Page 4 of Island Whispers
She gave her statement to the best of her ability for all the good it could do. “I didn’t see him attack her,” Nina said. “I tried to take a video.”
Replaying the video for the police officer, she was startled to see what she’d actually recorded in those crucial seconds. Her video showed the driver peeling the mask off of his face as he drove by Nina. Somehow, she’d caught a perfect image of the man’s face. She was about to offer to send the video to the police when the officer started barking information into his radio.
Apparently, this wasn’t any ordinary carjacking. The man was an escaped prisoner.
“I’ll need to take your phone. Evidence.”
He couldn’t be serious. “But I need it.”
“You’ll get it back,” he promised. “Did he see you?” the officer asked Nina. “Did he see you filming him?” he repeated when she only stared at him.
“I-I have no idea.” Nina pushed her hand through her hair, the thick curls tangled by the breeze. “I didn’t even know what I had until I showed you.”
“Do you have a vehicle?”
She pointed to her four-door wagon wrapped with the Island Bloomers logo, complete with contact information.
The police officer grimaced. “If he connects you to that car, he knows where to find you.”
“Shouldn’t he be more interested in getting away?” Or possibly trading the minivan for a car without a toddler in the back seat?
All around her radios burst with urgent voices. The little boy had been found, still buckled in his car seat, on a sidewalk about two miles away. Nina took it as a sign of common sense. “Can I go?”
“Do you have someone you can stay with?”
“You think I’m in danger,” she accused.
“Yes ma’am.”
She floundered. These things didn’t happen here. Well, they did, but in Nina’s mind, her home and the surrounding area was safer than most. She couldn’t be in danger.
The officer didn’t give her time to process what he was suggesting. “Ma’am? Do you have someone?”
She did. And putting them at risk or making them worry over her safety wasn’t acceptable. There had to be another option. “My sister-in-law,” she said. The wedding was a few months away, but that wasn’t the officer’s concern. “Jess Keller. She’ll know what to do. Can I use my phone to call her, please?”
He handed her the device and waited, hands-on hips and gaze scanning the area, while she made the call.
It seemed like forever before Jess picked up. “Hey, Nina!”
Nina swallowed against a sudden rush of tears. “Hey. I’m in a bit of a jam. This is the last call I’ll be able to make on my phone. I need your help.”
“Talk to me.”
Nina recognized Jess’s official working voice. For years she’d been a police officer down in Key West but now she was a coordinator for a private security agency. Nina didn’t know all the details, only that Jess was delighted with the new position. “Um…”
She glanced up at the police officer.
He took the phone from her, picking up on her silent plea. After giving Jess a quick rundown, he handed the phone back to her.
“Nina, listen to me,” Jess said. “I have someone on the way. Logan. You’ll wait for him in your car, with the doors locked. He’ll escort you back home. I’ll have other things in place when you get here.”
“Thanks, Jess.”
Ending the call, she handed the phone to the policeman. She should feel reassured. Instead, her hands started shaking and her knees buckled. The cop helped her to a nearby park bench. “She told me to wait in the car.” Right now it looked a hundred miles away instead of a few yards.
“Breathe first,” the officer directed. “Then we’ll get to the car.”
“Okay.” She took his advice, unable to manage anything else in the moment.