Page 104 of 36 Hours

By the time she entered the gulley, Bryant was right behind her.

She didn’t need to count the gates for the third one along. It was swinging open. That fact did nothing to quell the rising panic in her stomach.

The back door was ajar, and she burst through it, praying she was going to hear indignant protests from the reporter.

There was only silence.

Kim entered the front room and froze. What she had thought was a red pillow behind Frost’s head was the bloodstained sofa.

Other than the deathly pallor of her face, the woman appeared to be sleeping soundly.

The movement of Bryant reaching for his radio spurred her into action. She put two fingers to the right side of Frost’s neck to check her pulse.

‘It’s faint, but it’s there,’ she said to Bryant, who was already giving the address to the emergency services.

A wave of relief surged through her, but it was short-lived when she saw the back of the reporter’s head.

The blonde hair was matted with blood at the crown, but Kim couldn’t see the injury beneath the bloodstained hair.

She could picture it. Frost was wearing the same clothes she had been the last time Kim had seen her. The woman had returned home, dropped onto the sofa exhausted and hadn’t moved since.

Their killer had sneaked into the house and struck her, and Kim wasn’t sure from the position that Frost had even woken up. It could only be their sicko. He had been crystal clear that there would be repercussions if his instructions weren’t followed to the letter. She hadn’t posted an article at 6a.m., and this was the price she’d paid.

‘Damn it, Frost,’ she muttered, touching the woman’s neck again. The pulse was still there, but she didn’t know for how long.

It was hard to imagine anyone surviving the blood loss she was seeing, but she did know that head injuries could bleed profusely. It was the damage beneath the wound that was a worry.

‘Jesus,’ Bryant said, shaking his head. She could see the exact same thoughts on his face.

‘Don’t cross her off yet,’ Kim said, taking a seat beside the reporter. She placed her fingers on the woman’s wrist to make sure they didn’t lose the faint pulse they had.

Part of her wanted to try and shake the woman into consciousness, but she was no doctor and had no idea of the consequences. If the banging and the ringing hadn’t roused her, she suspected there was nothing more she could do. Except one thing, she thought, pressing lightly on the wrist.

‘Frost, we’re here. If you can hear us, help is coming and we’re not leaving until they get here.’

She saw Bryant’s surprise at her tone. She too was amazed that she could muster it for Frost’s benefit. It was usually reserved only for when Barney was feeling unwell. But who knew if these would be the last words the woman would ever hear?

As she continued to speak softly, Bryant pointed to his ear and then the door to indicate he could hear sirens in the distance.

Kim nodded towards the door for him to go and flag them down.

‘You’re gonna be fine, Frost. You’re too annoying not to be,’ she said, hearing the sirens growing louder.

She continued talking until the paramedics walked in. They had eyes only for the woman on the sofa, and Kim knew that Bryant would already have filled them in.

The male paramedic’s studious frown said it all.

She let go of Frost’s wrist as he moved into position.

The second paramedic entered with Bryant behind.

‘It’s okay, Tracy,’ the woman said, taking Kim’s place at her side.

The sound of Kim’s phone ringing drew all eyes towards her.

For a moment, she’d forgotten they were investigating a murder and a kidnap.

They could now add attempted murder to the Jester’s list of crimes, and she didn’t want to think about whether that crime would reach its endgame.