Jack Beale 00 - Killer Run

and he has a few stitches, but he’ll be fine.”
    “Hey, Max.” She heard Tom’s voice. She hadn’t seen him when she first sat up.
    “Tom.”
    “Hi Max.” It was Mark Malloy. As soon as Max had called Tom, he, in turn, had called Malloy.
    “It’s over,” said Tom. “It looks like he fell down the stairs. Can you tell us what happened, Max?”
    They talked for several hours. Max carefully answered all of their questions and posed a few of her own as she tried to make sense of what had happened. As the sky began to lighten, Tom closed his notebook. He looked at Mark for a moment and then back at Max. He said, “Max, thank you. I’m so sorry you had to go through this, but I think we can safely say it’s over. Get some rest.”
    The two policemen left, leaving Max, Patti, and Cat to watch the sunrise.

CHAPTER 103
    JACK WAS RELEASED FROM THE HOSPITAL around noon. Other than the thick bandage around his head, he looked none the worse for wear. Dave helped him into Max’s car. The sky had cleared, no snow had fallen, and it was turning out to be a pretty nice November day.
    “So, I guess you won’t be running later today,” said Dave.
    Patti gave him a playful slap on the back of his head and said, “Dave. What’s the matter with you?”
    “Just askin’.”
    Patti walked around to the driver’s side of the car to talk to Max.
    “I’m beat. I need a nap before work tonight.”
    “I’ll see you at Ben’s,” Max replied. “I’m scheduled to work at four.”
    “You should call Courtney and get the night off. You deserve it.”
    “No, I’m fine.”
    “Okay then. See you later.”
    Patti and Dave drove out of the parking lot in front of Max and Jack.
    “Did Cat really trip him?”
    “Who knows? It seems to be the only explanation.”
    Jack smiled and chuckled softly to himself. “ Cat, ” he thought.
    * * *
    That night, Jack didn’t sleep well. Strange dreams, faces, places, and the events of the last months and even years surfaced, disappeared, swirled, and mixed in his head as he tossed and turned. He wanted to sleep, but he couldn’t. He didn’t want to disturb Max, and his head hurt, so he left the warmth of their bed and moved to the couch. The stars were visible through the skylight above and the room was cold. He pulled a fleece blanket over himself and with it came Cat. She curled up on him, purred loudly, and began to work her cat-magic. Gradually, as cats seem so able to do, she sucked the turmoil out of his head and he fell into a deep, restful sleep.
    As morning approached, he began to dream about Sylvie. Her breath was warm on his cheek as she called his name. He felt her fingers touch him, softly, gently and he could feel his pulse begin to quicken. He could feel her body as she pressed close to him, but as he reached out to pull her closer, she still felt distant. Then her lips softly brushed against his cheek.
    “Mrowh.” Cat’s voice in his ear brought him out of his dream, and when he opened his eyes she was staring at him with a look of triumph on her face that said, “Good, you’re awake. Now feed me.”
    The sun was streaming in through the windows, and he shivered. “Cat, get off me,” he said as he pushed her away. As he sat up, his head began to throb, and he had to lie back down again. Cat immediately jumped back onto his chest, talking and pacing as she became more insistent that he needed to pay attention to her needs.
    Pushing her off again, he sat up more slowly. Then carefully he stood and stretched. Cat began threading herself around and between his legs, purring loudly and talking to remind him why he was there.
    “Fine, I’ll feed you, but first I need coffee.”
    She seemed to accept this. She sat and began grooming herself, all the while watching to make sure that he didn’t deviate from the plan.
    Jack stood by the window that looked out to the harbor. He sipped his coffee while Cat ate her breakfast.
    “You’re up early.”
    “Mornin’,” he said, turning. He loved the sound of Max’s I-just-woke-up voice. She moved toward him and he put his empty coffee cup down. She wrapped her arms around him and they embraced as closely as possible.
    “It’s cold,” she cooed as they held each other for what seemed like a very long time.
    “You’re warm. I love the way you feel,” he said.
    “Mmmm.” This was the only sound she made as she shifted her weight, looked into his eyes, and gently guided him back to the bedroom. This time the