Deadly Obsession by Kristine Cayne Page A

next of kin.”
    The air rushed out of Nic’s lungs. “What’s going on?” he croaked as he raced to his room where he could talk freely. Rachel didn’t deserve to have her life splashed on the front page of the newspapers.
    “We admitted her an hour ago. She was kicked by a horse and sustained multiple fractures of the left tibia. Because of her condition, this is very serious. The break is messy and she’s running a fever. If the fever persists overnight, we’ll need to operate.”
    Jesus . He hoped Rémi was with her. After letting the doctor know he’d be there as soon as possible, Nic ended the call.
    “That sounded serious.”
    “Jesus Christ!” What the fuck was she doing in his room again? Nic glared at Vivian. “You scared the shit out of me.”
    “Darling, what’s wrong? Did you get bad news?”
    He rubbed the back of his neck as he tried to figure out what to do. “Rachel’s been hurt. If I leave right now, I can be in Montréal by morning.”
    “Do you need me to get you a rental car?”
    “I’ve got a friend’s motorcycle.”
    “Nonsense. A ten-hour drive on a motorcycle at night would be very uncomfortable, not to mention dangerous. A rental car will be waiting for you in front of the lobby in fifteen minutes.”
    He kissed her cheek. Maybe he had been too hard on her lately. After all, she’d proven over and over that he could count on her. “I almost forgot. Lauren is setting up a photo shoot tomorrow. Let her know I had an emergency.”
    She pulled a cell phone out of her purse and began dialing. “Darling, start packing.”
    Nic raced to gather his belongings. Please God. Let her be okay . How much more could Rachel take? She’d already suffered enough. Nothing he could do would erase all the pain he’d caused her. But he could show her how much he loved her, how much she meant to him, how sorry he really was.
    As he’d done a million times since the accident, he wished he could switch places with his sister.

 
     
    CHAPTER 4
     
     
    Another yawn threatened to crack Nic’s jaw, despite the gallons of caffeine he’d slugged back during the long drive through the high peaks, deep valleys, and breathless turns of the Adirondack Northway. During the day, it was a sight to behold. At night? A roller-coaster ride in unrelenting darkness. But as he drove over the Jacques-Cartier Bridge onto the island of Montréal, the Saint Lawrence rushing underneath sparkling in the morning sun, his heart felt a little lighter. He was home.
    At the end of the bridge, Nic followed Rémi’s directions to the visitor parking lot of the CHUM’s Notre-Dame Hospital pavilion. He cut the engine and took a moment to prepare for the scene inside. Even if Rachel didn’t need surgery, her injury was still very serious, and Nic had to be ready for anything the doctor might tell them. He had to be her rock. He white-knuckled the steering wheel and gritted his teeth. For Rachel, he’d deliver an Oscar-winning performance and be a regular ray of sunshine.
    In the hospital lobby, he detoured into the gift shop. He laughed out loud when he spotted a bear dressed like a nurse in blue scrubs. Rachel would love it. He also chose a box of Turtles and a bouquet of wildflowers.
    The flowers reminded him of Lauren, of the smell of her perfume and her expression as she described the apple blossom bouquet he’d had delivered to her in D.C. He regretted having to postpone the photo shoot, but Rachel had to come first.
    Nic paused outside the door to Rachel’s room. Taking a deep breath, he pasted on a happy face. One step into the room, a shudder tore through him, almost making him drop the gifts he held in his arms. His sister looked frail and vulnerable, her face drawn and pale, surrounded by a multitude of tubes and machines, her injured leg suspended in a hammock with ropes and pulleys. When she pushed her long dark hair behind her ears, her slender fingers trembled. Quickly, he rearranged his features to hide his