Betrayal

Betrayal Part 10

"He will. Fortunately, he has no internal brain swelling from the blow," Bethany said.

Mrs. Armenti's hand flew to her heart. "Thank the blessed Lord. I've been so worried."

Bethany smiled at the elderly widow. "I know. It was a serious injury. He'll probably be in the hospital at least another day."

"In the meantime, our watch program is fully active," Mrs. Armenti assured her. "I'm staying in the apartment with Julie during the daytime. She'll stay with me tonight and you'll be with Mrs. Rossi. Mr. Bertolini and Mr. Donati are on watch at the doors."

"You're going to a lot of trouble for us. Thank you," Bethany said.

"There will be an officer here all night and I'm watching the monitors," Rod said.

"It sounds like we'll be safe. Is Julie in her room?" Bethany asked.

Mrs. Armenti nodded. "The poor dear is worn out from all that's happened. She needed a rest. You look tired too, honey. Why don't you lie down?"

She was tired. The fold-out chair hadn't been a comfortable bed. "Thank you. I'll rest for a little while. If you hear anything from Luke, please let me know."

Rod nodded. "You know I will."

She plodded to her bedroom and set her purse on the dresser. Just knowing the weapon was inside filled her with apprehension. Fortunately, she was too exhausted to fight the urge to sleep. She slumbered deeply for over two hours before a loud noise outside the building woke her.

Striding into the hallway, she wondered if the building had been bombed. Rod stood at the front door holding back the residents. As Bethany approached, he remained planted in the way. "Two cars crashed going through a light. Everyone needs to stay inside in case it was engineered to get us outside. I'll go out and see if anyone is hurt."

Julie wandered out of the apartment."

"Was there an accident?"

"Yes, but we're not going outside to look, since we're the ones someone might want to lure to the scene" Bethany said.

"The police are there. It doesn't look like anyone was seriously hurt," Rod said. "Yet, who's to say the killer didn't rig the lights?"

"I wouldn't have thought of that. It's good Rod is here," Julie said.

"Did you see anyone who looked like the guy Luke described, the guy who killed Jordan?" Bethany asked.

Rod shook his head. "No. There were only the people involved in the wreck and a few unsuspicious onlookers."

"I'm getting paranoid," Bethany said.

Rod raised his brows." You should be. It will keep you alive longer,"

She nodded. "I'm going to call Luke's and see how he's doing. He has his cell phone on the bed."

Back in her apartment, she called him. He answered groggily.

"Did I wake you?"

"It's okay. The drugs make me sleepy."

"How are you doing?"

"The doctor said I can go tomorrow if I keep doing okay. All the scans came back normal.

Bethany felt an overwhelming sense of relief. "I've missed you. Are you sure you're feeling better?"

"I'm positive. I can't wait to be back with you. Has everything been quiet?"

She thought about the wreck. "There was a car accident in front of the building. Rod thought it might be a set-up to get us outside."