her.
Yes, I read reports about you, she verified. I wanted to make sure you were okay.
You could have just asked. Or stayed at the hospital until I came out of surgery. Instead, Harlan said you bolted from the ambulance the second it stopped.
I did. She looked away, repeated it. Lenora turned again, as if looking for a way out, and the movement caused her coat to shift to the side.
Despite the pain, Clayton pulled off his glasses so he could make sure his eyes werent playing tricks on him. They werent. He saw her belly.
Or rather, the baby bump.
It wasnt huge, but it was there. And even more, Lenora followed his stunned gaze and pulled the coat back over her. The little gasping sound she made didnt help steady his nerves, either.
Youre pregnant, Clayton said.
She nodded.
How far along are you? he asked when she didnt volunteer anything else.
Lenora didnt jump to answer that, either. Second trimester.
He stared at her. Thats whatfour or five months?
Another hesitation. Nearly five.
The brain injury might have robbed him of some of his memories, but he could still do basic math. Nearly five months ago put it just about the time shed been in his protective custody.
The time frame that was a blank spot in his mind.
How much do you remember about me? she asked before he could say anything.
Not much. Nothing, he amended. Everything I know about you I learned from the reports and surveillance videos. And from Adam Riggs.
Clearly, she hadnt been expecting that last part, because she sucked in a quick breath. What did Riggs tell you about me?
Not as much as Clayton had wanted. And while Clayton would answer her questions about Riggs, he wasnt forgetting about that baby bump. He would get answers about that before this conversation was over.
I went to visit Riggs in jail, Clayton explained, to try to figure out if he was responsible for shooting me. Of course, he said he wasnt.
Of course. She huffed. Anything that comes out of his mouth is a lie, because hes a cold-blooded killer.
Clayton couldnt argue with that. He didnt
remember Riggs gunning down Jill Lang, but hed seen the crime-scene photos and read the reports. The man was indeed a murderer.
One behind bars.
And one that shouldnt have had the access to hire a gun to come after Lenora and him.
Riggs said you had secrets, and thats a direct quote, Clayton finished. Any idea what he meant by that?
He purposely dropped his gaze to her stomach. He doubted that bump had anything to do with Riggss cryptic comment, but Clayton figured Lenora definitely had some secrets that needed to be spilled.
She opened her mouth, closed it and then groaned. I did you a favor by leaving Maverick Springs. My advicelet me keep doing you that favor.
Clayton stepped in front of her when she tried to leave. Yeah, he could restrain her, but if she opened a door, the sunlight was going to cause the pain to spike again and maybe send him to his knees. After that, he wouldnt be able to do much of anything. Ironic that a bullet hadnt stopped him, but now sunlight could.
Did we have sex? he came right out and asked. And is that my baby youre carrying?
The questions came easily enough, but there was nothing easy about the emotions whipping through him. Hed come here for answers about the attack and why shed disappeared, but Clayton hadnt been prepared for this.
Except there was something familiar about this, too.
A sense of déjà vu, and since hed never fathered a child, he had to think that maybe the reason Lenora had visited him three months ago was to tell him she was pregnant. That would certainly explain the stunned look on his face in the surveillance video.