Sage frowned. “I don’t understand. What could that possibly be? As far as I know, I haven’t unconsciously broken any laws, because that’s about the only way I’d do something like that.”
David looked down at his feet, then back up at her. “Damn, this is a lot harder to do when you know the person.”
“Now you have me feeling a little nervous.”
“Sage, I’m sorry.” He paused, then continued in a businesslike voice. “There was an accident almost an hour ago. A drunk driver slammed into a car and pushed it into the oncoming traffic where it was hit head-on. The driver of the car the drunk hit was killed instantly. The passenger was rushed to the ER barely alive and not expected to make it.” He paused again, a look of pity on his face. “It was Macy and her husband. You need to go to the hospital to be with her. I know she had a baby. He wasn’t in the car. Do you know where he is?”
“He’s asleep upstairs in my room,” Sage said softly, not wanting to accept what David had told her. “Are you sure it was Macy and Hank?”
“I’m positive. I was first to arrive on the scene. I recognized them from the family picnics the department has in the summer. Plus, we found ID on them, which confirmed who they are. I’m so sorry. Would you like me to drive you to the hospital? As I said, your sister isn’t going to make it. When I left the ER, they were doing their best to keep her alive.”
Sage swallowed back the tears that threatened to rise to the surface. “Is she conscious?”
“No, and the doctor doesn’t think she’ll wake up. You need to see her before…” David’s words trailed away.
She knew what he’d been about to say. Before Macy died. “I’ll drive myself. I don’t want to take Josh with me, though.”
“Then don’t take him,” Grady said as he came up behind her. “I’ll stay with Josh. You go to the hospital.”
Sage turned and looked at him. “Are you sure?”
“Positive. He’s asleep, and you said he’d more than likely stay sleeping for the rest of the night. I can handle that.”
“Is there anyone you need me to contact?” David asked, drawing Sage’s attention.
She shook her head. “No. I can call Hank’s parents. They live in Fairbanks. As for my family, it’s just Macy and I. We don’t have anyone else. And I’m legally Josh’s guardian. Macy made sure of that right after he was born.” Sage’s voice cracked a little.
Grady put his arm around her shoulders and tucked her under his arm. “Are you going to be okay to drive?”
“Yes,” she said after she cleared her throat. “I’ll get ready and will leave in a minute.”
“I’ll follow behind you,” David said.
Sage stepped away from Grady, feeling about ready to break down, but she wouldn’t. At least not yet. She had to be strong, be there for Macy. She wouldn’t let her sister be alone.
Grady stood in the open door and watched Sage pull away in her SUV. The police cruiser parked at the front of the house fell in behind her. Once they disappeared from sight, he shut the door and let out a deep breath.
The night had gone from being perfect to a disaster. After Sage answered the door, Grady had easily been able to hear the conversation that took place there. He’d wanted to go to her, but he couldn’t since he wasn’t supposed to know what was going on. Once she’d said she didn’t want to take Josh to the hospital with her, there was no way he could remain in the living room. He’d had to tell her he would look after the baby. It would be one fewer thing she had to worry about. She already had enough on her plate with her sister not expected to live.
He returned to the living room and sat on the couch. Grady was prepared to stay with Sage for however long she needed him. Hearing she had no other family besides her sister, he wouldn’t let her go through this alone. Yes, they’d just met, but he liked her a lot. He would be strong for her, help her through this difficult time in her life. He’d be a huge asshole if he left now. Plus, it went against everything he’d been taught. Cougar shifter family groups were tightknit. Each member could be counted on to be there for another when they were in need. Since she didn’t have anyone to fall back on, Grady would step in and fill that role for her.
Right then the baby sighed over the monitor. Grady turned and looked at it. If Sage’s sister didn’t pull through as expected, Sage would become an instant mother. Even though Josh wouldn’t remember his parents, he at least wouldn’t have to suffer through watching them being buried or know what was going on.
Chapter Four
Sage sat in one of the hard plastic chairs in a hospital waiting room. She’d been there for hours. She figured it had to be pushing close to dawn, though she really hadn’t been paying close attention to the time. At least not until after Macy had passed away.
Sage had made it to the hospital to be with her sister before she’d succumbed to her injuries. Macy had had massive internal injuries and head trauma, and there had been nothing the doctors could do to save her. The damage had been too severe. Sage had been able to hold Macy’s hand, kiss her one last time and tell her that she didn’t have to worry about Josh. That she would look after him and would always be there for him. As if her sister had only been waiting to hear those reassurances, her heart had stopped beating and didn’t start again, no matter how hard the doctor and nurses had tried to bring her back.
Now here Sage sat, numb to the world around her, waiting to sign the paperwork to arrange to have her sister’s body moved to the funeral home of her choosing. She also waited to talk to Hank’s parents. They’d only arrived a short while ago, having taken the forty-minute flight from Fairbanks to Anchorage. There was no question of Hank and Macy not being buried side by side.
The older couple stepped into the room. They both seemed to have aged ten years. Hank had been their only child. At least a piece of him would live on in Josh. The baby was the spitting image of his father, but with his mother’s eyes and hair color.
“Sage,” Hank’s mother Kate said as she held open her arms.
Sage hugged Kate and then Hank’s father Max. “How are you both holding up?” she asked.
“About as well as you, I’d imagine,” Kate said as she wiped tears out of her eyes. “I just thank god Josh wasn’t in the car.”
That would have been even more devastating. “So do I. He’s still at my place. My boyfriend Grady is there watching Josh.” Sage figured it would sound better to have Grady as her boyfriend than tell them she’d just met him.
“A boyfriend?” Kate asked with a small smile. “Last time I talked to Macy she said you didn’t have one, and that you were too busy with your police work to date.”
“We haven’t been together that long.”
“I’m glad you have someone you can lean on for support. And just to reassure you, we’ll give you any help you need with Josh. We know he’ll be better off with you. It would just be too much for us.”
Sage had known she wouldn’t have to worry about Hank’s parents trying to take Josh away from her. Max’s health wasn’t great, and he had been in and out of the hospital because of his heart a few times in the past year. Looking after a six-month-old baby would take its toll on both Max and Kate.
“I know,” Sage said. “And thanks for the offer. I’ll be sure to call if I need anything. Once we get finished here, you’re both more than welcome to stay at my place for however long you’re in Anchorage.”
“That won’t be necessary,” Max said. “We already booked a room at a hotel. It’ll be less stressful for you.”
Sage nodded. “Okay, but you’re welcome to change your mind.”
After that, the rest of the time Sage spent at the hospital passed in a blur. She filled out the necessary paperwork, barely paying attention to what she signed. Once she’d done all she could for now, she said goodbye to Hank’s parents with a promise to talk to them in the afternoon to arrange a time to go to the funeral home.