Rick nodded. “Good thinking.”

“Wow. A whole meal.” Cass blinked at the plate that was set before her. “Vegetables and everything.”

“Let’s see how much of it you can eat before you fall asleep.”

“This will only serve to revive me, Agent Cisco,” Cass told him.

Rick smiled. He doubted she’d make it through dessert.

She did, but barely. Halfway through her cheesecake, Cass was struggling to keep her eyes open.

“You okay there?” Rick asked.

“I think I’d like a cup of coffee,” she replied.

“How about a nap?”

“I’ll be fine. A little caffeine…”

“Cass, I took the liberty of getting a room for you. It’s actually part of my suite on the second floor. Your own bathroom. Balcony, with a view of the ocean. I’ll give you the key and walk you up. You need to get some sleep.”

“I need to get some things from my house, then we’ll see.”

“Regan will get you what you need.”

“She doesn’t know where anything is.”

“You could tell me while we’re on our way upstairs,” Regan told her. “I’d be happy to get whatever you want. But Rick is right. You need to rest for a little while.”

“What if Lucy wakes up? I won’t know…”

“I’ll have the hospital put a call in to me and I’ll come right in and wake you the minute I hear from them,” Rick said.

“Promise?”

“Absolutely.” Rick took Cass’s arm and helped her stand.

Regan grabbed Cass’s bag and followed Rick to the stairwell. Mitch stayed behind to take care of their bill.

“You know I must be tired if I’m not arguing with you over this,” Cass told Rick as they climbed the steps. “All of a sudden, I can’t keep my eyes open.”

“It’s your body’s way of insisting you let it rest for a while.” Rick steered her in the direction of his rooms. He unlocked the door and led her and Regan inside.

“See, nice sitting room here. This door opens into your room.”

“Where do you stay?”

“That door over there is my bedroom.” He opened her door and motioned to Regan to follow Cass inside. “Cass, Regan is going to help you get settled. If you need anything, you let me know. I’ll be right outside.”

She nodded and disappeared into the room with Regan, who emerged less than five minutes later.

“She’s out cold. Are you sure you didn’t slip something into her food?” Regan asked softly.

“I didn’t have to. She was wobbly in the chief’s office. I’m surprised she lasted through lunch.”

“So, what’s next?”

“Next is you and me go to her house and pick up whatever it is she’ll need for the next few days.” Rick opened the door to the hall and looked in the direction of the stairs. “As soon as Mitch gets here, we can go.”

“You look a little beat yourself,” Regan noted. “Why not stay here and get some sleep. Mitch and I can find the house and get Cass’s things.”

“I want to see how the investigation is going there. And I want to look around the house, make sure nothing was missed. Then we’ll come back and I’ll see if I can get a few hours of sleep before something else happens.”

As it turned out, Rick was able to get more than a few hours of sleep. It was almost five the following morning when the ringing of his cell phone woke him. He sat up and listened to the caller carefully, then rose and pulled on his pants and shirt. In bare feet, he padded across the carpet to Cass’s door and knocked lightly.

“Cass?” He opened the door. “Cassie?”

She sat up, startled and disoriented.

“What…?” She looked around, trying to place herself.

“You’re at the Inn, Cass. The hospital just called. Lucy is awake, and she’s asking for you.” He gestured to the chair near the foot of her bed. “Regan left your clothes and things there. If you can get up and get dressed, I’ll take you to the hospital.”

Cass was out of bed in a flash.

“I’ll be right there,” she told him. “I can be ready in a minute. Just give me one minute…”

Rick closed the door and went back to his room to finish dressing, grateful they’d both gotten a good night’s sleep. He had the feeling they’d had the last real rest either of them were likely to get until this was over.

Cass pushed past David Webb as she entered the hush of the hospital room, ignoring his attempts to speak with her. She went directly to Lucy’s bed. Her knees weakened at the sight of her cousin lying there with a ring of bruises around her throat and tubes in her nose.

“Lulu.” Whispering the old childhood nickname, Cass leaned in close and took Lucy’s hands in her own.

Lucy’s voice was so muted, Cass at first wasn’t certain she’d spoken at all. She murmured something, a string of words, and Cass put her ear up to Lucy’s mouth.

The color drained from her face as she listened carefully to Lucy’s labored words.

“Are you sure, honey? Are you absolutely sure that’s what he said?” She tucked a loose lock of dark hair behind Lucy’s ear.

Lucy nodded slowly, almost apologetically, then closed her eyes. Cass lingered for a moment, rubbing Lucy’s hands gently before turning toward the door, where Rick awaited her.

David caught Cass by the arm as she started past him. “What did she say?”

“Nothing that concerns you.” She tried to shake off his hand to walk around him.

“If she said anything about me…”

“Don’t flatter yourself. She has more important things on her mind at the moment. Now, if you’ll excuse me-”

“The doctors said she’d probably be ready to leave by the end of the week. Just so you know, I’m taking her home.”

Cass turned back to him. “Why?”

“Why? Because she’s my wife, that’s why.”

“Oh. You finally remembered.” Cass walked past him and left the room.

“She needs to be home. She needs to be with her sons,” David called to her from the doorway, but Cass refused to turn around.

Rick fell in step with her and they walked toward the elevator.

“Where’s the fire?” he asked.

“Any place but here.” Her breath was coming in little, short puffs. “Just get me out of here.”

He led her to the elevator and took her arm when the doors opened. He punched the L button and leaned against the side of the car, studying her face and wondering what Lucy could have said that had unnerved her. They reached the lobby and she stepped out of the car as soon as the elevator doors opened. She headed for the exit to the parking garage as if fleeing a burning building.

Rick kept pace with her as they neared his car. He unlocked it with the remote when they were still ten feet from it, and once inside, he turned on the ignition, but didn’t put the car in gear.

“Are you going to tell me what she said that has you upset? Did she recognize the man who attacked her? Give you any clue as to who he is?”

Cass shook her head. “No, she didn’t say anything like that. She’s having trouble speaking, you know, because of the bruising to her throat. But she said… she said…” Cass cleared her throat and appeared to be attempting to collect herself. “She said that while he was attacking her… while he was attempting to rape her… the entire time he was strangling her, he was calling her Jenny.”

“Jenny?” Rick frowned. “What the hell does that mean?”

“Rick, my mother’s name was Jenny,” Cass said softly.

“I remember. You showed me the memorial at the bird sanctuary.” He appeared puzzled. “But there are lots of women named Jenny. I can see why it might rattle you a bit, but-”

“I told you my mother was murdered. I don’t think I told you she’d been strangled. June 1979. Twenty-six years ago.”

“Twenty-six…” Rick frowned. “In 1979. The same summer the Bayside Strangler started his run here. Jesus, Cass, are you telling me she was one of his first victims? Don’t you think you could have mentioned this earlier?”

“No, she wasn’t. At least… no. Well… no.” Cass was clearly confused. “The man who killed her… killed my father… my little sister… he was arrested. He was tried and convicted.”