Page 88 of Desperate Justice

Allison took the lip gloss and examined it. “This is Di’s favorite shade. I’m sure it’s hers. Maybe she left it for us to find?”

“Another damn clue.” He examined her head. “I’m taking you back to the cabin. This needs medical attention.”

“I’m fine.”

But as she stood, she staggered, stricken by a sudden bout of dizziness. “Give me a minute.”

He didn’t. Rafe lifted her into his arms and carried her over to his motorcycle and set her upon it. “Can you hold on, or should I call for an Uber?”

“I’ll be fine. Where are we going?”

“Hospital. You need to have that looked at.”

Allison blew out a breath. “Listen, Rodriguez, I know my body. I just need to rest a bit. Take me back to the cabin. No hospitals, no doctors.”

She appreciated this side of him, in control and concerned for her welfare. Everyone else in her life always took it for granted that she was the person who cared for others.

No one ever cared much for her, until Rafe came along.

“Ally, I need to call this into the local authorities. Stolen license plate on that car makes it a crime, and if you want to find your sister...”

“No!” She thought of how Rafe thought Diana was involved with drugs, but he was willing to set aside his suspicions for the search. Locals would be less charitable.

“Please, I need more time.”

They returned to the cabin. No sign of the car Diana had taken. Against more protests, Rafe carried her into the cabin and set her on the sofa.

She heard him call from the bathroom. “Where’s your first aid kit?”

“Don’t have one.”

He popped his head out the door. “You’re a nurse and you don’t have a first aid kit?”

“Don’t need one. I carry one in my pack, and you don’t need to play nurse with me.” She gave a light laugh. “I mean, play me with me. Damn, am I making sense?”

“No. And yes.”

She went to the bathroom to inspect the lump on her forehead as Rafe fetched her pack and handed over her kit. Not too bad. Whoever attacked her hadn’t much strength, and the move served only to knock her off the ladder. She swallowed a couple of anti-inflammatory pills and got a frozen bag of peas for the lump.

They went into the living room and sat on the sofa. Rafe pulled off her Dr. Martens and placed her feet on his lap, massaging them as she put the frozen peas against her head

“Damn, that feels so good. Maybe I should get hit on the head more often,” she told him.

He frowned. “Don’t even joke about it. Tell me about the lip gloss I found. Any idea why she’d leave it behind?”

“None, except she probably wanted us to find it, let us know she was there.”

“Allison, you keep saying your sister is innocent. Why wouldn’t she call you to tell you she’s safe?”

The delicious massaging of her feet ceased. Allison swung her legs over to rest them on the coffee table. Rafe turned into a serious FBI agent. Direct. Questioning. Impartial.

“She’s scared. Something must have scared her off and she can’t call me directly. She’s on the run.”

“Can you think of anyone in Diana’s life who would want to hurt her?”

Allison’s head throbbed, but she realized the importance of his question. “You believe me, finally. You think someone is after her and she’s not into smuggling drugs and has nothing to do with drugs.”

Expression guarded, he shook his head. “I’m eliminating all possible reasons why she ran away, especially now that we know she was here and the person who attacked you may have chased her.”