“Do you think he was trying to kill you?” Brenda asked.
Isabel shook her head. “He knows I carry an EpiPen with me everywhere. I never leave the house without one.”
Brenda took her other hand. “Then why would he do this?”
Chad went through all this trouble for what? To hurt her? To put so much fear in her that she never looked at another man?
“If he did this,” Dutch said, “then that means he’s dyed-in-the-wool nuts, Isabel. A bona fide psychopath.”
“That’s Chad Ellis,” Brenda said. “You can’t begin to imagine the depths of depravity in his dark soul.”
But Dutch didn’t have to imagine. He knew. He’d read the file.
“We need to have your car checked,” Dutch said. “Dusted for prints.”
“You won’t find anything,” Isabel said. “He’s too careful.”
That wasn’t going to stop Dutch from trying. Everyone made mistakes. Sooner or later Chad would slip up and Dutch would be ready to dole out retribution.
Dr. Kiser came in and stopped at the foot of the bed. “You’re looking better.” She flashed a curt smile. “The meds are working.”
“I’m tired,” Isabel said, “and I hurt all over.”
“That’s natural, but you’re out of danger. I’m going to send you home with a prescription for prednisone. It’s a corticosteroid that will help with the inflammation and itching, and two days’ worth of hydrocodone for the pain. Apply a topical analgesic to the spots where you were stung, calamine lotion or Benadryl gel. Get plenty of rest, drink lots of fluids and you’ll be fine. Due to the severity of your reaction, I’d recommend immunotherapy. Otherwise, if you were to get stung by a bee again, your immune system could have a more severe response even faster. Do you have any questions?”
“Can I take off this mask?”
“Yes, of course.” The doctor stepped around the bed and helped Isabel remove it. “I’ll get your discharge paperwork started. It should take about an hour or so.”
“Thank you,” Isabel said before the doctor left.
“Let me run home and change.” Dutch gestured to his T-shirt and swim trunks. “I’ll come right back, take you home and stick around until you and McQueen are good for the night.”
“I don’t want to impose on you,” Isabel said. “I’m sure you’ve got better things to do.”
Dutch gave her hand a light squeeze. “You’re not an imposition. I’ve been looking for an excuse to spend more time with you and now I’ve got it.” He looked at Brenda. “Will you stay with her until I get back?”
He didn’t want to risk leaving her alone on the off chance that Ellis decided to show up. It was highly unlikely he’d try anything with Brenda in the room as a witness.
“I’ll be right here, glued to her side.”
He kissed the back of Isabel’s hand and stood. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.” He went to the door.
“He wants to take care of you and your dog,” Brenda whispered, but he heard it.
Didn’t occur to him that making sure McQueen was fed and walked was something special. It was necessary.
In the hall, he took out his cell phone. He called Allison, not having the tolerance to deal with Draper, and gave her the rundown on the way to his truck.
“It’s good that Isabel is going to be okay and the dinner on Wednesday with her uncle is fortuitous. But do you really think that Ellis is responsible for the bees in her car?”
“I think it’s possible. Underestimating him would be a mistake. We need to have her car searched and dusted for prints. And she needs a different RFID chip in a new key fob.”
“That’ll take a couple of days.”
“Fine. She’s got the time. I’ll be with her to make sure Ellis doesn’t hurt her again.”
“Dutch, no matter what, you can’t go after this guy like a vigilante. There’s a process and we have to follow it.”
“I hear you.” But he wasn’t making any promises.
His patience was threadbare where Ellis was concerned. If they found a shred of evidence connecting him to this bee-stinging incident, even circumstantial, Dutch was going to unleash holy hell on that man.
* * *
STROLLING HIS BROTHER’S YARD, eight acres in an exclusive gated enclave in Calabasas, Chad passed the beehive he’d had set up four months ago. The story for his sister-in-law had been that he wanted them to have fresh honey. Nothing tasted better and the kids loved the novelty of the idea although they never ventured to the far side of the property. As for Chad’s brother,