together for a few weeks. It was sexy and fun. Love doesn’t happen that quickly. Not true love, anyway. It takes time to truly get to know someone. It takes years, not weeks, and even then he can fool you.”
“Oh,” Gabi said, knowledge dawning in her eyes. “I get it now. You’re scared. It’s not what Zach feels that is the problem. The problem is what he made you feel. You’re in love with him.”
“No, I’m not! That’s ridiculous. Did you not hear a word I said?”
“Sure. Even more important, I heard what you didn’t say. Listen, Savannah, I think—”
Gabi broke off when the radio she wore attached to her belt emitted a beeping noise and Ginger Harris’s terse voice repeated a number that meant nothing to Savannah but had Gabi pivoting on her heel and heading for the door, saying, “I gotta go.”
Within seconds, Savannah heard a sound that was rare in Eternity Springs—an emergency siren. She gasped in a breath and everything inside her went tense. Zach.
Savannah covered her mouth and prayed, Please, Lord. Don’t let anything have happened to Zach.
The accident scene was horrific.
Twisted metal, shattered glass. Blood smeared across the pavement. The stench of burned human flesh permeated the air.
With the first rush of dealing with the emergency behind him, Zach allowed himself a moment of emotion as he bent and scooped a child’s stuffed bear off the pavement. He tried to brush the gravel off the animal’s face, but it stuck to the fluids that had soaked into the fur. “Some days I truly hate this job.”
“I think I’ll hear that little girl’s screams until the day I die,” Gabi responded.
Zach let out a long sigh as his gaze settled on the black body bag. “It was all I could do not to join her. This is the hardest accident scene I’ve had to work in a very long time.”
“She was a friend of yours.”
“Yes. She always had a kind word and a cup of coffee for me when I stopped in. She did a lot for this town.”
Gabi looked toward the northbound roadblock where curious onlookers had begun to gather. “With the fire, I doubt anyone will be able to identify the car, but we had a couple of cars go through before we set up the roadblock. We need to make next-of-kin notification soon.”
“I’m not sure who that is, to be honest.”
“Who would know?”
“Sarah Murphy is my best guess.” He rubbed the back of his neck and added, “Those women love their quilt group. This is going to break their hearts.”
He shook his head, flinging off the moment, and returned his attention to his job. He gave Gabi a list of items to oversee. “I’m headed to the clinic to take official statements. I’ll stop by Sarah’s and see what I can find out about LaNelle’s family on my way.”
“Zach?” The leader of the volunteer fire department climbed up onto the road from the shallow ravine where LaNelle Harrison’s car had come to rest. “We are good to go down here if you want to call in the tow truck.”
“Thanks, Henry. You guys did a great job. As dry as it’s been, I was afraid the fire would get away from us.” That would have been tragedy on top of tragedy.
Zach’s gaze drifted over the scene once again. “Gabi, just for my peace of mind, take an extra set of photos before we start the cleanup, would you please? I want everything. Skid marks, the entire debris field. The intersection from every direction.” Grimly he added, “Make sure you include the missing stop sign. That’s how we make our case for negligent homicide.”
“Will do, boss.”
A quarter of an hour later, Zach knocked on the glass of the front door of Sarah Murphy’s bakery, Fresh. It was after two, so the shop was closed, though he knew she’d be inside making preparations for the following day. She exited her kitchen smiling, but the moment she saw him, she stopped in her tracks and her smile died. He saw her lips form her husband’s name before her hand flew up to cover her mouth.
He held up his own hand and shook his head to reassure her. “Cam is fine. It’s not about Cam or one of the kids.”
She wiped her hands on her red gingham apron and unlocked the door. “I heard sirens earlier.”
“Yes. A car accident. It’s LaNelle, Sarah.”
“Oh, no.” Tears flooded her eyes. “She’s hurt?”
“It’s worse than that. She didn’t make it, honey.”