Linda Warren - The Right Woman

“But what?” Daniel asked.

“But now I get angry. He knew how dangerous his mission was and he still let me go along. I shouldn’t have been there.”

“No, you shouldn’t have.”

Again Sarah was surprised she was telling Daniel this. She hadn’t even told Serena. “I’m not blameless, though. I can be persuasive sometimes, and Greg had a hard time saying no to me.”

“I can imagine. I get angry at him, too, for taking you into that situation. He must have been so blind in love that he ignored the dangers.”

“That’s just it,” she said. “If he really loved me, why would he do that?”

Daniel turned from the window. “I don’t have an answer for you.” All Daniel knew was that he would never expose her to that kind of danger—even if it meant he’d never see her again for the rest of his life.

Dear Reader,

For those of you who have written and e-mailed me to ask about Sarah’s story, this is it. Sarah was first introduced in The Wrong Woman (Harlequin Superromance #1125) as the identical twin of Serena.

Separated at birth, the sisters met for the first time when they were thirty-one years old. Their personalities were very different—Serena was sweet and outgoing while Sarah was quiet and reserved. It took time for me to plot Sarah’s life, but once I started the story quickly took shape. Sarah struggles to overcome her turbulent past and has to adjust to having a real family and an identical sister. Finding the perfect man for her wasn’t easy, but one man kept coming back into her life—Daniel Garrett. But there was one problem—Sarah didn’t like Daniel. So the tug of emotions began and Sarah’s story became more emotional than I’d planned.

I’ve never wanted two characters to find happiness as much as Sarah and Daniel. As you read their story I hope you will feel the same.

Warmly,

Linda Warren

You can contact me at www.lindawarren.net, www.superauthors.com, lw1508@aol.com, or you can write me at P.O. Box 5182, Bryan, TX 77805. Your letters will always be answered.

In this book there is a little girl who lights up the world.

I dedicate this book to the little girls who brighten my life

with their special personalities (the great ones):

Jaci Siegert, Emily Robertson, Reagan Phillips,

Cassidy Siegert, Jamie Siegert, Taylor Tharp,

Hunter Phillips, Megan Rychlik and Charity Patranella.

And to the new additions to our family,

Jessica Reagan and Nikki Herring.

I’d like to acknowledge the following people for sharing

their expert knowledge so graciously: Kristen Tubbs, LPC-I,

Laurie SoRell, M.A., and Laurie and Lee Fay

for answering my endless questions about Dallas.

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

EPILOGUE

NOT AGAIN.

Sarah Welch rushed through the emergency room doors, her heart slamming against her ribs so hard that she had to stop to catch her breath.

Another rape.

As a licensed professional counselor in private practice with Dr. Karen Mason, psychologist, she should be used to this. It was her job to provide the hospital with assistance for the victims of violent crimes. But some things were impossible to get used to.

It would have to happen while Karen was away, Sarah thought as she tried to locate a nurse. There was no one at the desk so she hurried down the hall. She loved her work, but at times she felt so inadequate, especially when she came face-to-face with the person—the victim. In truth, though, this was her specialty. She’d once been a victim and knew the crippling fear that overtook the body, mind and soul.

“May I help you?”

Sarah turned toward the voice. “Yes. I’m Sarah Welch with Dr. Mason’s office. Dr. Daley called about a rape victim.”

“Oh, yes.” The nurse shifted the charts in her arms. “The doctor is waiting for you. Come this way.”

The nurse opened a door and Sarah followed her into the sectioned-off emergency area. She stiffened when out of the corner of her eye she noticed Daniel Garrett and a couple of police officers standing to one side. She didn’t spare them a glance.

What is Daniel doing here?

Every time she saw him something in her unwillingly froze. He was a reminder of the past—a past she wanted to forget. She quickly wiped him from her mind as she walked up to Dr. Daley.

“Hi, Sarah,” Jim Daley said, scribbling in a chart. “Karen out of town?”

“Yes. She’ll be back on Monday.”

“That’s too late.” Dr. Daley gave her the chart. “I need someone to talk to this girl now. She’s been severely traumatized. Physically she’ll be fine, but I’m concerned about her mental state. She’s not responding to anyone and she refuses to see her parents.”

“How is she otherwise?”

“The rapist almost killed her and would have if someone hadn’t interrupted him. He banged her up pretty bad. Her neck is black and blue from attempted strangulation and her voice is hoarse from the injury.” He took a breath. “Her name is Brooke Wallace and she’s eighteen.”

“Oh, no.” There it was. That familiar chill running up her spine.

“The rape kit has been done and the police are waiting,” Dr. Daley added, glancing toward the policemen. “This is the third rape in two months in the same area. Brooke is the first victim to survive. The other two girls died at the scene so the police are eager to talk to this one.”

“I see,” Sarah murmured, trying to control an attack of nerves.

That still didn’t explain what Daniel was doing here. He worked narcotics. What did he have to do with this case?

Opening the chart, she began to read. Now she understood why Daniel had been called in. The rapist had given the girl an injection of heroin, a fact not mentioned in news coverage of the other rapes, and Daniel was an expert on drugs and drug dealers in Dallas. He knew every small-time pusher and the big drug lords like…

“We have her in one of the rooms.” Jim’s voice penetrated her thoughts. “Earlier she was thrashing around, almost violent. We’re not sure how much heroin he gave her—waiting on the toxicology report—so I was hesitant about giving her anything. We’re flushing out her system and she’s calmer now, lying in a fetal position, unresponsive. Just see if you can get her to talk to you.”

“I’ll try.”

“Her parents are in the waiting room, frantic, but when I mentioned they were here, she became even more hysterical. Try to get her to see them.”

Sarah nodded and walked into the small room. The girl was just as Jim had said, curled into herself and staring off into space. An IV was in her arm. Memories dark and deep stirred, a reminder of a time when she, too, needed to shut out the world and everyone in it. Still, there were sleepless nights and days that tortured her…

She pushed away those debilitating emotions and moved to the side of the bed.

DANIEL WATCHED SARAH until she disappeared into the room. She wore a dark business suit with a blouse buttoned to the top, her red hair coiled neatly at her nape. Every time he’d seen her in the past five years, she’d looked the same—nunlike. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t disguise her beauty; copper-red hair, porcelain skin, gorgeous blue eyes and a body that women envied and men fantasized about.