Jack Beale 00 - Killer Run

she was just sitting down with a cup of tea. Even though it was lunchtime and she was probably hungry, she couldn’t stand the thought of eating anything. When the phone rang, she jumped and nearly spilled her tea. The conversation was short. As soon as she heard his voice, somehow she knew the news wouldn’t be good. They agreed to meet at the Ipswich Police Station at 3:30.

CHAPTER 56
    SYLVIE REMAINED IN HIS DREAMS , and when Jack finally woke up, he was sweating and his heart was beating rapidly. It took him a few seconds to fully regain his bearings, and when he looked over and saw Max asleep next to him, he took a deep breath, relieved. The dream had been so real it scared him. He had had dreams like that before, but they were always with or about Max.
    His whole body hurt, so he lay there looking up through the skylight at the blue sky above. He replayed in his mind his day at the Rockdog. It had lived up to everything that he had been told, and then some. Had things not gone so horribly wrong, he might have had a really good run as well. As it was, what he had was a bruised and sore body, a headache, and a great story to tell.
    He had to pee and he was terribly thirsty. He slowly sat up and swung his legs off the bed. He was a bit lightheaded and had to sit for a moment to stop the spinning before he could carefully stand and shuffle off to the bathroom. Cat greeted him at the door and he shushed her to be quiet so she wouldn’t wake Max.
    After visiting the bathroom, he walked to the kitchen, Cat dancing at his feet and talking all the way. First, he heated a cup of coffee for himself. Then he fed Cat. As soon as he put her dish on the floor, her incessant chatter was replaced by loud purring as she ate her breakfast.
    He stood in front of the window, looking out toward the harbor and the ocean beyond as he sipped his coffee. The sky was a flawless blue, and even though the sun was only about two fingers above the horizon, he could already feel its heat on his face. He closed his eyes and his thoughts returned to the race the day before: the predawn start, meeting Sylvie, the sprained ankle, and finally his slip and fall, which led to finding the body. Who was that guy? Why was he out there?
    A dark cloud washed through his head and he shuddered as he relived that moment when he realized that he had landed on a body. That split second when reality changed from what he thought had happened to what had really happened hit him like an electrical shock. He understood the emotions, thoughts, and feelings that flashed through his head, but he found it impossible to put them into words. Then, almost as quickly, his thoughts turned to Sylvie. The cloud lifted, and a smile began to form on his face.
    He told himself that she was just another runner, but something inside kept telling him that she was not, and that worried him. He hardly knew her. They had run together for less than two hours, and even if he added in the time spent helping her after her fall, it wasn’t enough. Or so he told himself. Yet he could not get her out of his thoughts, and this bothered him more than falling on a dead body.
    He didn’t hear Max come into the room. “Penny for your thoughts,” she said as she pressed against his back while wrapping her arms around him.
    Startled, his heart began pounding and he hoped Max wouldn’t notice. He felt like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Of course, she didn’t know, she couldn’t, but that didn’t ease the guilt he was feeling.
    “Mornin’,” he answered. “I was just thinking about yesterday.”
    “You okay?”
    Jack paused a moment before answering. “Yeah, I’m fine. A little sore, but okay.”
    “That’s good,” Max cooed as her hands began to wander, and now his heart truly was beating rapidly for her.
    Max relaxed her arms and he turned to face her, placing his coffee cup on the windowsill. She looked up at him as they pulled each other close. Even through the thick bathrobe she was wearing, he could feel the warmth and softness of her body. He inhaled the scent of her hair. All of his senses were alive, and in that moment, he relived every moment he had ever spent with her and he understood with great clarity how much he loved her.
    He ran his hands up and down her back, and he could tell that all she had on was that bathrobe. Jack leaned back slightly and she moved a half step back as well. Their eyes locked. Her green eyes said all that needed saying.