Page 2 of Shadowed Witness (The Secrets of Kincaid #2)

But she knew what she’d seen. Felt. There was another victim out there, and the more she thought about it, the less she believed he’d be found alive. And if that was the case ... she’d witnessed a murder tonight.

Her stomach flipped as the realization sank in. She needed to call the police, and the sooner the better. She dug in her purse for her phone but again failed to find it. She’d have to search her other bags once Mayor Jennings returned. Or just ask to borrow his phone.

When he rejoined her a moment later, she cleared her throat and grimaced at the pain.

“I can’t leave until I call the police. I’m almost positive that was a murder in progress, and at the very least, the man attempted to kill me.

” She saw the protest on Mayor Jennings’s face, but before he could voice it, she plowed ahead.

“I know you think I just fell, but what will it hurt to have them look?”

He sighed and rubbed the skin between his eyes. “How about this? I’ll call the police and have them take a look around. But first let me take care of you. The last thing you need is to be stuck out here while we wait for an available officer to arrive and investigate.”

“But they’ll need my statement.”

“If they find anything, yes. And they can follow up with you with any questions they have.”

A wave of fatigue washed over her, making it hard to think.

Would an extra ten or twenty minutes make a difference at this point?

The men were gone, and she doubted they’d return anytime soon.

And though she had no intention of admitting it, she needed to lie down.

Holding herself upright was taking nearly all the energy she had left.

“Okay.”

Satisfied with her one-word acquiescence, the mayor started the engine. “Am I taking you home or to the ER?”

“Home.” The ER wouldn’t do anything for bruises that she couldn’t do just as well herself, and she had enough medical bills and doctor appointments as it was. She wasn’t going to add one she didn’t need.

They pulled onto the road, and the mayor aimed his car toward her house.

“Now, tell me what you think you saw, so I can give the police an accurate description.”

Allye resisted the urge to correct his use of the word think .

“I was coming down from my studio and heard what sounded like someone getting hit behind the building. I went to the corner and looked around and saw three men. One was on the ground like he’d fallen, and another was kicking him.

” She swallowed. “I think I made a noise because the attacker looked up and saw me. I tried to run, but...”

The mayor stopped at a light and turned to look at her. “And?”

“He pushed me down.” She blinked. “Or I fell. I don’t remember now. But when I got up, he grabbed me. Held me against the wall and started choking me. I blacked out. Then you were there.”

The light changed, and the mayor returned his attention to the road. “You said you think you saw the attack behind the building. Right or left from the alley?”

“Right. And I did see it.”

He didn’t respond.

Tired as she was, Allye couldn’t let the silence ride for long. “How did you find me?”

“I heard you scream and came looking.”

“No, I mean how was I positioned? What did you see?”

His fingers tightened on the steering wheel. “When I came around the corner, I saw you face down at the base of the stairs. I turned you over and checked your pulse. Made sure you were breathing.” He wiped his forehead. “You scared me, Allye.”

His concern was comforting, but his statement didn’t make sense.

She’d been a couple of yards past the steps when the attacker caught up to her.

He’d pinned her against the wall, choked her, and .

.. what? She had no idea what had happened afterward, but much time couldn’t have passed if the mayor had come looking for her when she screamed.

She realized she was holding her throat again. It still hurt, and her voice was becoming weaker the more she talked. Wasn’t that proof of her being attacked?

“I didn’t fall down the steps,” she said quietly. “I passed out because he choked me.”

“Allye”—the mayor sounded weary—“there wasn’t anyone out there with you.”

“Then why is my throat so sore?” Her raspy challenge was pitiful.

“You screamed pretty loud.” He met her eyes for a brief second before returning his attention to the road. “And that purse you’re carrying looks heavy. When you fell, it could have yanked against your neck.”

She glanced down. She normally carried the bag slung over one shoulder, but the mayor was right.

It hung cross-body. She couldn’t remember doing that before leaving her studio.

But with the brain fog she’d been fighting the last couple of months, that didn’t mean much.

She sighed and lapsed into silence, this time for the rest of the short drive to her duplex.

When they arrived, the mayor insisted on guiding her to the door. She reluctantly agreed, but only because she felt so awful. She unlocked her duplex and allowed him to set her bags just inside.

“Are you feeling up to staying by yourself? I could call your mother for you.”

“No.” Allye forced her aching body straighter. “I’m fine—just sore. Please don’t tell my mom about tonight. I don’t want her to worry.”

The mayor frowned. “If your mom finds out you fell down the steps and I didn’t let her know—”

“She won’t.” Allye forced a grin. “I’m sure not going to tell her, and if we were the only ones there...”

His expression didn’t clear. “Okay.” He took her hand. “But only if you promise me you’ll go straight to bed and you’ll be careful on those steps from now on.”

“Deal.” She hadn’t fallen down the stairs, but she would continue to be careful when navigating them.

He patted her hand, then released it and headed for his car.

“And, Mayor Jennings?”

He turned back to her.

“Thank you.”

He flashed the smile that had earned him nine-tenths of the vote last election cycle. “I’m always here when you need me.”

Allye closed and locked her door, then limped to a nearby recliner. She hadn’t lied to him exactly. But between the soreness and a renewed weight of fatigue, she didn’t have it in her to make it to her bed tonight.